Letter: Actions give ORV riders a black eye

This letter is addressed to the two young people living near me in Flamingo Heights. When I tried to stop you riding down Jemez Trail by standing in the middle of the road with my rake outstretched, you refused to stop and hear me.

The girl on the quad zipped around me and I yelled at the young man, “Ride up there,” pointing to the west where the Bureau of Land Management land has been opened to ORVs. There you can legally ride. We have an off-road vehicle ordinance and it is illegal to ride on our roads. Since that brief encounter on the road, you have done a great deal of damage to my property, destroying work I have done to cultivate the desert. What you have been doing is harassment and this is the kind of behavior that has given off-road riders a black eye and bad name, inspired hatred by many and forced us to get laws passed to stop you.

I personally have nothing against you riding, but not on Jemez Trail. From where you live you can easily ride up Starlight Mesa to Kickapoo and then up into the canyon on Tracy or Hondo. To ride on these roads to get to the canyon, though, you must go slow until you reach them.

Also, you may wonder why I haven’t cleaned up your mess. I’m waiting for the ORV code enforcement officer to see what you did because you were trespassing. I tried to give you good advice, yet you’ve torn up my property more than once. This area is where we always help our neighbor. I am willing to talk and am working in the front every evening if you care to stop by and discuss this.

Maryan Barkley
Yucca Valley

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Source: http://www.hidesertstar.com/articles/2010/06/05/editorial/doc4c09eceda8f0c581699456.txt

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