** The Georgia Bounty Runners received an email alert tonight from the NFS that the trail system is closed due to weather conditions. As a result, as of right now , Wed. June 11th evening 9pm we're on hold for our Meet & Ride at Beasley Knob due to recent heavy rains in the Beasley Knob area which may have made the trails too slick. This will now require further evaluation on Fri by the Forestry Service personnel to determine the stability of the trails. As a backup we're finalizing a nearby contingency plan. We will communicate in 24 hours our plans for the Saturday SFWDA Meet and Ride. Please check our SFWDA web page, Facebook and your emails for updates. Thank you. **
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Recent News
Thanks a lot for your help and for the help from Southern and all of the OHV volunteers we appreciate it a lot!!!!"
We are conducting a very important survey to help us pave the path for our future association membership. Your B.O.D. is working hard to maximize your benefits for 2015 and we want your opinion. Your feedback is extremely important to us!
The National Park Service (NPS) is developing an Off-Road Vehicle (ORV) Management Plan/Environmental Impact Statement and regulation for Cape Lookout National Seashore (CALO)
The following are our notes from the BOD discussion on Tuesday, May 27, 2014:
The Friends Of Uwharrie organization is now officially a Federal 501(c)(3) with an effective date of exemption of November 7, 2012!
This was a special event this year. A combination of many fresh and exciting things happening all together that made this 11th annual the biggest and best TrailFest events yet. The weather this past weekend was the best I can recall at this event. The rain held out, the temperature was great, and the trails were well primed for us all at Adventure Off Road Park.
Here's a great resource we just have to share with all our friends and members.
They provide access to thousands of trails on the American Trails website!
Over a million people a year use our website as their trailhead for all types of information and trail connections. Check out the thousands of trails and resources on our site. Learn how to volunteer, design, build, maintain, advocate for and secure funding for trails, and much more! Find information about great trails in each State!
For all their latest news and events check our a copy of their newsletter click here;
National Recreation Database Trail maps can be found here.
http://americantrails.org/NRTDatabase/index.html
All State Trails can be found here;
http://www.americantrails.org/resources/statetrails/index.html
Your Association Introduces the - SFWDA GRANT Program
The Southern Four Wheel Drive Association Board of Directors approved during the on-line meeting on April 21, 2014 the introduction of the SFWDA Grant Program. This new initiative by your association has been established for the benefit of its members and their OHV areas, both public and private. The SFWDA Grant initiative is our largest annual project committing a significant portion of the association net income to this program. The SFWDA Grant initiative supports the membership and regional projects focused on our core missions – Conservation, Education and Recreation.
The grant funding will be $5,000 maximum per grant project and requires a cost sharing portion from the requesting party in order to qualify. SFWDA has committed $30,000 in 2014 to fund this first year of the Grant Program. The decision process includes the application process; Grant scoring based on the goals and scope of the project; and a commitment to maintain best operating practices for a period of three years. Additionally SFWDA will post signage designating the project as a SFWDA Grant project. The application and decision framework for the program is posted on our association web page at www.sfwda.org.
Additionally the SFWDA Grant can be used as part of the matching funding requirements of the state Recreational Trails Program in your home state. As part of our development of the SFWDA Grant Program, your association has detailed the available RTP funding by state and the appropriate links to the RTP sites for additional information. This information is included in the SFWDA Grant application document.
SFWDA recently awarded our first Grant to the Friends of Uwharrie (www.friendsofuwharrie.org) and the Carolina Trail Blazers (www.carolina-trailblazers.org) for Gravel Access Road improvements within and to the Uwharrie National Forest. The SFWDA Grant will purchase 125 tons of gravel to be applied by a U.S. Forest Service Contractor during the annual maintenance of these roads. This grant addresses access issues of OHV, hikers, kayakers, fishermen, bird watchers, mountain bikers and equestrian users of this valuable national land asset. Additionally, SFWDA has offered a challenge to the office of The Honorable Richard Hudson, Member of Congress, 8th District to match our grant award and address the needs of his constituents.
Future projects will include Tread Lightly training and educational segments; trail development on OHV private lands; access and trail improvements within both public and private areas; trail maintenance; site improvements including restrooms, etc.; and other great ideas from you, the members of SFWDA.
We are pleased to share this tool with you, the supporting members of SFWDA, and empower you with a funding mechanism to address critical projects in your home areas. Please work with your public and private land partners to create a dynamic result and address critical conservation, education and/or recreation needs to continue growing our OHV sport.
Please feel free to direct any questions to Ray Stanley, ray.stanley@sfwda.org; Brian Overly, brian.overly@sfwda.org; or Flint Holbrook, flint.holbrook@sfwda.org.