Sad in Eastern West Virginia

[K11white37]

Eastern WV/Northern Virginia has so much potential for great off-road trails. With the Monogahelia, George Washington National Forest and Sleepy Creek WMA (23000 acres) yet very little opportunity for off-road trails to go out and ride. I understand it will never be the caliber of out west, but anything is better than nothing. If I were to try to approach lawmakers etc. on increasing the availability of these trails does anyone have any tips on how to go about this? Basically how to start up a lobby to have these types of amenities. Thanks!

 

[Del Albright]

From my experience with trails like the Rubicon, the first step is to gather the troops and get a band of brothers behind you/the cause. Start a "friends" type group/club/coalition (informal) and find out just how many folks are like-minded and want the same thing. Something like Overlanders of the Monongahela, or Friends of the George Washington, or whatever. You have to have numbers before politicians will listen. My old website is a bit of a dinosaur, but the info is solid. Here are the steps to starting a group:
http://www.delalbright.com/Articles/coalitions.htm

Get a "group" going here and on the socials. If you have to broaden out to cover more ground, that gets a bit tricky but is possible. perhaps your area of interest in Eastern West Virginia is close enough together that you can have a generic, large group something like: "Overlanding Friends of EWV." Hope this helps. BTW, the formula has proven itself over and over in dozens of trail areas/states.