2017 Spring Adopt-A-Trail Clean up run

[Max]

It's almost Friday! Who's excited to go 4 wheeling this weekend?

[redneck23ms]

I am not able to make this run as I will be out of town am d that is partially why I have stayed out of the discussion. But to me making this like that a requirement will only push more people away from this group. I have posted probably at least a dozen times on here looking for people to go wheeling and I bet I can count on one hand the number of times somebody from here has gone. It's not just here that is like that either. And it's not that I don't care about trails either as I pick up trash every time I'm out wheeling. Just my 2 cents. Belittling people who can't make it isn't a way to boost participation.

[Swank1975]

I'm excited to go wheeling. When I ran Barbour fork last year it was my in 2011 Nissan Frontier Pro4x double cab short bed. I needed 4 low and I had Goodyear wrangler tires. No lift, stock tire size, etc. My passenger front bumper below the fogs got a few scratches into the plastic that were barely visible. Everything else went well. It's a great trail.

[javaman34]

Unfortunately, I work on Saturdays. I will have go catch the run in the fall if I can.

[Brian]

I think it’s more a case of expectation management.

If there are members on here that believe the cleanup runs are of the utmost importance, good for them. They obviously can believe whatever they want, and be as passionate as they want as well. But to expect that all members should feel equally obligated about it as they do is presumptuous at best or woefully arrogant at worst. There is no need to question other member’s integrity, motives and priorities without even a clue or insight to any of it.

How about not assuming the worst of members that aren’t jumping through their butt to take part in something others personally deem crucial. Why not show a little respect for people’s priorities in their personal lives and be open minded enough to at least consider the possibility they just can’t make it. No one here should feel they need to justify their involvement or lack thereof in member runs, events, donations or other contributions.

By any measure this is a great group of people. From my perspective, members here have had nothing but the best intentions when helping each other, giving back to the 4x4 community and stepping up to give in whatever way they can; when they can. This, not negative insinuations about each other is what keeps people coming back and new people at least giving this group a try.

[redneck23ms]

Well said Doink. You said what I was thinking a lot better than I put it down

[Eagle6]

I know I'm one of the new guys here so. What you are experiencing is not unique to this group or any other group I know of. Nor is it unique to the motor sport either. I do other things that have clean up days and such and belong to organization that have 1000s of members and watch 20 show up.

But first off I would say don't cancel and don't postpone. For those that said they would show up, they may have given up something else to do this and it is not fair to them to cancel now and leave them hanging for both.

Second it doesn't matter how many show up. We will get done what we get done. If we don't finish it is still better than it was before.

I know it is a simple philosophy, but live this for yourselves, just live up to your own expectations and screw the others.

[Java]

Nothing personal. I didn't call anyone out by name, I have never met most of you and don't have any interest in personal conflicts with anyone who chooses to be offended and chooses to respond. You picked you, and if you think I meant you specifically you are wrong. You don't owe me or anyone else any excuses, based on participation I say most people on this forum do not genuinely care about this and math agrees with me.

Many people have been members for years and have never once volunteered. It says Volunteer next to your name if you ever have, even once, participated in the spring or fall clean up runs, the Caravan for Kids, or the Turkey Run. There have been some other small things over the years, but those are standard. If you volunteered for anything since 2011 when I joined it says Volunteer next to your name: That's for 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014. In 2015 it changed to Volunteer 15, and in 2016 Volunteer 16. If you've ever participated you have that, otherwise I don't know where you get off being offended.

It doesn't make you a bad person, it just means you have not been motivated to clean up trails with this forum. Ever. Like one of the sigs on this forum says, we make time for what is important to us. If you haven't made time in all the years you've been on this forum, then it's not important to you. Basing that on lack of participation over multiple years, not anything personal. Again, never named anyone, you took it upon yourself to be offended. However, I'll be happy to apologize to anyone who was offended this Saturday at the cleanup run.

[nickpgoodman]

Hypoid previously posted:

[Swank1975]

Hey I did the turkey run this year in my Rover. How do I get my volunteer status.

[ColoJeeper]

And I led that turkey run in a black charger......

[Hypoid]

nickpgoodman previously posted:

[Hypoid]

Swank1975 previously posted:

[Max]

Paul previously posted:

[Max]

Hypoid previously posted:

[Chris]

Regardless of this discussion I have to back out.

[Swank1975]

**** happens. I spent most of this evening getting the downstairs ready for sanding and restaining next week. We have to move out Sunday for 6 days. So if I'm going Saturday i've got to have most done by tomorrow. The son is coming over Sunday to help carry the bigger stuff before we head to our hotel. Dishwasher leaked water and damaged our floors so we filed an insurance claim.

[Jackie]

I've done Devils Canyon a few times for the clean-up runs over the years and it's a lot of fun!... I MAY have done Barbour Fork once (but if I did, it is a blur to me out of fear - It may have been a different trail)! I faintly remember being spotted over a huge "hole" without flopping and was greatful! I hope to make it this weekend and will run DC again.

Contrary to popular belief, smaller groups for clean-up runs can be more "enjoyable" in smaller groups because you can actually spread out a little bit and get some work accomplished yet still have time to chat with the members and get to know each other. With larger groups, you find yourself stuck in a long line and all the trash and damage has already been taken care of by the folks in front of you...

I remember one year the small group I paired up with decided to stop for a lunch break and ended up putting out a large unattended camp fire on a very windy day. Many of the license plates on the campers cars were from out of state. We cleaned up their mess and put out their fire, then drafted a nicely written "love note" for them. No damage was done. No threats or bad language - just a clear message that their behavior in our state was unacceptable and we told them why.

When I first joined this group about 8 or 9 years ago it was limited to "X" number of people in order to make it feel more like a family. You either participated in stuff or you were let go to make room for another anxious member. Now it is open to many who just take up server space. Some post an intro and then you never hear from them again. What a waste of time for the admin and for the rest of us for simply reading about their super beefed-up garage trophy that we never get to see.

Everyone can volunteer in some small way. Maybe you show up for the clean-up run, the Turkey run or the X-Mas Caravan for Kids, or you can donate to the causes. Some people volunteer in other ways (to the group or it's individual members exclusively). To me, it's not what you give or how much you give, it's the fact that (in one way or the other) you "showed up for the party". It doesn't need to be often - just once in a while will do!