Apr. 21, 2008 – ATV Digest

Yamaha Recalls 7,800 Rhinos

Yamaha Motor Corporation U.S.A., in cooperation with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), has recalled 7,800 Rhino side-by-side vehicles due to risk of brake failure, the CPSC said in a notice March 25.
The recall affects model year 2008 Rhino YXR450 and YXR700. The brake caliper on the left front wheel could have been made incorrectly, resulting in brake fluid leaking.
The part can cause a loss of braking and control of the vehicle. No injuries or incidents have been reported related to this recall.
Affected models were manufactured in the United States and sold from October 2007 through March 2008 for between $8,300-$12,000.

Suzuki Celebrates 250,000 ATV in its Georgia Facility

Suzuki Manufacturing of America Corp. produced its 250,000 ATV, which was celebrated by employees and officials invited from the city of Rome, Ga., Floyd County and the Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce, according to an article in the Rome News Tribune.
Member of the Suzuki ATV Race Team Dustin Wimmer drove the red KingQuad LT 250 off the line. The ATV will be in Suzuki’s lobby of Technology Parkway. It will eventually be sold to one of Suzuki’s 48 worldwide corporate customers for promotional purposes.
The ATV was signed by every employee in the plant as well as Randy Quick, chairman of the chamber’s board of directors and general manager of South 107; Rome Mayor Wright Bagby and four race team members.

Washington State Governor Vetoes Off-Road Trails Ban

Washington state Gov. Christine Gregoire line-item vetoed a measure that would have banned all construction of new trails or facilities for off-road motorized recreation for at least a year, the American Motorcyclist Association said in a press release April 2.
The measure, which had been inserted in the state budget in a last-minute maneuver without the opportunity for public debate, would have prohibited the state’s Department of Natural Resources from building or expanding trails or facilities for off-road recreational vehicles until July 2009.
It was one of seven sections of the proposed capital budget that Gov. Gregoire vetoed.
“Gov. Gregoire recognized the unfairness of this measure, which would have cut off funding for off-road motorized recreation while continuing to collect taxes and fees from off-road vehicle users,” said Nick Haris, AMA Western states representative. “Gov. Gregoire heard from hundreds of concerned citizens who were unhappy about the way the Washington state legislature approved this ban in the dark of night, and she did the right thing by reversing it.”

KTM Announces New Product Line Manager

KTM North America announced Chris Vogtman as its new Specialty Vehicle Product Line manager.
Vogtman, who spent four years with Affinity Group, started as an associate editor, and he moved his way up to managing editor of ATV Sport and ATV Magazine as well as editor of UTV Magazine.
As the Specialty Vehicle Product Line manager, Vogtman will cover the direction of all KTM Sport ATV and Husaberg-related projects. Vogtman will manage the KTM Sport ATV and Husaberg product lines from initial production, to arrival on dealer floors, out on the race track and more. In addition to his in-house duties, Vogtman also will serve as the KTM representative for the Specialty Vehicle Institute of America.
“KTM is a well-respected company with product and racing heritage that coincides with my values and passion for the industry,”?Vogtman said in a press release. “I feel my background in the powersports industry is a perfect fit for the Specialty Vehicle Product Line Manager position and a company like KTM that is continuously growing in all aspects of the powersport market. I look forward to the challenges ahead.”

Recreation Attorneys Team Up for ‘Rescue Tellico’ project

BlueRibbon Coalition (BRC) and United Four Wheel Drive Associations are teaming up with their attorneys in the fight for project “Rescue Tellico.”
This alliance, in cooperation with Southern Four Wheel Drive Association, is an historic undertaking. The groups will bring together their collective expertise, resources and other strengths derived from their grassroots memberships.
Collectively BRC and United Four Wheel Drive Associations represent more than half a million recreationists committed to responsible and sustainable vehicle-based recreation on public lands.
“BRC and UFWDA have worked together on other access protection lawsuits in the past, but this effort combines our attorneys and resources into a single litigation team,” Greg Mumm, BRC’s executive director, said in a press release.
Rescue Tellico is a program to protect off-highway vehicle access in the Upper Tellico OHV area located in North Carolina, a premiere OHV destination throughout the eastern seaboard and Southern U.S.

OEM of Electric-Powered Vehicles Now Publicly Traded

Electric Moto Corp. Inc., a U.S.-based designer, manufacturer and retailer of electric battery-powered motorcycles, scooters and ATVs, announced that the company is now publicly traded under the symbol Pink Sheets: EMOT.
The company is preparing for the soon-to-be announced launch of its first retail line of all electric off-road motorcycles and is also gearing up for the launch of its electric-powered ATVs and scooters.
“The newly public Electric Moto Corp. already has a long history within the electric vehicle industry,”?Ely Schless, CEO of Electric Moto Corp., said in a press release. “We have put together a team of executives, designers and engineers with decades of experience developing cutting edge battery systems and engine technologies for powering the eco-friendly, fun vehicles of the future.
“The first generation of demo bikes we produced has gotten rave reviews from everyone from the automotive press to some of the top professional motocross riders from around the world. We keenly understand that we had to produce a bike that could compete head to head with the top gas-powered bikes out there if we wanted to be taken seriously.”
Electric Moto Corp.’s rapidly expanding line of electric vehicles is powered by the very latest generation of long-life batteries.
The company has established distributors around the world in the United States, United Kingdom, France and Germany/Austria, and it is already talking with other parties about additional distributorships in about 10 more countries.

Eldorado Forest Releases Long-Awaited Travel Plan

The Eldorado National Forest has released its Travel Management Plan, which is one of the first final decision documents promulgated in California under the Forest Service’s Travel Management Rule.
The final plan includes some concessions to off-roaders but represents a significant loss in riding territory.
The new decision, signed by Forest Service Supervisor Ramiro Villalvazo on March 31, follows a tumultuous history of planning, controversy and litigation. Upon signing the decision, the Forest Service met with numerous stakeholder interests, including recreation groups and representatives from the state OHV program, to review its designation of approximately 1,847 miles of roads and trails for motorized vehicle use.
The designation represents a reduction to the historic public route network of 2,342 miles of national forest system roads and trails and more than 500 miles of user-created routes. However, the mileage in this alternative represents an increase of about 300 miles as compared to an alternate plan in the Draft Environmental Impact Statement.
Supervisor Villalvazo stressed at the meeting that this base route network is a beginning and a foundation for future travel planning on the forest.
He also made a commitment to a volunteer trail program and to work with the recreation community to provide a quality recreational experience in the forest.
“This product is far from perfect, but many users will appreciate the agency’s effort to provide for meaningful trail mileage, to reduce the wet weather closure period and to commit to working with the OHV community and other publics on the implementation and improvement of the plan,” said Don Amador, Western representative for the BlueRibbon Coalition.
Because of the various appeal and administrative timelines associated with this project, implementation of the decision will likely not occur until January.

BRP Partners with ATV?Freestyle Team

BRP announced a partnership with Akraix, one of the most respected names in the world of ATV freestyle.
Akraix will use Can-Am all-terrain vehicles in all of its shows, and the company will perform its aerial tricks using the DS 450TM sport ATV.
“This is a great way to showcase the capabilities of the DS 450 and is also a great way to reach new audiences,” said Del Bohlman, product, media relation and racing manager for Can-Am ATVs. psb