About N O R A

[JeepTales]

This is from an email that was sent to me by:

NORA

It was in an email that came to me from:

Pearse Umlauf
VP/General Manager JJUSA

www.nora-usa.com

I have been reading a few of the posts regarding the National Off-Road Association (NORA). I am encouraged that so many of you are interested in what the organization is all about, and I would like to provide more information about our purpose by responding to your comments.

As Vice President of Jeep Jamboree USA (JJUSA) & Mark A. Smith Off-Roading, Inc. (MASOR), I have seen countless trail closures over the past 11 years, some directly affecting our JJUSA program. Many of our all-time favorite Jamborees like Daniel Boone and Mohawk Trail have been closed down and many of the trails at other events such as the Appalachian Jeep Jamboree have been closed with little hope of reopening.

NORA’s Mission Statement is as follows:

To unify the off-road community by providing information and tools,

To influence state and national policy-makers on legislation where access to public lands by off-highway vehicle (OHV) users are at risk,

To provide economic / environmental reports, and legal action support; and use all lawful means necessary to carry out these objectives.

So what is NORA and how is NORA different from other OHV organizations?

1) The Ability to Lobby & Opportunity to Re-Educate:

NORA has been created as an S-Corp. (for Profit Corporation) with the primary objective of lobbying on behalf of the off-road industry. Organizations like United Four Wheel Drive Association (UFWDA), Blue Ribbon Coalition (BRC) and most other land access organizations are designated as a 501 C3's (non-profits) which are legally unable to lobby. NORA estimates that the off-road industry is responsible for contributing over $100 billion dollars annually to the US economy and for employing over 1 million Americans. Yet, the off-road industry does not have a lobby to represent our interests as a whole. As a community, we have failed to recognize the power of what successful lobbying could accomplish for the OHV community. Many groups who oppose OHV activities conduct powerful and effective lobbying efforts. It is unreasonable to expect our elected representatives to support our goals when all they hear is the opposing side of our story.

The opportunity to re-educate policy-makers and state representatives on the economic impact that OHV users have on communities nationwide is critical. Guided only by opponents of free access, law-makers have adopted policies that have contributed to the closure of thousands of miles of public land across the country. NORA will re-educate government officials on these important issues.

2) Economic Impact Reports:

One of the first major goals of NORA is to complete economic impact reports in all 50 states, identifying the direct economic impact of the OHV community. Once completed, these reports will be freely available on the NORA web site for anyone to download. In 2003, the State of Arizona completed an economic impact report focusing on the OHV community. The report found that OHV enthusiasts were responsible for generating over $3.1 billion dollars into its local communities, which represented $187 million dollars in annual state tax revenue and supported just under 37,000 full & part-time jobs. By similar measures, OHV enthusiasts spend 14 billion dollars annually in California. While these figures are impressive, we need nationwide numbers to support our objectives, and until now, no one has studied the nationwide economic impact of OHV enthusiasts.

3) Environmental Impact Reports:

A majority of the environmental impact reports that target OHV usage on public lands have been funded by large, well organized groups who oppose such use. Fighting only sporadic local opposition, these groups have been very successful in restricting OHV access in many areas. The OHV community needs to fund non-biased environmental impact reports, facilitated by third-party organizations that give us "real" feedback. Do we have an impact on the environment? If so, what are the solutions to decrease our impact?

4) ”Strength In Numbers”…Unification of all User Groups:

The Sierra Club is successful, in part, because they have a large, well organized group of individuals who support their beliefs and efforts. Sierra Club membership is estimated to top over 750,000. By comparison, the OHV community doesn’t have a single land access organization representing more than 15,000 individual members. NORA plans to create an umbrella organization, which is able to generate a minimum of 50,000 - 100,000 active members. We will work to unite all motorized user groups regardless of user type (four-wheel drive, ATV, motorcycle and snowmobile) in the name of our common goals and needs.

5) Support Existing Organizations:

NORA is also designed to support the efforts of OHV organizations like UFWDA & BRC. NORA is currently working with these two particular organizations to highlight many of the ongoing land conflicts. NORA plans to tackle these difficult issues by using Action Alerts, which are emailed to individuals who are signed up to receive NORA’s free monthly eNewsletter. OHV enthusiasts can subscribe to these eNewsletters by visiting www.nora-usa.com, it's completely free.

6) Member Benefits:

The annual NORA membership fee is $29.00. Those deciding to become a member of NORA will receive hundreds of dollars in rebates, in the form of coupons, from a variety of off-road businesses, such as Goodyear, Hi-Lift, ARB, Jeep Jamboree USA, Teraflex, etc., just to name a few. These companies recognize the essential mission of NORA and support us through valuable offers and discounts offered exclusively to our members. Our goal is to give back to the individuals who are the voice of the OHV community.

7) Re-Brand the OHV Community:

Trail clean-ups, garbage removal, erosion control, trail maintenance, construction of bridges (over and around water ways), charity fundraisers, trails rides for the disabled and toy drives during the holidays are just some of the socially responsible activities conducted by OHV enthusiasts. This type of volunteer work usually goes unnoticed, while a small percentage of “bad apples” grab a majority of newspaper headlines with negative press. NORA plans to help re-educate the general public on the positive impact of the OHV community. We must effectively communicate the fact that we are not a threat, but instead an asset to local communities.

8) Clean-Up Our Behavior:

We are our own worst enemy. Just pick up one of the many national off-road magazines and you are likely see a number of non-Tread Lightly images including vehicles jumping in the air, flipped over in streams, spewing rooster tails of mud, etc. NORA believes that the behavior of about 5% of OHV users is usually the primary reason behind trail closures for everyone, including the 95% of us who practice off-road responsibility. Straying from designated routes is no longer an option. Below, I have included 3 articles (provided by Greg Machado * JeepTales) which highlight the bad press the OHV community has been receiving:

* http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/30/us...=1&oref=slogin
* http://www.cravenherald.co.uk/news/3...ck_down_walls/
* http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/nov2...-11-01-097.asp

NORA is all about creating an organization which meets the needs of individual off-roaders and serves the interests of all responsible off-roaders. For years, I have heard people say they want to get involved, but they don’t know what the next step is. They want to take action, by making a phone call, or by emailing or writing a letter, but don’t know who to call or who to write …so they didn’t do anything.

NORA will provide the tools and information for individuals such as these to get involved with land use issues and allow all of us to take action quickly and easily.

These are just some of the items that set NORA apart from other land access organizations. I hope that I have addressed your questions accurately and given you a better picture of what NORA is all about.

If you have any further questions, please email us at: info@nora-usa.com.

[Raven]

JeepTales,

I have no problem with the information your are trying to disseminate but do object to postings that collect information about our members and forum users. I understand that you may not be aware of the activities of links that you feel need a larger audience. I understand that we have a common goal of informing and educating the OHV community. I only ask you to be dilligent about posting links that may involve cookies that may reveal personal information about our members.

Thanks for your cooperation.

Thanks for supporting TMTC