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Because of the unfortunate term used in the opening paragraph, we asked the
Gazette to print a correction. It was important to us that the editor (and
anyone else who read the article), realized that this choice of words
puts off-highway driving in a bad light. This correction was printed the
following week:
Though this correction went a long way to address the "boony crashing" comment,
I felt that the other people who were interviewed in the original article
made some unfair comments as well, so I sent the following letter to the
editor, which was printed in the Goldstream News Gazette on Wednesday,
March 8, 2000.
March 1, 2000
Dear Editor,
In regard to the "Off Road Riders seek Park Place" article on page A3 of the
February 9, 2000 edition of the Goldstream News Gazette, I would like
to clarify a few points:
In the first paragraph, the sport of off-highway driving is referred to as
"boony crashing". This term is disparaging and inaccurate. I appreciate and
thank you for the correction that was printed the following week in the
February 16th edition.
However, in the February 9 article, Ray Zimmerman, who advocates the acquisition
of the Harbourview area for the Sea-to-Sea Greenbelt, suggests "there are an
awful lot of roads and logging trails in the country to tear around in". This
is simply untrue.
First, there are no publicly accessible lands where people may drive vehicles
in Victoria, on the Saanich Peninsula, or for that matter, anywhere east of Sooke.
Currently, Harbourview is the only local place not subject to closure. All the
logging roads around Sooke and Shawnigan Lake are controlled by lumber companies
that can close them at will, and frequently do, for extended periods of time.
Second, our sport is not about "tearing around". We are called the Island Rock
Crawlers. As you can tell from our name, we like to crawl. Our society has a
strict code of conduct that serves to protect the environment by promoting
responsibility and the "Tread Lightly" principles. We are not interested in
tearing up anything, and I consider this an unfair generalization. We are
working hard to change the public's perception of four-wheeling by setting a
good example, educating those new to the sport, and organizing annual clean-ups
of the areas we frequent, including Harbourview.
The Island Rock Crawlers' aim with respect to CRD parks has never been to
convince the CRD to allow motorized vehicles in all their parks. Instead, our
proposal was if CRD was to gain control of the Harbourview area, would they
consider relaxing the vehicle ban for just that one area? Harbourview has a
long history of vehicle use, and is currently used by many recreational
groups: equestrians, hikers, bikers, fishers, and four-wheelers, all of
whom have co-existed peacefully for decades. The Harbourview area is already
home to a beautiful provincial park called Sooke Mountain Park. As well as
promoting continued access to this park, we would like the surrounding area
to be a prototype for Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) parks in British Columbia.
In Alberta, Washington, Oregon, and indeed, across North America, the OHV
park concept has proven to be a successful way to manage and preserve land
for recreational activities, while the funding for them is generated through
levies on Sport/Utility Vehicle sales and licensing. We welcome support from
any other groups interested in the establishment of an OHV park near Victoria,
and we'd also like to hear the public's opinion of this concept.
Thank you,
Rob deLange, President
Island Rock Crawlers Four-Wheel Drive Society
I would like to thank Keith Norbury and the Goldstream News Gazette
for their interest in publishing the original article, their prompt attention
to our concerns, and for printing my followup letter. Now I would like
to hear your opinions on the matter. Please e-mail me at irc@can4x4.com.
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