Message from the President of the NBATVF, Roger Daigle

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1 Message from the President of the NBATVF, Roger Daigle Ladies and gentlemen, there have been many positive and important decisions and actions taken by our governments at both, federal and provincial levels. This will greatly help, support, and improve our ATVing sport in the future. Again, for the second time in recent years, the federal government announced a funding program coming from National Trails Council (NTC) to help our clubs in building and maintaining their managed trails. Because of the complexity to apply and to be successful in having certain club project qualify for these funds, it was decided through the Board of Directors (BOD), that the New Brunswick All-Terrain Vehicle Federation (NBATVF) will use these funds for signage for all of the Federation clubs. Some are very expensive to buy and to install, not many clubs use their limited funds for signs because they put more emphasis on building and maintaining trails. With this BOD s approach, all of the Federation s clubs will benefit equally from this project rather than having only a few clubs benefit, which is what happened the last time. It took many meetings and many very long hours of discussions and negotiations with the parties involved, but finally, for the first time ever, the New Brunswick Government is getting on board in launching a funding program made available through the Department of Tourism, Heritage and Culture, earmarked in helping ATV clubs in the province. Those funds will be made available for trail development and for infrastructure projects that are part of a club s provincial trails system and or part of a club s tourist designated trails system. We are very excited and it is a big step forward for us as a Federation in helping our clubs continue to grow and expand their sport. Another new funding program will come from the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). DNR has always been there in the background, if I can you use that term, helping our clubs that have trails on DNR land, helping them with a limited amount of funds, fixing severe washouts or fixing structures like bridges deemed important to all trail user groups using DNR land. This new funding through DNR will help ATV clubs that have trails on DNR land, and assist them to improve and expand their trail system based on a formula and with projects that would meet predetermined qualifying requirements. Again, this is new funding that was not available in the past. For the first time ever, the New Brunswick Government has made commitments to better our sport and has done so by making these two new funding programs available. To some it may not seem like a very big amount, but at least it is a good start and a welcomed beginning with more funding to come in the future. Inside this Issue President s Message 2014 AGM & Convention New Region Boundaries What s New? CASI Program On a different note, in the past few months we were successful in negotiating and receiving from DNR many new sections of roads and also trail sections on some rail beds, agreed upon and given to some clubs. There are many more being looked at and being studied at the moment and I am confident we will receive many more. This will help those clubs to expand their trail system network and for some clubs, it will make it possible to make a connection with their neighbouring clubs. We are also working with the Department of Transport and Infrastructure (DTI) in getting Highway Usage Permits (HUP) to make it legal for ATVs to ride on some sections of roads to link some trails together from point A to point B. It is looking promising but it is also a long process to go through. We received a few for some clubs thus far; others are being studied and will be accepted soon. We just have to be patient and if your clubs have applied for a HUP a long time ago and have not received anything yet, please let me know or the office know and we will check to see where they stand. We are moving forward and are looking ahead at getting more HUP to access accommodations within our cities, towns and villages all over New Brunswick. Many businesses in our New Brunswick communities have a thirst for our tourist product and are eager to profit from our New Brunswick All-Terrain Vehicle Federation Inc Hanwell Road, Unit C Hanwell, NB E3C 1M Fax: nbatving@nb.aibn.com Follow us on Facebook! address, please, send us an at nbatving@nb.aibn.com and you will be removed or added from the outgoing contact list. Latest Federation News Side by side from Arctic Cat HUP & Trail Applications Trail Permit Committee 1

2 sport because they know, understand and realise that we are a four-season tourist product and there are profits to be made. The time has come for our local governments, and for our cities and towns councils, to start to seriously look at the Federation and their local ATV clubs as a real tourist product. The time has come for them to start working with us and making the necessary changes to their bylaws and giving us access to their roads, side roads and streets and making it legal for ATVs to drive on these corridors to access their motels, hotels, restaurants, fast food outlets, convenience stores, grocery stores, garages and gas stations. We do have many people from our neighbouring provinces coming to our summer and winter events just to enjoy our trail systems and they would stay longer if they had access to those accommodations. When the regular tourist season ends for most of those businesses they might have new business. I personally call this new ATV tourism product: The Pure Gold Family Experience, and believe me, it s starting to catch on. We are talking about families being able to ride their ATVs year round, making reservations at any time of the year and coming back year after year; but these tourist benefits will never happen within our communities if we do not get legal access to these accommodations. The first communities that realise that there is a tourism potential in ATVing and that move forward and take action to make it happen within their community, will be the first to profit and benefit from it by making a name for themselves in the ATV tourism world. For those who take a wait and see approach, they stand to lose a lot and will have a hard time trying to catch up in this fast growing tourist industry called ATVing. The sooner a community makes a commitment the longer and the more benefits this community will receive and they will benefit for many years to come while their surrounding communities play catch-up. We have all heard the old saying build it and they will come. Well, we have built it and yes, they are coming in great numbers, but they cannot and are not staying very long. We need to address that and for those communities that will take action first, they will be the ones that will have the glory of being the first ATV friendly communities and that is where the people will go and stay to enjoy their favourite sport. In closing, I believe that by continuing to build a good relationship with our governments, we will be able to move ahead and eventually they the government will have a sustainable and a profitable tourism product that will build a solid base for us and help us to keep growing and to better our sport. Also I believe that building a good relationship with our other trail user groups and their organisations, the NBSCF and Sentier NB Trails, will go a long way in getting a better product for all groups involved. By working together we will accomplish more than anyone could have ever imagined, better trails, access to accommodations and more funding from our governments to better all sports. Also, as most of you already know, we have revived the Federation s Jamboree this year. It was held in the Sussex area at Adair s Wilderness Lodge in Shepody this past weekend, August 2nd and 3rd, and it was a great success. We received much positive feedback and there were no complaints. It seems everyone who participated had a great time. We plan to continue sponsoring the Jamboree and to bring it to different parts of the province every year. If your club, and maybe even neighbouring clubs, have access to enough accommodations and can host this event, please let us know. We need to know as soon as possible as to where we could host it so we can start preparing now. As you can see, we are working very hard to bring your sport to a higher level and we are seeing progress. On a final note, I am hoping for better days ahead in ATVing here in New Brunswick and I will continue to work hard to better your sport. Best regards, Roger Daigle 2

3 2014 Annual General Meeting Highlights What s New? CASI Program As in previous years, the Federation held an annual meeting and convention at the Rodd Miramichi Hotel & Resort in April. All but 4 of the 57 clubs sent delegates who had the opportunity to network and discuss important issues facing the Federation. The Federation would like to thank guest speakers Andrew Langille of Spectra Energy, Robert Fawcett with J.D. Irving, Denis Richard and Brody Sisk of the Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement Unit, Kirk MacDonald from the Department of Natural Resources, and Wes McClean, MLA for Victoria/Tobique. Special thanks go to Saunders Equipment for funding the Saturday night social gathering. NBATVF 2014 Elections For the positions of President and Secretary The Federation held it s yearly elections. This year, Roger Daigle is elected as President of the Federation, and Marc Hache is re-elected as Secretary. Congratulations to both! New Region Boundaries ATV Riders Safety Courses are offered throughout the province. Register or register a child by clicking on the linked button at the top of the page reading "ATV RiderCourse, register here" or go directly to The Canadian AQCC Safety Institute (CASI) - a division of the All-Terrain Quad Council of Canada (AQCC) - has joined forces with the ATV Safety Institute (ASI) and the Canadian Off-Highway Vehicle Distributors Council (COHV) to offer the CASI ATV RiderCourse. The hands-on, half-day CASI ATV RiderCourseSM is conducted by licensed CASI Instructors. The course offers students an opportunity to increase their safety knowledge and to practice basic riding skills in a controlled environment under the direct supervision of a licensed Instructor. Region boundaries have been modified this year and some directors have been transferred to neighbouring regions. Clubs moved from Region 7 to Region 6: Club # Rockland Mud Runners ATV Club is now Club # Club # Route 101 ATV Club is now Club # Club # Rusagonis ATV Club is now Club # Club # York County West ATV Club is now Club # Club # CFB Gagetown ATV Club is now Club # Program highlights include: Most current ATV safety program in Canada Most hands-on ATV safety program available Based on the well-recognized ATV Safety Institute (ASI) program Program enhanced with input from Chief Instructors across Canada Supported and endorsed by the Canadian Off Highway Vehicle Distributors Council and through the Council - all ATV major manufacturers Directors of Regions 6 and 7: Region 6 Region 7 Ken Legge Norm Major David Hatt Trail Permits Kevin McInnis John Carson It was decided at this AGM that trail permit prices will remain the same throughout the next year. A Trails Permit Committee has been formed to study the question and will return with recommendations at the AGM Members from each region have been assigned to this committee in an attempt to have opinions and ideas from all areas of the province. Costs for the CASI ATV Riders Safety Course Program 2014 The cost of the course is $100. However, the New Brunswick All Terrain Vehicle Federation offers the following discounts: 80% rebate for children from the ages 6 to 15 30% rebate for children from the ages 6 to 15 with non-member parents 50% rebate for NBATVF members ATV Rental: There is a cost of $35 for the use of a Federation s machine during the course. Please note that we only have models available for children. 3

4 Arctic Cat & G Bourque NEW Trail Applications and Highway Usage Permits The New Brunswick All-Terrain Vehicle Federation Inc. would like to extend special thanks to Arctic Cat and G Bourque for their generosity this summer by lending the Wildcat Trail side-by-side vehicle to the General Manager, Jacques Poirier. Since late June, Jacques has taken the vehicle on the trails and to club events. Some of these events include the launch of the National Trails Coalition (NTC) program, the Directors ATV run on June 29, and the Jamboree on August 2 and 3. The vehicle runs great! Thank you Arctic Cat and G Bourque! Highway Usage Permits (HUP) Eastern Charlotte ATV Club: Route km Club VTT du Nord-Ouest: Power Road, Edmundston 0.8 km Club VTT Acadien: Route 11 to reach Restaurant Chez Iza 0.3 km Nashwaak Valley ATV Club: - Cross Creek Road 4 km - Fraser Road 202 m - Lower Durham Road 899 m - Wellington Road 4.2 km - Zionville Road 4.9km Latest Federation News Dairytown Trail Jam 2014 Success all the way The Sussex Valley ATV Club and the New-Brunswick ATV Federation are very pleased with the results of the August 2nd and 3rd provincial Jamboree. 246 participants registered to the first-ever provincial Jamboree organized by your federation. I had great fun and was excited by the tourism discoveries I made over the week-end, starting by the Martin Head Beach. People of Sussex are fortunate to have those attractions on their doorstep, claims Roger Daigle, president of the New-Brunswick ATV Federation. I wish to thank Broadview Power Sports for giving me the opportunity to ride one of their CFMOTO side by sides. Thanks to CMI CFMOTO Canada for donating the grand prize of an ATV, and to Randy and Emely Broad, owners of Broadview Power Sports for their donation of a $ worth of prizes, which included the pre-delivery insurance (PDI). Terry Pellerin of Shediac won the brand new CFMOTO C Force , as shown in the photo. Trail Applications Voyageurs de Sentier du Haut- Madawaska: Region Mont Quisibis 25.8 km Club VTT Pe ninsule Acadienne: Grand-Anse to Chez Yogi Club VTT Acadien: Chez Yogi to Route 11 Nashwaak Valley ATV Club: Durham Bridge to Youngs Brook 12.2 km Pineline to Cross Creek 41 km More Highway Usage Permits have been received by the office and will be distributed shortly. Congratulations to all their clubs for their new trail sections. President Daigle also wishes to thank people from Adair s Wilderness Lodge for their great hospitality. 4

5 Trail Permit Committee Chair of committee. Jim McGregor Region 1. Gaston Pelletier Region 2. Vacant Region 3. Denis Pinet Region 4. Ethelbert Godin Region 5. Fred Hicks Region 6. Roger Thompson Region 7. Stirling Kent NBATVF Sponsors 5