“The Trail from Here to There”
That’s the title of a new documentary about the Western Slope ATV Association. You won’t see it on television. In fact, outside of Colorado, few off-highway vehicle (OHV) clubs and riders have watched it. But given how good it is, that is likely to change real soon.
WSATVA, based in Grand Junction, created the video to share its story of trail stewardship on the public lands of western Colorado. “We’d be doing work projects out in the middle of nowhere and perfect strangers would come along and see what we were doing. Some even asked to help,” said Steve Chapel, club president. “All of a sudden, we had people joining our club because they saw what we did and wanted to get involved. We started thinking that, if this is happening on a local level, what would happen if we put out some information that reached beyond our area.”
Chapel and others came up with the idea to create a video to document what the WSATVA is all about. At first, not everyone shared their enthusiasm. Some questioned the value of the project and spending money on it, including the state’s grant committee. But with a little more explanation about its potential to offset negative press about ATVs, the project gained widespread support.
A grant was secured. Filming took place over the course of a year. The final product is a 30-minute documentary of such high quality, it could serve as a template for OHV clubs across the country. “It wasn’t made to make money,” said Chapel. “It was made to improve communications and the image of OHV recreation, and replace the negative headlines. The documentary has opened a lot of eyes. The reaction from groups that have seen it is all positive, including the Forest Service and BLM (Bureau of Land Management). We’ve had people saying ‘this is great.’ ”
“The Trail from Here to There” was written and produced by Gen9Productions. Owner Mara Ferris is an award-winning, independent filmmaker. “In all her work she tries to tell a story,” said Chapel. “We just told her we wanted to show what we’re all about. She shot a little bit of everything that we did, ended up with hundreds of hours of video and condensed it to 30 minutes.”
The documentary moves along smoothly and keeps your interest, combining riding footage shot on scenic trails and cut to music, with footage of members having fun working on trail projects, then talking on-camera about all that the club does. Individual chapters present the club’s history, the diversity of its members—300 from all walks of life—its work on safety education, search and rescue, recreational riding and trail etiquette, and trail stewardship. Also appearing on camera are representatives of the state’s Division of Parks and Wildlife, the BLM and the Forest Service. “The thing I really value about Western Slope ATV club members is that they get involved,” says Katie Stevens, BLM Field Manager, in the video. “You can count on them to show up. They help us understand how they use their public lands and what they value about them. That information helps us do a better job of managing the public lands for the public that we serve.”
“You Have To Tell Your Story. If You Don’t Nobody Knows.”
Each year, says Chapel, WSATVA members volunteer about 7,000 hours of their time working on trail projects on federal land, many that benefit enthusiasts of both motorized and non-motorized recreation. That’s not bragging, he adds, it’s just good public relations. “A lot of people think the club just rides around. That’s a very small part of it. A lot of these trails that we maintain, we are 100 percent sure that if we wouldn’t have been out there doing what we do, some of those would have been closed by now.”
Chapel says the main takeaway of the video is that OHV clubs should publicize both the fun rides they hold on public lands and the hard work they do to protect their right to ride. “We used to go out and work quietly, and do things on a small scale,” he said. “We got to thinking, nobody knows about this and nobody’s paying any attention to it. We have to start blowing our own horn. So we started doing that on a small scale. We got a few members really interested in contacting the media, and introduce themselves to them and keep after them. An outdoor writer who used to write bad articles started writing good articles about OHV recreation, and now anytime something comes up about ATVs he gives me a call and asks for information.”
See it on YouTube. Or get a DVD to show at club meetings and trail conferences.
WSATVA recently posted “The Trail from Here to There” on YouTube. DVDs are also available—perfect for showing at OHV meetings and trail conferences—for just $3 each, plus shipping. You’ll find an order form on the club’s website.
To see the 30-minute video on YouTube, go to:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBJc12daz5w
To see a 2-minute, 20-second trailer version on YouTube, click on:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShoXqumYIik&feature=player_embedded
There are also links to the video on the club’s website and Facebook page. For more information on WSATVA—named 2014 “Club of the Year” by the National Off-Highway Vehicle Conservation Council (NOHVCC)—visit: http://wsatva.org/.
