The Prince George ATV Club is one of 40 clubs in the province, with two more from Terrace and Fort Nelson about to come on board.
PG ATV Club member Jeff Mohr is in his third year as president of the ATV BC Association. With 2,700 members in B.C., it's his job to work directly with groups for the betterment of ATVing and all outdoor activities including motorized sports.
"It's all about safety, environmental stewardship and keeping the trails open to everybody," said Mohr, a retired CN Rail employee. "We now have the opportunity to promote tourism which gets more people out of their towns and communities and getting them outdoors. ATVing is also accessible and people who are less mobile can still ride and see things they wouldn't be able to."
Mohr and his wife Marlene fell in love in the off-road vehicle sport 10 years ago when Jeff's brother lent them machines.
"[On the rides], ATVing is a chance to get to know each other, it's like a big family," said Jeff. "We B.S., we laugh and we joke. It's just wonderful."
Prior to the PG to Wells three-day ride, the Mohrs spent four-and-a half weeks on the road travelling to Coalmont for an ATV poker ride June 28; a point-to-point poker ride hosted by the Kootenay Rockies club near Cranbrook; a GPS poker ride at Three Valley Gap through the Rockies west of Revelstoke and the week-long ATV BC jamboree in Summerland from July 15 to 20.
"That's the longest, single stretch we've ever done and we really enjoyed it," said Jeff. "Ten groups did that stretch."
The Prince George ATV Club hosted the ATV BC jamboree in August, 2011 and attracted 120 people from across the province, including Vancouver Island, as well as Alberta.
"We offered guided rides on three or four different trails that people could sign up for," said PG ATV president George Hohnisch. "Some hadn't been to Prince George before and some have returned since."
The PG ATV Club is a huge supporter of the Wells Wheels ATV Club. The two groups worked closely two years ago to open the connecting trail from Prince George to Wells.
"We look forward to working on future trail projects with the Prince George ATV Club," said Wells Wheels ATV Club past-president Dianne Andreesen, adding the Wells club is in the early stages of developing a trail network. "Our goal is to create as many multi-user trails as possible, [it] will open up more opportunities for all user groups, to work together to build a more sustainable trail network."
But there are challenges. The club's biggest road block has been the ability to get the ATVs into town.
"But we are working closely with the Ministry of Recreation, Tourism & Sports, our local recreational groups and the District of Wells to create a trail that allows ATVs to access businesses in Wells and Barkerville," said Andreesen.
The Prince George ATV club is also one of nine groups under the umbrella of the Tabor Mountain Recreation Society. With 400 km of multi-use trails that are used for sports such as cross-country skiing, horseback riding, mountain biking, snowmobiling, and ATVing, TMRS receives funding and donations in kind to improve, rehabilitate and maintain the existing network.
The trails are all on crown land in accordance to the Forest Practices Act.
Among the gems TMRS and the PG ATV Club collaborated on was the construction of the Jack Kinsey Bridge built across the Yamaha water hole west of the Yamaha cabin that the PG Snowmobile Club uses in the winter.
Funding was supplied by Western Economic Diversification, the Community Infrastructure Improvement Fund, Recreation Sites and Trails B.C., DWB Consulting and the PG ATV Club.
The steel truss bridge was donated by Forbes Construction and took three PG ATV Club volunteers only three days to build in October, 2013.
Membership
A yearly membership for the PG ATV club is $55 per person - $15 goes towards the club, while $40 goes to ATV BC. A family membership is available for $105 per year.
Anyone can also become a Friend of Tabor Mountain for $10.
Upcoming events
The PG ATV Club's next event is its annual poker ride Sunday, Sept. 7. Hands are available for $5 each. All proceeds go towards local trail improvements.
For information, visit www.pgatvclub.ca.
Elsewhere in the region, the ATV club in 100 Mile House hosts the Quad Squad South Cariboo Poker Ride on Aug. 17. For information, visit
http://quadsquadsc.webs.com/
