Referee's Meeting

February 16^th, 2005

Royal Motel, Vacaville, CA

Meeting called to order at 7:43 p.m. by President Dave Pickett

Roll Call: 11 of 30 Clubs in Attendance

Minutes: Corrections to January’s Minutes noted as follows:

Page 5, first bullet should read as follows: Review of current mileage and expense allowances for District 36 Officers and proposed mileage and expense allowances for 2005.

Page 5, second bullet: clarification that this expense will be funded from the LAO account, not the District 36 general operating account.

Correspondence:

Jill Patterson received a newsletter on transponder scoring and brought it in to share.

Ralph Lee reported: Thank you notes were sent out to Top Oil and Joe Leonard for their attendance at the Awards banquet; Joe Leonard replied back that he really enjoyed attending the banquet, in particular talking with the youth riders and he hopes to be invited again.

Dave Pickett reported: Condolences go out to the family, associates and friends of AMA Congressman Joe Klugg: who lost his life after suffering a massive heart attack. Joe was very politically active and hard working on behalf of Motorcycling and will be greatly missed.

Committee Reports:

Cross Country: Steward Duane Scott reported:

Ų Prairie City GP: 586 entries, this was the first use of the new transponder scoring system all went well. It was very muddy; there were 6 reported injuries 2 were transported to the hospital. No protests. Next race will be the Old Crow on March 6^th.

Ų Still looking for someone to take over as the B/C series steward. We still have some bugs to work out with the way the race results are posted to the web-site, James Davis and the web-master are working to get that all together for the new system.

Youth Cross Country: Jim Nelson reported:

Ų Prairie City GP was a record turnout for the youth series with a total of 214 riders. 27 50’s, 123 C riders, 36 A/B and 28 beginner women.

Ų Pete Francini voiced concern with spectators consuming alcohol in the pit area. All pit crews and spectators need to be reminded that for safety and insurance purposes alcohol is not allowed in the pit area.

Women: James Davis reported:

Ų Prairie City GP 28 beginner women, 10 B and 18 C women entered all finished with no injuries reported. The women said that the Polka Dots had a fantastic course and did an excellent job of sweeping.

Enduro: Steward Jim Peacock reported:

Ų Next event scheduled is the Quicksilver National, due to the abundance of rain the Clear Creek area is closed to all riding. The decision will be made 9:00 am Saturday whether the area will be opened on Sunday to run the National. Information regarding the closure status can be obtained on the Clear Creek conditions Hot-line: 831-630-5060.

Youth Enduro: John Davis reported:

Ų Next event is the Wild Piglet on March 12^th. There has been a new event added the Silver state Family enduro on September 10^thin Nevada at Moon rocks.

Dirt Track: Ralph Lee reported:

Ų Work is in progress to implement a computer program to calculate series points. The schedule is up to date on the web site. There is one more possible date change waiting approval from Lodi MC.

AMA/Congress: Ed Santin reported:

Ų Through the work and recommendation of District 36 the State of California has donated a complete sound testing kit to AMA Pro Racing for use during this year. Experimental testing was done at Anaheim 2 and 52% of the teams did not pass a 102 decibel limit. Teams had a lot of work to do in order to meet with mandatory sound testing requirements which began with the San Francisco Super cross. For the Outdoor series this year at Hangtown we will have voluntary testing, with testing becoming mandatory in 2006.

Banquet: Duane Scott reported:

Ų We need to set a date for the 2005 Banquet as soon as possible. Last year we had some trouble reserving a January date for the facility, the Polka Dots switched their date for the PCGP to accommodate the 2004 banquet. The Polka Dots would like to note: For 2006 racing season they would like to return to their traditional date which is MLK weekend.

Newsletter: Jill Patterson reported:

Ų Newsletter issue #8 will be dated April 1^st. The submission deadline will be March 5^th- this is the final deadline for everyone. We’ll shoot for a mailing date of March 25^th to see if the USPS can get them delivered closer to the April 1^st date. If event flier pages are reserved by March 5^th, they must be submitted by March 8^th.

Ų Wayne Halozan posts an idea for the newsletter regarding LAO issues. If we could target just one issue requiring rider involvement in each newsletter; including addresses and instructions, whether it be a meeting to attend or a letter to write. With the circulation of the newsletter we may be able to gain a lot more help through rider involvement.

Rulebook: Randy Patterson reported:

Ų No new proposals. Half of our current supply of 2005 rulebooks has been distributed.

Ų Rulebook chairman needs a better way of updating the club information listed in the rulebook. For future: rulebook chair needs access to club charter information received at the sanction meeting. Club web sites and email addresses would be a good addition to the listing.

Membership: Jill Patterson reported:

Ų 573 February renewal notices have been mailed out. 477 cards have been processed since January 19^th. 2 new life memberships; one was a raffle prize won at the awards banquet.

Ų Membership applications from the PCGP were received 4 days after the event and were the most accurate and complete set of applications I’ve ever received! Awesome job Polka Dots!

Ų Class stickers have been made for the clarification of women’s classes and youth who have sportsman cards. As renewals, number changes and advancements get processed all riders this applies to should have the stickers on the back of their sportsman card.

Ų We are still getting a lot of riders who try to self-advance or demote their classification when they sign up or renew their membership. The stewards and I are watching this much more closely. Notices are being mailed to remind these riders that they can be disqualified, lose trophies and series points etc. if they are caught riding in the wrong class.

Sanctioning: Steward John Davis reported:

Ų Schedule changes to note:

ü Lodi TT scheduled for April 16^th has been changed to a Motowest ST event at Sandhill.

ü Lodi TT event has been added to the schedule on April 23^rd.

ü Outlaw HS scheduled for April 2^nd & 3^rd has been cancelled.

ü Banana Slug HS scheduled for May 15^th has been cancelled due to weather conditions. Possibility of re-scheduling the event in June or July.

ü Little Polecat Enduro scheduled for April 24^th has been re-scheduled to May 15^th.

ü Silver State Family Enduro has been added to the schedule on September 10^th.

Ų Reminder that it is the Club/Promoters responsibility to contact the AMA with any/all date changes.

Ų Attention Clubs and Promoters: Sanctioning Steward will be taking over the distribution of membership application books. Contact John Davis email: sanctioning@ama-d36.org

Director of Competition: James Davis reported:

Ų Sanctioning packets should be available to Clubs/Promoters via the District web-site by the end of March.

Ų Suspension letter has been mailed out as voted by the Competition Committee in the January 19^th, 2005 meeting. As recorded in the January 19^th meeting minute’s page 3, new business, first bullet.

LAO: Dave Pickett reported:

Ų Hot topic: Concerning State environmental mandates on Federal Lands. Congressman Pombo has sent a Congressional letter via fax to the Office of Administrative law as well as the OHMVR Division. Issuing a congressional cease and desist order concerning state environmental mandates on Federal lands. Under this order The Wildlife habitat protection plan/HEMP could possibly be eliminated. Congress is saying that what the State is doing may be illegal and against the Constitution.

Ų Concern exists with State Parks OHMVR Division failure to follow proper public planning processes on Grant Regulation Drafts governing off-highway vehicle access to federal lands administered by the U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management. BRC Attorneys have issued a letter requesting an extension to the 5 day public comment period on this subject matter. A copy of the letter from BRC Attorneys follows these minutes *.

DUE TO PRESSURE FROM OHV ORGANIZATIONS LIKE #36, THE EMERGENCY GRANTS REGULATIONS SUBMITTED TO THE OAL - OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW- THE REGS WERE PULLED BY THE OHV DIVISION. THEY WERE RE-SUBMITTED FOR ANOTHER 5 DAY PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD, WHICH ALLAOWED GROUPS LIKE BRC, #36, CNSA, ORBA, AMA AND OTHERS TO COMMENT. BILL DART/ORBA TOOK THE LEAD ON THE SUBMISSION.

(***LATE NEWS***) THE OAL REJECTED THE EMERGENCY REGS ON 3-1-05 AS SUBMITTED.

Ų Outlaw cancellation- this was not 100% at the fault of the BLM. There were some miscommunications and some required paperwork that was not filed in a timely manner. Have been working with the BLM coordinator to put together a plan for next year. Upon review of past District 36 BLM permits from different events, there are a lot of differences in the BLM requirements. Both the BLM coordinator and the State BLM Chief seemed acceptable to the idea of putting together a District 36 BLM event manual to standardize many of these requirements. KEY HERE IS THAT THE FEDS ARE BROKE, AND A NEW "COST RECOVERY PLAN" IS BEING IMPLEMENTED, AND DIRECTION IS NOT VERY CLEAR ON HOW TO DO IT. #36 QUESTIONED THE COSTS INVOLVED OF HAVING 4 BLM LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS, AT OVERTIME RATE, DOING SOUND TESTING AT OUR EVENTS.

Ų Clear Creek is still being monitored by our partners the BRC. Some legal movement continues to go forward.

Ų Georgetown / El Dorado National Forest issues have popped up yet again. A federal judge has made rulings both pro and con concerning OHV activities. More to come on this. CERA member Rick Guidice is heavily involved in this.

Ų Governor Arnie has pulled back his efforts to oust 88 commissions and boards. Efforts were underway to remove the anti-OHV commission by the OHV community and allow OHMVR Division more latitude to implement "on the ground" programs benefiting OHV overall. A slow, difficult and problematic commission continues to stifle OHV efforts for more "fair" grants to our partners in the USFS/BLM/ and regional partners like Santa Clara County.

Ų Prairie City OHV Park continues to move forward on the 210 acre acquisition. This title is in State Parks hands now, and the environmental requirements are in process. Sacramento County lost this one because of the diligent efforts of #36. Once the quarry operations cease, OHV will be able to start moving in. Negotiations netted the revenues of the quarry on a percentage basis, and these monies go to the OHV division. This will lower the overall cost of the acquisition.

Ų Many of you may not know that State Parks, and OHMVR Division, is under a full blown state audit. Auditors now have permanent residency inside the Division with locked doors. A massive effort is underway to identify any "funny business" and I am pleased to say #36 was very involved in securing this audit. Previously, Senator Morrow had contacted #36 LAO for opinion on this prior to moving forward. Deer Creek Hills, a huge issue with OHV users, was at the forefront of this investigation process, and #36 has cooperated fully. The audit continues. Scuttlebutt is the auditors discovered that former Deputy Director Dave Widell, was working at the Resources Agency, but getting paid by the OHV division. LAO has screamed loud about this and we want our money back. Shortly after OHV partners and #36 raised this issue, Mr. Widell resigned. Word on the street is he works for Ducks Unlimited now, but remains unconfirmed.

Ų The Feb 4th Grants preliminary meeting was a pathetic joke. For 7 hours, discussions were held to allow OHV Division to move forward on cleaning up the Grant Submission process. Last year, 13,000 pages of documents were submitted (mostly environmental) and again, the Environmentalist majority on the Board (4-3) voted to do nothing. So it appears that the OHV grants process for 2005-2006 years will be a mess like last year. #36 is heavily involved in the States Grant Process as many of our events take place on BLM/USFS land. Old timers will remember Bill Dart, my predecessor, spent hundreds of hours a year working closely on each and every grant submitted. We do this to insure that Northern California (#36) gets its fair share of funding. This can be difficult because of population concerns, and thus the LA basin receives more hard dollars.

Ų Again, Restoration Grants will get the lions share of OHV monies. 7.2 million of the 18 million available. Efforts to steer this AWAY from active OHV areas continues. Problem is outlaw/renegade off roaders that go into non-legal riding areas, create resource damage - and thus, OHV dollars pay for the repairs. This is usually NOT a problem with organizations like #36 because we do not do this. It is the new riders that either don't know, or don't care, or worse yet, do it on purpose. This single issue is the hardest thing to overcome because the telltale damage is clearly evident. New fines are going into effect, and if caught in wilderness or non-riding areas, the penalties are expensive and in some cases a felony and confiscation of vehicle, as well as punitive financial expenses involved in the repair. More on this later.....

Ų Many issues are going on at once. State, Local and Federal are hitting OHV from many directions. Defensive postures are the norm over being pro-active in securing more opportunity..................

Dave Pickett LAO

Legislative Activist: Ken Heuser reported:

Ų In January Barbara Boxer introduced a new Wilderness bill entitled “the Northern California Costal Wild Heritage Act” this bill would include 300,000 acres here in Northern California and affect Siskiyou, Trinity Alps and Kings Ranch areas, possibly closing many of our riding areas. The BRC has requested hearings on this bill and also on the re-introduction of another bill entitled” The Wild Sky Wilderness Act.”

Ų When the Endangered Species Act was passed into law in 1964, we were told that it would only affect about 9.1 million acres. The Act currently affects 106 million acres with more in jeopardy every day. Senator Pombo, Chairman of the House Resources Committee is pushing a bill to re-write the Endangered Species Act. Senator Pombo justifies that under the current act; of the 1,800 plants or species placed on the endangered list, only 20 have shown any recovery. Senator Pombo has gained approval of representatives from both houses in support of the bill to re-write the endangered species act.

Good of the Body:

Ų Ralph Lee reported on The Lodi Grape Festival scheduled for September 15^th through the 18^th. The theme for this year’s festival is Sports and a whole building is being considered for a Motorcycle display. Anyone who would like to be involved with such a display contact Ralph Lee.

Meeting Adjourned at 9:00 p.m.

Competition Committee Meeting

Meeting called to order at 9:01p.m. By Dave Pickett

Roll Call: 16 of 55 members in attendance

Comment from the President regarding content of the Competition Committee Meeting: only Competition related issues are to be discussed within the Competition Committee meeting. The Director of Competition shall conduct the Competition Committee Meeting. At this point the meeting was turned over to Director of Competition-James Davis.

Rulebook:

Ų Tabled from last month: Do we need to make a rule change proposal to include C riders for work points or not give them work points in the future? Cross Country Steward to put committee together to address this and report back. Duane Scott reported this will be included in a proposal for the B/C series rules to be presented at a later date.

Ų Tabled from last month: Rule proposal to be re-addressed after more research has been done on compliance with AMA rules and how the change would affect rider contingencies. Original proposal: Change the 200cc class for Cross Country races to read 200cc/250F Class. This class would be defined by up to 200cc two stroke and up to 300cc 4 stroke bikes. This change would go into effect for 2006. Discussion and suggestion of keeping the 2 stroke class as is and adding a small bore 4 stroke class. (Tabled to next month)

Ų Discussion for possible rule change/enhancement: Riders knowingly participating in any event while a “bad check” issued to the District remains unpaid, shall have all points earned at any event removed from them, and shall have cards pulled for 6 months if more than 2 events have been entered with a #36 “receipt” only as proof of membership while owing funds to # 36? After discussion Director of Competition offers his assistance in extreme problem cases and will pull the cards of individuals continuing to participate in District events until all debts have been cleared.

Meeting Adjourned at 9:22 p.m.

Board Meeting

Meeting called to order at 9:35 p.m. by President Dave Pickett.

Roll Call: 7 of 9 members present. Missing members are: Al Fitch and Scott Reynolds.

Banquet: Duane Scott reported:

Ų Financial report passed out for review. We really need to find out the date for the 06 Hollister National so we can set the date for the 05 banquet and reserve the facility. President will contact the AMA and see if he can get any info on next year’s schedule.

Newsletter: Jill Patterson reported:

Ų Rich Fern posts a question regarding why our chartered Clubs and Promoters do not receive a copy of the newsletter. Motion by Dave Pickett to include District 36 chartered Clubs and Promoters on the mailing list for the Newsletter, which is mailed out quarterly. Vote 6-0 in favor (motion passed)

Rulebook: Randy Patterson reported:

Ų Discussion on ordering more rule books- consensus is hold off for now.

Old Business:

Ų Tabled from last month continued discussion on District 36 uniforms. Proposed uniforms available: Polo Shirt, Pit Shirt, Jacket, Hat. Proposed distribution: All committeemen will receive 1 polo shirt and 1 hat. After committeemen have attended and helped at eight events in a one year period they will be eligible to receive either a jacket or a Pit shirt at no cost. Stewards and the Board of Directors will receive one of each at no cost. Any variations to these guidelines would need Board approval. James Davis brought in examples of polo shirts and cost. Motion by Dave Pickett to approve distribution of District 36 Officials apparel as proposed. Vote unanimous (motion passed)

Ų Tabled from last month Jill Patterson to report on cost to print raffle tickets for the LAO fundraiser. Checked into sponsor ship for the tickets one which is commonly seen is a large pizza parlor chain, but they do not sponsor any type of political cause, so we would need to find a motorcycle related company who may be interested in sponsoring the tickets. 2 samples presented: majority prefers the ticket with multi-color printing. Jill will need more information regarding prizes etc. before she can get started designing the ticket. Motion by Dave Pickett to allocate funds from the LAO account to purchase raffle tickets. Vote 6-0 in favor (motion passed)

New Business:

Ų Shall #36 increase the "bad check" fee from $10.00 TO $25.00 or more- effective immediately? Discussion. Motion by Duane Scott to raise District 36 bad check fee to $25.00 effective immediately. Vote 7-0 in favor (motion passed) Bad check fee will need to be changed in the rulebook and a sign should be posted at up coming events notifying participants of the change.

Ų Dave Pickett reported invitation received from our Lobbyist for the annual Legislative Introductory Luncheon held at the Sutter Club, the invitation includes up to four additional representatives from District 36. Motion by Dave Pickett to allocate funds from the LAO account to cover the participation fee for District representatives to attend the above mentioned luncheon. Vote 7-0 in favor (motion passed)

Ų Ralph Lee reported: Spoke with Dennis Malony from Top Oil and prospects look really good that they will continue their support for the 05/06 season.

Ų Discussion of advertising a Bounty for the return of the Top Oil and Lodi MC banners removed in error from the banquet. Ad will be placed in the April newsletter: a $50.00 bounty will be paid for the return of each of the two banners in good condition-no questions asked.

Ų Duane Scott reported: Margie Ghione from Hollister Hills Off-road Association has inquired about purchasing District 36 bar code scanners, which are no longer being used. We will need to check into what there value is and also verify that the Enduro series is not interested in using them for their scoring program. (Tabled to next month)

Ų Duane Scott reported: Update on new cross country scoring equipment, financial report passed out for review.

Ų Review of our Moose contract and discussion regarding Club event fliers and advertising Clubs may include on their fliers. President will contact Moose for clarification

Ų Jill Patterson reported: Carter Fisher would like to nominate 2 new Dirt Track committeemen. John Curry and Mike Martin. (Tabled to next month) Board would like Steward and nominees to be present.

Ų Rich Fern brought in communication from Jim Matheson regarding our website. He has changed DSL companies causing a savings to the District. He would also like to switch web hosting companies which will provide us with better service and access, at an increased cost to the District. Randy Patterson will contact Jim to find out more information on the cost of the new server. (Tabled to next month)

Meeting Adjourned at 11:25 p.m.

Respectfully submitted, Sharon Scott

*What follows is a copy of the letter submitted to OHMVR Division and OAL by Attorneys on behalf of the BRC:

MOORE SMITH BUXTON & TURCKE, CHARTERED

Attorneys and Counselors at Law

225 North 9th Street, Suite 420

Boise, ID 83702

Telephone: (208) 331-1800 Fax: (208) 331-1202

February 16, 2005

Via Facsimile to 916-324-1610

Julie Horn

Grants Administrator, OHMVR Division

P.O. Box 942896

Sacramento, CA 94296

Via Facsimile to 916-323-6826

Office of Administrative Law

300 Capitol Mall, Suite 1250

Sacramento, CA 95814

RE: OAL File No. 05-0211-05 E

Dear Ms. Horn and OAL:

We are writing to express our concern regarding the above-referenced proposal, which may be interpreted as illegally shifting management authority over federal land to the State of California. Specifically, it appears that the California OHMVR Division may be seeking to promulgate regulations governing off-highway vehicle access to federal lands administered by the U.S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management. On behalf of our client the BlueRibbon Coalition, an Idaho Nonprofit Corporation with numerous members who reside and recreate on state and federal lands in California, we urge you to cease any efforts within your offices having the effect of supplanting federal laws and regulations governing recreational access to federal lands.

The Property Clause of the United States Constitution establishes the fundamental power of the federal government to manage lands owned by the federal government. Recent attempts by anti-access groups to circumvent this core principle by diverting this regulatory authority to state government presents a clear violation of this fundamental authority. Not only federal caselaw, but a December 24, 1999, California Legislative Counsel Opinion have affirmed this simple principle.

The structure of federal land management systems, such as those administered by the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, are prescribed by the federal government in strict land management rules. Changes to OHV access must be analyzed and implemented through public planning processes which fully comply with the National Environmental Policy Act and applicable substantive law. There are specific and narrowly defined circumstances in which the federal government will defer to state jurisdiction, such as where Congress has specifically authorized state regulation, in establishing and enforcing hunting and fishing regulations, and penalties for some state-defined criminal activities on federal lands. None of these limited exceptions is applicable here.

We urge you to maintain oversight of these basic principles and appropriately confine the activities of the OHMVR Division. At a minimum, the Division should extend the period for public input in the subject matter addressed by the above-referenced file so that these issues may be more fully analyzed by both your offices and interested members of the public.

Thank you for considering our input on this important matter.

Sincerely,

MOORE SMITH BUXTON & TURCKE, CHARTERED

Paul A. Turcke

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