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2018 Year in Review

  2018 has been a great year for Southern Four Wheel Drive! Our Associaions Membership continues to grow, now with more active individual Members, and supporting Business than we have ever before. Not to mention the Premium Members who all agree it’s great to give a little more to get a little more, and as a SFWDA Premium Membership you cant go wrong.

  This past year we also witnessed changes to a few local OHV parks. While one private park may have closed, overall the future is very bright for OHV enthusiasts in the Southeast. For example there’s a public 1,300 plus acres OHV trail project known as Southern Gulf Off Road In Coalmont, TN already underway now with funds from the federal funded, state administered grant program know as RTP or the Recreational Trails Program.

  We at SFWDA are also very excited to announce we have secured our Dixie Run and Trailfest venues and dates now for 2019, and they’re going to be AWESOME! Speaking of events, we have several amazing Meet & Rides planned again through the seasons as well as a return to Daniel Boone Back Country Byway in the fall for the fourth year in a row.

                 Mark your calendars now!  

  Through the success of our very own SFWDA Grants program we have already awarded over $76,634 in 2018 to a variety of very deserving recipients.  This Grant program has been a huge success for us overall and has been instrumental in the funding of a variety of projects and free educational courses. 

          2018 SFWDA Grant Overview

            Total grants for 2018 $ 76,634

     2016-2018 SFWDA Grant Overview

                          2016-$ 33,411

                          2017- $40,194

                          2018- $76,632

Grand total $150,239 as an organization over the last three years.

To learn more please visit our Grants web page today.

   As technology continues to advance we will continue to strive forward along with it by providing our members convenient access to whats most important like current events, education topics and best practices, educational videos, and even streaming web meetings so that everyone can stay involved no matter where you live.

   After a productive Annual SFWDA Meeting on December 1st  in Tennessee we have some proud new Board Members to acknowledge. 

 Our 2019 SFWDA BOD is as follows:

President - Ray Stanley

Vice President - Jay Bird and Aaron Roddy

Treasurers - Doyle Punches and Ted Macias

Secretary - Aimee Darnell

Director Membership - Lucas Weidner and Bo Rosa

Director Conservation - Kendall Flint Holbrook and Robert Parmer

Director Education - Alan D. Sweney

Director Recreation - Pete Mier, Amy Dyan Clayborne and assisted by Shawn Moose Halstead

Director Communications - Walter Shafer and assisted by Dallas Pass

Director Business Development - Cristina Campanella

We have a great team appointed for 2019-2020, but we can always use more help from volunteers like yourself. 

 

         Let’s rock forward through 2019! 

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SFWDA Contributes $2,500 Grant to help support "Crawling for Reid" event in 2018

$2,500 Grant Awarded to "Crawling for Reid" event

 In case you missed in the Fourth Annual Crawling for Reid event on Saturday, March 17th at Adventure Off-Road Park in South Pittsburg, TN. Many SFWDA members were in attendance and our President Mr. Ray Stanley presented this very special $2,500 grant to the event organizers and the Underwood family in support of the "Crawling for Reid" event. SFWDA can't express how much we love to support great causes like this one. We hope to do the same again next year, and maybe we'll see you there. 

 Overall we're told they had a very successful event with over 2000 people in the gates and $178,000 dollars raised for Reid Underwood and his Doctor’s (Dr. Jakub Tolar) research foundation at the University of Minnesota.  

"This brings us one step closer to raising the money we need to cure the devastating disease called Epidermolysis Bullosa (EB).  We could not have the success we did without the generous support and contributions from our vendors and off road organizations such as SFWDA.  We are truly grateful to have you on our team and hope that you will continue to be a part of this growing off-road event. We have exciting plans for 2019 and are working hard to get your products in front of even more people in the off-road community.  So, thank you again for partnering with us and we look forward to working with you again in 2019." - Bobby Underwood

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A look back at 2017 and wishing all a Happy New Year for 2018

What's your Association been up to.......

Video from meeting archived on Facebook from our LIVE stream

SFWDA Membership Status

  • Membership overall is up over 10% on a year to year bases.
  • Active club members: 2018 / up 16%
  • Individual members 375 / Premium members 223
  • Clubs 36/ up 12.5%
  • Business members: 62 /up 19.2%

Social Media (Dec. 2017)

  • Facebook Group: 7,006 / up 13%
  • Facebook Page 1,000 Likes + since mid 2017 inception 
  • 500+ followers for Instagram
  • 300 followers on Twitter

Third party awards for BOD Members

  • UFWDA Four-Wheeler of the Year Award:  Flint Holbrook
  • ORBA/SEMA Recognition Award for Outstanding Commitment:  Walter Shafer and Pete Mier

Regional Land Use Updates

Brent Galloway: WindRock – state of park activities

  • Additional cabins to be built on WR land and within the next 2 months online reservation will be available.
  • Building new parking lot next to T2- will be open for special events.  
  • WRP be getting into the concert business.  Spring 2018 will be timeframe of first event.
  • Currently has a Shooting range- shoot your own or rent.
  • A new restaurant on site:  WR Grill   
  • WR Bike Park- leased area for a prof mountain cyclist.   WR is diversifying. 
  • WR ATV Club is involved with trail systems since inception.   Disbanding at end of year.

DBBB Mountain Springs Rd Update:

  • Another hearing schedule on December 6.  We are trying to show 15 years of public use of roads. 
  • Goal to move forward to receive from the court system a Summary Judgement by Feb 2018.

New dialogues about the Blackwater Watershed.

  • Aaron Roddy- Carburetor Hill update:  
  • Early this year Forrest Service has closed it to OHV traffic due to landslide. 
  • Next few years to start process to do a land swap with the Forest Service and County. 

Uwharrie National Forest update: updates by Flint Holbrook and Ray Stanley

  • New District Ranger Michael Spisak  
  • USFS approved Interpretive OHV Trail system developed by Tread Lightly, 4Wheel Parts and Path Less Traveled, Inc.
  • Construction of expansion of Baldwin Lake Trail starting mid-December and will be RTP funding.

Beasley Knob OHV

  • GBR GA RTP grant complete.  The ongoing maintenance continues.
  • Problem area at Nicholson Gap, the potential solution may be re-route.
  • GBR proposed adding camping to Satterfield Station area.
  • Jay Bird discussed new Rock Garden at Beasley Knob.

Tennessee Commissioner’s Council on Greenways and Trails

  • Update provided by Bob Yarbrough: 
  • Things are more positive than in years past.
  • Currently in the planning stage which includes the study and surveys of OHV usage

NFS Region 8 Southern Region Recreations Resource Advisory committee

  • Ray Stanley has seat on committee
  • First meeting was elections, setting up structure and by-laws.

South Carolina Recreation Trail Program

  • Updates provided by Flint Holbrook
  • Rebecca Smith is the point of contact.
  • Trick N Traction looking for RTP grant to provide help to land area.

GA Recreation Trail Program Ken Sutz GA RTP committee

  • Completed a 2year cycle for RTP grant funds.
  • Estimating roughly 2million dollars available for motorized RTP grant funds.
  • Pre-application phase in progress and Phase 2 scheduled to commence April 2018
  • GA NR Projects for 2017
  • Conassuga Ranger district OHV trail Maintenance $70K
  • Bush Head Shoals State ATV Park $1.1M ATV project
         Proposal had public resistance with NEPA issues; the project was not approved.
  • GA DNR Projects for 2018, preliminary $2M to develop OHV trails.

Overview on Land Use:

Adventure Off Road Park:

  • change of ownership in 2017  
  • Committed to hosting Trailfest May 3-6 2018
  • Troy discussed conversations with Shawn and his continued commitment to the AOP.

Big Creek Rocks LLC Uwharrie NC

  • Mapping by Cartotracks/ campsites built / entrance gate and fencing installed / road repaired and shelter pad rocked.

Busted Knuckle Off-Road Park, Stevenson AL

  • Monitor progress of BKOR / hosting SFWDA M&R March 3, 2018

Coalmount TN Southern Gulf Off Road Park:

  • Roger Theurer provided status of construction.
  • TN RTP grant – purchased 1340 acres with an additional RTP grant for Construction
  • Started the project in 2010; $528K construction grant coming in.
  • Will need volunteers to help complete this park.  
  • Will be requesting SFWDA grant to help maintain water issues and road access.
  • Target is to open in end of year 2018.

Golden Mountain Park – Sparta Tn

  • Property is for sale and was reclassified for tax purposes.
  • GMP loss significant monies in recent periods.
  • DR31 & DR32 on GMP calendar, but no firm commitment if property sells.
  • Review findings of Event Planning Committee in the 2018 SFWDA calendar building portion of meeting. SFWDA will continue to monitor progress of any potential investors.

Tread Lightly updates

Al Sweeney:  Master Trainer Regional training projected schedule

  • July in Troy NC
  • November in Greenville SC   
  • Support of UNF Interpretive trail and SFWDA Educational Initiatives
  • Membership discussion on cost, time and requirements for having a Master Training Class with individual clubs in the Southeastern area.

ORBA and UFWDA

  • ORBA association of motorized offroad related businesses formed to promote and preserve off road recreation.
  • One Voice: explanation of the purpose and what is stands for “one voice to our government leaders”

2018 Grant opportunities:

  • Regional Tread Lightly Training  
  • Educational Videos
  • Organizational Support
  • Charity Contributions
  • UNF Mapping Project

2018 Organization support

Charity Contributions

  • Grant request to continue annual commitment to $1K each to TreadLightly, UFWDA, ORBA, and BRC
  • Grant request to donate $2500 each charity Crawling for Reid and 4 wheeling for a Cure

UNF Interpretive Trail System Project

  • Scope: create printable map of 173 miles in UNFTS which includes OHV, hiking, mountain bike, horse back and Kayaking trails.  Key part of Treadlightly interpretive trail project.
  • Start Dec 2017 / projected complete date May 2018
  • Total cost $10,954 / Carolina Beach Jeep Go Topless contributing $5954/4 Wheels Parts $10,000
  • Approved $5K SFWDA grant to help support

We are optimistic for a very successful and prosperous year ahead in 2018.


Hope to see you on the trails soon. 

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