For those that do not know me, my name is Ben Napier, and I have been driving in the Ultra4 Series of Off Road racing in the United States for the last 18 months. As you may well know, the premier event of the Ultra4 series is the King of the Hammers, held in Johnson Valley, California. I got so into this racing I changed my life for it and moved across the world.
But Johnson Valley is not just the home of King of the Hammers. It is one of the few open public areas that people can drive their vehicles around in freely. Something that we do not have in Australia. Every weekend, families and friends are found out at the Hammers on all manner of contraptions, from stock jeeps to race vehicles, quads, rhinos and dirtbikes, the place is a mecca for off road recreation. Just like the closure of land in Australia, the pressure from conservationists has seen the closure of several off road recreation areas in California. I can remember when I first got into 4 wheel driving in Sydney that Porters Road, Jackson's Lane, Fred's Hill, Winchbreak, and Wheelbarrow ridge were some of my favourite spots to play. Now for various reasons they are all gone.
I need your help stopping that from happening to my new playground. Over here the reason for closing is not conservation. It's well known that one of the biggest Marine bases in the US borders the Hammers. They want to expand this to better train their troops. The thing is, they have the ability to expand their land to the east, that is not currently open to offroading, instead of moving west and taking over the Hammers. There are several proposed options, but quite frankly any of the options that include a partial close of the Hammers will mean the end of it. Once it is closed it will be lost forever.
I know that heaps of Aussies have already traveled to the Hammers, be it for an event such as KOH or for a holiday, and I really look forward to a whole heap more coming out for KOH 2012. But we need help to ensure that the area remains open. PLEASE use the letter generator that Pirate4x4 has put together - it is a really easy way to support us in convincing the Marines NOT to expand into Johnson Valley. All you need to do is fill out the boxes on the page and pick some starting text based on the radio buttons. Use this as some starting thoughts and then write away. Make sure you say you are from Australia and that you have either been to the Hammers, are coming to or dream of going to the Hammers and how much it would mean to you.
http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=977850" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
You will need to enter a US address. Feel free to use my city, state and and Zip. Newport Beach, CA 92663. BUT make sure you strongly point out that the letter is being written by an Australian and how strongly you feel about the subject. You can easily write 28 different letters using the starting points provided, and it would be awesome if you could, but please remember to individualise them all. The Marines by law must read every letter that is sent to them. PLEASE get in there and at least send one. The guys on Pirate have already sent 5000, but we need more. Let's get on it and show them how important the Hammers are internationally.
Ok, so you want more encouragement to get off your arse and send the letter? Well there is an awesome prize giveaway happening on the Pirate4x4 website - if you win something I will help you as to get the prize shipped if possible. Reply here with evidence that you have sent a letter I'll also send out to two people, picked at random, a KOH 2011 DVD once they become available. For every 100 letters I'll add another DVD to the pot.
Thanks everyone
Ben Napier
***** I know this is not a comp or event, but Outers will only let non members see either Comps or Gen Tech, so I chose this one.
