Ya Gotta Have A Team!

[Grumpy]

Ya Can't Say "Play Ball" If Ya Don't Have A TEAM!

October 25, 2012 10:58 AM
Op-Ed by Dick Lepley, Executive Director. PA OHV


I took the time to sit back in front of the TV a few days ago in order to enjoy a bit of the action during the 66th edition of the Little League World Series as it unfolded in Williamsport, PA. The tournament featured eight teams from the United States and eight teams from around the world. The Series began as the brainchild of Williamsport baseball fan Carl Stotz who founded the Little League in 1938. The first Little League World Series took place in 1947 following World War II when Stotz' Maynard Midgets defeated their neighbors from nearby Lock Haven.

So, why is an old motor head like me reciting baseball history midst the pages of a magazine devoted to motorized recreation? Because what goes on in this small town in north central Pennsylvania strikes me as the very definition of the word "team," and the LLWS strikes me as an excellent metaphor for motorized recreation.

Baseball, at its heart, is a very simple game. You throw the ball, you hit the ball, you catch the ball. That's all there is to it...except for the head game, and that part of the equation is very important. If you expect to win, you've got to get your head in the game. That's true in baseball...in life, and in motorized recreation. Let me explain.

A bat and a ball can do nothing until they're in somebody's hands. They are still useless until either the bat or the ball is passed on to somebody else, but even then it's just an exercise between two enthusiasts. Additional teams are needed to play the game as are folks to organize and promote the activity, get them to the games, handle equipment, train them to win, and attract a legion of fans to cheer them on. And, there must be a passionate management team to drive the entire sport forward. Every single individual, both on and off the field, is an important part of the whole. That's a team! The Little League World Series folks have it figured out, but motorized recreation does not.

Unlke the sixteen teams who made up the 66th LLWS in Williamsport there are hundreds of thousands of motorized recreation enthusiasts in Pennsylvania, but unfortunately only a small number of them are fighting to accomplish what every ATVer and dirt-biker should strive to do...legalize hundreds or thousands of miles of trails in the Keystone State...many of which are already on the ground.

Here's the deal...the folks in Williamsport understand the word TEAM. It's more than the players. It's the image of Carl Stotz whose decades old vision continues to shape the Little League World Series. It's the teams...coaches, support staff, the stars, and the bench sitters. It's the fans who go along for the "home run ride", and it's the many people who avidly embrace the event because they collectively enjoy the excitement and the economic benefits.

PA OHV understands the game, and so do their club, corporate, national affiliates and individual members, but that's not enough to make an Access Army. In reality, motorized recreation is a "team" sport, and if you aren't on the team we all stand to lose. Yes, we all have favorite places to ride and friends we ride with, but if we don't understand the big picture "Team Anti Motorized" will slowly but surely relegate our ATV's and dirt-bikes to eBay listings and newspaper classifieds, and our memories of off-road riding will be fading images in photo albums and iPhone video captures.

All of us at PaOHV have a vision. We realize that Pennsylvania offers extraordinary opportunities that can rival areas like Hatfield McCoy in West Virginia and elsewhere. We realize that our sport can energize economies in small towns surrounded by some of the finest geography on earth, and we understand that motorized recreation is a proven economic engine just waiting to contribute more to the communities that support it. And, we have the power to support your efforts at the local level as you and others create an army that can't be ignored.

It's very simple...you are either the BALL or the BAT. You can smack motorized recreation out of the park, or you can be beat down by those who want to ban us from the very lands that belong to all of us.

If you're not a PaOHV member, go to www.paohv.org and become an individual member or join one of our member clubs, and do it today. If you're not close to one of our member clubs, we can give you the tools you need to start an effective club of your own.

Join PaOHV and step up to the plate with us. To get started, go shake hands with your legislators, introduce yourself to land managers, land owners, and business owners and turn them into fans of motorized recreation. In short, make them part of the team. That's how we'll build the coalition we need to be successful. Become a part of our PaOHV Access Army, and together we'll bring the world to Pennsylvania for the World Series of Motorized Recreation. Do it now! Time is of the essence.

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Reprinted with permission from Rec Rider Magazine, a bi monthly print publication designed with the local Northeast rider in mind. We feature “where to rideâ€