Kind of ???????????
Depends on your definition of “off the road”???????
what ??????
I KNOW !!!!!
But just hear me out for a second ……… This for sure is one off the biggest misconceptions to non-off roaders there is. It’s really a play on words but my point is valid. If you’re not into this sport, hobby or haven’t been exposed to this lifestyle then the term off roading is what you know or the only term you have heard.
They believe we just go off the pavement and drive wherever we want? And in the process destroy our forests and deserts and in general annihilate the eco system. This is so untrue!!!!! 98% of all off roading takes place on designated roads and trails or in designated OHV play areas. I have talked to people who think we just park somewhere …. unload and haul ass into the forest, making our own trails and destroying everything in our wake.
We (99%) are not trail blazing and bush whacking the forest. (Side note: this would be awesome to do but we are more responsible than this …. way more responsible!) Not only is this environmentally wrong it is highly illegal. Staying on trail and within designated trail riding areas is the single most important and responsible act a “off roader” can do no matter the vehicle used to do it.
Many OHV designated roads and trails have been around for many, many years. Because of this …. the soil and rock are super compacted and only need occasional help from humans (drainage problems, tree’s and natural debris on trails etc. ….) to keep them open., very stable and can handle the weight of the OHV’s traveling over them. However, …. there are plenty of man-made OHV trails out there and they were constructed using natural trails as a model on how to build them.
The point I’m getting at here is ……. my SxS OHV hobby doesn’t deserve the amount of negativity it gets just because some non-OHV folks don’t understand what it is and how we do it …… especially when they don’t even understand the definition. Trail riding is what I typically stick to in a conversation and then define it when someone asks.
So …. yes, the term “off roading” is widely misunderstood and incorrectly used too much and I consider the context in which it’s used for the purpose of describing my hobby to be a: “BIG FAT LIE”!!!!!!!! Just Sayin !!!!!
