The Vernon ATV Club named a new president on October and he is blazing trails—not in the wilderness, but in making greener, safer, more co-operative land use possibilities for key areas in the Okanagan.
Steve Myatt took over the presidency in October this year with a vision to get more people riding and feeling good about exploring the forest on four wheels. One of his key initiatives is a mapping project that he hopes will instill confidence in the membership.
“If you want to go out for a ride and you have a map you can have fun, get lost, and get home,” he said. “If people aren’t afraid to go out because they have it, we’ll get more leaders and more people helping run the club.
“I want to get them out there to see the wonders of what’s in the forest and help them be stewards of the environment.”
The club is in the process of GPSing the King Eddy region, which stretches from Coldstream to Kelowna, and is looking at Noble Canyon from Coldstream to Enderby for next year.
Myatt hopes other users of the area—bikers, walkers, hikers and snowmobilers—will also benefit from the mapping project, and has named a liaison to communicate and co-ordinate with other recreational land use clubs.
The Vernon ATV Club is 155 members strong—the largest ATV club in B.C. It is also one of the most active, with two or three rides per month and yearly events. Its strength is the membership’s enthusiasm for the sport and for riding together, said Myatt.
“That’s the biggest thing in keeping active,” he said. “People who like to ride in groups and having leaders who just love to ride. Some people say to me, ‘You’ve been on that trail a thousand times. Aren’t you bored with it?’ But no, I’m never bored. If I’m riding, I’m not bored.”
The club abides by some simple principles aimed at long-term success for its members and the Vernon trail system.
“Have fun, be safe and try not to damage anything,” said Myatt. “We totally disagree with mud-bogging or tearing through the environment. We try to be as green as possible.”
Myatt joined the club when he and his wife moved to Vernon four years ago from Fort St. John. He was named ride director and slowly began to learn and memorize the terrain.
“I know enough to get out there,” said Myatt. “I don’t always know where we are, but that’s not the same as getting lost,” he said with a laugh.
Myatt’s favourite ride in Vernon is the King Eddy area. Dozens of lakes, hundreds of trails through the trees, hills and valleys and rocky areas make it the perfect playground for Myatt’s riding style.
“I don’t like road riding at all,” he said. “I’m pretty much against it. I also take my time and stop to look at every little thing—a cool cave or tree. If you want to burn along, I’ll see you later.”
He likes Vernon’s “jungle trails” which head straight through the trees and end up taking you through three or four ecosystems in one ride.
“You’ll see pines, poplars, cedar and swamp,” he said. “And all of these trails are cut in. We aren’t blazing anything new.”
Myatt broke into four-wheeling when he was 12 years old on a Honda Odyssey.
“It was a big four-tire thing with big roll bars; they were super nice,” he said. He worked his way up the Honda line to his current 2007 Honda Rincon 680 cc.
Another of his objectives as fearless leader of the Vernon ATV Club is promoting more “visiting” among the membership.
“We might stop and have lunch and, if there isn’t a fire risk, light a fire and roast hot dogs,” he said. “There’s lots of riding, but there’s also visiting because the better you know the people you ride with the better your rides.”
For more information visit vernonatvclub.ca or see Vernon ATV Club on Facebook.
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