QWR POST ELECTION OPINION - THE 80 PERCENT RULE

 

THE 80 PERCENT RULE

Post- Election Opinion

By Don Amador

December 3, 2024

 

 

President Ronald Reagan is famous for a number of quotes that continue to influence American politics and policy.  Reagan is not often thought as a public land recreation icon, but for me his statement, “The person who agrees with you 80 percent of the time is a friend and an ally – not a 20 percent traitor” has become a cornerstone of my recreation career.

 

I believe that OHV should urge the Trump administration to continue support for federal land agency  collaboration with diverse force multipliers/partners including recreation groups, conservation organizations, Tribes, timber, land owners, and others with a focus on planning for, and implementing,  unit level projects that provide a direct public benefit.

 

The new cabinet appointments should authorize the increased use of youth-based conservation corps (non-profits, government, tribal, etc.) type groups to bolster their workforce in support of ground-level trail stewardship projects.  Congress may also want to target funding for those youth based efforts.

 

I also believe that any agency staff downsizing in the Washington D.C. bureaucracy should include options for surging those positions out to the field to help backfill Forest or Field Office vacant positions to implement many shovel ready projects.

 

Those new staff positions could make the currently stalled 1,300 acre Blue Oak Ranch OHV Staging/Camping Area addition to the BLM’s South Cow Mountain Recreation Area near Ukiah, CA a reality.  Also, they could help restart the 2020 OHV Travel Management Planning process that would designate a legal trail system at Indian Valley located within the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.  

 

Using the Reagan 80 percent rule, finding common ground with other recreation interests is easier than you think.  You may or may not be a Reagan fan, but most of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle agree that finding that zone of agreement is a good long-term strategy for securing access to sustainable recreation activities and protecting important natural and cultural resources for future generations.

 

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Don Amador has been in the trail advocacy and recreation management profession for over 33 years.   Don is President of Quiet Warrior Racing LLC. Don serves as the Western States Representative for the Motorcycle Industry Council. Don is Past President/CEO and current board member of the Post Wildfire OHV Recovery Alliance. Don served as a contractor to the BlueRibbon Coalition from 1996 until June, 2018. Don served on the California Off-Highway Motor Vehicle Recreation Commission from 1994-2000. He has won numerous awards including being a 2016 Inductee into the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame and the 2018 Friend of the AMA Award. Don served as the government affairs lead for AMA District 36 in Northern California from 2019 – 2023. Don is a Co-Founder and current Core-Team member on FireScape Mendocino.  Don is a contributor to Dealernews Magazine. Don writes from his home in Cottonwood, CA.