Tread Lightly! celebrated the second anniversary of the “RIDE ON Utah” campaign on National Public Lands Day this past Saturday, September 27.

Working closely with campaign partners, Tread Lightly! has worked to keep nearly 4,000 miles of motorized trails (across 1.8 million acres) in Utah open to the public.

The RIDE ON Utah campaign was officially launched in 2012 – in partnership with the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Utah’s Division of State Parks and Recreation, Division of Wildlife Resources, Utah’s School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration, and Tread Lightly! – to communicate consistent messaging across boundaries promoting ethical and legal use of motorized vehicles on public lands.

Utah’s Lt. Governor Spencer J. Cox recently joined representatives from these organizations for an ATV ride in the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest to discuss the RIDE ON Utah program, and he challenged Utah’s 250,000-plus OHV owners to join him in riding safely and responsibly on designated routes.

As a leading national non-profit committed to protecting recreation access and opportunities through ethics education and stewardship programs, Tread Lightly! has fashioned RIDE ON Utah to become a model collaboration between federal and state agencies that is already being replicated in other states.

“Tread Lightly! applauds the agencies responsible for managing Utah’s public lands for their commitment to providing recreation opportunities in balance with resource conservation,” said Lori McCullough, executive director for Tread Lightly!. “RIDE ON Utah focuses on raising the public’s awareness of acceptable behaviors through education and outreach, which in turn protects access and opportunities to enjoy Utah’s beautiful natural resources. Ultimately, access to great, safe riding areas is what our members really want.”

Tread Lightly! is a national nonprofit organization with a mission to promote responsible recreation through ethics education and stewardship programs. Tread Lightly!’s educational message, along with its unique training and restoration initiatives are strategically designed to instill an ethic of responsibility in outdoor enthusiasts and the industries that serve them. The program is long-term in scope with a goal to balance the needs of the people who enjoy outdoor recreation with our need to maintain a healthy environment. Tread Lightly!’s award-winning materials, programs and services are solutions to some of the nation’s most pressing recreation issues.

Individuals and businesses can commit to Tread Lightly! and protect outdoor access by becoming a member at treadlightly.org.

Polaris Factory Racers were back in action at Glen Helen, in Devore, Calif. for WORCS Round 8. Polaris/Holz Racing’s Beau Baron would take another win to seal the WORCS Pro SxS championship for the second consecutive year.

Starting in the front row, Baron would take second off the start and take the lead when Polaris Factory Racer Mitch Guthrie Jr’s car suffered an unfortunate mechanical issue.

Another fellow racer, Polaris/Loan Mart/Holz Racing’s RJ Anderson would finish second moving him to fourth in the series points for the class. With one round left, Polaris Factory Racer Ryan Piplic sits in second in points with fellow Polaris Racer, Mitch Guthrie Jr. in third.

“Polaris would like to congratulate Beau on another incredible season,” said Donna Beadle, Polaris Factory Racing Race Team Manager. “Beau and all of our WORCS Factory Racers, RJ, Ryan and Mitch, have done a great job keeping RZR on top of the box.”

The next WORCS Race is Buffalo Bills, at Primm, Nevada, on October 17-19.

Polaris is a recognized leader in the powersports industry with annual 2013 sales of $3.8 billion. Polaris designs, engineers, manufactures and markets innovative, high quality off-road vehicles, including all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and the Polaris RANGER and RZR side-by-side vehicles, snowmobiles, motorcycles and on-road electric/hybrid powered vehicles. Polaris is among the global sales leaders for both snowmobiles and off-road vehicles and has established a presence in the heavyweight cruiser and touring motorcycle market with the Victory and Indian Motorcycle brands. Additionally, Polaris continues to invest in the global on-road small electric/hybrid powered vehicle industry with Global Electric Motorcars (GEM), Goupil Industrie SA, Aixam Mega S.A.S., and internally developed vehicles. Polaris enhances the riding experience with a complete line of Polaris Engineered parts, accessories and apparel, Klim branded apparel and ORV accessories under the Kolpin and Cycle Country brands. Polaris Industries Inc. trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol PII, and the Company is included in the S&P Mid-Cap 400 stock price index.

Information about the complete line of Polaris products, apparel and vehicle accessories are available from authorized Polaris dealers or anytime at polaris.com.

The JB Off-Road / Hendershot Performance / Can-Am X-Team recently captured two regional racing championships with its Maverick 1000R X rs side-by-side vehicle. Can-Am ATV racers also won five morning classes, the morning overall and all four 4×4 classes, at round 11 of the AMSOIL Grand National Cross Country series in Pennsylvania. In Iowa, Zac Zakowski earned three wins racing his Can-Am ATV and side-by-side.

“Hendershot Performance had a fabulous season, winning both the AWRCS UTV Open class championship and the WEXCR UTV title. Larry Hendershot Jr., and his team have done a spectacular job this season putting the Maverick in the spotlight,” said Jeff Leclerc, Racing Project Leader, Can-Am. “It was a good weekend for our ATV woods racers, as our team of GNCC 4×4 racers continued their championship chases by winning all four 4×4 classes at round 11 and Zac Zakowski put together a dominating weekend in Iowa.”

Hendershot – Double Championship

JB Off-Road / Hendershot Performance / Can-Am wrapped up the UTV Open class season title of the American Woods Racing Championship Series (AWRCS). At round six of the AWRCS series held in Parker, Pa., Larry Hendershot Jr., earned a top-10 finish to push his No. 44 Can-Am Maverick to the UTV Open class championship, despite missing the podium for just the second time all year. Two victories and two second-place finishes, along with his recent finish, gave Hendershot enough of a points advantage to secure the season title.

“I would like to thank all of our 2014 sponsors for making this championship run possible. A special thanks goes out to Can-Am, Jody Bateman and the crew at JB Racing, Larry Sr. and the crew at Hendershot Performance, Racer Tech, ITP, FOX shocks, Yoshimura and SSI Decals. This 2014 Maverick 1000R X rs is the best handling and most powerful side-by-side I’ve piloted,” said Hendershot Jr.

Hendershot Jr. also captured the Woods Extreme XC Racing (WEXCR) UTV championship earlier in September after winning the final round held at a very muddy Anderson Acres in southeastern Ohio. The team earned its second victory of the year, to go along with two, second-place finishes, pushing it to the front of the UTV Open class point standings.

GNCC – Round 11

The Car-Mate Mountain Ridge GNCC was held in Central City, Pa. Can-Am racers captured the 10 a.m. session overall, the 4×4 Pro class overall, four amateur class wins and 10 of 12 total podium spots in the four 4×4 classes at Round 11.

Rob Smith (BNR Motorsports / Can-Am) earned his second 4×4 Pro class victory of 2014 to expand his current third-place position in the class points race. Can-Am racer Tanner Bowles grabbed the 4×4 Pro class holeshot, but it was Smith who earned the official leader tag of all four laps at Mountain Ridge and the 10 a.m. session overall aboard his Can-Am Renegade 800R 4×4.

Current 4×4 Pro class points leader Bryan Buckhannon (ATV Parts Plus / Can-Am) also put his Renegade ATV on the podium, finishing second in the class and second overall during the 10 a.m. session. He has an 18-point lead over fellow Can-Am Renegade racer Kevin Trantham, who was fourth at round 11.

“This was a great win. How many others can win the morning overall with a stock motor? I can’t think of another brand that is capable,” said Smith. “The dust was thick, but my Can-Am handled it. It was awesome in the rocks and had a ton of power in wide-open sections.”

Other 4×4 class wins went to 4×4 A/B class racer Cory Bartlett, 4×4 C class pilot Nick Eichelberger and 4×4 Senior (40+) rider Forrest Whorton. Bartlett and Whorton have each won back-to-back races, while Eichelberger has five successive wins. Joseph Sichelstiel also notched his first win of the year in the 19+ C class on a Can-Am.

IATVHSS

Can-Am racer Zac Zakowski drove his Zakowski Motorsports-backed Maverick to two class victories in one day and followed those with a 4×4 Open class win the next day on his Renegade 800R ATV at the sixth stop on the Iowa ATV Hare Scramble Series schedule held in Beaconsfield, Iowa.

Zakowski won both UTV Open class events on Saturday’s doubleheader to take over the class points lead. Then, in his first race back on his ATV since his knee surgery, Zakowski won the 4×4 Open class for the clean sweep.

“So much work, dedication, and sacrifice goes into what we did this weekend. Taking all three wins we entered in the IATVHSS race, with two of those being both SxS races in one day, was very rewarding. I hope to keep this up for our fans and sponsors,” said Zakowski.

For more information on 2014 Can-Am racing, the contingency program and all amateur racer support programs, please visit www.can-amxteam.com.