council BANNING off road riding

[Justin McknnonMember]

I was sent this via face book and think it has the potential to effect many old bulls, and our chosen sport

I have just finished reading through notes from a council meeting in rural NSW which is honestly the scariest thing I have seen. The council is looking at banning people from riding motorbikes on THEIR OWN PROPERTY, as it causes “interference with the neighbourhood by reason of the emission of noise, vibration, smell, fumes, smoke, vapour, steam, soot, ash, dust, light, waste water, waste products, grit or oil, traffic generation or otherwise.”

After reading through ridiculous council wording this is the break down for everyone….

Bikes will no longer be ridden on private property any other time than ONCE A YEAR on a SPECIFIED DATE.

Ride day cannot be advertised at all.

Ride area cannot be less than 300 meters from other properties, any houses, schools, or buildings of any kind.

No more than 5 riders will be allowed to participate on this ride day per property.

Bikes can ONLY BE RIDDEN for 2 x one hour sessions with a one hour break between sessions.

No tracks are permitted –

* Must not involve earthworks.

* Must not expose topsoil such that a track of ten (10) metres or greater in length is formed.

IF YOU THINK THIS DOESN’T EFFECT YOUR RIDING – YOU ARE WRONG.

This motion has been started by 8 people complaining about bikes being ridden in their area.

If Kyogle council manages to pass this motion it gives every other council in Australia a path to follow.

IF YOU ENJOY RIDING YOUR MOTORBIKE YOU NEED TO DO SOMETHING TO HELP THE RIDERS IN THIS AREA, YOU WILL BE DOING YOURSELF A FAVOUR IN THE LONG RUN…..

Discussion on this topic is open until June 20….. literally 20 days away. I am asking you to do the following:

If you are from the KYOGLE AND RIDE you need to let the council know that this is directly affecting you and as a motorbike rider you are not being treated equally as a member of the public.

If you are from ANYWHERE ELSE IN AUSTRALIA AND RIDE you need to let the Kyogle council know that you would not stand for this if it happened in your area.

If you DO NOT RIDE but feel that this a ridiculous idea PLEASE LET THEM KNOW THAT AS WELL!!

Please contact me for the email address and read the following before you start your email.

Alternatively please leave a detailed comment about your thoughts and feelings on this topic and I will submit everyones comments to the council as a group response.

PLEASE DO NOT USE ABUSIVE OR FOUL LANGUAGE. This will not help the cause

Please be constructive in what you say

If possible mention how often you ride, the satisfaction you get from riding, and also mention who you ride with – friends, family – council does not realise our sport caters for all ages.

Mention (roughly) how much to spend on riding – bikes, protective gear, and how much you spend to go riding for a day.

Please also mention that riding is good physically and mentally. It keeps you healthy and is good for stress relief.

If you own property explain that this will inhibit you from enjoying your property

You would seriously be surprised with what kind of stereotype councils have of bike riders, they haven’t experienced it for themselves, they build the stereotype from what they hear in complaints that are made from people standing up and whinging.

IF WE DON’T STAND UP FOR OURSELVES AS RIDERS, WHO WILL? – NOBODY.

[Scott SouthwellMember]

Old news. Look here: http://www.obtrailriders.com/index.php?option=com_kunena&func=view&catid=26&id=92952&Itemid=75

and here: http://www.byronnews.com.au/story/2010/10/27/noise-complaints-force-family-to-stop-riding-bikes/

[Mick DMember]

I have been following this case for nearly a year. Mr Blue is the man at the centre of the storm. I will round him up for comment on the progress of the proceedings.

[Justin McknnonMember]

Just an update submitted 18 minutes ago on this facebook page –

http://www.causes.com/causes/542915?m=6e53b72b&recruiter_id=24897953&t=1306923158

I am writing on behalf of Kyogle Dirt bike Club (KDBC) to inform you that there is a well funded anti motorcycle group attempting to have all motorcycles banned from properties less than 40 hectares (100 acres) and impose severe restrictions on recreational riders on private property which is greater than 100 acres (40hectares).

The previous NSW state government passed legislation to allow people to complain if they find noise offensive (Section 69 LGEPA). The person does not even have to be a resident of the shire to be able to complain. Under this new legislation council must act to remove the source. This is done by placing a stop order on the property and the owner. If the stop order is violated then fines of up to $100,000 can apply per day of use.

Just so you are aware, take for example a stock Yamaha WR 450 registered in NSW by the RTA. This bike is road legal and can go on any registered road in the state and meet all requirements of the law. However under this new legislation if anyone complains to council, this same bike cannot be ridden on private property and remember is doesn’t have to be a neighbour to complain. Kyogle council has adopted a draft policy (see attached URL page 67 onward) and it will be out for public comment at the end of this month.

http://www.kyogle.nsw.gov.au/content/…

http://www.northernstar.com.au/story/…

This has led to a group of people driving around our shire taking photos and videos and presenting evidence to council forcing them to act. There have been 20 complaints out of a total of 9868 people (0.2%of 1%) in our shire. This anti bike group is well funded and most of the group are not gainfully employed, allowing access to council 5 days a week. They are a splinter group of the Anti World Rally Championship that was successful in having the rally moved from Kyogle Shire.

Kyogle council has assisted our club in organising Development applications to run races through motorcycling NSW.

However, our members feel the councils attitude towards recreational riders is abhorrent. We are a very small club with less than 30 members all with full time employment. We don’t have the resources or the skills to fight this well organised and well funded group, who have access to the media, both newspapers and television.

We need your help!!!!

This group is trying to make our shire the example for all others in the state to follow and they have already emailed and contacted many other anti bike groups on the north coast to start lobbying their local councils and use this legislation against all motorbike riders. We unfortunately are the test case and once the draft is adopted we are all finished.

Your local government area will be next.

You and your club needs to lobby your local politician to have this legislation changed, (or at least a decibel rating for “offensive” applied), and once the draft from our council is available for public comment we need to all make submissions.

Please do take this matter seriously, we already have stop orders on 12 and 10 year old children riding Yamaha TTR’s, a 125 and a 90. (A lawn mower is louder). This is how extreme this group is and they have stated that this is just the beginning.

Primary production practices are exempt, but recreational riding on farms IS NOT!

Any suggestions or help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your time,

Chris Simpson

Club Secretary on behalf of Kyogle Dirt Bike Club

might be old news seems odd a local motorcycle club would get behind a movement like this strongly.. just sayin..

[Mick DMember]

The latest developments in Kyogle certainly are a concern for all of us who have access to private property for recreational riding. We are lucky to have 640ac to ride on but we are still mindful that we do in fact create, what could be deemed as offensive noise by the neighbours. We don’t take it for granted that it is our right to ride all day every day making a general racquet, as I am aware that, not everyone appreciates the sound of a dirt bike at full song.
I recognise that the neighbours have the same right to peace and quiet as we do to do whatever we want to do on our property, reaching a balance is the important part. We are lucky with the neighbours we have and they probably wouldn’t complain but there is no need to abuse this status quo.
Recently my brother and I went fishing near Wauchope and not long after we got there late in the afternoon, someone fired up a big bore dirt bike (bloody loud) and proceeded to ride around a property nearby. At first it didn’t bother me but after a while as it got close to dark, I started to think ” wish that bloke would stick that bike up his arse”, and I like dirt bikes, so I can only imagine what the people that have to listen to that noise on a regular basis are thinking!
Somehow, as more people move to the bush looking for a tree change, the more we will be targeted, so long as we have hoons with the “stuff you mate” attitude, that think it is their god given right to make as much noise as they want, among our ranks.
I dont have the answer to this dilemma but a bit of respect goes a long way.
AS for the dead beats like the anti trail bike groups mentioned above, that have nothing else to do but travelling around targeting people and stirring up trouble, really need to get a life.
We call these people SIFS (single issue fanatics), we get them in our office banging their respective drums everyday and they are the ones we should worry about, as they seem to receive some perverse satisfaction from making someone else’s life a misery.

[GregMember]

micknmeld wrote:

The latest developments in Kyogle certainly are a concern for all of us who have access to private property for recreational riding. We are lucky to have 640ac to ride on but we are still mindful that we do in fact create, what could be deemed as offensive noise by the neighbours. We don’t take it for granted that it is our right to ride all day every day making a general racquet, as I am aware that, not everyone appreciates the sound of a dirt bike at full song.
I recognise that the neighbours have the same right to peace and quiet as we do to do whatever we want to do on our property, reaching a balance is the important part. We are lucky with the neighbours we have and they probably wouldn’t complain but there is no need to abuse this status quo.
Recently my brother and I went fishing near Wauchope and not long after we got there late in the afternoon, someone fired up a big bore dirt bike (bloody loud) and proceeded to ride around a property nearby. At first it didn’t bother me but after a while as it got close to dark, I started to think ” wish that bloke would stick that bike up his arse”, and I like dirt bikes, so I can only imagine what the people that have to listen to that noise on a regular basis are thinking!
Somehow, as more people move to the bush looking for a tree change, the more we will be targeted, so long as we have hoons with the “stuff you mate” attitude, that think it is their god given right to make as much noise as they want, among our ranks.
I dont have the answer to this dilemma but a bit of respect goes a long way.
AS for the dead beats like the anti trail bike groups mentioned above, that have nothing else to do but travelling around targeting people and stirring up trouble, really need to get a life.
We call these people SIFS (single issue fanatics), we get them in our office banging their respective drums everyday and they are the ones we should worry about, as they seem to receive some perverse satisfaction from making someone else’s life a misery.

Well said

[Bruce CurtisMember]

OK-misconceptions.
A historically important Psychologist once said
“the bigger the lie, the easier people accept it, and if you repeat that lie often enough it will become accepted truth”

The Council has a clash of lifestyles, tree[strike]huggers[/strike]… sorry changers, and traditional landowners, the area is only around an hour and a bit from Brisbane so it makes an affordable weekender or retirement for the ex-cityites.
The council MUST uphold state laws, as over the years the state government in a bid to cut their own costs and exposure has abdicated their regulatory responsibilities to local government.

This set of laws are federal and STATE laws that the council is obligated to follow to the letter, if they don’t they will be dismissed and replaced by an administrator… again STATE law.

The initial complaint was handled very well by council officers, they mediated, the made arrangement in times for riding and noise levels and frquency, all was agreed. Now teenagers being teenagers sometimes don’t abide by the formal agreements and ride up to a dozen 4T Mxers with Vance & hines etc exhausts around the TRACK (to say it was an earthworks storage area was plain old lies, it was a beaut setup of a private MX track.

So upon several remedial attepts it became a stalemate, and council was FORCED by the law to uphold the law.

To blame someone for doing their job to the necessary level, while representing the larger community is more than unfair, it is unjust and a form of harassment.
Anyway the council has attempted to clarify the whole issue by enabling a management plan. The original plan as put to gether by some senoir staff was rejected and the councillors themselves came up with one, and i am the first to say it is not what was envisaged, but to be fair, the tree[strike]huggers[/strike] sorry fruedian slip there… changers were well represented at the meetngs and letter writing campaign and cornering councillors (who are just policitians of the usually lowest ranking) whereas the Bike riders, even thought there is an estimated 2000 in the area were nowhere to be seen… this actually dismayed the senior staff as it made them look like fools.
If you want these laws changed.. and yes I know Chris S, and he is one of the vocal ones, who appreciated some of the work done by staff to streamline event approval and take it out of the councillors hands, but effectively him and others were outmanouvoured by the wowsers and TBaggers, the “it will be right Jake” attitutde doesn’t work in the dface of these organised and vocal group.

You cannot blame council, when the very people being “corralled” couldn’t even be bother to turn up en-masse to a few meetings or even support an informal working group to act on their behalf.

I don’t agree with the likely outcomes it saddens me, but I have repeatedly put my job on the line for this and now am supporting another local endeavour that has more merit and wider appeal, and even better MONEY and well known public firgures behind it, as my energy is not to fight a lost cause for people who don’t care, but will whinge after the fact….

Change the laws?
Lobby your local STATE member….. then and only then may things change

[Mick DMember]

Well there you go. All stories have several sides to them. I have been waiting for you to find this thread Bruce. Being on the coal face so to speak, you’d know exactly what went on.
Cheers and thanks for your imput.
Mick

[scott bockingMember]

I take it that even if the huggers get this through it has no affect on State Forests and our access there.

STM

[Mick DMember]

King STM wrote:

I take it that even if the huggers get this through it has no affect on State Forests and our access there.

STM

If they can get legislation through that directly effects private property usage a concerted push by them could also end in a blanket ban in state forests/crown land too, in a worse case scenario.

[Bruce CurtisMember]

King STM wrote:

I take it that even if the huggers get this through it has no affect on State Forests and our access there.

STM

No however due to the pressure being applied by local huggers of vegetation, the NPWS has just donated to the local police command several trailbikes and will escort them to known spots of frequency by riders.
There is an active “No licience, No ride” campaign which is fast spreading word…

Remember NPWS is Forests NSW controlling body.

This doesn’t but it doesn’t help… Numbers and voices Lads and Lassies, numbers and voices… that’s what counts

[Bruce CurtisMember]

micknmeld wrote:

King STM wrote:

I take it that even if the huggers get this through it has no affect on State Forests and our access there.

STM

If they can get legislation through that directly effects private property usage a concerted push by them could also end in a blanket ban in state forests/crown land too, in a worse case scenario.

This is the ting Michael, the legslation has been there for years, was probably a late friday night sitting one, passed under the radar….

It is existing laws that force this to happen.. MacQuarrie st greens

[Bruce CurtisMember]

Scotty wrote:

Old news. Look here: http://www.obtrailriders.com/index.php?option=com_kunena&func=view&catid=26&id=92952&Itemid=75

and here: http://www.byronnews.com.au/story/2010/10/27/noise-complaints-force-family-to-stop-riding-bikes/

I’ll tell you something a bit hilarious about the online comments in the Byron news site… the lady who refers to the loud “Car” from Casino every day is way way mistaken…….:blush:

It is in fact both my VTR and two another blokes’ Ducatis that she hears, all bikes are probably within the sound limits but they tend to Boom and echo through the valleys.

Oh another fact, the original complianant against Jack and Kylie has also been warned about excessive noise from his ride-on, but seeing as it is deemed to be “in direct pusuit of agricultural activities” he thumbed his nose at it….

[Mick DMember]

For anyone that is interested, read further here. Go to page 65 of the document.

http://media.causes.com/ribbon/1083093

[Bruce CurtisMember]

there is the watered down “negotiated” version of our original proposal, the 2×1 hour sessions are a sticking point for many of us, having said that we have more green councillors outside of byron and inner metro areas, did you notice the good bit Michael, the pro-forma for light competition?

that is a leap forward, some of the rest well… at least they acknowledge the legitimate pastime and for that I am very grateful to Cr Lindsay Passfield for his valiant attempts in the face of “the environmental warriors” that have almost single focus on stopping any fun, but growing weeds…

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