BRC Board Election Update: The Deadline Is Almost Upon Us!

POCATELLO, ID (October 18, 2011) -- It's time once again for the BRC Board of Directors Elections. The elections will be held during the General Membership Meeting in Las Vegas, Nevada.

IMPORTANT UPDATE! The BRC General Membership Meeting will be held on Saturday, October 29, 2011, at the Las Vegas Hilton, in Conference Rooms 2 and 3, from 4:30 pm to 6:30 pm.

All BRC members in good standing are eligible to vote! If you are unable to attend the meeting, but would like to vote in the election, please fill out and send in the Absentee Ballot (Note: Absentee ballots sent by mail must be postmarked no later that October 21st, 2011, in order to be counted). You can also VOTE ONLINE RIGHT NOW!

If you do plan on attending, please RSVP your intentions to the BRC Membership office so that we have an idea of how many visitors to prepare for (1-800-258-3742 ext. 105, or <brmem@sharetrails.org>). The membership office can also be contacted for any questions regarding the Fall General Membership Meeting or the BRC Board Elections.

Below are the current members of the BRC Board of Directors who have been nominated for re-election. We are also introducing two new nominees to the Board of Directors from the recreation community.

FOR RE-ELECTION TO THE BRC BOARD OF DIRECTORS

PAT HARRIS

Affiliations: Member of both Pacific Northwest 4WD Association and California Association of 4WD Clubs; Member of the Oregon State ATV Account Allocation Committee for 16 years, representing Class II (4WD) vehicles; served in 2010 on a committee that worked on a bill presented to the Oregon Legislature regarding safety for those riding ATVs, quads and motorcycles.  The bill covered beginners through adults (it was passed by the Legislature); member of Committee for Federal RTP for State of Oregon.

Recreational Interests: Four-wheel Drive

Home State: Oregon

Favorite Trail/Area: High Desert Oregon, Nevada, California and Idaho

How You Got Involved In BRC: Introduced to the organization by a member 14 years ago and immediately became involved because of access issues.

Comments/Goals For BRC: With its diverse representation, BRC provides 'one-stop shopping' for public land managers. It is fitting that BRC is a leader in applying practical environmentalism across our recreational landscape. This will secure a legacy of motorized access for future generations.

JOHN PARRINELLO (JP)

Affiliations: NOHVCC-State Partner, New Jersey Off Highway Vehicle Association- Founder ,VP, Advocacy Director, NJ Trail Council- Motorized Rep., NJ Trails Plan Steering Committee, NJ Trails Council ORV Sub-Committee, AMA, ATVA, NRA, ASI Safety Instructor, Tread Lightly Tread Trainer. North Jersey Jeep Club -Land Use Team, Wheelers for the Wounded-National Director

Recreational Interests: 4 Wheeling, ATV/Motorcycle riding, Softball, Target Shooting.

Home State: New Jersey

Favorite Trail/Area: Too many to mention. Hopefully one in New Jersey once we get legal OHV trails here.

How You Got Involved: I have been riding for about 36 years and have been involved with access issues for a good part of them. As such I have spoken with Del Albright (BRC Ambassador) many times for insight on our issues in NJ. Also, after fighting the good fight for many years by myself, I reached out to BRC, NOHVCC, AMA and other groups for help and they all came up big for us in New Jersey. I hope to one day be able to invite folks to NJ to participate in OHV activities.

Comments/Goals For BRC: The BlueRibbon Coalition has done so much over the years, and I would like to help that continue and to help integrate the access issues we suffer on the east coast. After one term on the board I think I have helped to get BRC where they want to be and would like to continue helping BRC to be the lean, mean Land Use Machine they are.

INTRODUCING TWO NEW CANDIDATES FOR THE BRC BOARD OF DIRECTORS

TODD OCKERT

Born: Redlands, California.
Raised in: Traverse City, Michigan
Years off-roading: 37 years

I grew up in a middle sized town in Michigan, where my parents went off-roading in the back roads of Michigan for years, and still do, but in Nevada with warmer weather.
 
I continued the tradition of taking my family camping and off-roading after I joined the Navy in 1984, where I was stationed north of Seattle, Washington.  Since moving to California in 2000 when the Navy relocated me, I continued to off-road to this day, and take my family camping and just enjoying the outdoors as much as possible.  I retired from the Navy in 2009 and immediately went to work for Chevron in the Coalinga California oil fields as a fieldman.  

I am the current Secretary of my local club, Trail Busters of Kings County, and they are a Cal4Wheel affiliated club.  We support Cal4Wheel at different events around the state.  I am also on the Board of Trustee's for the Cal4Wheel Conservation and Education Foundation in a spot nominated by Cal4Wheel.  I have helped Del Albright at different events highlighting BlueRibbon Coalition and their achievements across the nation.
 
Along with owning a Jeep, I also own a dual sport motorcycle that I have taken off-road a couple of times.  It is fun to experience a different level of adventure off-road on the bike.

Education wise, I currently hold a BA in general education, with a minor in business and computer information systems.  I am also in the process of completing my MBA in business.  All of my course work has been completed with Columbia College of Missouri and their distance learning here in Lemoore, California.  My current class is in Marketing Strategy, BUSI 544, and my class project paper is a marketing paper on a non-profit business and off-road business.  It should be an interesting compilation to say the least, and I look forward to completing this paper, and using BRC as my general guideline for information.

GLEN ZUMWALT 

I am a retired 70-year-old and live in Leeds, UT, (near St. George) with my wife Judy. I have a BS in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois and during my career have worked for Boeing in Seattle as an aerospace engineer; Stauffer Chemical in Green River, WY, as a mining engineer, maintenance superintendent, and mining superintendent; and for Coastal States Energy in Utah and Virginia as mining superintendent, general manager, vice president and senior vice president for coal development. I have been the owner of Big Pine Sports in Fairview, a motorsports and sporting goods dealership since 1990.

I enjoy snowmobiling, 4 wheeling, hunting, fishing camping, hiking, biking and horseback riding. I am past president of the Utah Snowmobile Assn. and have been a member of the ACSA board as well as a delegate to ISC. I was a founding member of the Utah Shared Access Alliance and served as a board member and vice president. I was also a founding member of the Utah Multiple Access Conservation Coalition. Judy and I are trail stewards for the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve in St. George.

I have been appointed to the Governor's Outdoor Recreation Task Force by the Utah governor and the Diesel Advisory Committee by the U.S. Secretary of Labor. Presently I am vice chair of the Sanpete County Access Committee and chairman of the Manti-LaSal National Forest Resource Advisory Committee.

Currently I am a life member of the BlueRibbon Coalition, the Tri-State ATV club, Utah Snowmobile Assn., Skyline Sno-Riders, Back Country Horsemen (Southwest chapter), Hurricane Valley Lions and am a life member of the National Rifle Assn. and the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation.

For the past 20 years I have worked to preserve and improve access for public recreation on public lands. I am interested in serving on the BlueRibbon board because I believe I can benefit the organization by improving its ability to network with other organizations, its effectiveness in influencing agency policy and building a better internal teamwork process.

If you are a BRC member, please take a moment to vote in the 2011 Board Election.

To vote online, click HERE (or fill out and return an Absentee Ballot).

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The BlueRibbon Coalition is a national recreation group that champions responsible recreation, and encourages individual environmental stewardship. With members in all 50 states, BRC is focused on building enthusiast involvement with organizational efforts through membership, outreach, education, and collaboration among recreationists. 1-800-BlueRib - www.sharetrails.org.