MAY 2019 MOTORCYCLE MOJO 57
is perfect for families. The FVDRA
is all about regaining membership
and reviving the club and the entire
dirtbike-riding experience. An annual
membership is only $20 per family.
A Family Affair
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camping with the kids, I was thankful
that I was to be meeting my new friends
in the remote area. It was a little daunt-
ing to be doing it all on my own with
two little kids, so I drove slowly and
carefully and was happy to see familiar
faces as we rolled into camp. There was
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us tent dwellers enjoy a slightly more
glamorous camping experience), along
with maybe seven or eight more trucks
and trailers and various-sized campers
and tents. Dirt bikes were rolling in and
out of the area, and as soon as my kids
saw some others their age riding, they
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make new friends.
After we set up camp, the kids
dressed quickly into their riding gear
and spent the next few hours riding up
and down the camp access road over
and over again. I was introduced to
several FVDRA members and instantly
felt a part of the riding community.
I was amazed that in all my years of
riding, I had never gotten wind of the
existence of dirtbike camping.
For the next few days, we enjoyed
taking turns and riding in different
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who wanted to ride and their abilities.
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was able to ride a length of logging
road with both my kids. My daughter,
Kai, at six years old, had improved
her riding so much in just one day of
exploring around the campsite with
other kids that she was able to manage
an hour of adventurous riding up a
AS MY KIDS SAW SOME OTHERS THEIR AGE RIDING,
THEY FLUNG THE DOORS OPEN AND RAN OUTSIDE
TO MAKE NEW FRIENDS
logging road, through some little creeks
and up and down some decent hills, on
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(although quite sparse in areas due to
extensive logging), was stunning, and
the feeling of being able to share the
dirtbike riding experience with my
children was indescribable. My son,
Ashton, and I had a few higher-level
rides through trails that varied from tight
and technical single-track rides to wide
open trails alongside stunning hillsides.
Occasionally, I’d leave the two kids in the
care of willing adults back at camp and
enjoy an adult-paced rip around a few of
the more challenging trails.
Friends Helping Friends
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Ashton’s KTM 50, the family across the
camp from us generously let him ride
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family talking about wanting to teach
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to help him, and in only 30 minutes
he had joined the rest of the kids in
their parade of riding up and down the
length of the camp.
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members surprised the kids with a
scavenger hunt that had them cheering
and laughing and working as a team
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that earned them a loot bag full of
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a rib fest dinner one night, and traded
many stories about motorcycles and
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beer and roasted marshmallows. By the
end of the three days, we were dirty,
happy and tired, and had made many
new friends along the way.
Another Camping Location
As we were rolling away from camp, a
couple of the members sauntered over
and mentioned that they were heading
to a different camp in a month’s time.
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just experienced one of the most mem-
orable weekends ever with my kids,
I couldn’t possibly say no to another
opportunity for adventure, and so only
four weeks later I packed up the truck