Members of Yamaha Motor Corp., USA’s Outdoor Access Initiative joined the Southern California Mountains Foundation to help rehabilitate the Pinnacles Off-Highway Vehicle Staging Area in the San Bernardino National Forest. (Photo courtesy Yamaha Motor Corp., USA)
October 17, 2022
By In-Fisherman Staff
As outdoor participation rises, so does the need for taking care of the land. As such, members of Yamaha Motor Corp., USA’s Outdoor Access Initiative (OAI) recently joined the Southern California Mountains Foundation (SCMF) to help rehabilitate the Pinnacles Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Staging Area of California’s San Bernardino National Forest. Yamaha Motor Corp. is a sibling company of Yamaha Outboards.
“Over the past couple of years, the San Bernardino National Forest, like so many other public recreation areas, has seen increased activity – a welcomed surprise as we encourage more people to enjoy the outdoors, but also a real challenge in keeping up with rehab projects,” Linda Stamer, Restoration Partnership Director for SCMF said in a press release. “Thanks to the generous support of Yamaha’s employee volunteers, we were able to make significant progress in our Pinnacles Staging Area restoration. With Yamaha’s help, we packed in at least three weeks’ worth of work into a single day.”
The Yamaha employees, along with family and friends, planted more than 300 native species plants around the frequently used OHV area to restore its boundaries and encourage responsible on-trail riding. Pinnacles is Yamaha’s adopted staging area, where volunteers have completed several projects over the years.
Yamaha employees, along with family and friends, planted more than 300 native species plants around the frequently used OHV area to restore its boundaries and encourage responsible on-trail riding. (Photo courtesy Yamaha Motor Corp., USA) Yamaha has long advocated for access to public land for motorized recreation via the OAI, which supports "those who work and play outdoors including, but not limited to, those who rely on off-highway vehicles (OHVs) to ride, camp, hunt or fish."
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“What started as a small assembly of Yamaha volunteers in Southern California nearly 15 years ago has grown into an annual tradition where our employees compliment the Yamaha Outdoor Access Initiative’s financial support by contributing directly to hands-on conservation work and improvements on the ground,” said Steve Nessl, Yamaha’s Motorsports group marketing manager. “It’s fulfilling to see the progress at Pinnacles over time, but also important to acknowledge the continued need for funding and restoration of public land, as more people flock to national forests to recreate.”
Yamaha OAI has granted over $100,000 over the years to help sustain the SCMF’s OHV program, trail volunteer efforts, trail mapping, and improvement projects at Big Pine Flats OHV staging area.
The Yamaha OAI program encourages riding clubs, land stewardship associations, and public land managers to work together with Yamaha dealers to identify projects and apply for support. Visit YamahaOAI.com for application details, or examples of some typical projects the program supports for inspiration.
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