…but a controlled burn in Henry Coe state park. Cross Canyon hasn’t seen a natural fire in over a hundred years, apparently, and the large accumulated pile of flammable brush and debris would pose a serious hazard for next fire season…

A fantastic Indian summer we’re enjoying here in CA by the way. We’ve had just enough rain to get rid of most dust, and conditions and weather have been stellar the past weeks/weekends: warm but not hot, brisk and not cold, and crisp skies everywhere. You could even *see* the entire Monterey peninsula from Wilder Ranch the other day…

First, it was the great Lick Fire. Then came the California budget crisis. And now, behold the third coming of the Monster that Wants to Eat Coe: Assembly Bill 2923.

This is a bill that intends to turn a number of state lands in California into designated wilderness area. We have nothing against creating new wilderness areas, au contraire, but it is ludicrous to apply this to places such as Henry Coe, Cache Creek and the likes, where it is merely a thinly veiled euphemism for a ‘let’s kick bike riders out’ policy change.

I can’t even start to stress how braindead it is to include a place like Coe in this bill, where mountain bikers live in near-perfect harmony with hikers, equestrians and rangers and where, given the size of the park and the range of mountain bikes, riders are the ideal stewards of the land. A place so big you can ride all day and all night, that fosters a crowd of die-hard fans, trailworkers and regular visitors; yet so close to a major urban area. I can’t imagine a better example of proper and responsible use of state lands.

IMBA recommends to take action and write/fax/bug our state representatives. We’re doing so and urge you to do the same. Write some lines expressing ‘you’re out of your mind to even consider this and I will never ever vote again for you if you allow this to get through’, but much, much more politely; here’s a sample letter from Passion Trail Bikes (warning: .doc file link).

It’s the Governator!

[Previously: the California budget crisis threatened our beloved Henry Coe with closure. We were pissed and wrote our state congressmen, we wrote the Governator.]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts about funding for our State Parks system in the 2008-09 Fiscal Year. I appreciate hearing from fellow Californians during this difficult budget year.

California’s natural beauty is renowned throughout the world, and I have made it my priority to protect our environment so future generations of Californians can continue to experience and enjoy what we have all come to love. Our state parks provide a fantastic introduction for each of these generations to the California experience and help to bring our residents and visitors closer to our landscapes.

I heard your concerns when I submitted my first budget proposal in January, and I’m happy to write you today to inform you that the May Revision of my budget restores funding for the California Department of Parks and Recreation - keeping all of our 278 State Parks open and our State Beaches fully staffed with seasonal lifeguards. My revised budget proposal will provide $11.8 million from the General Fund and $1.5 million from increased State Park fees to keep our parks open. The fee increases will range from $1 to $2 at selected parks.

While State Parks funding has been restored, the long-term budget problems that threatened our parks still exist. Due to our dysfunctional budget system, we are still facing a $17.2 billion shortfall, despite the progress my partners in the Legislature and I have made to reduce this deficit.

Our budget problems aren’t new. For too long, people have been on a constant roller coaster ride - never knowing how much funding they’ll receive from one year to the next. We have to put an end to this feast-or-famine budget cycle that threatens funding not just for State Parks but for education, law enforcement, human services and other programs. Because of this, long term budget reform is a central point of my budget proposal. We will stabilize our budget system by establishing a rainy-day fund, so that in good years we put money aside to be used in bad years like this one, and we will also give the Legislature authority to make mid-year cuts more swiftly.

To jump-start budget reform, my revised budget proposal will get more value out of an underperforming state asset - the California Lottery. We will modernize the Lottery to boost performance and returns and gain the capital we need to establish our much-needed rainy-day fund.

As I work to finalize the budget, please know that your thoughts are important to me. By working together, we will be able to turn this temporary problem into a permanent victory for all Californians.

Sincerely,

Arnold Schwarzenegger

This is great news. Though I doubt calling the Lottery to our rescue will do much in the long term (Prop. 13 anyone?), at least Coe and the other parks will remain open. Surely not all is hunky dory, but I’ll take it.