No one is coming to rescue us. There is no government organization that is going to keep our deserts open and clean. The responsibility lies squarely on us, the off-roaders, the so called bad guys of the desert. But wait a second, I am pretty sure we spend the most money of all outdoor enthusiasts impacting local and national economies. When was the last time you saw a hiker buy a truck to tow his shoes? Or an RV to stay in? Or wheels, or shocks….. $20.3 Billion alone in 2016 according to the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis. And that is only what was measurable. (Source)
Likely you could double that number when you factor all the non-measured riding from private land areas to Baja. Yet that does not excuse us from our responsibility to be good shepherds of our environment. Just like the great Ernest Hemingway said “The Earth is a fine place and worth fighting for.”
Meet Jennie and Dave Karbginsky. They are the embodiment of the idea of taking care of your own backyard. They own and operate AXA Off-road, a UTV rental operation in Glamis, so they are in the dunes seven days week literally seeing the impact of off-roaders coming and going. It’s like being the parents who live at the house you just threw a party in. After years of seeing people leave their trash they began to take action. First by picking up trash themselves and then finally forming the Black Bag project, an ongoing Glamis desert clean up that takes place every Sunday morning from 9-11am. The idea of the Black Bag Project is to empower off-roaders to take responsibility in keeping Glamis clean by taking action and cleaning up dunes. This last Sunday, post Camp RZR, hundreds of off-roaders showed up to help pitch in and clean up after the massive weekend. After two hours of clean up over two tons of trash was collected and placed into the donated Republic services dumpster. All participants were entered into a raffle with tons of prizes from supporting off-road brands and more. Food was provided by Daddy’s Famous Foods and what should be an arduous task turned into a lot of fun with great people!
Special thanks for Republic Services for donating the massive dumpster and special thanks to all the companies who support the Black Bag project including: AXA Off-Road, 4WP, Polaris, Gilmore Off-Road, Glamis Beach Store, UTV Sports Mag, Shock Therapy, Daddy’s Famous Foods, Desert Whips, Vans, Dune Therapy, DC Whips, UTVunderground.com, Mad Media, Dirt Co, Dune & Destroy, Pace Off-Road, The Dirty Duner Show Snap-On Tools, Ladies of Glamis, Landscaping Contractors, SandCraft RCR, Coyne Powersports, 2X Motorsports, Fullerton Sandsports, Big Belly Crew, Chupacabra Off-Road, Sand Asylum, Boardmanville, ASA Association, Matt’s Meat, Bob Moses Ceramic Coating, Ace Towing, Hybrid Wraps, Trinity Racing, UTV Law, Desert to River, 5150 Whips, Badass Unlimited, Super Sick, UTV Savages, OffroadLoans.com, and The Off Road Division.
You can show up in person any Sunday at 9am at AXA Off-Road on vendor road and pitch in and help. Make sure to bring your kids and show them we are responsible for our environment. Who knows, maybe we don’t need any government officials to show us how to take care of ourselves.
Pack out what you brought in. Don’t Trash the Desert!
If you want to donate to the project with cash or product donations please contact Jennie at [email protected]
