Gosh, we're glad there are guys like Adam Filbin, all the volunteers, and organizations like Clean-Dezert taking care of our lands and actually doing the dirty work instead of just talking about it, pointing fingers, or donating money in hopes that someone else will do it. Don't get us wrong, the money definitely helps, but manpower is most important in making a difference on a local level. As off-roaders and lovers of the outdoors, we all owe a great debt to the ones who take time out of their lives to make sure that someone is picking up after other members of our society who are perhaps a bit more careless. We felt lucky to participate and cover Clean-Dezert's 2008 Barstow Desert Clean-Up. And we have to give a special thanks to all those volunteers who drove out for the day, offering their time and trucks to help assist in the removal of trash we found in the deserts just outside Barstow, California. Though the majority of trash was from people who specifically brought it out here to dump, there was more trash than we wanted to find left by a few careless campers. Remember that you can lose a lot of trash in an instant if high winds pick up, so remember to always secure your trash in a wind-resistant way whenever camping.
In total, we filled up six dumpsters, not including more than 200 tires that weren't thrown in the dumpsters. And we could've filled up six more! Big thanks go out to the BLM, which provided the dumpsters and picked up all the tires that everyone gathered. Besides finding tires and the "normal" little trash, the clean-up crew grabbed refrigerators, washing machines, couches, beds, toilets, wood, and even two cars out of the desert!
Camburg brought out its big RV and was kind enough to provide lunch for everyone who helped out, and IronClad Gloves supplied work gloves so volunteers didn't mess up their hands.
A lot of volunteers chose to make this a dual-purpose weekend and brought out their toys and trailers to spend the weekend and party on Saturday night while a band, Costello, played a bunch of killer songs. Sunday morning, Clean-Dezert found some impressive desert trucks for anyone who wanted to take a ride. It was a good weekend for all, and especially for the much cleaner desert!
Clean-Dezert would also like to thank everyone who helped make this event happen and everyone who provided prizes for the volunteers. We almost couldn't believe how many prizes Clean-Desert had to hand out, as they must have been calling out numbers for two hours! Fox Shocks, KC HiLites, AEM, Glassworks Unlimited, Richer Racing, DMZ Fabrication, Dezert People/RDC, Dezert Nation, BTF Fabrication, RRP Fabrication, SUD Fabrication, Camburg, and IronClad all provided product, time, or supplies to help make this event happen.
Check out Clean-Dezert's website, www.clean-dezert.org, to find out when you can come help out at the next clean-up!