My club members and I have heard we are being characterized in the local press and before local elected bodies as rowdy hooligans who ride loud aggressive machines and leave damage in our wake. I’m writing to say – that is not us.
My name is Tony and I’m married with a young daughter. My wife and I own a Land Rover and we enjoy trail riding as a family. We belong to two clubs made up of families just like ours. As for work, I’m a financial planner at a respected national investment company – and I’m a little embarrassed at the thought of needing to explain myself to the people in the area.
You see, I’ve been coming to Cook County multiple times a year over many, many years. As have my club members.
We love the people and love the area. We always stop at the Cook County Co-op for food, Voyageur Brewing, Stone Harbor Wilderness Supply and Lake Superior Trading Post for gear. We eat at the Angry Trout in Grand Marais and at Lutsen Resort for breakfast on the way home.
We have never felt unwelcome over all that time, until now. I’m hesitant to say this but there appears to be a movement toward intolerance emerging in the area that we have not seen before.
We support the Border-to-Border Touring Route because it opens the beautiful forests of our state to people who could otherwise not enjoy it. The things the opposition are saying simply are not true.
With all the talk of wall building going on in the country today, Cook County would have been the last place on my list of places I would expect to hear such a similar refrain.
Tony Kieffer
Minnetonka
Minnesota Land Rovers
and Minnesota Overland
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