U.S. Forest Service Recreation Planner Eric Amstad attended the regular meeting of the Harney County Court on April 18 to discuss the Skull 120/60/30 Gravel Grind, which will be held June 16 in Harney County.

The event will offer three bike races consisting of 120-mile, 60-mile, or 30-mile routes. The 120-mile race will begin at Burns’ Triangle Park, go up over the top of Snow Mountain, and end back at the park. The 60- and 30-mile races will be shorter versions of that route.

“We’re in our second year now, and this is basically the toughest gravel grinder in Oregon,” Amstad said, explaining that gravel grinding is a niche style of biking for riders who “want more adventure than just riding on paved roads.”

He added that all of the major bike manufacturers have started making bikes specifically for gravel grinding, which has “really exploded” in the last two years.

“We are perfectly suited to take advantage of that because we have all these roads,”Amstad said, adding that he hopes Harney County can become the epicenter for gravel grinding.

He said future goals include adding a trade show that will expand the event from a single day to a weekend or longer, and “There’s a lot of interest in the industry from that.”

Amstad explained that the Skull 120/60/30 is a project of the Adventure Harney recreation collaborative, which primarily consists of the Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Harney County Chamber of Commerce, and Oregon State Parks with support from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Burns Paiute Tribe, law enforcement, community members, and local and industry sponsors.

He noted that agency partners received a lot of positive feedback from last year’s riders regarding their active participation and partnership in the event.

“The fact that we’re actually participating and promoting and partnering was a big deal to them,” Amstad said. “For that fact alone, there has been a lot of interest in the industry on really promoting this race.”

Amstad said the collaborative hopes to incorporate industry partners who can eventually run the race, adding that REN Cycles has already been a major contributer.

The Portland-based bike company promoted the Skull 120/60/30 during the Sea Otter Classic, which was held April 11-14 in Monterey, Calif.

“It is a huge four-day cycling festival that attracts thousands of riders, so we should gain great exposure there,” Amstad stated.

He added that Skull 120 participants tend to be professional and semiprofessional riders, and they’ve used their blogs and social media to spread the word about the race.

Fifty riders have already registered for this year’s event, which is double the amount of last year’s participants, and Amstad said he expects to see more registrants in the next two months.

Amstad added that he’s “super excited” about this year’s route.

“The riders last year were very impressed with the ride and the landscape, and I really feel like this one just blows away last year,” he said, adding that improvements include eliminating the portions of the route that required riders to cross Highway 395 and return five miles on Highway 20.

Amstad said the event aims to showcase Harney County’s outdoor recreation opportunities, provide economic benefits to the county, and create a fun activity for community members and visitors.

He requested the county’s continued support and encouraged community involvement.

“The community is welcome to ride and welcome to come out, and we do need volunteers and helpers on race day,” he said.

Harney County Judge Pete Runnels and Harney County Commissioner Mark Owens will help welcome riders.

Amstad said an after-race brew fest is also being planned.

For additional information about the Skull 120/60/30, call Eric Amstad at 541-573-4348 or the Harney County Chamber of Commerce at 541-573-2636. You can also visit the race’s website at www.adventureharney.com

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The court approved Resolution 2018-06 in the matter of declaring a local disaster and requesting to declare a state drought emergency for Harney County.

“It’s always prudent for us to do this declaration to assist landowners in losses they may possibly encounter because of the drought,” Runnels said. “We could get tons of rain in the next two weeks, and we might not need it, but it doesn’t harm us to do this.”

Owens provided copies of the Oregon Water Resources Department’s Oregon Water Conditions Report and explained that Harney County’s drought is currently classified as moderate, but conditions are projected to worsen.

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Owens reported that the county is working to open the Crane cinder pit to the public. The Arnold family donated the pit to the county so that citizens can access and use it.

Cinders are for noncommercial use only, and a maximum of 500 yards can be taken annually by each private entity.

Anyone interested in accessing the pit can obtain a permit and key from Administrative Assistant Kerry Opie at the courthouse. A deposit will be required to obtain the key, but it will be returned when the key is returned.

Owens expressed appreciation for the Arnold family’s donation.

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In other business, the court:

• reviewed and approved the revised Harney County Library Advisory Board Bylaws;

• approved the sale of Tax Lot 2200 and Tax Lot 2300 to Travis Singhose for a total of $40,800 ($200 per acre).

Runnels explained that the county-owned land was submitted for auction on April 11 at the courthouse lobby.

Singhose was the only person who bid at the auction, and his offer was below the real market value of $61,200. (Tax Lot 2200 is valued at $38,400, and Tax Lot 2300 is valued at $22,800.)

The property will be listed at real market value on the tax roll;

• reviewed water use requests.

Owens said requests will continue to slow down, as the Oregon Water Resources Department isn’t accepting any new water right permit applications.

“We’ll see less and less as we move forward,” he said. “You’ll see a lot more transfers, permit amendments, point of appropriations, people trying to make sure all the i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed because there’s more of a focus on us;”

• discussed the Juntura Cutoff Road;

• received correspondence from Steve Beverlin, forest supervisor for the Malheur National Forest, regarding timber sales offered between April 1 and Sept. 30;

• received correspondence from the Malheur National Forest regarding the Hop DxD Reoffer timber sale;

• received the Malheur National Forest Schedule of Proposed Actions for spring 2018;

• received correspondence from the Lakeview BLM regarding nine mining Plans of Operation from mining claim holders in the Sunstone area;

• held a rural meeting in Fields April 30 and will hold a rural meeting in Riley May 16;

• will hold a budget hearing May 17 at 10 a.m.;

• received asphalt bids from Albina, Idaho Asphalt, and Western States.

Harney County Roads Supervisor Eric Drushella  said he needed more time to research the bids.

The court agreed to accept Drushella’s recommendation once he obtains the necessary information;

• discussed the Malheur Lakes Redband Trout Conservation Plan.

Runnels and Owens noted that the court and local water planning groups were not included in the process.

Owens said he will meet with Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife staff and prepare comments to share during the next county court meeting.

The next meeting of the Harney County Court will be held Wednesday, May 2, at 10 a.m. in Runnels’ office at the courthouse.