i figured this was worth posting........ from the Calgary Sun.
There were a slew of fines issued this weekend for everything from trucks without mudflaps to booze -- but no one died
By MICHAEL PLATT
Last Updated: 19th May 2009, 3:09am
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Facebook Digg Del.icio.us Google Stumble Upon Newsvine Reddit Technorati Feed Me Yahoo Simpy Squidoo Spurl Blogmarks Netvouz Scuttle Sitejot + What are these? A fistful of tickets, and a frown darker than the mud caked to his four-wheel drive truck.
"I can understand no tolerance, but at least let us have some fun -- you can't have fun if you leave here with $500 worth of tickets."
So ended the May long weekend for Calgarian Lance Foubert, and hundreds just like him, all nabbed in a back-country blitz that resulted in nearly 1,000 fines and countless long faces.
"The cops were giving out a lot of stupid tickets," said Foubert, who spent the weekend at the McLean Creek off-roading area near Bragg Creek.
"They gave my buddy a $115 cracked windshield ticket even though it just happened, and they gave us a ticket for no mudflaps, and one for open liquor when we were stuck in the mud."
Stupid to some, a saving grace to others.
"It was way better than last year, way better," said Danny Tilleman, another McLean Creek camper.
Thus, two groups of campers, two four-wheel drive trucks, and two very different opinions of the weekend that was.
Tilleman says it was a matter of knowing the police were watching, and keeping your nose clean.
He says the presence of park officers, rangers and police reduced the rowdiness, but it didn't spoil the party for those who knew the rules and obeyed them.
"We had 30 people there, we had loud music and everything, but we cleaned up the campsite every morning, because we knew we had to," said Tilleman.
"There was no problem, and it was much better this year."
With no major incidents of violence or vandalism marring the May long weekend, this year's massive law-enforcement crackdown on camping areas is being hailed a victory by those trying to halt the mayhem of the past.
Instead of burning couches, overturned cars, rapes, bloody brawls and even death, 2009 was marked by a multitude of minor crimes, including traffic violations, open liquor, and illegal drug use.
More significant events included a stolen vehicle, a missing person later located, two quad rollovers and a fight at the Ghost Campground.
Overall, it was a picture of well-supervised silliness, as people celebrated winter's end.
"I think the message is starting to get out there, and people are recognizing this is not a free-for-all," said Cindy Ady, Alberta's Minister of Parks and Tourism.
"People who are responsible are returning because they know we have a handle on things, and the others are more aware -- they know we're out there looking for them."
Or they're getting caught before the problems really ignite.
Finding and fining the trouble makers is what hundreds of wildlife officers and police did over the three-day weekend, taking their ticket books into areas where the law is rarely seen.
In past years, those who trekked beyond the established campgrounds into the woods and wilderness were relatively immune to the law, and the result, too often, was environmental damage and a huge mess left behind.
This year, along with bolstered campground supervision, officers from Sustainable Resource Development and the RCMP followed the party crowd into the back country, writing tickets by the ledger-full.
RCMP spokesman Sgt. Patrick Webb said the huge increase in fines issued is a reflection of the extra enforcement, rather than any deterioration of behaviour on the part of campers.
Webb said the lack of serious crime and destruction is the real indication of success on a weekend notorious for rowdy behaviour and drunken stupidity.
"If you look back into history we've had some disastrous weekends that have included major bodily harm, sexual assaults, and even deaths by accident," said Webb.
"In this case, if you look at the statistics, there's a lot of tickets, there's a lot of vehicles checked, there's a lot of investigations, but the very serious crime is not on the page.
"We're very pleased about that."
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Topic: Mclean Long Weekend news report (Read 5092 times)