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It has just been announced that commercial motorized tours on Segway™ scooters will be permitted within Anteitam National Battlefield (see appended).
This is a prefect example of the commercialization, privatization and motorization of the National Parks. It is an example I have previously explained in considerable detail back when the idea was in its early test phase— (click here and here to read learn why this is such a bad idea!)
Riding Segways within the parks is the future. I have no doubt about that. Not with the American Recreation Coalition pushing it. Not with the inventor of the Segway being a close, personal, friend of the Bushes (pictured at right). And not with the Segway company gasping for air an desperately in need of using the National Park System to do its marketing!
Using the National Park to sell products will take many forms. Having paying customers motor-scootering on the walkways of Anteitam National Battlefield while riding rented, branded, vehicles is merely one of 'em.
Scott
PS... it is obvious that this is commercialization and motorization. It may not be obvious that it is privatization. Perhaps this cartoon will help explain why this is so.
April 14, 2007
Segways offer new way to see Antietam
By Karen Gardner - News-Post Staff
SHARPSBURG — Jeff Hutman believes Segways and the outdoors are a
natural pair, so he started TourGlides with the aim of giving tours
using the motorized scooters.
Hutman is arranging Segway tours through Antietam National Battlefield
and Fort Frederick State Park. He also plans to offer tours of
Hagerstown, Harpers Ferry, W.Va., and Shepherdstown, W.Va., and he's
hoping other areas will open up to Segway tours.
The tours will start in May, and Hutman said he's already gotten interest from tour bus operators and event planners.
"There are two types of people who will want to do these tours," Hutman
said. "People who want to do this for the novelty of it and people who
want to do it for mobility purposes."
Antietam Battlefield has 8 1/2 miles of paved roads with speed limits
of 25 mph or less, and Park Superintendent John Howard said Hutman's
Segways can use the park roads.
"It allows folks to get a little closer to what they're looking at,"
Howard said. "It's hard to cover this whole park by foot. And if you're
getting in and out of your car, you're burning fossil fuels. That's
been a problem with some of the bigger national parks."
For $85, tourists get a two-hour guided tour of the park plus a
half-hour lesson on how to use the Segways. "It only takes a few
minutes to learn, but we let you get comfortable with it," Hutman said
while demonstrating a glider.
Segways, which are powered with electric motors, don't require balance.
To move forward, simply lean forward, and to slow down, lean back. Once
on the Segways, tour guides who typically lead vehicle tours of the
battlefield will be able to tell the story of the battle outdoors.
Hutman, 47, is art director of Ranger Rick magazine, published by the
National Wildlife Federation. He loves to rock climb, kayak and
backpack. A couple of years ago, he injured his shoulder in a
snowboarding accident and had to have his shoulder rebuilt.
"I was immobilized for seven months," he said. "It gave me time to think about people's immobility."
While he was recuperating, he researched Segway use and found they are
popular with people who love the outdoors but can't get around on foot
or bicycle. He read a testimony from a former triathlete who was in a
car accident, who now gets around by Segway.
"It means a huge difference in quality of life," he said. "I just want to get people outdoors."
Aging baby boomers will have more leisure time, but are becoming less
mobile, he said. Segways will give them the chance to see the
battlefield under the open sky without taxing leg muscles.
He is working with a bike rental shop in nearby Shepherdstown to outfit
children with bikes and parents with Segways. Because of insurance
liability, Segway rentals are limited to people 14 and older, he said.
Hutman bought 10 Segways at $5,000 each for the business. He is working
with the same vendor that provides Antietam with motorized tours to
provide the Segway tours.
"This is rain or shine," he said. "The Segways are waterproof. You're
going to have a good time on the Segway whether it rains or not."
Segways are mostly used in urban settings, he said, but he wants to prove they have uses in rural settings as well.
"It's so much like flying," he said. "I'm hoping to sell the experience."
Howard said Hutman had a good business plan.
"We wish him a lot of luck," he said. "It's an opportunity for folks to view the battlefield in a different way."
There are no established bike or horseback tours of the battlefield,
although groups of cyclists and horseback riders often come on their
own, Howard said. The park has a low-speed highway that doesn't have a
lot of traffic and the Segways should fit right in with cars and bikes
on the tour roads.
"He really cares about the battlefield," Howard said.
Hutman, who lives just a couple of miles from Antietam, hopes to
arrange Segway tours of the C&O Canal National Historical Park,
Monocacy National Battlefield, the Western Maryland Rail Trail and
other nearby parks and attractions.
He's also talking with vineyard owners about vineyard tours. The
Segways can handle off-road gliding and easily make tight turns.
Segway touring is another opportunity to see historical and natural treasures, Hutman said.
"You do get a little exercise," he said. "It's not for lazy people. I'm
not here to ruin a historical venue or get in the way of people. We're
not here to blow through the park."
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- Outdoor recreation 
