News

National Get Outdoors Day Media

Take Me Fishing Promotes National Get Outdoors Day
Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation
http://www.rbff.org/page.cfm?PageID=5&NewsID=284

Celebrate National Get Outdoors Day this Saturday
The Gadsden Times
http://www.gadsdentimes.com/article/20080612/NEWS/806120304

NYS Legislature Issues National Get Outdoors Day Resolution
New York Outdoors Blog
http://newyorkoutdoors.wordpress.com/2008/06/13/nys-legislature-issues-national-get-outdoors-day-resolution-great-lakes-seaway-trail-hosting-only-events-for-new-york-state/

Celebrate National Get Outdoors Day this Saturday, June 14th
The Clark Fork Chronicle
http://www.clarkforkchronicle.com/article.php/2008061411020333

‘Get Outdoors Day’ is Saturday
The News-Messenger.com
http://www.thenews-messenger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080613/NEWS01/806130314/1002/NEWS01

National Get Outdoors Day Celebration Highlights Month Long Observance
Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/news/resource/res2008/08-0604-getoutdoorsday.aspx

Local Kids Celebrate the Outdoors this Weekend
Desert Dispatch:
http://www.desertdispatch.com/articles/barstow_3576___article.html/celebrate_kids.html

Get Outdoors Tomorrow, Officially
The Salem News:
http://www.salemnews.com/pulife/local_story_165003226.html/resources_printstory

Get Outdoors Day By Circle K RVs
http://www.circlekrvs.com/GetOutdoors/tabid/21581/Default.aspx

Give Dad the Gift of Good Health for Father’s Day this Year
 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:
http://www.fws.gov/news/NewsReleases/showNews.cfm?newsId=78C0667A-B041-94B3-3EFA662F1B1A9181

Let Kids Curiosity Go Wild on Get Outdoors Day
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
http://www.ajc.com/opinion/content/opinion/stories/2008/06/11/forested.html

A Day for the Outdoors
KIII TV
http://www.kiiitv.com/news/local/19758679.html

Getting Ready for Great Outdoors Day on June 14
RVDA
http://www.rvda.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=home1&CONTENTID=4873&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cf

National Get Outdoors Day Celebration June 14 at Washoe Lake Park
Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
http://dcnrnews.wordpress.com/2008/06/11/national-get-outdoors-day-celebration-june-14-at-washoe-lake/

U.S. Forest Service Encourages Kids to Get Outdoors
http://www.fs.fed.us/news/2008/releases/06/outdoors.shtml

Snowbird to Host National Get Outdoors Day June 14
http://www.skiutah.com/media/press_room/release/1156

Perfect Time to Take Park in National Get Outdoors Day
NWPA Outdoors
http://www.goerie.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?Date=20080608&Category=NWPAOUT10&ArtNo=806080444&SectionCat=SPORTS40&Template=printart

Getting Our Kids Back to the Outdoors
The Denver Post
http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_%3Ca%20class='srNewsTitleLink'%20href='http://www.denverpost.com/ci_9351446

National Get Outdoors Day Encourages Kids to Get Outdoors
International Mountain Bicycling Association
http://www.imba.com/news/news_releases/05_08/05_22_get_outdoors.html

Getting our kids back to the outdoors

denverpost.com
By Joanne Ditmer
May 23, 2008

Colorado is a state of magnificent natural beauty, with an enthusiastic population that likes to enjoy the outdoors. We ski, hike, camp, fish, watch wildlife, go boating, the list is endless.

So why are we leaving our kids behind?

American youngsters spend up to six hours a day watching TV or movies, on the Internet and playing video games, and a scant 30 minutes a week of unregulated time outdoors. They should have 60 minutes of physical activity a day.

Our kids are nature-deprived. When they are outdoors, they're more apt to be involved in some team competition, not just becoming acquainted with flora and fauna, or enjoying the peace brought by special places.

Denver has a splendid park system, accessible in almost every neighborhood, but some parents are wary of the kids going there to play, fearing "stranger danger." Yet far more predators come from the Internet than from the outdoors. Colorado is one of the states that no longer requires physical education in public schools, and some schools have even eliminated recesses. And with so many new houses built lot line-to-lot line, there's no room even to toss a ball.

With that lack of outdoor activity, children have become more overweight. For the first time in our nation's history, kids' current life expectancy is 3 to 5 percent less than that of their parents. We can't lose a generation to "house arrest." And if our children are blind to the values of our irreplaceable natural lands, who will be the stewards of our future?

At the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Resources Project monthly breakfast last week, we heard how people involved in public land management and outdoor recreation groups are working to give more kids a chance to enjoy and learn about nature. REI, Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado, and the U.S. Forest Service teamed with the Boys and Girls Club of Metro Denver to hold a contest for essays and posters on "Why I want to get out of the house and into nature."

The six winners, from third to seventh grades, shared their efforts. The winners all got backpacks stuffed with camping and outdoor gear, and initially two of them were awarded a week at the Boys and Girls Clubs' Gates Camp. But when CORRP members attending the meeting heard the kids' stories, they were moved to pass the hat so all six could go.

On June 14, National Get Outdoors Day, more than a dozen organizations will give kids a chance to sample activities such as mountain biking, kayaking, skateboarding, fishing, a climbing wall, tents, and other recreational and educational programs. The event will be held at Sloan's Lake — and it's free. (For more information, go to nationalgetoutdoorsday.com.)

We all want what's best for our children. Renewing their link to the outdoors would be a priceless and lifelong gift.

Joanne Ditmer's column on environmental and urban issues for The Post began in 1962 and now appears once a month.

National Get Outdoors Day Encourages Kids to Play Outside

www.imba.com
By Mark Eller
May 22, 2008

Kids today spend an average of 6.5 hours a day in front of TVs or computers, and studies have repeatedly shown that they are spending less and less time outside. Get Outdoors USA is partnering with leading organizations in outdoor recreation, including IMBA, to reverse the trend and encourage kids to get outdoors. Our collaborative efforts will be focused into National Get Outdoors Day.

The annual event will be celebrated on June 14, 2008, with subsequent events continuing on the second Saturday of June each year.

National Get Outdoors Day focuses on a single day when people are inspired and motivated to get outdoors, with federal, state and local agencies, key enthusiast organizations and recreation businesses pitching in to make the experience fun. Event planners will emphasize reaching first-time visitors to public lands. By offering diverse activities and opportunities, this national effort will broaden appreciation for and interest in the great outdoors -- and awareness of its benefits.

National Get Outdoors Day provides an excellent opportunity to expose children and families to mountain biking, as today's young trail riders will be tomorrow's trail stewards. A recent Outdoor Industry Association study found that cycling is the top form of active outdoor recreation for children, and that mountain biking can serve as a gateway to an active outdoor lifestyle.

To find National Get Outdoors Day activities in your area, or to get involved, visit www.nationalgetoutdoorsday.org.

Also, keep in mind that IMBA's annual Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day celebration will be held on Oct. 4, 2008.