Lusk said writers from a variety of outdoors magazines will come to Hatfield McCoy in July to ride the trails and that the HMRRA will reap national exposure from the stories generated.
"They will have breakfast at the governor's mansion and they will then ride on the Little Coal River system. Fishers ATV world was in this past week and did some tapings for shows that will feature every trail we have on the Outdoor Channel. We will have 12 days on the Outdoor Channel dedicated to us. "
Lusk said Hatfield-McCoy is focusing on national marketing with ads in major outdoors periodicals as well as spots and specials on cable television including six 30 minute shows on the Outdoor Channel.
"I am not bragging when I say Hatfield-McCoy is head and shoulders above other outdoor trails," Jeff Lusk said. "From the beginning, we have looked at our trail system as an engine for economic development across multiple counties in a region. The other guys look at their trail systems as just places you can ride ATVs and don't focus on economic development projects."
Lusk and other Hatfield-McCoy board of directors members have traveling across the country visiting other ATV trails and being surprised at what they have found.
"No other system we looked at was up to ours," he said. "No other system could boast 50 businesses that popped up in their wake. They are not in the same ball park as us," Lusk said.
From the beginning, Lusk has felt that the HMRRA could be bringing in more through merchandising itself as a brand and his emphasis on marketing products is paying off in a big way.
"Our retail sales of merchandise are up 35 percent," Lusk said. "In 2005, we did $44,000 in retail sales of merchandise. We expect to do $250,000 this year. We took what was a sideline and that is now spinning out into an income stream that will provide us with about $100,000 of usable cash."
Lusk said that as Hatfield-McCoy continues major marketing campaigns in nationwide magazines and television programs it will focus on ATVs, UTVs and dirtbikes as motorized riders consist of 99 percent of Hatfield-McCoy's customers.
Lusk said his next goal is to increase the number of riders on the trail who live in West Virginia, as currently the lions share of riders are tourists from other states.
"Under 12 percent of our riders are people from West Virginia," Lusk said.
Board President Art Kirkendoll praised board members from across the various counties for their years of hard work noting that they had worked together to better the entire region instead of just their own representative counties. Kirkendoll noted the HMRRA board was very involved and active and unique in its' harmony. Kirkendoll said that at a time when the national economy had weakened, business had remained good for Hatfield-McCoy.
"We are mining coal together and working on these economic projects together and we have the best trail system in America," Kirkendoll said.
Lusk said at a recent familiarization ride for lawmakers and VIPs 140 people showed up to ride. There were 150 slots available.
A five year contract with the Larry Joe Harless Center in Gilbert was approved at the meeting to host events in Gilbert.
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