Croom Attendance Down 20 Percent This Year

There are some shiny, little-used dirt bikes and all-terrain vehicles for sale.

Owners can't afford to fill them with gas anymore. They hope dirt bike riders will see them and want to buy them, said forestry supervisor Mark Joseph Good.

They are lined up along a dirt trail leading up to the Croom Motorcycle Area. They have "for sale" signs and phone numbers visible to potential buyers.

"They set those bikes up and polish them really nice," said Good. "They try to see if they can sell them. It's kind of sad, really."

There aren't as many bikes and ATVs roaring along the trails at the park these days. People can't afford to fill them and haul them more than 100 miles to the nearest set of dirt trails. Some have turned to selling them.

Another sign of the times has been the lack of campers at the site, Good said.

The 2,600-acre motorcycle area is part of the Withlacoochee State Forest and managed by the Florida Division of Forestry.

Campers from all over Florida set up camp - particularly those who want to ride the trails on their motorcycles, ATVs or mountain bikes.

Typically, this time of year is busier than usual. Campers often get an early start to the Labor Day weekend and park their recreational vehicles at the site Friday morning or afternoon.

As of noon Friday, there were no Labor Day vacationers at Croom, Good said.

"We're about 20 percent of what we were last year," he said. "It's all about the economy and gas prices. No doubt about it."

The Withlacoochee State Forest was declared as one of the "Ten Coolest Places in North America" by the World Wildlife Fund, according to its Web site. It often attracts tourists from outside the state of Florida.

Good was not willing to give up on seeing a significant increase in campers this weekend. Some families might not have been able to take off Friday, especially with school back in session.

Staffers always prepare for a spike in attendance prior to a holiday weekend. This week was no exception, he said.

"There's usually a noticeable difference," Good said of increase in campers during the Labor Day weekend. "We make sure to gear up a bit."