US Senator Joe Manchin Visits Hatfield-McCoy Trails

Mixing politics and powersports rarely results in a day of smiles and laughter. That is, unless you’re US Senator Joe Manchin on his recent visit to his state’s Hatfield-McCoy trail system. He was joined by Kawasaki, Honda, and Polaris to promote both the tourism industry in West Virginia and the prospects of investing corporate funds in the area.

UTV Driver recently visited the nearby Kentucky Outlaw Trails and spent some time on the Hatfield-McCoy Trails. We stayed at Hatfield’s Hideout on the Kentucky side with easy access to the Devil Anse trail system near McCarr, Kentucky, with Matewan, Kentucky, just across the historic Tug River.

The region continues to eye the powersports and tourism industry as a means of recovery from the drawback of the coal industry. Leveraging their vast network of rolling hills, and abandoned mountaintop mining areas, means year-round tax dollars being shoveled into local businesses. West Virginia and Virginia towns have seen success from marketing their trail systems and Kentucky is not far behind. When all three states finish their trail networks, they will have created a combined riding area of more than 2,000 miles. At the end of the day, it’s the powersports consumers who wins.