The State : Race Sabotage Suspicion Told

Organizers of the Barstow-to-Las Vegas motorcycle race suggested that the environmental organization Earth First! may be behind the attempted sabotage of the race. A piece of plywood that was part of an obstacle jammed into a tunnel was painted with two words, race organizer Rick Hammel said. Because the wood was torn apart when race officials removed the roadblock on Saturday, the inscription is only partly legible, Hammel said. What remains is “EARTH F.” “I make the assumption that it is Earth First!” Earth First! is given to disrupting activities it deems harmful to the environment. Other environmentalists, including spokesman for the Wilderness Society and the Sierra Club, have condemned the action, saying that they do not condone activities that could lead to death or injuries. U.S. Bureau of Land Management officials are investigating the incident.