Last year, when the Ocala National Forest increased the price to ride off-road vehicles on the trail system to $75 per year, I thought they were crazy. The trail system was poorly marked, in poor condition, felled trees to overcome everywhere, lacked sufficient trail heads, and just could not compete with the Croom State Forest off-road recreational area that costs $50 per year. I stand corrected. I reluctantly went for a ride with a friend in the Ocala National Forest on Saturday (I say reluctantly due to the poor trail conditions during my last ride). We parked at the new Delancy Trail trail head parking area and headed off for the Delancy Loops and the Motorcycle Loop. A rider at the parking area let us know that it was a little "soft" on the trails, due to a recent lack of rain. "Great," I thought, more sandy trails to ride. If these conditions were "soft," I must go back out after a good rain to see "hard" conditions, because I don't think I've ever seen trails this well groomed, with the exception of the Chipley hare scramble. The lead-in trail was a little soft, but once we hit the main trail, everything was hard-packed, well marked, and clear. Even the Long-Leaf Trail we used to get to the motorcycle loop (typically VERY sandy and whooped out) was relatively smooth and the sand was tolerable at worst. New signage adorns the trails with warnings before crossings, warnings about trail maintenance crews, directional signage, clearly marked accessibility, and two-way arrows. Several new trail head parking areas are throughout the forest, including a new one right at the Motorcycle Loop.
So, what makes Ocala National Forest better than the Croom State Forest Off-Road Recreational Area? I'm glad you asked. 
I've outlined my eight reasons for leaving Croom behind in favor of ONF.
- ONF is centrally located in the state. Although Croom is the most popular place to ride off-road bikes and four-wheelers, it is in the southwest corner of the state, making it a very long drive if you live anywhere in Florida, besides the southwest corner of the state.
- ONF trails are very well marked. Crooms trails just go off in every which direction without a single marker to indicate where you're going. This works if you are very familiar with Croom and do a lot of riding. However, we tend to ride with people from varying experience backgrounds that results in people lagging behind and getting lost. We end up spending more time keeping everyone together than we do riding. On Saturday, we rode for 3 hours straight without so much as a one minute stop to wait for or find someone. Everything was very well marked and made sense -- it was just loop after loop.
- ONF has a motorcycle only loop. For those of us on the two-wheelers, it's nice to have an area without the 4-wheelers. It keeps the trail narrow and technical, giving us the opportunity to hone our skills. It also tends to keep the trails from getting that nasty hump in the center.
- Croom has one camping area for riders that tends to get filled up, fast. Ocala has numerous camping facilities located throughout the forest, including several that are specifically for the off-road trail users (including Delancy West that has had a fantastic renovation with 30 beautiful campsites). Additionally, you can camp primitively pretty much anywhere in the forest, if you don't need those sissy facilities.
- You don't have to spend $75 or even $50, like Croom. Ocala has a $10 day pass. Had Croom had that option last year, I would have saved $10 versus buying the $50 annual pass. Granted the $50 or the $75 would be more cost efficient if you plan to ride the trails more often, but between all the race weekends and the little practice time I have, I just won't make it to Croom or Ocala enough to justify an annual pass. At least Ocala gives you another option.
- Ocala now has three separate trail areas with over 100 miles of trails for your use. This accommodates many more riders than Croom, keeping the trails less congested.
- Trails at Ocala are much better maintained than Croom. Croom has become a spider's web of trails that stay whooped out. The trails at ONF had very few whooped sections and were very clearly marked. The National Forest Service does not allow trailblazing and this keeps the trails in good shape and easy to follow.
- The terrain and vistas at ONF vary greatly, even within one section, let alone if you visit one of the southern trail sections.
I can assure you, I'll be spending a lot more of my practice days at the Ocala National Forest, this season.
