SANTEE, CALIFORNIA (October 12, 2004) - Jim Ryan, Director of Advanstar Communications' relatively new Off-Road Group, has been selected by the Off-Road Business Association Board of Directors to fill a vacancy on the Board. Advanstar's Off-Road Group publishes Dirt Sport and Off-Road Retailer magazines and is promoting "Off-Road Impact", a trade show exclusively for the off-road recreation industry.

The Off-Road Business Association (ORBA) is a non-profit trade association composed of companies involved in the off-road recreation industry. ORBA's President & CEO, Roy Denner, says: "Adding Jim Ryan to ORBA's diversified group of industry leaders currently on the Board of Directors rounds out ORBA's representation of the off-road recreation industry. Jim is well known in the media world and will fit in well with the make-up of the current Board".

Ryan responds that "We, at Advanstar, have been watching ORBA's growth in the off-road industry and believe that our organizations will complement each other very well. ORBA has a level of expertise regarding off-road land use issues and legislation impacting off-road recreation that we cannot possibly develop on our own. Readers of our publications need to know about these issues and we can provide the platform for ORBA to educate our readers."

ORBA has committed to being a major player at Off-Road Impact, the Advanstar Off-Road Group's upcoming industry trade show and conference in Las Vegas, January 20-22, at the Las Vegas Convention Center. In addition to being an exhibitor at that show, ORBA will be conducting educational seminars during the conference. Ryan and Denner agree that this type of industry trade show for businesses only is long overdue.