Endurance.Net Ridecamp Archives

You make two excellent points, Karen:
1. not all trails are suitable for multi-use
2. horse people need to be as organized and pro-active as the bicycle 
community.
laney
Karen Sullivan wrote:
>  
> It's wonderful when bikes and horses can safely use the same trails, 
> work together and get along....
>  
> While multi-use trails is an ideal to work toward; the reality is that 
> some trails are just not
> appropriate for multi use.  I have been doing a lot of research on what 
> constitutes a multi-use trail, and what constitutes a singletrack 
> footpath..and all sorts of criteria are involved such as narrowness of 
> trail, grade, sightlines, blind corners, composition of soil, etc.  I 
> have found many Bay Area regional parks, county parks and National 
> seashore that restrict mountain bikes to fire roads and wide trails; the 
> singletrack are left for hikers and horses. Their goal is to ensure the 
> safety and enjoyment of ALL users...and they have also seen the havoc 
> wrecked when bikes are added into narrow singletrack trails.....
>  
> the IMBA would have you believe that all trails can be multi use....I 
> graciously admit they have done TONS of work in trail building in parks, 
> establishing safety rules for bikes and horses and trying to work with 
> all goups.  I believe they are a more active trail organization than 
> most in the horse community.  They research on bike damage on trails IS  
> somewhat slanted....
>  
> but the reality is that a huge group of mountain bikers is out there for 
> the speed and thrill......not caring about other users, OR the damage to 
> the trail.  IMBA councils bikes on how to negotiage trails on a bike to 
> minimize damage....but, again, the reality is that RACING bikers DON'T 
> care, and do pretty extreme damage, especially on switchbacks....
>  
> Steve Proe's post may prove very helpful to me at this point, in helping 
> to develop existing old horse trails in a park this past year...in 
> determining which should be multi use and which should be singletrack 
> bke/horse
>  
> A case in point, also in Boggs State Demonstration Forest in Cobb, CA.  
> For years, horses have used the trails and fire roads....until the bikes 
> found it. In my opinion, most of the singletrack is NOT suitable for 
> mixing horses and bikes....but the bike community has been so more 
> visible in developing a volunteer work force, bring in IMBA for work 
> days,  GPSing trail and doing a new map; WHERE SOME TRAILS ARE STATED 
> THEY MAY BE TOO STEEP FOR HORSES; that the horseback riders basically 
> have been run out on weekends; it's just too dangerous to ride there. 
> Who's fault? Horse community, for not sticking up for their right to 
> trails.....again, maybe this new ruling at Oroville, and Steve's post 
> may help someday in reclaining horse trails.....
>  
> For many years I have proclaimed myself to be in favor of all multi-use 
> trails...but experience and common sense may be heading me in another 
> direction.  Just a few months ago, I was on a single-track trail at Sly 
> PArk with a friend....I did not know it was multi use....and got dumped 
> when my horse and a biker came face to face on a blind corner....,my 
> horse did an exit right and I lost it....fell on my butt....not hurt and 
> fortunately my horse did not run off into the wilderness!!!  Not the 
> bikers fault as he was not going fast....not my fault for not exposing 
> my horse to bikes....just a plain bad corner with bad visibility....and 
> yes, she could have had a similiar reaction to a hiker or 
> backpacker....yet not 10 minutes later we had a bike come screeching 
> around a corner too fast and head down hill, right toward my horse...I 
> asked him to stop, he skidded several feel..but as my horse could see 
> him, she just stood!!!!
>  
> Will I ride that trail again? Probably not!!!! Just too 
> dangerous. Another horseback rider giving up a trail due to multi use.....
> Karen
>
>     ----- Original Message -----
>     *From:* tom noll <mailto:tomnoll@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>      
>     Greetings:
>      
>     Here is a link to an International Mountain Bike Association site
>     that describes how mountain bikers and horses can safely negotiate
>     the same trails:
>      
>        http://www.imba.com/resources/bike_management/horses.html
>      
>     The end of the second and third paragraphs are not quite true, but
>     the reply to the article corrects some of the inaccuracies.
>      
>     SW Idaho
>      
>
>     ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>     No virus found in this incoming message.
>     Checked by AVG Free Edition.
>     Version: 7.5.472 / Virus Database: 269.8.7/830 - Release Date:
>     6/3/07 12:47 PM


=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp
Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp

Ride Long and Ride Safe!!

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=