[pct-l] Forest service reconsidering mountain bikes?

[James Lott]

I am both a backpacker and a mountain bike rider.  While I prefer not to have people on the same trail I am riding on, you can co-exist on the same trails.  I find it funny that some of the complaints are that mountain bikers do more damage to the trail than do horses or hikers.  My tires are only 2.25 inches wide.  How wide are your feet?? I find more damage to a trail by the horses than I do mountain bike and we could go back to the tread about all the horse and cow poop that is left on the trail and about all of the TP the hikers leave behind?

There is no perfect solution, but I don't think that hikers have the sole right to the wilderness.



> Date: Mon, 8 Oct 2012 10:49:25 -0700
> From: backpack45 at yahoo.com
> To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> Subject: [pct-l] Forest service reconsidering mountain bikes?
> 
> I looked at the site that had arguments for allowing mountain bikes and had 
> these thoughts:  Anyone saying that the impact of bikes and horses would be 
> similar is poorly informed and incorrect. Yes, both do damage--as do hikers--but 
> there are potentially many more mountain bike riders than there are 
> equestrians.  Secondly, horses travel at a much slower speed than do most 
> bicyclists; they don't come around corners unexpectedly with the potential of 
> running you down. For the record, I don't hate either mountain bikes (or horses) 
> and I don't see why bike-riders assume anyone hates them just because someone 
> sees flaws in their arguments. 
> 
> I also assume that most hikers (in particular long-distance hikers) want a 
> wilderness experience away from the hustle and bustle of city life. I assume 
> that some mountain bikers are also interested in their surroundings, but that in 
> large part they want the thrills of new trails where they can zip along 
> navigating around the challenging terrain. There is no way that these two uses 
> are compatible on the PCT.    
> 
> Where do we file our protests?
> Susan Alcorn
>  
> Shepherd Canyon Books, Oakland, CA 
> www.backpack45.com and backpack45.blogspot.com
> http://www.examiner.com/hiking-in-san-francisco/susan-alcorn
> Publishers of two award-winning books: Camino Chronicle: Walking to Santiago and 
> We're in the Mountains Not over the Hill: Tales and Tips from Seasoned Women 
> Backpackers.
> 
> 
> 
> ********************
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
> 
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
> All content is copyrighted by the respective authors. 
> Reproduction is prohibited without express permission.