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Mountain Bikers Co-opt Marin Bicycle Coalition

A tongue-in-cheek take on the new push for more trails for bikes.

Theyyyy’rrre baaaack!  The quest for more single track trails by thrill-seeking bicyclists is on anew.  And now the Marin Bicycle Coalition has joined the clamor for more single track trails to be opened for mountain bike use.  I guess it’s not rewarding enough to help open bike paths along our roadways, or help kids with Safe Routes to School. No, now they’ve decided to use their considerable clout to hire a lobbyist because there just aren’t enough trails for bikers in the open space.

As someone who has represented hikers and equestrians on more than one occasion in the ongoing battle to keep our open spaces places of tranquility, not multi-use speedways, I have developed some simple rules for defusing the biker-hiker-equestrian conflicts on the mountain once and for all:

1. Don’t call them mountain bikes, call them fire-road bikes

This would be the easiest solution. It keeps them where they belong. No conflicts with wildlife, equestrians and hikers occur and no expectations unrealistically raised. Erosion and scofflaw illegal trailblazing will be eradicated.  And all able-bodied bike jockeys who truly do want to experience the joys of winding mountain trails, can leave their bikes at home and walk.

2. License them

This is really a no-brainer.  When I was a child, all bikes had to be issued licenses.  This way, renegade bikers can be tracked down and cited appropriately. Assuming they don’t emulate TV criminals and obscure their license numbers, steal licenses from other bikes, or just steal the whole bikes and dump them in ravines when through with the thrill ride.

3. Make them go to pre-bike ownership counseling with at least one hiker and one equestrian in the room

In a mutually respectful setting, a neutral facilitator encourages all parties to let out their feelings. Then they can have a session of telling each other “How they really feel,” so long as only pillows and sofa cushions sustain damage from any unrestrained outbursts.  Horses and small children should be kept outside.

4. Outlaw spandex

I know, this would impact the yoga, soccer mom and after hour club crowds too. But in light of the greater good that would result from making bikers wear ordinary clothes like ratty sweat soaked tee shirts and chain-catching blue jeans, that would be a small price to pay for renewed tranquility on the mountain.

5. (My personal favorite) Open a mountain bike theme park

This can have man-made mountains, narrow trails, fake snakes and other wildlife to squash under wheels.  Chills and spills rides.  Underbrush courses, for the really daring riders.  Maybe adventure seeking volunteers can pretend to be hikers so the bikers can still enjoy shouting “on your left” as they pass perilously close.

Let the comments begin.

naitiveplantgal December 8, 2011 at 03:06 am
John Ferguson wrote: "If speed and dangerous riding is what you're trying to curtail then perhaps we should ban mountain bikes from the fire roads where they can reach high speeds. Riding on singletrack requires much lower speeds as the terrain is more varied and challenging and it's likely to be ridden only by more experienced riders. Open up the singletrack trails and require that fire roads only be ridden uphill. There - safety problem solved. :)
Um....is your user group totally unable to control themselves and ride safe speeds without natural and added obstacles on the trail? I have heard this silly argument before: technical trails naturally slow them down...in fact it gets downright absurd, i.e. proposals to put 100 "pinch points" on Bills Trails to slow mountain bikes down. This would make a formerly nice trail full of barricades just to slow down bikes, but why should hikers and equestrian have to deal with man-made pinch points just becuase bikers won't slow down? Again, not a compatable, or safe trail to make multi-use
Kevin Moore December 8, 2011 at 01:52 pm
Totally ridiculous to add pinch points on a trail when we have so many single track trails with natural obstacles. <g> Too bad there are so few single track trails for us to legally ride. They are a lot of fun to ride. I believe in sharing the trails, but I can see some people want to exclude "your user group". If I am not on a bicycle, I am no longer part of that group.
John Ferguson December 8, 2011 at 06:32 pm
Safe for whom? Let's not conflate 'safe for the riders' with 'safe for all other trail users' because they're not the same. I'm on record as stating that concurrent multi-use will not be preferable for all users; that's why we need a schedule.
This feels like a bad divorce - let's treat it as such. The problem with a vast minority of hikers and a slightly larger minority of equestrians is that they don't think mountain bikes have any place on 'their trails'. That's akin to a parent not agreeing to visitation rights after the divorce. Well, guess what - mountain bikes are here to stay, we ain't going away and we want to see our babies now and again. Just as there are trails that horses should never be on, there are trails that bikes should never be on. For the rest of the trails in Marin, we need a schedule of use so that everyone understands that they have time slots where they can freely use the trails as they like within the rules of the system. That's all bikers have ever wanted - we don't want to ban you from 'our trails', we just want to visit the trails that we can safely ride at times and under conditions that are safe for all of us. Why is this so hard to accept?
Chris April 19, 2012 at 02:18 am
Reading these comments is both disturbing and amusing. Having experienced crazed MBikers while hiking, I understand how hikers and equestrians get annoyed at bikers. I have also seen trail damage left by MBbikes, trash such as flattened tires and illegal trails. I have also seen terrible damage left by horses and even boots on rain soaked trails, and wrappers form energy bars tossed on the side of the trail left by God knows who? It is amusing that people refer to the "wilderness" of Marin. If you want a wilderness, go to Antartica, for that is where you will find the only wilderness left on Earth. THe rest of the planet has been "multiuse" for decades. Of course we need rules, and we need enforcement and we need understanding. I see little of the later here. Let's all go the way of the Middle East because of our petty differences!
Rico April 19, 2012 at 09:56 pm
I agree Jeffrey,
It is the elite equestrians that should fund their own private separate places to ride. Many years ago, when riding my bike above Deep Park in Fairfax, there was a group of 3 riders on horses, one horse got spooked and chucked the rider on to the ground. That was very scary, because I knew a beautiful girl who died in an accident in Bolinas in 1967 when the horse that she was riding threw her off . I will never forget it, because I loved her. Animals are never completely controlable, they have minds of their own sometimes and can do unpridictable things. For the safety of other people that use the trails and fire roads, these horses should have their own places to ride so as to not endanger hikers and bikers. Most people who ride bicycles on the trails and fire roads are cognizant and considerate of other users, sure, there a few bad apples, but they are the minority. Most people just want to get out on the mountain and enjoy the beauty of Marin, and certainly do not want to get in a wreck with anything. I knew someone who crashed and broke all their teeth out, can you imagine the cost and pain to put implants in ? I for one never ride on the street, I use my car and truck for work and shopping, so I resent it when someone suggests that I have to ride on the street and stay off of the trails. And a bike park ? , what a joke. I don't want to ride in a bike park, and I never will.
Pat Sweeney August 2, 2012 at 08:13 pm
Good one.. to me sarcasm puts everything in its proper light and solves a lot of disputes... the problem is that some people, including some of my friends don't grasp the fine are of sarcasm, as seen above. We all need to get along people.
Andrew R August 2, 2012 at 09:53 pm
that includes sharing the road
John Parulis August 3, 2012 at 01:01 am
That's crap and you know it. Many bikers "drive" here from SF, Sonoma, other cities and out of state.
John Parulis August 3, 2012 at 01:02 am
The tide is turning in your mind only.
John Parulis August 3, 2012 at 01:04 am
Red herring alert. Jeffrey, go back to highschool.
Katheryn September 30, 2012 at 03:06 pm
Where is the California Attorney General, and why is she letting this happen?
Tell does this sound familiar, I have provided a link to a story on the Temecula Patch. Please read the story and watch the video in the story. Add this to all your facebook accounts, get the word out. http://temecula.patch.com/articles/citizen-reader-shares-mining-sounds
Aaron G September 30, 2012 at 05:40 pm
You are comparing mountain bikes to a rock quarry? I think that's a bit of a stretch.
Catherine March 10, 2013 at 04:30 pm
I love you Dottie. I have never seen or heard a more selfish, "epitome of entitlement" attitude, from any other group of people in my life. I cannot believe Mt.(fire road)bikes have ever been allowed on trails in the first place. I'm fighting it in my neck of the woods, also. "Please" keep it up. Thankyou
Craig Belfor March 10, 2013 at 05:40 pm
The real problem here is that horses are obsolete as a method of trasnsportation, yet people hanging onto a past that never was meant to last are still on the trail, mingling with people on foot and on bikes. It's just not practical for a 1000 lb barely controlable, sweaty beast between one's legs, crapping everywhere to not be a problem, either on a trail, a street, or in a crowded public place. I personally hate to see these magnificent animals imprisoned in their own dung in small enclosures so their owner can feel the thrill that the wheel made extinct.
Get over it girls. If you still want 1000 pounds of uncontrolable, sweaty meat between your legs, just get married.
Catherine March 16, 2013 at 03:51 pm
Craig Belfor, you are just plain stupid.
Catherine March 16, 2013 at 04:49 pm
And they say "horses" brains are the size of walnuts?
Catherine March 16, 2013 at 05:00 pm
The long-term upside of mt biking is the inability to reproduce. Darwinism
Aaron G March 16, 2013 at 11:22 pm
So, Catherine do you support allowing bikers to have their own trails or do you just want them banned entirely? Why is it that you feel you are entitled to use multi-use trails the way you wish but when a biker wishes to do it in his or her way suddenly they have an "entitlement" Mentality? I get it, you don't like bikes on trails, thats fine. Do whatever you feel is required to fight against it, get the laws changed, write your congressman, whatever but stop suggesting that because we want to continue to use public land that we pay taxes to maintain in a manner that is currently legal that somehow we epitomise entitlement. There is nothing wrong with acting entitled when you are, in fact entitled. Oh and I have been riding for 36 years. I just had my second kid. Sorry that whole darwinsim thing isn't working out for you. And by the way, in those 36 years I have never witnessed a hiker or equestrian being injured as a result of a reckless biker. Bikers just can't win it seems, we get the same accusations of having an entitled attitude when we try to ride on roads too.
Aaron G March 16, 2013 at 11:43 pm
I might also add that the constant stereotyping of bikers is annoying to say the least. Lumping us all in to the reckless thrill seeker genre is just plain wrong. Myself and several other bikers recently argued against opening up the Pacific Crest trail to bikes. Myself and many other bikers agreed that the trail is not suitable as a multiuse trail and that the addition of bikes would detract from the overall experience of the trail. It is simple, some trails are suitable, others are not. But please, don't suggest that my presence on a bike detracts from you "experience" when I can hear the freeway just over the hill.
Catherine March 17, 2013 at 01:11 am
Hey A. I could go on & on about my personal experiences & also the experiences of others I speak to on this subject. I would love to add, however, I think, really ,everything has been said over the years. You cry (another characteristic of a mtbr) about stereotyping, whah, whah. A, you, & other mtbr's stereotype, more than anybody. Evidence is in your blogs, forums. Evidence is on the trails, in State Parks, & evidence is in the amount of people that are caring & smart enough to speak up against your damaging, "entitled attitude's." I figured that Darwinism reference was a stretch. Unfortunate. I hope you at least teach your children manners, respect for nature. I hope you want for them, beautiful, undisturbed wildlife, parks, places of quiet, serene beauty. Please go ride on the freeway over the hill.
Aaron G March 17, 2013 at 10:47 pm
Catherine, I would love to hear about your personal experiences along with any other fact based argument you would choose to make in a reasonable, respectful manner. Based on your previous posts however you can keep the parenting advice to yourself. Thanks.
Catherine March 18, 2013 at 04:16 pm
Dear AAron, You will argue any point, no matter how reasonable just to save your sport. I know I am correct about mtbr's
Unfortunatly, you guys, not all, are not above "wrong doing," to get your way. I think the respectful mtbr's are going to have to be the one's to set the unrespectable, wrong doers straight. I've been urging them to do that for years. I love nature. I love the fact that wildlife has a safe haven. I respect that. I tread ever so lightly. It angers me & so many others, as you see from the clash over the years, that a rider, on something mechanical, fast, skidding, jumping, etc. so carelessly, is allowed to come in & just insist they have a right, just because somebody invented mt bikes. Your earlier question about multi use trails, & why I think I can use them the way I want, while mtbrs. can't. I don't feel that way. On multi use trails, I ask that mtbr's respect the other groups the way they used to. My comment about the entitled mentality is absolutely correct. Mtbr's now feel that they have right of way on multi use trails, whine that the parks don't provide & create more trails for them, so as a result feel entitled to ride on illegal trails, create their own trails, etc. no regard for parks, others safety, wildlife safety, habitat, etc. Mtbr,s definition of " everybody needs to get along", one of their favorite lines, is, we will go on whatever trails we want, everybody will move for us, not complain, & we will, then," all get along."
Catherine March 18, 2013 at 04:49 pm
Just yesturday on my run, on my usual trails, I stopped to talk to a couple, walking with a dog. This is a narrow trail, through woods, blind turns, at this point, a very steep hill. These trails have only recently started to be ravaged & taken over by the mtbr's. Prior, they were little hikes, horseback riding, dog walking little trails. Now they are bowled,slick sided, rutted, ever widening, root slicing, rock exposing, squirrel killing, happy places for mtbr's. For everybody else, well, no. Back to my point, the couple with the dog. We were standing, talking, mtbr comes flying down hill, around corner, we hear him, prior to him ever being aware of us, the man with the dog, on leash, steps to side of trail, which is now slick, slippery, steep sided, due to nothing other than mtbrs., he falls to the ground. I did not move, forcing mtbr to stop. He seemed concerned about the man who fell, however, never apologized, then went on his way. It's maddening that a person out walking their dog, steps out of the way of the illegal, irresponsible, then falls due to the illegal, irresponsible use. Further, a mtbr is supposed to yield to others on "legal" trails. This is the intimidation mtbr's like to cause. This couples feelings as they walked away, when I said, "they are supposed to yield to others" I've heard it before, "we don't want to get hit." I don't know how mtbr's can live with themselves. It's intimidation, it's arrogance & it has to stop.
Aaron G March 18, 2013 at 09:19 pm
My arguements only pertain to legal trails. illegal trail building is not acceptable and riding off limits trails is not acceptable. In my local area we have had ample trail access in the past. Legal trail systems have been built and maintained by bikers in several areas.Hikers and equestrians have been quite pleased with the volunteer workforce and the fact that our well established membership patrols and polices the trails. Any illegal trails or switchback cutting (by hikers) are quickly blocked off. As far as your trail experience yesterday you mentioned that you refused to move aside forcing the biker to stop. Given the fact that you were standing still it seems that although he was "flying" he had plenty of time to stop, otherwise he would have hit you. Of course I was not there so I can't really say. If in fact the trail is illegal to bikes I suggest you bring it up with the land manager. I am not one of those bikers that pretends that all trails are suitable for bikes. However I am offended when other trail users suggest that the way they experience the outdoors is somehow superior to the way I experience it. That somehow because I choose to do it on the back of a bike I am unable to appreciate nature or that I don't care about it.
Dudo Americano May 3, 2013 at 04:29 pm
If your kids are too fucking stupid to know left from right by now, you've failed as a parent.
Please consider a very-late-term abortion for the little oxygen thieves.
BJL May 3, 2013 at 04:43 pm
that is a really fun video!
chris May 3, 2013 at 04:55 pm
Well said, Bubble!
chris May 3, 2013 at 04:57 pm
John, do you have actual stats on that? What exactly is "many"?
chris May 3, 2013 at 05:05 pm
Gina, I tend to ride solo, so unless I was having a particulary stressful day, I doubt you've heard me "yelling over large distances". Lumping entire groups of people into your simple overgeneralizations is a bad idea. You wouldn't do it with race and sexual orientation, so why do it here? EVERY group has good players and bad players.
I also trail run and hike quite a bit. There is no way you can make the claim that some equestrians and groups of hikers don't make just as much noise as bikers or any other group that uses the trails.
chris May 3, 2013 at 05:22 pm
Catherine, I'm sorry you've had some bad experiences with moutnain bikers, but your stereotypes about mountain bikers only illustrate your limitations, not theres.
I mountain bike, hike and trail run. I am also a professional Environmental Scientist. I have made it my career to do what I can to help maintain our natural systems in any way possible. To continually lump me in with a few bad actors is insulting not only to me, but also to the MAJORITY of people who mountain bike in a safe, reasonable and cooperative way. Nobody (as has been said ad infinitum) is advocating opening every single track trail to mountain biking, but let's maybe take a look at a few of the many options and see if we can't come up with a few more trails where impact would be less. Is that really that unreasonable? Personally, I don't even ride single track, so it doesn't really effect me either way, but the hostility and unwillingness to comprimise is a bit shocking...especially in such an open and progressive place that we all live. I know it's a lot easier to think of everyone belonging to a group as being the same. That's why racism, sexism and homophobia are as prevelant as they are.

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Ciel Niesen-Love June 15, 2013 at 07:41 pm
I, for one, am glad they're finally doing this. I have watched for years as Marin has ignored theRead More population growth that has affected us all. Not wanting to put in a commuter train, until the traffic lining the freeway is backed up into another county in the morning, is just one example of this. Then we have the fact that most of the children that my husband and I went to school with in Terra Linda have had to move to other counties because we can't find affordable housing in this one. To top it all off, it seems that the ones who have blocked us from making the smaller additions throughout the county have been people directly involved in the real estate industry, or just local home owners so worried about the value of their homes going down, that they fail to see the larger picture. So here we are, about to make a stride in alleviating the problem, and instead of rallying to make our communities better, we're trying to make it more difficult for the people who live and grew up here to still remain close to their families, not to mention the disabled adults and large elderly population in this county that are in need of this, as well. Some of the teacher's who work in this district have to commute in that traffic every morning, because they can't afford to live in this county, either. It's a sad commentary on where our priorities are when we can't support each other as a community.
John Parulis June 17, 2013 at 11:44 am
Ciel......we're talking big box freeway developments that will add tremendous traffic, schooling andRead More tax burdens to our community. Your ideas about population growth in Marin are off.
Ciel Niesen-Love June 17, 2013 at 02:49 pm
I know the population in Marin is 1% per year, but why do you think that is? People are livingRead More longer and our children are the healthiest in the country. I'll tell you why. It's because the children grow up and move out of the county, because it's not affordable. Here is an example of my latest thoughts on the matter: As the member of a Native American tribe, I have to say that I really resent being told where I should be able to live by an immigrant such as Richard Hall. I believe that roots are important and even if the growth rate has been 1%, it's only because most of the people who have grown up here can not afford to live here and move away. The elderly who make up a large percent of the population here are living longer due to medical advances and who do you suppose will take care of them? People such as myself and for not nearly enough money to live here. So what do you propose? You think that I should move to the East Bay or the North Bay and commute? Well, due to the lack of transportation support, that sound so lovely, let me tell you. Also, the children in Marin are the healthiest in the country according to a recent article I've read. Lower children death rates and such, so who is supposed to teach them and provide care for them and for not enough money to live here? Well, many teachers and care providers that I know that have to commute or live multiple roommates. You have successfully produced a community that only grows 1% per year. Congratulations. Through your grassroots efforts of blocking housing and transportation for years and claiming they don't live up to your standards, meanwhile not providing any pushes for what you might actually feel is smarter you have shut out your county's own children and hard working patriots. So, we can work for minimum wage taking care of your elderly, your children, your precious houses and cars, but God forbid, our children go to school with yours, or that you might actually have to bump into us at the supermarket and say "hi". This is the attitude which had prevailed here and I and many other people I talk to in my neighborhood and that I've grown up with are sick of it. Also, I'd like to point out that we all work hard, and the opportunity to work has been at the help of all of the people in our communities who have helped rear us. Teachers, nurses, doctors, firemen, policeman, babysitters, and many more. Just because some jobs like teaching or care giving don't provide with as much money, doesn't make them less important. In fact, my grandma used to tell me it "God's work". It takes a village to raise your children and it took a village to raise you all.