According to the Bureau of Land Management, the wire found strung across a trail in Fruita, CO was not a booby trap. Rather, according to a Facebook post distributed by mountain bike advocacy groups in the area, “it was an old electric fence that took the rider down, not a malicious booby trap. Fences and remains of fences are all over the West and caution should be used when riding un-official trails.”
This was determined by BLM officials who spent an entire day riding through the area investigating the incident.
Also, according to the re-shared Facebook post as well as CBS Denver, the trail where this wire was found isn’t an official system trail at 18 Road, despite what was insinuated in the initial video. Rather, this was a cow trail created by ranging cattle, which are common in the Western US.
According to CBS Denver, they are not sure if the BLM is investigating the recent incident in Gunnison as well, but they did note that trail booby trapping “is a trend that we are seeing across the country.”
