Responsible New England riders & Marin whiners

I had hoped to get off the trail access topic for today’s post but it seems like it’s the only mountain bike news getting any press lately. The New England Mountain Bike Association (NEMBA) requested for the second year in a row that local bike trails in Exeter, NH be temporarily closed to mountain bikers …

trailaccess.jpgI had hoped to get off the trail access topic for today’s post but it seems like it’s the only mountain bike news getting any press lately.

The New England Mountain Bike Association (NEMBA) requested for the second year in a row that local bike trails in Exeter, NH be temporarily closed to mountain bikers for the March/April mud season. This seems like a positive and responsible decision and certainly indicates that it is possible for mountain bikers to organize and do good things for the trails.

On the other hand, trail users (hikers?) in Marin continue to rail against mountain bikers with negative characterizations and “us vs. them” attitudes. This blog has a good recap of several letters to the editor of the Marin Independent Journal showing a real disdain for trail users on two wheels. Not much in the way of positive discussion in this local debate, seems like these problems have been brewing since the birth of the sport up on Mount Tam.