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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
A newspaper reporter contacted me for an article on trail etiquette,
and I threw the following together quickly to help him meet his deadline. We really are starting to get a barney problem on our lower trails, where the traffic's been increasing ever year. So here's my email to the guy: Dear D____, snip If your schedule is real tight, here are the pressing trail etiquette issues in the Boise foothills right now: 1.Downhill riders must yield to uphill riders. Stop at the edge of the trail and let the uphill rider pass. As the yielding rider, don't ride off trail, but stop, lean your bike out away from the trail, and you may place the outside foot off-trail if it's a narrow trail. 2. Mountainbikes yield to all other users. Slow down or stop for pedestrians, slow down or stop for dogs, horses, strollers, aliens, you name it, we slow down or stop for everybody. A friendly greeting and advance warning coming up behind other users is very important, too. 3. STAY ON THE TRAIL. Don't cut switchbacks, don't ride off the trail. Ride through the middle of mud puddles, if any, so as not to widen the trail. Stay in the middle of the trail if at all possible. This is probably the biggest problem we see out there. That and not yielding to uphill traffic and other users. 4. If the trails are soft from rain, DON'T RIDE THEM. Our soil is not forgiving when it's soft and muddy like east coast trails. Go home, go running, go skiing, or sit on your couch, but if the trails are too wet, stay off them. 5. Don't remove rocks from the trail. Hard to believe, but folks have been caught doing this with the excuse that they were making the trail "easier." If you can't ride it, walk it. Don't ride around a feature. Stop and carry your bike over it so that you stay on the trail. 6. Don't lock up your tires and skid. This tears up the trail and promotes erosion. Control your speed, or learn to ride faster, but don't fly into corners and then tear up the trail dragging a rear tire with the brake on. These make "barney divots" that turn good trails into miserable washboards over time. 7. If you ride with a dog, bring water, and pick up after the beast. Always. 8. Always wear a helmet, and insist that other riders do, too, especially your kids. One day I yelled across a canyon telling a rider to wear a helmet. Half an hour later I was patching up a deep bleeding gash in his chin that could have been avoided with a helmet. If a mountainbiker gets hurt on the trail, we all suffer. 9. Pick up after yourself. No candy or power bar wrappers, gu wrappers, kleenexes, you name it, just pack it out. No big deal. 10. Be careful going downhill, especially around blind corners. Slow down, announce yourself, or you're likely to crash into someone coming up. Expect lots of traffic on Hulls Gulch, up AND down. 11. Ride on marked trails only. Do not violate private property postings. Do not make your own trail. Do not ride on trails that are marked closed to bikes. Close gates after you go through them. 12. If you ride alone, take a cell phone and make sure somebody knows where you'll be riding. 13. Smile, wave, slow down, say howdy, have fun out there, and don't be so arrogant and serious that you can't yield to other users and riders. snip Paladin accept no cheap, younger substitutes. |
#2
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
On Apr 3, 10:42 pm, "Paladin" wrote:
A newspaper reporter contacted me for an article on trail etiquette, and I threw the following together quickly to help him meet his deadline. We really are starting to get a barney problem on our lower trails, where the traffic's been increasing ever year. So here's my email to the guy: Dear D____, snip If your schedule is real tight, here are the pressing trail etiquette issues in the Boise foothills right now: 1.Downhill riders must yield to uphill riders. Stop at the edge of the trail and let the uphill rider pass. As the yielding rider, don't ride off trail, but stop, lean your bike out away from the trail, and you may place the outside foot off-trail if it's a narrow trail. 2. Mountainbikes yield to all other users. Slow down or stop for pedestrians, slow down or stop for dogs, horses, strollers, aliens, you name it, we slow down or stop for everybody. A friendly greeting and advance warning coming up behind other users is very important, too. 3. STAY ON THE TRAIL. Don't cut switchbacks, don't ride off the trail. Ride through the middle of mud puddles, if any, so as not to widen the trail. Stay in the middle of the trail if at all possible. This is probably the biggest problem we see out there. That and not yielding to uphill traffic and other users. 4. If the trails are soft from rain, DON'T RIDE THEM. Our soil is not forgiving when it's soft and muddy like east coast trails. Go home, go running, go skiing, or sit on your couch, but if the trails are too wet, stay off them. 5. Don't remove rocks from the trail. Hard to believe, but folks have been caught doing this with the excuse that they were making the trail "easier." If you can't ride it, walk it. Don't ride around a feature. Stop and carry your bike over it so that you stay on the trail. 6. Don't lock up your tires and skid. This tears up the trail and promotes erosion. Control your speed, or learn to ride faster, but don't fly into corners and then tear up the trail dragging a rear tire with the brake on. These make "barney divots" that turn good trails into miserable washboards over time. 7. If you ride with a dog, bring water, and pick up after the beast. Always. 8. Always wear a helmet, and insist that other riders do, too, especially your kids. One day I yelled across a canyon telling a rider to wear a helmet. Half an hour later I was patching up a deep bleeding gash in his chin that could have been avoided with a helmet. If a mountainbiker gets hurt on the trail, we all suffer. 9. Pick up after yourself. No candy or power bar wrappers, gu wrappers, kleenexes, you name it, just pack it out. No big deal. 10. Be careful going downhill, especially around blind corners. Slow down, announce yourself, or you're likely to crash into someone coming up. Expect lots of traffic on Hulls Gulch, up AND down. 11. Ride on marked trails only. Do not violate private property postings. Do not make your own trail. Do not ride on trails that are marked closed to bikes. Close gates after you go through them. 12. If you ride alone, take a cell phone and make sure somebody knows where you'll be riding. 13. Smile, wave, slow down, say howdy, have fun out there, and don't be so arrogant and serious that you can't yield to other users and riders. snip Paladin accept no cheap, younger substitutes. Paladin, totally agree with all points and wish more people would heed your advice. jv Common sense is useless if not practiced. |
#4
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
Paladin said the following on 04/04/2007 06:42:
A newspaper reporter contacted me for an article on trail etiquette, and I threw the following together quickly to help him meet his deadline. We really are starting to get a barney problem on our lower trails, where the traffic's been increasing ever year. So here's my email to the guy: Snipped That advice should be clearly published in the UK as well, and all MTB'ers made to sign up to accept those terms :-) -- Paul Boyd http://www.paul-boyd.co.uk/ |
#5
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
On Apr 4, 1:42 am, "Paladin" wrote:
Dear D____, snip Very nice list. But... 8. Always wear a helmet, and insist that other riders do, too, especially your kids. One day I yelled across a canyon telling a rider to wear a helmet. Half an hour later I was patching up a deep bleeding gash in his chin that could have been avoided with a helmet. How exactly would a helmet have prevented a chin injury? You guys must wear yours a little differently up in Idaho... CC |
#6
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
"Corvus Corvax" wrote in message oups.com... On Apr 4, 1:42 am, "Paladin" wrote: Dear D____, snip Very nice list. But... 8. Always wear a helmet, and insist that other riders do, too, especially your kids. One day I yelled across a canyon telling a rider to wear a helmet. Half an hour later I was patching up a deep bleeding gash in his chin that could have been avoided with a helmet. How exactly would a helmet have prevented a chin injury? You guys must wear yours a little differently up in Idaho... CC That one spiked my curiosity as well. JP |
#7
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
Corvus Corvax wrote:
On Apr 4, 1:42 am, "Paladin" wrote: Dear D____, snip Very nice list. But... 8. Always wear a helmet, and insist that other riders do, too, especially your kids. One day I yelled across a canyon telling a rider to wear a helmet. Half an hour later I was patching up a deep bleeding gash in his chin that could have been avoided with a helmet. How exactly would a helmet have prevented a chin injury? You guys must wear yours a little differently up in Idaho... CC Full face helmet I suspect and not one of those buckets we normally wear. |
#8
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
On Apr 4, 6:15 am, "Corvus Corvax" wrote:
On Apr 4, 1:42 am, "Paladin" wrote: Dear D____, snip Very nice list. But... 8. Always wear a helmet, and insist that other riders do, too, especially your kids. One day I yelled across a canyon telling a rider to wear a helmet. Half an hour later I was patching up a deep bleeding gash in his chin that could have been avoided with a helmet. How exactly would a helmet have prevented a chin injury? You guys must wear yours a little differently up in Idaho... CC You know how it is, you can't please everybody... This was a wierd , and it looked to me (who showed up slightly later) and to those who were with the guy when it happened, that based on the shape of the rock he fell into, even the small lip of an overhanging helmet would have protected him from getting cut open. Pretty ironic that 5 or 10 minutes before his crash I was "encouraging" him to get a helmet. I've lightened up a bit on yelling at adults, somewhat adopting my friend's philosophy of letting idiots be idiots, and that life has a way of culling the foolish ones out of the herd... as ever El Paladino |
#9
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
Paladin wrote:
On Apr 4, 6:15 am, "Corvus Corvax" wrote: On Apr 4, 1:42 am, "Paladin" wrote: Dear D____, snip Very nice list. But... 8. Always wear a helmet, and insist that other riders do, too, especially your kids. One day I yelled across a canyon telling a rider to wear a helmet. Half an hour later I was patching up a deep bleeding gash in his chin that could have been avoided with a helmet. How exactly would a helmet have prevented a chin injury? You guys must wear yours a little differently up in Idaho... CC You know how it is, you can't please everybody... This was a wierd , and it looked to me (who showed up slightly later) and to those who were with the guy when it happened, that based on the shape of the rock he fell into, even the small lip of an overhanging helmet would have protected him from getting cut open. Pretty ironic that 5 or 10 minutes before his crash I was "encouraging" him to get a helmet. Although not biking related, my wife lost four top front teeth after a fall from a horse at a young age (it's marvelous what they can do with implants!) Judging by the damage to the helmet, the helmet that she was wearing probably prevented a more substantial portion of her face from being stoved in. shrug You can't always control what part of your body is going to impact first but any protection is better than none in my opinion. -- Westie |
#10
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Rules of the Trail...my own private list
"Paladin" wrote in message
oups.com... 7. If you ride with a dog, bring water, and pick up after the beast. Always. Great points, and mostly common sense to anyone who rides without too much attitude. My only question is about #7. While I love dogs, I have yet to see one that doesn't get into the spirit of the ride and dash ahead/behind to chase or greet other trail users. I've had some pretty aggressive animals come up on me when both biking and hiking, and I wish those folks would leave their critters at home. |
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