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Posted March 30, 2005 That one DH spot is now off limits A certain downhill spot on the I-70 corridor is now off limits, thanks to some overzealous trail building. This was the dream spot: steep and rough, with a perfect shuttle road and a landowner who granted permission to build and ride trails. I've been out there once, and you can see a lot of work has gone into this place. Some sections are gnarly DH style, others have big jumps and berms, and others have wooden bridges and stunts. It's been a carefully guarded secret, but from what I've heard more people have been riding there, which is cool, and some of them have done some heavy-duty trail building, which isn't so cool. This just in from a regular rider: "Last Sunday we met the owner of the land and he was fuming mad. We no longer have permission to ride there. He stated that we broke his confidence and agreement by cutting down trees. He said he allowed us to ride and build there so long as we DO NOT harm a shrub. "He noticed several large trees that were cut down. He was also not happy with all the wood stunts that are hammered and nailed into large trees. He has filed a complaint with the sheriff's department and will press charges on anyone caught riding out there. "I got his contact information and asked if there's anything we can do to rectify the situation. We offered to take all the wood down and replant as many trees as possible. He said he'd think about it. "But for now, the place is off limits. Please let everyone you know (who knows about this trail) not to ride there. They will be prosecuted and it will ONLY make it that much harder to get his permission to ride again." First of all: If you know this spot, do not go out there. You will get a ticket, and you will make it even harder to restore riding. Second of all: This faster-bigger-sicker greed is screwing us all. I understand the drive to progress in this sport, to go faster and bigger, and to create trails that enable that progression. But let's be reasonable. Jacking up a generous guy's property and hacking up public lands are both morally questionable and legally fatal. Look at Beaver Creek Resort here in Colorado, closed to downhillers because they were marauding the open trails and building their own. Look at Snow Summit in California, closed because of a lawsuit, but authorities told me the Forest Service was ready to crack down on all the bootleg trails there. I'm not innocent here, but I'll admit that building bootleg trails to satisfy our addiction is both short-sighted and selfish. Let's think before we chop. |
Fight terrorism: spend money!
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