Separate But Equal?

The small band of hiker only militants who run the NCTA and some of its chapters pursue a singular goal, to exclude as many human beings as possible from the North Country Trail.

They'll sweet talk politicians and landowners to appropriate existing public multi-use trails to extend or complete the NCT (then work like hell to get all but themselves kicked off that trail).

They'll organize trail work days, but exclude anybody who rides a bike or doesn't own a pair of Vasque Sundowners.

Or, they'll reroute multi-use trail segments with the intent of opening a the reroute as "hiker only."

A Hiker only reroute is occurring right now in Michigan, where the elitists at the NCTA are rerouting an existing segment of the NCT (which was on public land) onto land owned by Consumers Energy. But the new reroute will, of course, be open only to hikers. The current segment is part of a 20 mile north-south stretch of the NCT in the Manistee National Forest which is open to bikes. Once the reroute opens, that stretch will shrink to less than 16 miles.

How can we call the NCT a public trail if all but a tiny minority of the public is banned from the trail?

Hiatus

Obviously, I've been awol for a few months. Some insane work and family demands put me out of the country, away from home or simply out of time since the end of the summer. I'll be commenting more as the winter proceeds on the North Country Trail.

As of today, a large portion of the trail is bathed in a layer or snow and/or ice, after a chilly cold front made its way through the Great Lakes region this week. I am looking forward to some skiing and possibly some winter riding in the weeks to come.

If anybody gets out to the NCT this winter with a camera, drop me a line. I'm always looking for pics for the blog.

North Country Trail Weekend in Michigan

The Western Chapter of the Michigan Mountain Bike Association hosted a North Country Trail camp and ride weekend on August 24-26. The MMBA is one of the most active and well organized mountain bike advocacy groups in the Country. The Western Chapter covers the geography that includes the NCTA headquarters. Needless to say, there is little overlap between the two organizations.



It isn't for trying, however. The MMBA at the State Level has tried reaching out to the NCTA for a long time, offering to send volunteers to work on the NCT during scheduled work days. After all, cyclists helped build much of the existing trail. There are some interesting and unfortunately typical comments on the NCTA boards from members of the NCTA regarding offers from Cyclists to help maintain trail. Check it out. It gets ugly. It's no surprise that the NCTA has a hard time recruiting members when they turn away people who want to help maintain Public Trails!

Anyway, Nate Phelps of the MMBA Western Chapter has posted a brief recap of their group ride on the Marilla-Redbridge section of the NCT in the Manistee National Forest. I'll have a couple of more Pics to post after the holiday weekend.

The ride started out with a pavement warm up. We stopped 5 or 6 times before reaching Coates Highway. We lost three riders there. The rest of us took off for the trailhead at Marilla, 12 or so miles away. The first of several grinding climbs is right out of the box. In between, the descents seem to weave and roll forever. The trail was in great shape. The rain had tamed the sand and the soil had sucked up the water. In fact it was dry, but left that tack behind that grips no matter how stupid you ride. And the trail gets mach stupid in places. The rewards are always in place after the leg-busting climbs.

A couple of miles from the trailhead the forest opens up and reveals an inspiring view. The Manistee River blanketed in as far as the eye can see forest. The slow realization of where the trail came from, and where it ran, slowly creep into mind.

For anyone that hasn’t ridden the Red Bridge portion of the NCT, at times it can be hard to believe that you are still in Michigan. It’s also the only portion that I’ve been on and seen a hiker. On this trip there were 3 and friendly enough to yield the trail as we rode. Even after the dirt road ride back to the campground, it was a great ride shared by all.

Copy Cat!

Check out the new North Country Blog!

http://www.thenorthcountrytrail.blogspot.com/

Wow! The URL looks amazing like this blog's URL. Hmmmm????

The fact that there's not a single post since it started makes me feel better about the fact that I've been out of town for the past month.

Save the Continental Divide Trail!

The US Forest Service is threatening to ban bikes from the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail (CDNST). If you are not familiar with the CDNST, it stretches 3,100 miles along the Continental Divide from Canada to Mexico. It is one of only a handfull of National Scenic trails and one of only two (including the NCT) that allows bikes in non wilderness areas.

All that could change if the Forest Service implements a draft rule that "would encourage land managers to kick bikes off existing routes, and not include us on future segments."

This action on behalf of the Federal Government does not bode well for cyclists, of whom there are 40 million in the United States. If the forest service kicks cyclists off the CDNST, what's next? How about the NCT?

The Continental Divide Trail Alliance, which coordinates advocacy efforts for the CDNST, has a lot of information online about the trail. Their site is worth checking out. The CDTA recognizes that "mountain biking is not a form of motorized travel, the CDTA believes that mountain bikers should have qualified access to the Continental Divide Trail outside of Wilderness and National Parks ..." It's interesting that the CDTA uses the moto "The Trail Unites Us."

Let's stay united and stick up for our rights. Uniting non motorized, muscle powered user groups for the interest of the whole trail means more advocates for the trail in the end.

IMBA has the skinny online now, along with info on how you can help. Don't delay. Make your voice heard!

Review: Singletrack MINDS

Singletrack MINDS is a short "documentary" covering the decades long trail access conflict between hikers and cyclists in Marin County, California. Produced by Poison Oaks Productions , the 30 minute piece includes interviews with local cycling figures such as Gary Fisher as well as trail advocates on both sides of the hiker/biker debate.

Marin County is known as ground zero for mountain biker and hiker trail conflicts. It sits adjacent to one of the continents largest metropolitan areas and includes a very large area of protected wilderness land. Look north from the Golden Gate bridge and you are looking at Marin County. That beautiful green mountain looming over the bridge is what everyone is fighting over. Marin is where mountain biking as we know it was started three decades ago. And it is also where groups like The Sierra Club first worked to protect public lands from developers.

That's Marin County in the background.

Singletrack MINDS uses interview clips as well as shots of local Marin trails to present a brief history of how and why things got to where they are today (which continues as something of a stand-off between two user groups). Many of the interviewees, such as Gary Fisher, offer candid commentary as to what went wrong in the early days of mountain biking to turn off the local trail advocates.

The documentary doesn't directly take sides. But there is a message. Mountain bikers made a lot of mistakes in the early days of mountain biking, which included an in-your-face attitude that turned-off land managers and reinforced negative stereotypes of cyclists that were being propagated by the hiking community. On the other side of the conflict there is an unwillingness to share public lands and a feeling that "hikers built these trails."

That unwillingness on the part of the anti-cycling crowd to "share the trail" comes up again and again in Singletrack MINDS. What may be insightful for multi-use advocates is the fact that the elitist arguments of hiking groups do not necessarily play well with all land managers and public officials. Hikers often present themselves as the "moral" and "righteous" side of the conflict. Cyclists might be able to overcome that argument by knocking down the stereotype of the Mt Dew drinking adrenaline junky and showing public officials and the public in general that cycling is a healthy, environmentally conscious activity .

The standoff in Marin County continues to echo across the United States. Singletrack MINDS is a great documentary that offers a starting point for education and conversation on the subject of trail access. Poison Oak Productions offers DVD copies of Singletrack MINDS through their web site. In exchange for a $5 donation, they'll snail mail you a copy promptly. I got mine in about one week.

"Spread the Good News!"

Velo Tracts is an in your face answer to people who want exclusive and special rights to public trails. Located somewhere in the Great Lakes region, the mysterious creators of Velo Tracts have borrowed a familiar tactic from evangelicals. Their tactic is described on their web site:

A tract is a leaflet or pamphlet containing a declaration or appeal, especially one put out by a religious or political group. An individual tract's message can be conveyed in words, pictures or both.

Perhaps the most world-renowned tracts are the awkward pen and ink stylings
of the unintentionally zany fundamentalist Christian crusader, Jack Chick. Chick
began drawing miniature comic book tracts over 30 years ago to evangelize and proselytize his faith. Over 500 million of these little books have been passed out on street corners from Amsterdam to Zambezi in almost 100 different languages. Whether you agree with Chick's message or not, his tracts captivate you with their blunt delivery and often surreal dialogue and illustrations. Described as lacking nuance and charity, they often leave both their 'believer' and 'non-believer' readers with an unintentionally creepy feeling.

Feeling unbreakable? Jack Chick will take care of that feeling. If you’ve got a strong stomach and non-malleable mind, check out his stuff at www.chick.com.

In addition to "preaching" an anti-elitist message of multi-use trail advocacy, Velo Tracts also utilizes some hip artwork in their pamphlets and their web site.

Don't be surprised to run into a Velo Tract evagelist one day out on the North Country Trail. Advocates have been known to pass them out to backcountry travelers, especially those who react in a confrontational manner to people who wish to do nothing more than ride their bike.