[pct-l] Bicycle Usage Proposal

[Bob Bankhead]

One need only look at the Colorado Trail to see the effects of mountain bike tires on trail tread. Chuck is right about the "v" cut into the tread. I saw some severe water damage resulting from same. It can be quite uncomfortable trying to walk for any distance with one foot on each wall of the V. Naturally, soil type, degree of slope, and regional weather patterns will determine the severity of any effect. Some sections show hardly any sign of the bikes save their tire impressions in the dust.

On the plus side, the CT (from Denver to Breckenridge) was far better signed and maintained than is the PCT. Like the Backcountry Horsemen and the PCT, all the mountain bike clubs have a vested interest in trail maintenance, so the available labor pool is vastly expanded. Hikers can climb over or go around trees lying across the trail - bikes have to be carried.

While mountain bikes are allowed along the entire length of the CT, there are several mandatory - and rigorously enforced - detours imposed to keep them out of particularly hazardous sections and fragile wilderness areas. Even the long bike races comply with these detours. Also, bikes must yield to hikers just as we must yield to horses. Every biker I met was extremely courteous. Since they can cover triple the distance in a day that a hiker can, they are a great source of long-range trail information. Many offered their unused water as they neared the end of their rides. I was able to hitch a ride from an obscure trailhead all the way back to Denver with one pair.



Wandering Bob