[pct-l] bicycles

[Trekker4 at aol.com (Trekker4@aol.com)]

    Non-motorized bicycles definitely cause lots of trail wear, from tire 
slippage on any uphill or downhill with much of a slope. Anyone, who hikes any 
part of the Colorado Trail open to bicycles, sees it all day, every day; I'm 
sure I'll see it on my 1/3 PCT next spring, especially close to the cancerous 
jungle areas, Greater San Diego and Greater Los Angeles.
    On the CT, when I heard a bike careening up behind me, I picked a spot to 
step off, but didn't immediately; I'd slowly turn around and pretend to be 
looking for a spot to step off the trail, forcing them to come to a complete 
halt if possible. Sometimes I'd hear a faint, never intelligible yell from 
someone behind me; I've never heard 1 bicyclist with enough sense to yell loud 
enough to be heard over his noise, my boot noise, and the noise attenuation of a 
frame backpack. When they came towards me, I'd always take my sweet time 
stepping off the trail. Sometimes it was fun trying to get them to talk, when they 
were pissed about being stopped, or nearly stopped. 
    One guy did sort of crash his bike to avoid hitting me; he was pissed; 
but I just said, "Hey, you were going way too fast for a blind hill; it's your 
fault." He came over the top of a hill on a soft trail, and I never heard him 
in time.
    This spring, when I'll have my first digital camera, I may take photos of 
illegal bicyclists; if I do, I'll try to email the pics to the appropriate 
agencies, knowing they probablywon't followup. I'll also make sure the bicyclist 
sees me taking a picture of him and his license plate, if there is a plate. 
I've taken 35mm slides of illegals on the AT, but never followed up. 
    One guy on the AT threatened me; I took my pack off while we were jawing, 
put my camera inside the pack, his license plate went onto my microcassette 
(which he didn't see), pulled out my small pepper spray (which he didn't see & 
which I only carry for 2-legged animals, ie hitchhiking), and played George W 
Bush (before his time to be the first openly warmongering US President) by 
saying, "Come on." I told him he'd have to hit me first, so the law would be on 
my side; I've never hit anyone in my life, but I would have sprayed him as a 
last resort. He never got off his motorcycle; and yes, I was somewhat uneasy; 
fortunately he wasn't much larger than I am.
    Wayne Kraft, however did your hiking poles get into those spokes and 
wheels? You must have slipped trying to get off the trail. Wow, I wish I used 
poles, so I could slip like that!

Bob 
Big Bend Desert Denizen
(Naturalized Citizen, Republic of Texas)