It feels like almost every day, I read that more wilderness areas have banned mountain bike access. Recently, there was Ants Basin and Castle Divide near Sun Valley and closer to home, Byrne Preserve in Los Altos, CA. With the latter, equestrians complained that mountain bikers rode too fast around blind corners and scared the horses. Justifying their decision armed with erroneous Strava data from a couple of riders, the city council flat-out banned further mountain bike access despite heavy protest from the cycling community. As mountain biking continues to explode in popularity, we face the continued threat of having trails closed to biking. Part of the solution lies in improving the way we are perceived by other trail users.
