MTB Lawsuit

Got this e-mail today:

I apologize for the length of this email, but this is an important
topic to take note of for all of us here in the MTB community. I
welcome your comments.

TEXT-

A story just broke that has me infuriated and outraged. The parents
of Mark Reynolds, the mountain biker who was attacked and killed by
the mountain lion at Whiting Ranch Regional Park, are suing the
county of Orange stating that county officials "should have
reasonably known that the park was dangerous."

Let's consider for a moment the sport for which we, along with
Mr.
Reynolds, have such a passion. It is a sport that is rife with
inherent danger and risk. From the too fast descent down a rocky,
rutted single track, to trying to skirt the edge of a rain-rutted
section washed out fire-road, to ducking a low hanging tree branch
when you're barreling down a hill; our sport not only contains
risk
it invites it with open arms. With that risk that we invite into
our sport arises another: an inherent risk of death.

We don't really think about it too often but it's there, ever
present, the chance that we might fall off our bikes and crack our
skulls; the chance that we could plummet over the side of a cliff;
the chance that we could get run over by a car while crossing a road
section; and, yes, the chance that we could get attacked, and
possibly killed, by some type of animal on some section of
wilderness. This is our sport and this is the way we like it.

Now comes this lawsuit which removes all personal responsibility
which Mr. Reynolds had and states that, somehow, the county should
have protected him from himself. Guess what folks, there are only
two ways for the government, in this case, to protect us: 1) they
can wipe out the entire mountain lion population in order to make
things safe for us humans (forget the fact that we are in their
territory, no the other way around) or 2) they can close the park so
that no one can use it. Let's see, considering the money it
would
cost to defend lawsuit after lawsuit of people getting hurt on
trails (gee, that rut caused me to fall shouldn't have been
there…
that rock on the edge of the trail that I whacked my knee on was
wholly inappropriate…that sandy patch really knocked me off my
ride…
I'M SUING!) do you think it's completely outside the realm of
possibility that our local trails could get shut down as a result of
an irresponsible action such as this?

I feel for Mr. Reynolds' family, I honestly do. I grieved when I
heard about the attack that happened on a trail that I ride at least
once a month (at least when it's not raining all the time.) I
donated money to help both victims of this attack with their
medical/funeral costs. I even went to the bike rally held at Irvine
Park in order to memorialize this rider who – by all accounts
–
loved this sport as much as he loved anything in his entire life.

Now, instead of feeling sorry for the family, I feel nothing but
contempt because they are letting their personal grief and greed
undermine the very thing that their son loved doing the most.
Through this lawsuit, Mr. Reynolds' parents are not only
attacking
the county of Orange, they are attacking every person that make
mountain biking a significant portion of their lives; they are
attacking the advocates who work tirelessly to keep our trails open;
and they are attacking us.

At this point, I'm not quite sure what to do about this besides
send
this out to every person I know who might care, hope that, somehow,
we can reach the people who are about to perpetrate this crime
against our sport and, perhaps, get them to reconsider. I didn't
know Mark but, based upon his passion and dedication to this sport
that was exhibited throughout his life, my guess is that he would be
outraged by his parents' actions as well.

Regardless of where you live, this is an issue that you should care
about because frivolous litigation against those who mange our
trails is something that can literally cripple our sport.

Sincerely,

Chris Messina
mtbfrenzy@mac.com

Wow, what ashame. Mark would probably turn over in his grave if he heard about this.

Give me a break, what happened was tragic, and like Chris said, we all understand the risks we are taking when we clip-in our pedals and leave our "territory" and enter nature.

This is unbelievable, I can't believe this lawsuit!

Talk about frivolous litigation -- we should write the parents.

[ocrider]

the park is prolly gonna be like caspers park after they the parents of that girl sued the county.

[LBmtb]

I'm sorry but that's just plain stupid if you ask me. Gimme those parents' email address so I can let em hear a piece of my mind.

Would a petition saying "your lawsuit is stupid as proclaimed by the following bikers . . . " be any help?

[mytrustysteed]

I didn't know Mark, but what a way to disgrace his memory. If this story is true, they should be ashamed of themselves. If they win any money maybe we should all follow suit and file claims for all our injuries. The forest service should have known there are hills in a mountainous region, that when climbed on a mountain bike would cause cramping in my legs!!!! I'll be rich for sure! Give me a break!

Seems to me they just want to make a quick buck.

[DeadlyStryker]

i want to go to this trial

[ocrider]

its closed right now from the damage from the rain

Originally Posted by ocrider101

its closed right now from the damage from the rain

uhhh, whachu talkin' bout willis?

[DeadlyStryker]

Originally Posted by ocrider101

its closed right now from the damage from the rain

trial...as in court with a judge and all that good stuff, not trail.

[TheFarLeft]

no it opens this saturday,

check ya calenda, bro


It's one of my favorites. Mildly technical with lots of climbing. Give the singletrack some time to recover though. The rain's pretty much destroyed the last bit.

see you on the trail.

[jinks]

I got this nasty scar from a recent crash. Maybe I should sue, because I didn't see any signs posted that there'd be any big ruts. But then I see mountain lion postings EVERYWHERE. I probably have a better chance at some cash, don't you think? My Ass..

[EBasil]

If you have the self control to write a polite letter, Mark's parents posted their email and mailing addresses on SoCal last year.

This is why lawyers have a bad name -- because some take on cases purely for self-interest to the detriment of the public good.

[mtnbikej]

There is a sign as you enter Whitting Ranch that states that you are entering a wilderness park and mountain lion country.

I sure hope the county does not settle out on this one.

mtnbikej

[mtnbikej]

Would they be suing if he got bit by a rattlesnake and died out there?

mtnbikej

[Ciaran]

Best I could do was to get the e-mail address off of the website... According to the website you can reach the family at reynolds@markreynoldsfund.com . I really feel for the families loss, but every one of us knows the dangers of going into the back country/wilderness. Heck, it's usually posted at the trailhead. Sadly this will not do any good. If they win, it sets precedence and the county will likely consider closing the trails. If they lose the counties eyes will be opened wider and will likely try to close the trails. Maybe if enough of us send POLITE e-mails we can make them see how wrong this is.

[JamR]

We should all post our concerns and dismay to Marks family on their web-site at www.sports.ibforums.com

I just posted this letter to the family. I met Mark on numerous occasions and know in my heart that this is not what he would have wanted.

Letter to the family.



I too am distressed at this frivolous law suit. I met mark on numerous occasions on the trails near Whiting, and I’m sure he was well aware of the inherent risks of riding alone in a wilderness area as most of us are. Even with all of the warning signs posted at the park entrances, and the postings of recent lion sightings; many of us still proceed to ride and train alone knowing that it is still extremely rare to even catch a glimpse of a lion in Orange County. Every single time I enter a Federal, State or County gate past the wilderness warning signs; I put the responsibility for anything that may befall me solely on my shoulders………..as did Mark.

As mountain bikers, we are at a much greater risk of injury or death from our own actions than of those from any wild predator. Mark’s unfortunate incident was a rare and unusual event that no one could have predicted; and no one can be blamed for except Mark. We all make our own choices in life and Mark made the precise same choice that many wilderness users make every day throughout the county (ie…to enter a known wilderness alone for personal pleasure with the full knowledge and information that there is an inherent risk to do so).

I grieve for Marks untimely death, and sympathies with his families loss; but his family needs to realize that no one was to blame here, and they need to rescind this frivolous law suit and stop making a mockery of the judicial system. Good things and bad things happen in life, and many times things happen that are out of the control of everyone.

I would appeal to his family to please stop this insanity and let the good that Mark did in life be remembered, and the good that continues through his foundation continue to thrive. Mark was by no means a self-centered greedy person; and this law suit simply is not the way Mark would want his memory to be represented.

I appeal to his family to do the right thing and to try to live with the same zest and respect that Mark demonstrated. Greed or vengeance had no place in Marks life and should not be a part of his death or his memory. He was too good of a person to deserve this type of negative aftermath.

[JamR]

I am a firm believer in taking stances on issues, especially when it comes to mountain biking and standing up for our sport.

It’s easy for us to spend a lot of time posting about trails, bike parts and adventures, but it’s difficult sometimes to put effort into getting involved. This is a time to get involved however.

I think I’m pretty consistent on standing up for access issues, and sometimes that takes the form of e-mails, phone calls, letters to badger the County Parks and the County Supervisors; or by showing my face at the meetings to let them know these issues are not forgotten. But in this case I think we need to stand firm with the County and send letters of support to the County Parks and the Supervisors stating our personal positions on this law suit.

I believe that the County has zero liability on this issue and has demonstrated legitimate due diligence in all of the wilderness areas by making the hazards known to the park users.

Please take the time to write polite letters to the Reynolds family letting them know that this was simply an unfortunate and unusual incident and no one is to blame; and also send letters to the County to demonstrate to them that we are here to support them in this case. I think it would be difficult for anyone to win a case against the County if there were hundreds or thousands of local trail users who were willing to stand up and state that we are all clearly aware of the dangers of the wilderness areas and feel that the County has fully warned us of these dangers.

We need to put just as much effort into this as we do into badgering the County to get off their duff and get the RMP review for Aliso-Woods started. We should always try to stay consistently involved in the issues that pertain to our sport and trail access.

Get your letters out to the Family and to the County by the end of the week.

Send your County support letters to Thomas.wilson@ocgov.com and Kevin.thomas@rdmd.ocgov.com