Mountain Biker arrested for illegal trail building

[kanga]

I've copied the article here, but I encourage everyone to go and vote in the Marin Independent Journal's poll on whether more legal mountain bike trails are needed. Our northern counterparts need support!

http://www.marinij.com/ci_9127375?so...uestid=3483883

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Bicyclist in trouble again over illegal trail at China Camp

05/01/2008 11:29:55 PM PDT

A San Rafael man who built an illegal bike trial on federal land in 2001 is in legal trouble again - this time for carving a trail in China Camp State Park, authorities said.

Michael Philip More, 54, was charged Thursday in Marin Superior Court with willful or negligent destruction or removal of plants and dead wood, diverting or obstructing the natural flow of a stream, resisting a peace officer and allowing a dog to roam off-leash in a restricted area, prosecutors said.

More is accused of digging an illegal bike trail into a hillside, hacking down tree limbs and constructing rock paths through two drainage ditches, authorities said. The quarter-mile trail is at the end of Robinhood Drive in San Rafael's Glenwood neighborhood, which borders the state park.

The cost of repairing the damage is estimated at $20,000, said Kathryn Mitchell, a senior county prosecutor.

Dave Gould, the superintendent overseeing state parks in Marin, said the damage to the natural resources was "significant."

"It looks like chainsaws were used and trail-building tools to carve out the hillside," he said. "This isn't where 15 people walked up and down the hillside and you can see their path - this is an attempt to construct an illegal trail."

More, who could not be reached for comment, has pleaded not guilty. His attorney, Patrick Ciocca, said More would be "loathe to engage in a public discussion" about the allegations while preparing his defense.

"It would not be beneficial for him to enter into a public dialogue," Ciocca said.

Park rangers received a tip about the trail in March, when a resident noticed unusual activity in the area. A ranger investigating the trail found More at the scene, and More allegedly tried to flee.

More was cited, but not arrested, while prosecutors reviewed the case. He is scheduled to be appear in court on May 9.

Alex Burnham, president of the San Rafael-based Access4Bikes advocacy group, said he is concerned that the case will tarnish the entire bicycling community and inflame tensions between cyclists and noncyclists. The issue of trail use has fueled years of acidic conflict among hikers, bikers, equestrians and dog owners, with the county sometimes resorting to barbed wire to block cyclists from trails.

"We do not condone this behavior," Burnham said. "We advocate for legal trails. "In Marin County, the trail user community is so polarized that anything that occurs is a blight that gets thrown on the community of mountain bikers."

More was once a prominent bicycling activist, serving on the Marin County Open Space District Trails Committee. But he resigned the position in 2001 when federal authorities accused him and two other men of carving a four-mile illegal bike trail into the Golden Gate National Recreation Area near Bolinas Ridge.

All three men were indicted by a federal grand jury and eventually pleaded guilty to misdemeanors. They were ordered to pay more than $34,000 in restitution for the destruction to federal property, placed on probation for three years and banned from the federal park system during probation.

They apologized in court.

[Justin]

voted

[L8 APEKS]

Burn Him! He's A Witch!!!

[DeadlyStryker]

Legal trails FTW. Time to move to Vail City?

[Blue Rat]

Voted also ...

[drclark]

ugh....hopefully this won't have far-reaching repercussions. "Former access activist caught building illegal trails multiple times".... didn't we have a thread discussing this very topic a while back?

drc

[ChariotsOfTires]

Voted!

[2wheel_lee]

Originally Posted by kanga

...destruction or removal of plants and dead wood...

He may have got some, but I guess he didn't take care of the correct government officials up there.

[DownHillPhil]

Michael More you say...

[station]

<soap box>When I was a kid we would build BMX tracks all the time, on hill sides, vacant lots, places just out of town. Now there is no "just out of town" in SOCal. It's a bummer. Think about all of the natural land we have already cut into to build homes. It makes me sad that developers can come in and do anything that turns a profit but one guy can't put a trail in. Sure, you can argue that developers have to follow a legal process but if you take a holistic view of the planet both are wrong. Sure, we can't all run around building trails wherever, but is that the real problem? We seem to be focused on the symptom and not fighting the illness. </soap box>

[L8 APEKS]

Touche. I agree whole-heartedly.

This man was wrong to alter a national park by modifying the trails...but then again...how did the park get there to begin with? Bingo...someone built the trails.

Laws are a bit kooky sometimes. It was OK then, but it's not OK now because this piece of paper says so and there's money involved (translation - the primary concern is NOT the eco-system; it's someone's WALLET.)

[kanga]

Originally Posted by station

<soap box>When I was a kid we would build BMX tracks all the time, on hill sides, vacant lots, places just out of town. Now there is no "just out of town" in SOCal. It's a bummer. Think about all of the natural land we have already cut into to build homes. It makes me sad that developers can come in and do anything that turns a profit but one guy can't put a trail in. Sure, you can argue that developers have to follow a legal process but if you take a holistic view of the planet both are wrong. Sure, we can't all run around building trails wherever, but is that the real problem? We seem to be focused on the symptom and not fighting the illness. </soap box>

In many ways you're right. It's much more difficult to get the right permissions, but it can be done. The fact that it is so much easier for developers comes from the fact that they're dealing with private lands (which may have previously been public).

When I first read the article it was about 600 votes, 60% Yes, 40% No, approximately. Just now it was over 1000, with 86% Yes! Keep sending those votes!

http://www.marinij.com/ci_9127375?so...uestid=3483883

[hobie]

voted

has anyone read about the man who is "blazing" trails on st. john in the virgin islands.

he has been arrested many of times.

but his defense is: he is finding old maps that have old trails from years ago that arent being used today and he is finding them and opening them back up to hikers and along the way he has found some very historic ruins for the island that no one knew was there.

[Docklobster]

I wonder how much of that previous $34K and how much if paid of the $20K will actually get put into the park system????

[Endo Verendo]

voted, thanks for the link.

[OMR]

Voted as well... now up to 90% for. This is such a touchy subject when all sides weigh in. However, I have become a great believer in working from within the system. Things do happen when people get involved, e.g Santiago Oaks. Mainly through Sherry and STR/SHARE/Warriors, we have changed a very serious situation where we were going to loose quite a few trails to where we have new trails and now contemplating opening previously closed trails... just shows what can be accomplished with a little bit of organization on our part.

[soul rider]

I can't believe he let his dog off the leash...WTF!!!

[L8 APEKS]

Originally Posted by soul rider

I can't believe he let his dog off the leash...WTF!!!

LOL...

...right?!

Bad dog owners = bad leash rules = sad puppeh!



Always hard to incorporate my dog into mountain biking/hiking/camping/off roading trips. I do follow the rules though.

[GregMiester]

Voted! "we need more ~trails~ to keep these troubled kids off the streets!" (insert word of choice after the word "more" and it becomes a worthy cause)