The Axe is Falling Summary
I asked Troy to start a new thread with updates but anyone who wants I'm sure can get it started.
Why did this happen?
The trails we used to ride in Rancho Palos Verdes were all on private property. Even though they were in a landslide zone, developers were trying to build a golf course below Del Cerro Park. Although it stood only a small chance of happening, the city decided to buy the land and put an end to the threat of development. Since the land was too expensive for the city to buy alone, they searched for public funding.
Most of the money to buy the land was granted by state agencies whose goal is to preserve and restore native habitat. While this assured open space would not be taken by development, the city was obligated to implement policies that will protect and restore native plants and increase native animal populations. Habitat preservation now has priority over allowed uses.
Free for all is over.
The city has consequently developed a land management plan that regulates all activities within the preserve. This wasn’t done in secret; it was a grueling two-year public process that was open to everyone. The few in this forum who participated can be recognized by their calls to keep working to reopen trails. They understand the process and what’s at stake.
During the development of the trails plan, the city heard hundreds of comments, suggestions, and complaints from the public. Some very prominent and influential locals fervently opposed bikes. The council viewed formal presentations from organizations like the Sierra Club, Native Plant Society, Audubon Society, and local horseman’s associations, all of which wanted to severely restrict or exclude bikes from trails. CORBA PV and a few dedicated mountain bikers stood against these formidable adversaries.
What were the issues?
Habitat destruction by bikes was the biggest complaint. In the past 5-6 years the number of new trails exploded. While hikers made some, it was pretty obvious who made most of them, especially big drops, ladders, and jumps. Opponents pointed to this blight as the strongest reason to ban bikes, saying mountain bikers have no respect for the land and never will. We countered with; all of this was done before the city bought the land, and most people were uninformed about habitat issues. Let us show that once the plan is in place, bikers will only use existing designated trails.
User conflict was also a key issue. Emotional testimonials proved to be very persuasive to the council, especially when it came to horses. Equestrians, bolstered with historical entitlement, claimed there was a fundamental safety problem with bikes. Our argument was that bikes can coexist with horses if bikers observe trail etiquette guidelines. We offered to help educate bikers and work with other user groups. In addition, we pointed out that two city mandated public surveys indicated user conflict was actually low.
A compounding issue was the closure of redundant and unsustainable trails mandated by state resource agencies that put up the money. Naturalists were zealous about creating more contiguous open space for wildlife by eliminating many trails. We offered data showing that less than 2% of the land was taken by trails, so having some redundant trails would not significantly impact habitat. We also asked that trails be left open unless professionally trained biologists established specific environmental conflicts.
Win, lose, or draw?
Portuguese Bend was disappointing. Bikes were squeezed out by equestrians’ demands for trails without bikes and closure of half the existing trails. Many trails that could have offered alternative routes to separate bikes from horses were eliminated for habitat reasons. Lower Slalom is an example of this closure policy. On the other hand, Forrestal, Ocean Trails, Agua Armaga, and Three Sister reserves strike a reasonable balance for bikes. If you stop for a second and consider the combined forces opposing bikes, we were amazingly successful.
Is this the end?
We know the city is willing to reopen trails to bikes because they did it at Forrestal. Mountain bikers earned their trust by riding responsibly and volunteering for trail work. The city rewarded us by reopening a bunch of trails to bikes.
We have another chance at Portuguese Bend. The council will review the trails plan in six-months, sometime around February, and then annually. We’ve been challenged to show that the complaints against us can be overcome. We have to accept that we can’t have every trail we want. The way it stands, we can get some back or we can lose them all. In many respects we control our fate.
We have two simple options:
- Obey the new rules and convince decision makers to open more trails to bikes.
- Disobey the new rules and face a total bike ban from all trails.
I’ve committed over four years of my life to keep mountain bikes in PV. During that time I have probably spent more hours fighting for trail access than most people have spent riding trails here. I’m not bragging, I’m pleading for everyone to get on the same page.
Don’t undo what’s been accomplished.
Don’t sacrifice the future for a few minutes of pleasure or revenge.
Don’t stand by and let others take this opportunity away from mountain bikers.
You can’t always get what you want but if try sometimes you just might find you get what you need.
