I ride illegal trails. Not that often, mind you, but, in all honestly, I usually won't shy away from sampling some forbidden fruit if the risk and impact are both minimal. Before you berate me and exclaim how my attitude is the reason for everything from land access issues to the 650B wheel, it's pretty clear that said fruit has different levels of forbidden-ness depending on the situation. I know that sounds like I'm justifying the choices that I've made, but there's surely a distinction between a trail that's simply under the radar yet not entirely legal, and one that sports no trespassing signs, is clearly on private or government property, or is even known to be patrolled now and then.
Does unsanctioned mean illegal? The second example is best avoided lest you cause way more trouble than the ride is worth, but you'd have to be quite the Boy Scout to have not enjoyed the former. Never ridden some shady singletrack? You certainly deserve a 'saint' badge on your sash. I'll openly admit that my sash remains badge-less, although I'd like to think of myself as having a good amount of common sense on the matter, and I believe that it's okay to ride on some questionable trails so long as you're not too much of a halfwit about it.
If there was ever a topic that requires a few hundred or so disclaimers it'd be this one. The situation varies not just from trail to trail or town to town, but even from country to country. I know that riding illegal trails in some places can result in huge fines, confiscated bikes, and even threats of jail time, whereas other locations see rangers and land managers turning a blind eye on mountain bikers. Factor in environmental impacts, or even possible search and rescue missions into dangerous areas, and you can quickly find yourself in quite the pickle. There's no doubt that there are countless reasons to never put your tires onto an illegal trail but, for many of us, the lure of a good piece of singletrack is too much to ignore.
Message to NSA: I don't actually ride illegal trails, I just answered that in the poll to make myself look cool... I obey all laws and respect authoritay.
Too late, it's already monopolized. By the people trying to tell you what bloody bit of dirt you can ride on.
"You may cycle across country and on private roads. However, be sure not to ride across the grounds of a house, on cultivated land or on ground that is easily damaged."
"Cycling is allowed on private roads and lands. Landowners cannot put up signs prohibiting cycling."
"When cycling off the road, make sure you choose a route and a cycling style that will avoid unnecessary damage to the ground."
Yeah. Sweden's a cool place.
www.swedishepa.se/Enjoying-nature/The-Right-of-Public-Access/This-is-allowed
There are more indept explanations on the right.
I didn't find a word by word translation from the lawbook but that site is good for explaining how the law is treated in Sweden.
*Edit, I did find it at www.government.se/sb/d/2023/a/22847 but it's 33 chapters long with over 500 sections so unless you're really interested in the legal formalities the first link is a way better source.
I might add that common sense and courtesy is some myth around here. People talk about it but none has ever seen it.
"That's my land, go away!" That is freedom made in America. Great isn't it?
I am exaggerating a little. Loads of people are open letting trail flow by their lands as long as it is done respectfully. Unfortunately, landowners can hardly be disclaimed for whatever would happen to anybody on their property. I think that's about to change though...
(EDIT) And I'll add, it puts the responsibility to uphold courteous behavior in the hands of people. Proactive thinking put into law - Love it.
I wrote a long diatribe about this in the context of the North Shore. Further research shows that it is applicable to most of the rest of BC and will be useful to trail advocates. It is here along with citations in a word doc
www.facebook.com/groups/mtbtrails/651324894903377
Before you neg me out of existence consider this: we continued to try every type of publicly responsible avenue for trail advocacy, including spending money to get imba's help and going to meetings, letters, surveys, and everything else and still the state department of environmental conservation doesn't even list MTB as an approved activity in NY. In Utah we should keep it legal and work with the state, but in NY no holds barred. They don't play fair so bikers shouldn't either.
It is my choice to ride illegal trails, I prefer to take that risk than give up mountain biking which would be the outcome if I could not ride locally due to time pressures.
We did try for 3 years to get this area legalised and offered to fund and build/maintain the trails at no cost to the guardian of the land (its public land). We had huge local support with 1000's signed a petition but the authority would not even consider the proposal and then returned with a heavy handed response involving mounted Police, Police dogs and prosecution.
Considering the area is well known for gay cottaging, illegal barbeques, littering, people riding horses, annual marathon running events which destimate the grasslands, regular fun fairs, etc. It all starts looking very suspicious
But seriously, yes. Ask forgiveness not permission & be as respectful as possible.
That's literally all Pinkbike ever is!
The best place so far in BC with amazing sanctioned trails that aren't conforming to the new school style or paved smooth trails that you can ride your road bike on are built by the guys in Cumberland .. those trails are amazing !! Keep up the good work United Riders of Cumberland.
Sure, some trails are no biking for environmental and liability reasons. That's fine. They should be no hiking or horseback either if they're so sensitive. Some trails are, and should be, no biking because of the difficulty of extraction of injured trail users.
Illegal trails are just another resource. Many of our "illegal" trails from the 90's became sanctioned riding areas. Ok, the ones that didn't become housing developments and golf courses.
Hmmm...Hey Mike Vandeman! What has a bigger footprint on the landscape: a bicycle on a trail or a golf community development? Go protest suburban development. Thank you.
To pretend the foreign with a huge language barrier it always save the situation.
Other than that, when I was 17, I "accidentally" entered, crossed or rode along a race track. There was a big gap in the fence and the site is usually empty, so I was very surprised when I was chilling down the tormac circuit on my bicycle and a racing car came out of a corner at full speed. This was the fastest way I ever left a place like this.
Long live trail poaching. If you can't ride it go somewhere else, if you want pussy trails, go build them, don't touch the ones that have been the pride and joy of local shredders for years.
Not really sure how the bike industry survives here selling mtb only to ride on legal forestry roads only.
Next time you attend Eurobike remember your in Baden-Wurttemberg.
It´s more about the new penaltys that come with this rule... u can pay up to 20k euros...
And in adition to that this rule makes it impossible to legalize a trail.
Ohh and jedrzeja.. the rule is made to only be able riding on roads that can be ridden by cars and nothing else..
But in Hessia where i come from we managed it to dislodge that rule. and after one decade of fighting for a legal trail it seems like this year we´re going to win that fight and get a legal trail.
Man I miss those trails and all of the Waldhütte waiting at the tops of mountains eager to serve you a bit of Schnitzel mit Pommes und Pils, bitte!
PLEASE appreciate where you live for me! I miss it. And if you need a very cool mechanic, swing by Fender in Schwetzingen and ask for Adam. He’s my old bike mechanic, great friend and cuban cigar smuggler. The guy even flew out to Cali for my wedding! Bring him some cheap American beer and tell him Jeremiah sent you. You’ll get great service.
What I have seen here biking these trails for the last 4 years is that no rules or control over them doesn't necessarily means caos. Any trail you can find in or out of the city you are free to ride.
I do know the people from NSMBA enough to understand what's happening. The trails are supervised and must follow standards and rules, not like in the old days. This is a transition period, so I'm waiting until the supervisors allow for more challenging trails. In the mean time I have to take my bike somewhere else.
It is a pity that non-paid challenging trials have become illegal.
Ps: No, this is not a critic to NSMBA.
Rights of way officers exist within the local authority, but that's a team of one covering a huge area, and their main concern is whether or not the landowner is complying with access rights (leaving gates unlocked, clear of veg) not who's using it.
The reality is CROW (2000) is based on an older ruling from the 1949 mass protest in the Peak District, Derbyshire, and has no consideration really to how we use the countryside today. Also landowners should list with their local authority where footpaths etc are on their land, not all do, so how do you know what's legal and what isn't?
Final point, the Forest Commision which manages most woodland in England has managed trails at trail centres and does a good job separating walkers from bikers (most of the time), the trails that exist that aren't designated for walkers or riders are often 'concessionary' which means you're ok to ride them, but the FC retains the right to close them without prior approval, for instance during harvesting operations (a sensible measure), so again, whilst they look like footpaths and there's no sign, if you're on FC land, you're probably ok to ride it, just don't build anything to lairy and expect it tohave a long life, nor should you start your own felling, these trees are a valuable commodity, if you're caught, fines are high.
Bottom line, I'd ride it, what's the worst that can happen?
Hunters in Austria are very different to their north american counterparts. Its a Highly regulated thing where a hunter can lease a section of land for hunting rights and no onr else can hunt there so they think the are the rulers of the land.
Fact is a hunter or even personal of the Forest service (like rangers) have no rights to ask for an ID. This is a right that only personal of the ministry of interior has like police. They can call you in with the police but if they are not the land owner they don't even have the right to stop you.
So if one does, just be nice, smile, give them a wrong name and pedal on enjoying your ride.
i should apologise tho. i am sure you have just as many troubles as me, maybe more. its just that our troubles are different. where i live most of the land is farmed. you cant ride more than a few hundred meters without reaching a fence or wall, and any small amount of public land will be flat grass. i never get to explore any wilderness unless i drive very far to reach the ever shrinking remains of what used to be huge expanses of natural beauty. i cant remember the last time i saw a badger or a deer, let alone a wild boar. the last fox i saw was digging around in a dumpster. there are trails near where i live but they are mostly for families and children or have to conform to so many safety regulations that most of they joy has been sucked out of them. i dream of your swamps and wilderness while you wish for my legal and well maintained trails. yet we both still enjoy the same sport. that makes me smile.
YOLO (feat. Adam Levine & Kendrick Lamar): youtu.be/z5Otla5157c
If you're older than 13 years and have no intentions of going anal, the only acceptable way to use YOLO in, is in a sarcastic way.
My YOLO was being used sarcastically
So long sucker..oh and btw, expect a bill from us to pay for habitat restoration.
God bless America
We build our own natural, rooty, kickass trails in the forests but it's done subtly, away from walkers trails, we don't do any damage and we don't threaten other mountain users by bursting out in front of walkers or knocking over their children / pets.
Apart from the odd lunatic who puts glass on the trails or hangs wire between trees at neck height, we don't get any trouble. If it's safe, sustainable and non-threatening, the forest managers tend to turn a blind eye. They even allow enduros and DH races to take place on unsanctioned trails as long as it's licenced by Cycling Ireland.
P.s. local council people generally tend to have the 'government' disease real bad. Listening to them waffle about redtape and other bullshit is comedy. Probe them about it, question presumed authority always. A few choice questions normally has them contradicting themselves and getting all flappy. Great fun. Ride your bikes, expose bs and have a nice day.
Any incidents where people have actually been hurt in that way or worse? That's true hatred, in a bad way, for someone just enjoying life...
All good in wales tho, if not bike park, I wouldn't know whether the trail was illegal or not sometimes. Been there when the forestry commission poked there noses in a few times and one or two have been semi ripped up, but rebuilt and still running...some changed so you're not flying across a fire road at mac 10 (were better then tho!!) but all good and still fun! A lot of tracks have gone due to felling too, but think that's due to diseased trees mostly. Gutted for people in the cities, with police on the beat in the woods!? thought they'd be needed more in the cities, but at least it keeps the doggers and weirdoes to a minimum!! All you guys with that vast amount of space and not able or supposed to use it is lame and a shame! Supposed to be the great outdoors, not that great if you can't use it!!
In Barcelona I have only ridden in Collserola that is completely forbidden for bikes (the roads U can ride but why to do so?) but there is practically no surveillens and I heard that as a non-local U can't even be fined by the authorities. We have even built small features in there, keeping the passage open for everybody from local grannies to XC-riders and trying to make things as invisible as possible. These trails are well ridden by the locals and every now and then there has been conflicts since the fast going bikes scare the hell out of some pedestrians in the woods. I have had a rule that I only ride speed that even a totally surprising confrontation would not lead into collision - Fast when the visibility is good, slowing down for the tighter bushes and curves
Riders should respect the trail and the other users of the trail and by doing so be free to ride pretty much where ever we want. I know it has to become heavily punished before I quit.
It probably would of been easier to go to the council or national forest trust and work out a deal with them but the answer would most likely be "no our insurance blah blah blah"
Other than that it involved a 45min drive to market rasen (kinda hard when you don't drive)
After it all though it was fantastic to ride knowing unless you put the effort in, it wouldn't exist or at least for very long
If I have to pay even a dime for upkeep of the park, I'm going to use the park for my style of fun, period!
There's some badass containment wall drops, hips, and gaps. Great fun on my morphine.
But yeah, if I had some more spots or a park, that would eliminate the illegal spots(maybe).
Sometimes the arguments can get a bit harsh though, with insults be thrown at each other. My Dad always says it's part of the game to get caught.
suspension
baggy shorts
2.35 or larger tires
full face
actual skill set
closed toe shoes
sober faculties
a desire to be on PinkBike
a past time involving defeating gravity
In part, San Diego Ca. is NOT truly FREE RIDE/DH community supportive by the sanctioned entities, city councils and land managers as a whole. Politics and soft socialism and eco nazis reign supreme here. Thus many a squishy bike rider, find alternaitive means to come down the hills and mountains in N.I.M.B.Y. land.
"it's only illegal if you get caught..."
The US National Forest Service is part of the Dept of Agriculture and oversees National Forests.They are much less mtb hostile.
(maybe cause we don't have any...seriously, you can ride anywhere you want, no laws for that)
its a dirt path.