— feeling defeated 😞. Thanks, mountain bike opponents.
I first fell in love with the sounds and smells of the woods from the seat of my bicycle on neighborhood trails in suburban Washington. When I moved to Portland, I immediately noticed a strange dearth of opportunities for mountain bikers to ride, despite a rich bike and trail culture. Right away, I got involved with efforts to improve access because after all, why should Portland residents be deprived that experience?
Four years later, and here’s how I feel about all of it:
1. I’m tired of the flagrant fear mongering steeped in half truths. This week, I was interviewed for a story that should never have been a story, because people are saying “Portland City Government is taking steps to open up pedestrian-only trails in Forest Park — including Wildwood…” Just not true. Be passionate, but can you also please be honest?
2. I’m tired of people saying there are 30 miles of trails in Forest Park designated for mountain bikes. No, there is not. There is three-quarters of a mile of TRAIL where mountain bikes are allowed.
3. I’m tired of the media proactively upholding the questionable narrative that mountain bikers are dangerous, sans data. Note the imbalance of characters in the linked article.
4. I’m tired of people saying, “well I’ve been involved in parks and recreation planning for [insert really big number] years and I know that [this] and [that] can’t be done.” This just tells me you’re part of the problem, not the solution.
5. I’m tired of people saying that if we allow mountain biking in Forest Park, we’ll see more illegal trail usage. How is that even logical? Mountain bikers don’t ride because they enjoy breaking the law. They ride because they enjoy mountain biking.
6. I’m tired of people saying, well I’m a mountain biker BUT. I can tell when you’re BSing me. That’s like me trying to speak on behalf of knitters because I’ve knit two scarves and a hat in my lifetime.
7. I’m tired of meeting people who moved to Portland and sold their mountain bike simply because there aren’t any decent trails in the area. That’s just sad.
This is a ridiculous fight. Can we just sit down, work together, and figure out where it is and isn’t appropriate to allow cyclists? End of story.