http://www.nemba.org/ActionAlerts/GMNFActionAlert.html
IMBA, NEMBA and VMBA urge all mountain bikers to submit comments by July 5th:
Demand that the US Forest Service reverse its current policy of prohibiting bicyclists from all trails and roads in the GMNF unless specifically posted open. Trails and roads should be open to bicyclists unless posted closed.
Support the preservation of Glastenbury Mountain and other roadless areas without Wilderness designation. Wilderness designation would permanently exclude bicycles from these important areas.
Support Alternative E of the Green Mountain National Forest Plan Revision. Alternative E allows for the greatest potential for future mountain bike opportunities.
We need your help, and urge you to send in letters and emails by July 5th. This is an important opportunity to increase access for mountain biking so that we can enjoy this area. Act soon: we can't miss this chance to improve mountain biking in Vermont.
Bikes Should Not Be Excluded from the Green Mountain National Forest
Bikes are essentially banned in the Green Mountain National Forest, and the Forest Service's new draft plan codifies this unusual policy. The Green Mountain National Forest is the only national forest in the United States to have such a strict policy towards bicycling.
The plan goes further: it adopts the extreme policy of banning bikes from roads as well as trails. The Forest Service might respond that the ban is not absolute; that it's just a "closed-unless-designated-open" policy; that in the preferred alternative 69% of the land will be available for possible bicycle trail development. But why build new trails for bicycling when there are hundreds of miles of existing trails that are suitable?
Currently, bicyclists are only allowed on a paltry 37 miles of a 906-mile trails system. Equestrians fare even more poorlythey only get 14 miles of trail. In contrast, snowmobilers are allowed on 471 miles, and hikers on 349 miles. Compare this policy to the nearby White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire and Maine, where mountain bikers are allowed on just about every non-Wilderness trail..
The US Forest Service is, by law, a multiple-use agency. For recreation, that should mean that people learn to share trails. These lands are not just for hikers and snowmobilers. It's time for the Green Mountain National Forest to live up to its multiple-use mandate and reverse its policy. They should follow the National Forest Service tradition that non-Wilderness trails are open to bicycling and horses unless officially closed.
Tell the US Forest Service that you wish their "Standards and Guidelines" to state that "mountain biking be a permitted activity on all roads and trails unless they are designated as closed." An "open unless posted closed" policy would bring the Green Mountain National Forest more in line with other National Forest recreational use plans.
Preserve Future Bike Access by Minimizing New Wilderness Areas
The US Forest Service currently prefers Alternative E, a recommendation we support. This option is favorable to mountain bikers since it designates the least amount of new acreage to Wilderness. It keeps the door open for more favorable riding opportunities in the future, especially in the Glastenbury area which is covered in old roads and trails suitable for mountain biking. Mountain bikers support the protection of open space, but not strictly through Wilderness designations that prevent bicycling opportunities forever.
However, all the Alternatives codify the mountain bike policy as "closed" to bikes unless specifically posted "open." It is critical that mountain bikers speak out against this.
Where to Send Your Letters:
Forest Plan Revision
Green Mountain National Forest
231 N. Main St.
Rutland, VT 05701
Email: gmflplanrevision@fs.fed.us
For More Detailed info from the US Forest Service:
Green Mountain National Forest Plan Revision Documents
Please take action no later than July 5th!
Help Spread the Word!!!
Please download this PDF poster, print it out and place it in your local bike shops!
Click here for the poster.
If you can do more, fax or email Congress:
If you are from Vermont, your voice is especially important. If you are from out of state, write to Vermont's members of Congress about the tourism value of trails for bicycling. Bicyclists spend considerable money and travel long distances to ride trails in national forests like the Green Mountain.
Senator Patrick Leahy
199 Main Street,4th Floor
Burlington, VT 05401
fax: (202) 224-3479
IMBA, NEMBA and VMBA urge all mountain bikers to submit comments by July 5th:
Demand that the US Forest Service reverse its current policy of prohibiting bicyclists from all trails and roads in the GMNF unless specifically posted open. Trails and roads should be open to bicyclists unless posted closed.
Support the preservation of Glastenbury Mountain and other roadless areas without Wilderness designation. Wilderness designation would permanently exclude bicycles from these important areas.
Support Alternative E of the Green Mountain National Forest Plan Revision. Alternative E allows for the greatest potential for future mountain bike opportunities.
We need your help, and urge you to send in letters and emails by July 5th. This is an important opportunity to increase access for mountain biking so that we can enjoy this area. Act soon: we can't miss this chance to improve mountain biking in Vermont.
Bikes Should Not Be Excluded from the Green Mountain National Forest
Bikes are essentially banned in the Green Mountain National Forest, and the Forest Service's new draft plan codifies this unusual policy. The Green Mountain National Forest is the only national forest in the United States to have such a strict policy towards bicycling.
The plan goes further: it adopts the extreme policy of banning bikes from roads as well as trails. The Forest Service might respond that the ban is not absolute; that it's just a "closed-unless-designated-open" policy; that in the preferred alternative 69% of the land will be available for possible bicycle trail development. But why build new trails for bicycling when there are hundreds of miles of existing trails that are suitable?
Currently, bicyclists are only allowed on a paltry 37 miles of a 906-mile trails system. Equestrians fare even more poorlythey only get 14 miles of trail. In contrast, snowmobilers are allowed on 471 miles, and hikers on 349 miles. Compare this policy to the nearby White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire and Maine, where mountain bikers are allowed on just about every non-Wilderness trail..
The US Forest Service is, by law, a multiple-use agency. For recreation, that should mean that people learn to share trails. These lands are not just for hikers and snowmobilers. It's time for the Green Mountain National Forest to live up to its multiple-use mandate and reverse its policy. They should follow the National Forest Service tradition that non-Wilderness trails are open to bicycling and horses unless officially closed.
Tell the US Forest Service that you wish their "Standards and Guidelines" to state that "mountain biking be a permitted activity on all roads and trails unless they are designated as closed." An "open unless posted closed" policy would bring the Green Mountain National Forest more in line with other National Forest recreational use plans.
Preserve Future Bike Access by Minimizing New Wilderness Areas
The US Forest Service currently prefers Alternative E, a recommendation we support. This option is favorable to mountain bikers since it designates the least amount of new acreage to Wilderness. It keeps the door open for more favorable riding opportunities in the future, especially in the Glastenbury area which is covered in old roads and trails suitable for mountain biking. Mountain bikers support the protection of open space, but not strictly through Wilderness designations that prevent bicycling opportunities forever.
However, all the Alternatives codify the mountain bike policy as "closed" to bikes unless specifically posted "open." It is critical that mountain bikers speak out against this.
Where to Send Your Letters:
Forest Plan Revision
Green Mountain National Forest
231 N. Main St.
Rutland, VT 05701
Email: gmflplanrevision@fs.fed.us
For More Detailed info from the US Forest Service:
Green Mountain National Forest Plan Revision Documents
Please take action no later than July 5th!
Help Spread the Word!!!
Please download this PDF poster, print it out and place it in your local bike shops!
Click here for the poster.
If you can do more, fax or email Congress:
If you are from Vermont, your voice is especially important. If you are from out of state, write to Vermont's members of Congress about the tourism value of trails for bicycling. Bicyclists spend considerable money and travel long distances to ride trails in national forests like the Green Mountain.
Senator Patrick Leahy
199 Main Street,4th Floor
Burlington, VT 05401
fax: (202) 224-3479