Constructive trail riding

[GWood]

I have decided to add a basic piece of equipment to my riding gear for the
season. I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!) shopping bags into
the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage collection along the way.
Been doing this for quite a while when hiking, it occured to me I could pick
up at least some small items when biking as well.

I find that seeing garbage alongside beautiful singletack is much more
disturbing than a few ruts. I think weekend hikers are way more prone to
dumping candy wrappers and empty water bottles alongside trails than bikers
are - although there are bozos in both camps. I've found trash in places
only accomplished distance hikers could reach, it always surpises me to
think true outdoor-lovers would do such a thing.

Anyways, I started packing out garbage after seeing someone else do it while
hiking. Seemed like a good way to "take back" from the environment. Maybe
I can even convince the trailhead maintenance folks to add a trash can
there...

Cheers
Gary

 

[Slack]

GWood wrote:

> I have decided to add a basic piece of equipment to my riding gear for the
> season. I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!) shopping bags into
> the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage collection along the way.
> Been doing this for quite a while when hiking, it occured to me I could pick
> up at least some small items when biking as well.
>
> I find that seeing garbage alongside beautiful singletack is much more
> disturbing than a few ruts. I think weekend hikers are way more prone to
> dumping candy wrappers and empty water bottles alongside trails than bikers
> are - although there are bozos in both camps. I've found trash in places
> only accomplished distance hikers could reach, it always surpises me to
> think true outdoor-lovers would do such a thing.
>
> Anyways, I started packing out garbage after seeing someone else do it while
> hiking. Seemed like a good way to "take back" from the environment. Maybe
> I can even convince the trailhead maintenance folks to add a trash can
> there...
>
> Cheers
> Gary
>
>
Good deal. Does "trash" include horsey poo
--
Slack

 

[Scott Ehardt]

"GWood" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I have decided to add a basic piece of equipment to my riding gear for the
> season. I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!) shopping bags
> into
> the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage collection along the way.
> Been doing this for quite a while when hiking, it occured to me I could
> pick
> up at least some small items when biking as well.

Good plan... I've been picking up discarded plastic drink bottles as I bike,
which fit nicely into the back pocket of my jersey. I can just imagine
someone thinking, "He drank two bottles of sports drink and a Coke?!?!"

--
Scott Ehardt
http://www.scehardt.com

 

[John Harlow]

GWood wrote:
> I have decided to add a basic piece of equipment to my riding gear
> for the season. I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!)
> shopping bags into the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage
> collection along the way.

Good on you. Nothing pisses me off more than a litterer.

I pick up stuff as I see it as well. Amazingly, and fortunately, there is
rarely any trash on the [almost exclusively mountainbiking] trails here
within the city limits of Richmond, VA. I spend far more time picking up
hanger-breakers (broken tree limbs).

And if you're cringing about using plastic instead of paper, think again...
http://www.ilea.org/lcas/franklin1990.html

 

[small change]

Scott Ehardt wrote:
> "GWood" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> I have decided to add a basic piece of equipment to my riding gear
>> for the season. I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!)
>> shopping bags into
>> the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage collection along the
>> way. Been doing this for quite a while when hiking, it occured to me
>> I could pick
>> up at least some small items when biking as well.
>
> Good plan... I've been picking up discarded plastic drink bottles as
> I bike, which fit nicely into the back pocket of my jersey. I can
> just imagine someone thinking, "He drank two bottles of sports drink
> and a Coke?!?!"

funny. I'm working out the logistics for a clean up we are doing, and an
actual part of the plan is to have folks ride up the trails, and work thier
way down slowly with garbage bags. ;-)

Penny

 

[Jon Bond]

"GWood" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>I have decided to add a basic piece of equipment to my riding gear for the
> season. I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!) shopping bags
> into
> the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage collection along the way.
> Been doing this for quite a while when hiking, it occured to me I could
> pick
> up at least some small items when biking as well.
>
> I find that seeing garbage alongside beautiful singletack is much more
> disturbing than a few ruts. I think weekend hikers are way more prone to
> dumping candy wrappers and empty water bottles alongside trails than
> bikers
> are - although there are bozos in both camps. I've found trash in places
> only accomplished distance hikers could reach, it always surpises me to
> think true outdoor-lovers would do such a thing.
>
> Anyways, I started packing out garbage after seeing someone else do it
> while
> hiking. Seemed like a good way to "take back" from the environment.
> Maybe
> I can even convince the trailhead maintenance folks to add a trash can
> there...
>
> Cheers
> Gary

Awesome.

I try to do the same - if I'm stopped anyway especially. My friends and I
also had a running competition to see who could pick up the most reflectors
a couple summers ago. By the end of the summer, it got to the point where
we'd ditch our bikes and dive for little orange glints on the trail.
Reflectors may not be intentional litter, but they're still litter!

Jon

 

[GWood]

Good to hear that so many folks feel the same way. Can't help but improve
(or reinforce) positive feelings about MTB use on trails from all folks who
share and govern the trail systems.

 

[MattB]

small change wrote:
> Scott Ehardt wrote:
>
>>"GWood" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>
>>>I have decided to add a basic piece of equipment to my riding gear
>>>for the season. I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!)
>>>shopping bags into
>>>the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage collection along the
>>>way. Been doing this for quite a while when hiking, it occured to me
>>>I could pick
>>>up at least some small items when biking as well.
>>
>>Good plan... I've been picking up discarded plastic drink bottles as
>>I bike, which fit nicely into the back pocket of my jersey. I can
>>just imagine someone thinking, "He drank two bottles of sports drink
>>and a Coke?!?!"
>
>
> funny. I'm working out the logistics for a clean up we are doing, and an
> actual part of the plan is to have folks ride up the trails, and work thier
> way down slowly with garbage bags. ;-)
>
> Penny
>
>
>

We do that annually at Hartman Rocks. We find everything from candy
wrappers to tires and refrigerators. I have a feeling neither the hikers
or the bikers left their refrigerators, but I guess I could be wrong.
Hard to picture, anyway.

Matt (I also grab trail trash as I can on regular rides)

 

[JD]

Jon Bond wrote:
> I try to do the same - if I'm stopped anyway especially. My friends
and I
> also had a running competition to see who could pick up the most
reflectors
> a couple summers ago. By the end of the summer, it got to the point
where
> we'd ditch our bikes and dive for little orange glints on the trail.
> Reflectors may not be intentional litter, but they're still litter!


Who are you?

I'm always dismayed when I see pedal reflectors on a trail like the
Moore Fun. Some people have no business in certain places and they
always seem to leave their mark in more ways than one.

Litterers are pigs, plain and simple. People on mountain bikes who
litter need to find another fad, like tagging or some other dipstick
persuasion.

JD

 

[Jon Bond]

"JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> Jon Bond wrote:
>> I try to do the same - if I'm stopped anyway especially. My friends
> and I
>> also had a running competition to see who could pick up the most
> reflectors
>> a couple summers ago. By the end of the summer, it got to the point
> where
>> we'd ditch our bikes and dive for little orange glints on the trail.
>> Reflectors may not be intentional litter, but they're still litter!
>
>
> Who are you?
>
> I'm always dismayed when I see pedal reflectors on a trail like the
> Moore Fun. Some people have no business in certain places and they
> always seem to leave their mark in more ways than one.
>
> Litterers are pigs, plain and simple. People on mountain bikes who
> litter need to find another fad, like tagging or some other dipstick
> persuasion.
>
> JD

Usually the ones we find are the little yellow ones... such as those you'd
find on... say... pedals with straps. *ahem*

Jon "who am I?" Bond

 

[(Pete Cresswell)]

Per GWood:
> I'm going to stuff a couple of plastic (yikes!) shopping bags into
>the mesh of my backpack and do a little garbage collection along the way.
>Been doing this for quite a while when hiking, it occured to me I could pick
>up at least some small items when biking as well.

Thanks for the idea.

I used to do that when kayaking.
Not much, just at least one piece per trip.


--
PeteCresswell

 

[JD]

Jon Bond wrote:
> "JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> >
> > Jon Bond wrote:
> >> I try to do the same - if I'm stopped anyway especially. My
friends
> > and I
> >> also had a running competition to see who could pick up the most
> > reflectors
> >> a couple summers ago. By the end of the summer, it got to the
point
> > where
> >> we'd ditch our bikes and dive for little orange glints on the
trail.
> >> Reflectors may not be intentional litter, but they're still
litter!
> >
> >
> > Who are you?
> >
> > I'm always dismayed when I see pedal reflectors on a trail like the
> > Moore Fun. Some people have no business in certain places and they
> > always seem to leave their mark in more ways than one.
> >
> > Litterers are pigs, plain and simple. People on mountain bikes who
> > litter need to find another fad, like tagging or some other
dipstick
> > persuasion.
> >
> > JD
>
> Usually the ones we find are the little yellow ones... such as those
you'd
> find on... say... pedals with straps. *ahem*
>
> Jon "who am I?" Bond


Funny how those little yellow reflectors come apart from all of the
pedals I buy. Deflectorzing isn't hard if one is not lazy. Reflectors
have NO place on the trail, on a bike, or off.

 

[Scott Ehardt]

"JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Funny how those little yellow reflectors come apart from all of the
> pedals I buy. Deflectorzing isn't hard if one is not lazy. Reflectors
> have NO place on the trail, on a bike, or off.


Reflectors have a place on the trails I ride. Several places, actually:
both pedals and both wheels. I use them to complement my lights as I ride
home from the trailhead at dusk.

--
Scott Ehardt
http://www.scehardt.com

 

[Jon Bond]

"Scott Ehardt" <SCEhardt--((REM@VE))--SCEhardt.com> wrote in message
news:1g%[email protected]...
> "JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> Funny how those little yellow reflectors come apart from all of the
>> pedals I buy. Deflectorzing isn't hard if one is not lazy. Reflectors
>> have NO place on the trail, on a bike, or off.
>
>
> Reflectors have a place on the trails I ride. Several places, actually:
> both pedals and both wheels. I use them to complement my lights as I ride
> home from the trailhead at dusk.
>
> --
> Scott Ehardt
> http://www.scehardt.com

Ick. You've obviously never seen a wheel reflector break, flip sideways,
and rip out a rear derailleur, have you? Because I have - took out a couple
spokes with it too.

If you're riding back from the trailhead, get flashing lights that are
visible from the sides. By the time somebody's headlights see your wheel
reflectors, they're either far enough away that you'll pass them, or they're
too close and will clock you anyway.

If you really are paranoid, get some of the 3M reflective tape/dots, and put
it on a few places on your bike. Reflectors end up as litter, plain and
simple.

Jon Bond

 

[JD]

Scott Ehardt ([email protected]>) wrote:
> "JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Funny how those little yellow reflectors come apart from all of the
> > pedals I buy. Deflectorzing isn't hard if one is not lazy.
Reflectors
> > have NO place on the trail, on a bike, or off.
>
>
> Reflectors have a place on the trails I ride. Several places,
actually:
> both pedals and both wheels. I use them to complement my lights as I
ride
> home from the trailhead at dusk.


Tell us all this, do you stop every time you happen to break a
reflector off to pick it up? My guess would be no because I've picked
up hundreds that were left on the trail in the past 19 years. Ever
think of wearing reflective clothing for your ride to or from the
trailhead? There is all kinds of reflective gear out there, which
eliminates the need for extraneous reflectors *on* your bicycle.

JD

 

[JD]

Jon Bond wrote:
> "Scott Ehardt" <SCEhardt--((REM@VE))--SCEhardt.com> wrote in message
> news:1g%[email protected]...
> > "JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> > news:[email protected]...
> >> Funny how those little yellow reflectors come apart from all of
the
> >> pedals I buy. Deflectorzing isn't hard if one is not lazy.
Reflectors
> >> have NO place on the trail, on a bike, or off.
> >
> >
> > Reflectors have a place on the trails I ride. Several places,
actually:
> > both pedals and both wheels. I use them to complement my lights as
I ride
> > home from the trailhead at dusk.
> >
> > --
> > Scott Ehardt
> > http://www.scehardt.com
>
> Ick. You've obviously never seen a wheel reflector break, flip
sideways,
> and rip out a rear derailleur, have you? Because I have - took out a
couple
> spokes with it too.


I'm wondering where his local trails are. If they are paved, I see no
problem with reflectors on the bike. However, mountain bike trails
have obstacles that tend to rip extraneous BS off of a bike at the most
inopportune moments.

> If you're riding back from the trailhead, get flashing lights that
are
> visible from the sides. By the time somebody's headlights see your
wheel
> reflectors, they're either far enough away that you'll pass them, or
they're
> too close and will clock you anyway.


That's too easy Jo, especially since there are so many to choose from
on the market, many of which attach to a pack or elsewhere on a person.

> If you really are paranoid, get some of the 3M reflective tape/dots,
and put
> it on a few places on your bike. Reflectors end up as litter, plain
and
> simple.


Maybe our pal's myopia causes him to throw lit cigarettes out of car
windows too. "Everyone else does..."

JD litter is litter is litter

 

[Scott Ehardt]

"JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I'm wondering where his local trails are. If they are paved, I see no
> problem with reflectors on the bike. However, mountain bike trails
> have obstacles that tend to rip extraneous BS off of a bike at the most
> inopportune moments.

There are parallel paved and offroad trails; one on each side of a bayou. I
ride the offroad one when it isn't too wet.

> Maybe our pal's myopia causes him to throw lit cigarettes out of car
> windows too. "Everyone else does..."

Lets see... a list of everything I throw out my car window:
- pistachio shells
- cherry stems
- cherry pits

> JD litter is litter is litter
>


--
Scott Ehardt
http://www.scehardt.com

 

[Scott Ehardt]

"JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Tell us all this, do you stop every time you happen to break a
> reflector off to pick it up? My guess would be no because I've picked
> up hundreds that were left on the trail in the past 19 years. Ever
> think of wearing reflective clothing for your ride to or from the
> trailhead? There is all kinds of reflective gear out there, which
> eliminates the need for extraneous reflectors *on* your bicycle.


OK, you're starting to sound like the Vandeman of reflectors. If I have
lost any reflectors on trails, and it's possible I've lost a couple of the
small pedal reflectors, obviously I didn't pick them up because I didn't
notice until hours, days, or weeks later that they were gone. However, if
you will, look at the situation in the grand scheme of things. Through
organized and unorganized (just me) beach, bayou, and trail cleanups, I've
picked up absolutely massive amounts of litter. And yes, I've even picked
up more reflectors than I possibly could have lost!

--
Scott Ehardt
http://www.scehardt.com

 

[JD]

Scott Ehardt (REM@VE) wrote:
> "JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Tell us all this, do you stop every time you happen to break a
> > reflector off to pick it up? My guess would be no because I've
picked
> > up hundreds that were left on the trail in the past 19 years. Ever
> > think of wearing reflective clothing for your ride to or from the
> > trailhead? There is all kinds of reflective gear out there, which
> > eliminates the need for extraneous reflectors *on* your bicycle.
>
>
> OK, you're starting to sound like the <snip spammer name> of
reflectors. If I have
> lost any reflectors on trails, and it's possible I've lost a couple
of the
> small pedal reflectors, obviously I didn't pick them up because I
didn't
> notice until hours, days, or weeks later that they were gone.
However, if
> you will, look at the situation in the grand scheme of things.
Through
> organized and unorganized (just me) beach, bayou, and trail cleanups,
I've
> picked up absolutely massive amounts of litter. And yes, I've even
picked
> up more reflectors than I possibly could have lost!


Try and spin it however you want to. The fact is that you admit a
possibility of losing reflectors and not picking them up. How does a
missing reflector on your bike qualify as "possibly"? Either you have
come up missing reflectors, or you have not. Which is it? Leaving
reflector garbage on the trail still makes you a litterbug, whether
you've picked up the garbage of others, or not. Having wheel and pedal
reflectors on your bicycle while riding mountain bike trails in the
dirt is *inviting* litter. There are other solutions to being seen
while riding on the street at night to and from a trailhead. Get it
yet? Then again, your "grand scheme" will probably remain myopic.

JD

 

[Ride-A-Lot]

JD wrote:
> Scott Ehardt (REM@VE) wrote:
>
>>"JD" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>>news:[email protected]...
>>
>>>Tell us all this, do you stop every time you happen to break a
>>>reflector off to pick it up? My guess would be no because I've
>
> picked
>
>>>up hundreds that were left on the trail in the past 19 years. Ever
>>>think of wearing reflective clothing for your ride to or from the
>>>trailhead? There is all kinds of reflective gear out there, which
>>>eliminates the need for extraneous reflectors *on* your bicycle.
>>
>>
>>OK, you're starting to sound like the <snip spammer name> of
>
> reflectors. If I have
>
>>lost any reflectors on trails, and it's possible I've lost a couple
>
> of the
>
>>small pedal reflectors, obviously I didn't pick them up because I
>
> didn't
>
>>notice until hours, days, or weeks later that they were gone.
>
> However, if
>
>>you will, look at the situation in the grand scheme of things.
>
> Through
>
>>organized and unorganized (just me) beach, bayou, and trail cleanups,
>
> I've
>
>>picked up absolutely massive amounts of litter. And yes, I've even
>
> picked
>
>>up more reflectors than I possibly could have lost!
>
>
>
> Try and spin it however you want to. The fact is that you admit a
> possibility of losing reflectors and not picking them up. How does a
> missing reflector on your bike qualify as "possibly"? Either you have
> come up missing reflectors, or you have not. Which is it? Leaving
> reflector garbage on the trail still makes you a litterbug, whether
> you've picked up the garbage of others, or not. Having wheel and pedal
> reflectors on your bicycle while riding mountain bike trails in the
> dirt is *inviting* litter. There are other solutions to being seen
> while riding on the street at night to and from a trailhead. Get it
> yet? Then again, your "grand scheme" will probably remain myopic.
>
> JD
>

Don't forget the plastic chain protectors between the cassette and the
spokes. I've found hundreds of those on the trail. First time I
noticed them I wondered why people were dumping CD's on the trail.

--
o-o-o-o Ride-A-Lot o-o-o-o
www.schnauzers.ws