News: Cyclists rebuffed at Lake Parramatta "They don’t want their nice, quiet walks interrupted by a collision with a MTB"

Look at skate parks... Hey actually the council owned facility that has the most incidents? Foot Paths. We should ban them

ya win some-ya lose some.....

Yep its a joke but it goes to show the damage a few bad youtube vids and some wood work in the wrong places will do.

Hello Julia and Andrew,

I'm writing this email after reading a very disappointing and ill informed article and decision by Parramatta Council.
http://parramatta-advertiser.whereilive.com.au/n...

I notice there hasn't been any comments/feedback from walkers or other members of the non-MTBking community. Why? Because MTBking within this reserve clearly is not an issue.

• No one is reporting getting 'run over'.
• No one is reporting having 'their peace and tranquility disturbed'.
• No one is reporting 'native fauna' is being run over/killed.
• No one apart from the local councillors who clearly have nothing more important to do, has an issue about this pastime.

Councillors, please listen and let your MTBike community WORK WITH YOU to establish properly built, sustainable and maintained single-track riding trails of ALL to use.

For the record I'm a 51 year old executive who loves the bush and stops to observe and enjoy fauna regularly as do many MTBkrs. We are in the main not teenage louts - not saying all teenagers are louts BTW. Also, biking is much easier on the knees than jogging so it's our way of keeping fit!

Please have the curtesy to engage with the good people of the North-West Trail Alliance. You might see another point of view.

Sincerely,

22 DEC 11

While his occupation means Mr Taufer is an exercise enthusiast, he backed Parramatta Council’s decision not to allow mountain bike riders more access to the reserve.

He said he had encountered more and more cyclists on the tracks, and for safety reasons did not think more was a good idea.

“There are a few blind corners. If you get a mountain bike rider screaming round the corner there are a few elderly people walking round here who wouldn’t be able to get away quickly enough,” he said.”

http://parramatta-advertiser.whereilive.com.au/n...

Apologies for dosing up on the angry pills, this stuff gets up my nose:

Dear Editor,

re: It's a dog's life, but its ruff-er for bikers at Lake Parramatta

I find it interesting that Council uses the excuse that native fauna have been found in the park as an excuse not to provide trails or allow mountain bikers off fire roads... yet off-leash dogs would seem to be perfectly fine, judging by the non-existent enforcement.

Mountain bicycles do not dart off and chase other animals, even though mine sometimes seems to have a mind of its own, nor do they leave droppings, scent mark trees with their urine, or bark at things, all of which are far more disturbing to native fauna than almost-silent cyclists.

Further, the wilful misreading by Councillors and staff of the National Parks Cycling Policy to support their position is the height of "Yes Minister" obstructionism: cherry picking words to suit their uninformed prejudices while turning the document’s clear overall intent on its head.

The average mountain biker is mid-thirties to early forties, professional, more likely to be university educated, frequently a family man or woman who enjoys riding with their children, and of significantly above-average income according to recent statistics gathered by Warringah Council. We are on average much more environmentally aware than the typical citizen, and sustainability is close to the top of the list of our values according to the same document.

For this reason it is important to us to be able to ride to trails within our locality instead of using our cars, and it is even more important to enable youth to be able to have access interesting trails without needing to rely on motorised transport. It seems the lifting of exercise rates through promotion of interesting and healthy unstructured recreation activities is unimportant to Councillors. A crucial part of the mountain biking experience is close proximity to the natural environment, which management and fire roads simply do not provide.

I speak with confidence for the whole mountain biking community when I say I take personal affront at being painted as an environmental vandal who is reckless and holds no concern for the safety of other trail users.

The facts are very different to the way certain Councillors view us and it is about time they and staff started to pay attention to those facts instead of relying on prejudiced and misconceived stereotypes when forming policy.

Regards,

Name and number supplied

Done. Let's see if we get a bite.

good work supporting the fight, but not sure how attacking another minority group will get thier ear?

anyhow thanks for the email addresses, I'll spam them with my thoughts.

Doesn't common sense point to the fact that no park bordering or within an urban area can be 'pristine'?

This is where I think certain authorities have got their strategy very wrong. IMHO they should let a lot more users into urban parks, giving just a taste of what a real wilderness could be like. Some will like it, some will not. Those that do though will surely then make the effort to visit a real wilderness area, knowing well what further restrictions will be placed on their activities there, but also what the rewards of such a visit will be. Otherwise it's very hard for parks to remain relevant to the vast majority of the population. If authorities have to allow various activities as a carrot to get users in to parks to begin with though, then surely that is a 'necessary evil' worth accepting?

Well - it's just a theory is all.