Ban Trail Runners!

“First of all, I'm a wilderness advocate, but this group has gone too far.

Excerp from an editorial in the Missoulian (Montana Newspaper)

In wilderness, there's room to run - May 13

SUMMARY: Public use of wilderness needs to be managed, but it shouldn't be discouraged.

Pioneering conservationist Bob Marshall claimed to have hiked 30 and 40 miles a day in the Northern Rockies,
including the wild country later named for him. The days when we logged little more than half that mileage in the same terrain have been memorable as death marches, inspiring in us much awe and maybe just a little doubt about Marshall's mileage. We're not sure how he did it. Maybe he ran.

Three-quarters of a century later, the idea of racing through wilderness has riled a Missoula-based wildland
advocacy group, Wilderness Watch. It's protesting to the government plans by a summer camp for runners to lead youths on runs through portions of southeastern Oregon's Steens Mountain Wilderness.

Organized training runs and endurance races are just incompatible with wilderness, all the more so when
conducted as a commercial enterprise, the director of Wilderness Watch tells us. His group is asking the
Bureau of Land Management, which manages Steens Mountain, to deny the special-use permits sought by
the running camp, which has conducted runs in the area for more than 20 years, long before Steens Mountain was designated a wilderness area.

In the scheme of things, this is a trivial matter, but it is a good opportunity to consider what constitutes
acceptable use of America's wildest lands. Wilderness Watch is a fine organization with only the best of
intentions, but on this point, it's simply too closed-minded.

(hee hee, i wonder what'll happen when wind of Montanapalooza gets out.)”

“Is Montanapoolooza a run?

I thought it was a party Ü”

“party? where? when????? what kind of booze?”

“Ü biz takes on another new handle? Ü”

“biz, I think it's 20 guys chasing newgirl across the Beartooths!”

“For me, it would boil down to numbers. A group of 5-10 running by: no problem! Rerouting the Boston Marathon onto the AT: BIG problem, <G>.

I wonder what the result would be if trail-running became The Next Big Fad.”

“I think that if they were doing it befor it was designated wilderness that they should be able to continue their running so long as the number of runners doesnt get overwhelming for the trails.”

“I think it's picking up popularity. Aging Baby Boomer marathoners are getting off the pavement and onto the trails. Trail running shoe and apparel sales are booming. I do find it humerous that trail running gear is usually brown, green or gray and road running gear is still usually day-glo! It's still basically the same gear.”

“It's just an incremental part of the master plan. The lunatic fringe group 'The Wildlands Project' wants to ban backpacking, hiking, kayaking, or any human use of public lands whatsoever.”

“How can people appreciate wilderness and its importance if the public cant expirience it? It is with knowing that love for the wilderness can grow. Without that love then no one would want to protect and honer the wilderness. We need these epiriences, to remember our ancient ties to nature.”

“They'll get my trail runners when they pry them off my cold, dead feet!”

“he he he

I thought you wore regular running shoes?”

“What if you’re just a really fast day hiker? Gonna be hard to attach a definition to a trail runner. Hey wait a minute, trail runners have just as much right to trails as any other foot traffic. I've often heard people say that backpackers were overwhelming the trails in several National Parks.”

“How much impact do trail runners have on the trail any way? They're not there very long. Aside from blowing snot on hikers they pass, what's the harm?”

“Well, where I live anyway, most of the trail runners are young ladies in skimpy running outfits. So I don't care too much. Except when they mace me when I say hello to them.”

“Thank god for mace. :)”

“Keep the trail runners and lose the planes flying over!”

“spirit wolf = Ice Tea???”

“What is that, a pair of prunes?

quit flashing us and we'll quit macing you!!!”

“lol...well unless I take up nude backpacking, they would be long gone before I got the chance to flash them anything but a smile.

Believe it or not, I have seen women actually turn around and run the other way when they see me coming, even though I have a full backpack on. I guess I'm just scary-looking or something.”

“This thread has certainly taken a sudden turn for the worse. "Cold dead feet", eh, Aero? LOL


Lunatic fridge
I know you're out there”

“Hmmmmm, nude trail running....might be invigorating!”

“I thought I'd degenerate my own thread!”

“I'm trying not to imagine what a nude runners sunburn might look like. GAHHH!”

“How can you tell the nude trail runners from everyone else in the shower?


Easy, their balls are at the same level as their knees.”

“Ranger to a pair of TTers:

"Sir, ma'am! Slow down, NOW!

"No, I don't care if there is a violent electrical storm about to sweep across this ridge, there will be no running on this trail.

"What? No, being chased by a mama grizzly is no excuse either. The rules say walk, don't run, and you will be banned from the park if you don't adhere fully to the mandated SYP -- Slow Your Pace -- policy now in effect.

"And you can both take off your 'Free Walkindude' T-shirts. He is a criminal trail hurrier of the worst kind and deserved the 10 years the judge gave him. Wearing anti-SYP messages violates the Official Federal Wilderness Ethic and is therefore also banned from this area."”

“LMAO pekka!
Bear protection: Being able to outrun your partner!”

“New trail head sign for Wilderness Areas:

Speed enforcement zone. Your hiking speed is being monitored by radar and aerial patrol. Please help us maintain the natural qualities of this area. Fines double in trail maintenance areas.”

“Next: COPS - Speed Enforcement on the Appalachian Trail!”

“Well if they're gonna have speed limits, the next logical step would be to install weigh scales and pull over fat people. (All Tubbies must exit when scales are open)”

“Oh man, Geobeet, now you're going to get the ultra-lighters all jazzed up, lol. The thought of actually being able to impose weight limits on their heavy-packing bretheren!

Another new sign: 'Spring load limits now in force. Gross weight on this trail restricted to 200 lbs., pack included.'

Of course the ultra-lighters won't be able to use their weight advantage by speeding up.”

“And of course the mandatory fuel efficiency standards:

Trail users must get at least 27.5 miles per pound of trail mix. Sport Utility Hikers (SUH) are not allowed.”

“What's to stop trailrunner from carrying radar detectors and CBs?
"Ya got a Smoky hiding behind the white sandstone boulder at milemarker 6.25 Big Rig, come-on back to me now!"”

“Trail running is good...but I could only do a hundred steps before passing out.”

“hey if everyone ran nued there would be very little impact. runners will want to stay on the trail because its easier on thier feet”

“Heya Tilt, how'sit goin? Aero, I love a challenge.”

“Then there's the Graham Parker version...


Second cousin to the poor relation,
holding last week's ticket in this week's train station
Relegated to the third division on the lunatic fridge...”

“We can play tag!!!!

.....Or tag with NewGirl!!!!

Just Kidding.

8)”

“The idea of banning runners is phucking ridiculous. Sounds like a bunch of self-righteous, arrogant elitist sonsofb!tches with too much cursed free time.”

“Hey birch -- don't hold back. Tell us how you really feel.”

“Go, birch, go! (But not to fast, now, son, or you'll get your knuckles rapped -- or with those Trail Nazis, you'd probably get knee-capped.)”

“Birch you have style. I think Bigfoot should make a poem about you :)”

“Aaaakkk! Don't let my students find out I typed 'to' instead of 'too'!!!!

On the thread topic, I can still conjure up the image of that band of 'adventure racer' types that passed the Michigan Mountaineer TTers on the Waterloo-Pinckney Trail...better speed hiking through Lycra.”

“They already have an annual run on the Steens Mountains. It is a 5 and 10 K ran at nearly 10,000'. The wilderness watch is about twelve years to late.”

“This summer when I am working up at a summer camp I will be doing trail running, to train for the upcoming X C season. I will be doing this running on a part of the AT, and if you think you are going to tell me not to, well I say, fine I won't, but you can't breath eather!

The trail running camp I disagree with dipending on what the area is like. If they are running on trails that are very remote then HELL NO! because when I am hiking, and observing nature, birds and animals I don't want 20 people running, huffing and puffing buy me when I when way out of my way to be in the middle of no where. BUT if it is a very commenly used trail that isn't a quite trail to beginwith like my XC coarses are, then why not. Against that same not you can say that running picks up more dirt on your boots thus trail deteriation will have a greater effect.”

“Ice Tea - I know people sometimes poke fun at your spelling ability, but I would like to take a moment to praise you for your word creation ability. I'm pretty sure 'persiring' is not in my dictionary, but it really sounds like it should be. I think the definition should be something like 'desiring something so much that it makes you sweat'. Which is like 'aspiring' only more physical.”

“How long until a trail runner peaks the interst of a hungry Cougar....they love a good chase!”

“Aspiring would fit that word, I was aiming for.....what the hell was I thinking? Hummm, atleast my contact clues are good, not like ETS.

---

E.ducational
T.est
S.ervis

(They writte the SAT)”