Comments on: MTB: La Honda OSP General Planning Meeting http://www.mxi2000.net/mudworm/2009/05/la-honda-osp Inch by inch, I will get there. Fri, 03 Feb 2012 18:37:22 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: mudworm http://www.mxi2000.net/mudworm/2009/05/la-honda-osp/comment-page-1#comment-15594 mudworm Thu, 21 May 2009 20:07:27 +0000 http://www.mxi2000.net/mudworm/?p=374#comment-15594 Hi Anneliese, Thanks for sharing your thoughts and comments. I completely understand your wish to keep a beautiful place like Vista Point or Ray's Peak a quiet spot where one can just relax, absorb the view, and exercise self-reflections, etc. I do that very often on my mountain biking rides. I dream of being able to get on my bike after getting home from work, ride up past the elementary school, enter the preserve, up to Ray's Peak, lay down my bike on the side, sit down comfortably and quietly, and watch the setting sun over the ocean to the west. There might even be some like-minded folks sharing the peak with me who have come by foot or by horses. It won't matter because we are all there to admire the beauty of the nature. I'll leave with refreshed mind and content in my heart. Also, since I have my bike, I can return home in time to feed my loving cats. However, this will remain a dream if the trail remains closed to bikers because I cannot leave my bike unattended where the multi-use trail ends (that would be a stupid idea). The current plan allows horses to those landmarks. I must point out that I can ride more quietly (up or down) than a horse. Actually, sometimes, I will call out before I go around a blind turn just so that I won't startle anyone who cannot hear me approaching. Most mountain bikers do not go anywhere near 30 mph (that is insane). And as I pointed out in my post, riders can be slowed down by properly designed trails. The district just needs to put in a little more thoughts to it. I personally would not mind if the preserve is closed down to human traffic temporarily during the season if that helps the wild animals migrate safely (one main concern of the environmentalists). And as one speaker pointed out in the meeting, we can certainly follow Henry Coe's good example of discouraging access 2 days (or even longer) after a rain. We are human beings and we are capable of being flexible and accommodating. That's my belief at least. Hi Anneliese, Thanks for sharing your thoughts and comments. I completely understand your wish to keep a beautiful place like Vista Point or Ray's Peak a quiet spot where one can just relax, absorb the view, and exercise self-reflections, etc. I do that very often on my mountain biking rides. I dream of being able to get on my bike after getting home from work, ride up past the elementary school, enter the preserve, up to Ray's Peak, lay down my bike on the side, sit down comfortably and quietly, and watch the setting sun over the ocean to the west. There might even be some like-minded folks sharing the peak with me who have come by foot or by horses. It won't matter because we are all there to admire the beauty of the nature. I'll leave with refreshed mind and content in my heart. Also, since I have my bike, I can return home in time to feed my loving cats. However, this will remain a dream if the trail remains closed to bikers because I cannot leave my bike unattended where the multi-use trail ends (that would be a stupid idea).

The current plan allows horses to those landmarks. I must point out that I can ride more quietly (up or down) than a horse. Actually, sometimes, I will call out before I go around a blind turn just so that I won't startle anyone who cannot hear me approaching. Most mountain bikers do not go anywhere near 30 mph (that is insane). And as I pointed out in my post, riders can be slowed down by properly designed trails. The district just needs to put in a little more thoughts to it.

I personally would not mind if the preserve is closed down to human traffic temporarily during the season if that helps the wild animals migrate safely (one main concern of the environmentalists). And as one speaker pointed out in the meeting, we can certainly follow Henry Coe's good example of discouraging access 2 days (or even longer) after a rain.

We are human beings and we are capable of being flexible and accommodating. That's my belief at least.

]]> By: Anneliese http://www.mxi2000.net/mudworm/2009/05/la-honda-osp/comment-page-1#comment-15587 Anneliese Thu, 21 May 2009 18:59:47 +0000 http://www.mxi2000.net/mudworm/?p=374#comment-15587 Thanks for this post. I was also in attendance at Tuesday night's meeting. I'm still feeling this out, being an ex-IMBA member and an ex-avid mountain biker, but I'd like to discuss the possibility that there be only hike access to both Vista Point and Ray's Peak. Bike all one wants on Proposal 2, but leave a few of these "landmarks" as quiet spots (not that a mountain bike is noisy) but I must say that walking lends one a completely different experience in the landscape than one finds atop a bike going at speeds of 10 to 30 mph. Separately, the enviros don't necessarily want to keep LHOSP closed to the public, they were attempting to convey that the proposals both cater to human use, whether that be equestrian, biking, or hiking, and take very little consideration for the species that already inhabit the currently publicly-closed landscape. The idea is to minimize the park-like atmosphere and to keep the landscape as the name suggests, a "preserve." When visiting Purisima during wet weather, for example, when the newts are out and about, I find squished dead newts from the mountain bike tires. Hikers are much less likely to step on a newt as they can see where they are walking, whereas once atop a bike, speed and distance to the ground makes it impossible for a mountain biker to see these creatures who blend so easily into the trail. Your thoughts? Thanks for this post. I was also in attendance at Tuesday night's meeting.

I'm still feeling this out, being an ex-IMBA member and an ex-avid mountain biker, but I'd like to discuss the possibility that there be only hike access to both Vista Point and Ray's Peak. Bike all one wants on Proposal 2, but leave a few of these "landmarks" as quiet spots (not that a mountain bike is noisy) but I must say that walking lends one a completely different experience in the landscape than one finds atop a bike going at speeds of 10 to 30 mph.

Separately, the enviros don't necessarily want to keep LHOSP closed to the public, they were attempting to convey that the proposals both cater to human use, whether that be equestrian, biking, or hiking, and take very little consideration for the species that already inhabit the currently publicly-closed landscape. The idea is to minimize the park-like atmosphere and to keep the landscape as the name suggests, a "preserve."

When visiting Purisima during wet weather, for example, when the newts are out and about, I find squished dead newts from the mountain bike tires. Hikers are much less likely to step on a newt as they can see where they are walking, whereas once atop a bike, speed and distance to the ground makes it impossible for a mountain biker to see these creatures who blend so easily into the trail.

Your thoughts?

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