Portland Mountain Bikers Fight Back on Trail Ban

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Joanna Evoniuk, GoLocalPDX Contributor

Hundreds of cyclists are planning a protest ride in the River View Natural Area on March 16, the day the City of Portland is officially banning bikes from the trails.

The organizer is Charlie Sponsel, a life-long rider on the trails and a member of Portland's Parks Deparment's committee for creating a bike trail plan in River View before the city'sban was announced this month.

Outcry from the mountain biking community for the loss of the only legal trails in city limits promoted Sponsel to organize the ride. However, he said the message is more about highlighting the process of the city’s decision.

“It’s a political statement, motivated by a great swell of upset, jaded people who want the parks department to get back on track,” Sponsel said. “It’s not just a bunch of 20-something dudes with no place to go.”

Over 275 people have signed up via the event’s Facebook page, with at least 89 more possibly showing up and hundreds more invited. Participants will show the diversity of the mountain biking community, Sponsel said, with many families and working professionals taking part.

Bike Ban in River View Natural Area
On March 2, Commissioners Amanda Fritz and Nick Fish announced bikes would be banned from the River View Natural Area, 146 acres in Southeast Portland.

A letter from Fritz and Fish said the ban was due to the environmental impact bikes have on the area. Fritz also encouraged support for a new budget for the Parks Department, which she hopes will help create trails in the future.

“We are not saying River View will never be used for mountain biking, rather just not now, before the citywide assessment of appropriate places for cycling is funded and completed,” Fritz said in a statement.

The Parks Department had been creating a management plan River View to stabilize the area and control invasive species over the last few years.

A member of the technical advisory committee, Sponsel said the deal was to keep the trails open and work on a way maintain the area. So, he was shocked when after two years of working on the project, it was annoucned the trails access would be closed completely to cyclists.

Mountain Biking in Portland
Portland is building a national reputation for its cyclist-friendly infrastructure and bike commuters. However, Brian Zeck, the bike manager at River City Bicycle, said the mountain biking world is often overlooked, even with a large community of riders.

“Portland is really known for riding in the legal limits, but it’s quite a drive to get to a trail. That’s often seen as a stain on the city’s cycling reputation,” Zeck said.“People travel around the world to go mountain biking so it almost seems like Portland is missing out and not capitalizing on that. They are leaving a lot of money on the table.”

Zeck said business is good for mountain bike sales, and the the industry is taking off.

Freedom Ride
The protest ride will take place on Monday, March 16. Riders will gather at the at the corner of SW Palatine Hill and Brugger Rd at 4 p.m.

On the event’s Facebook page, Sponsel says the ride will be a well-organized, well-mannered one. If police do show up to enforce the ban, Sponsel said the group will carry their bikes along the trails.
Sponsel hopes the ride will start a conversation about city’s view of mountain biking, and provide a positive outlet to frustrated bikers.

“I’m obviously ecstatic about how many people are showing up,” Sponsel said “There’s a huge pent-up demand for trails, and a very low tolerance for the political process used.”

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