Sovereign Singletrack ~ Share it!

Although mountain biking helped put Moab on the map most of the trails we ride were not originally designed or built with mountain bikers in mind.  A lot of the traditional Moab trails are old Uranium mining roads, ranching roads, or otherwise.  It hasn't been until the last few years that there has been a concerted effort to build trails with mountain bikes in mind. 

Many of the trails in Moab are shared with Jeeps, OHVs, hikers, and occasionaly equestrians.  Wondering what the etitquette is for shared trail use?  You can check out the sign on the right used for non-motorized trails.   It could be added that motorized traffic yields to all other trail users. 

For example, on the Sovereign Trail today we encountered several dirt bike riders.  They yielded to us and as a result it made sense for us to let the dirt bikes pass because they were traveling faster than us.  The riders were polite and allowed us plenty of time and space to clear a path and it made the experience easy for all.  The Sovereign Trail is one of the awesome trails in Moab that we have dirt bikes to thank for creating.  Clif Koontz, Director of Ride with Respect was integral in the development and maintenace of this fun trail.  Clif provides really great advice for dirt bikers on the trail tips page of his website - http://www.ridewithrespect.org/

Moab's most famous trail, the Slickrock Trail, was originally a dirt bike trail.  The technology of the suspension we enjoy on mountain bikes was driven by dirt bikes - check out the history of Fox Racing Shox - http://www.foxracingshox.com/company/.  I'm not saying you have to love dirt bikes or want to ride them I just needed a reminder on the trail today (more from my dog walk with the jeeps than my mountain bike ride with the dirt bikes) and I felt compelled to share.

I've found it helpful to remember that we are all out on the trail to play ~ to enjoy ~ to have fun. The only difference is we're using different tools to do so. Usually, a "hi" or "hello" will relax me even if I'm not having warm thoughts towards the other trail user.


IMBA, the International Mountain Biking Association, shares the following advice on multi-use trails:  http://www.imba.com/resources/risk-management/shared-trails

All users can benefit from remembering Leave No Trace principles:
http://www.lnt.org/programs/principles.php