Letters

IMBA Trail News
Volume 13, Number 4
Fall 2000

Grading IMBA's Report Card

Thanks for selecting Idaho as the top mountain biking trail access state in the U.S. As far as I'm concerned, you're right on the mark. I have written three mountain bike guides on Idaho, including a new statewide book called "Mountain Biking Idaho" for Falcon Publishing, so I feel I've got an excellent perspective on the riding situation here. Plus, our IMBA affiliated mountain bike group in Boise (SWIMBA) has managed to keep every trail open in the area, and we've built a new trail each year for the last five years.

Steve Steubner - SW Idaho Mtn Bike Assoc.
Boise, ID

The IMBA Report Card is suspect. Has anyone on your staff ever been to Florida? I haven't, but I know there aren't any crocodiles there. There are alligators, for which the state university mascot is named. And for your summary of Arkansas, the only negative item you could come up with was "spider webs?" Come on. I question the validity of a report that reads like it was written in a couple of days and offers only six words to sum up the entire mountain biking spectrum in each state.

Brandon Nadrash
Via e-mail

Yep, Brandon, Florida is Gator territory. But otherwise, you're off the mark. Many members of our staff and board have ridden in Florida, and we recently conducted a highly successful IMBA Epic in Arkansas (where spider webs are in fact a real barrier to great riding). What you read in IMBA Trail News was a snapshot summary of our research. The actual Report Card is the product of months of work by our staff, board, state reps and key contacts. Got a specific gripe about a grade? Let us know.

Big News in the Poconos

Thanks to the hard work of IMBA and more than two dozen volunteers performing 200 hours of trailwork this year, Vista Trail at Big Pocono State Park (Pennsylvania) is a reality. IMBA's advocacy resources helped convince our gracious park manager to open South Trail to mountain bikes! Together we made it happen.

John Motz
Stroudsburg, PA

Kudos for Our Crews

Thanks so much for the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew visit this past National Trails Day. Many trail users don't appreciate the skill and hard work that is required to maintain trails. Joey and Kathy did a great job of emphasizing the importance of trail design and good drainage. As a land manager, I really appreciate this message coming from the user group rather than just the land agency.

Linda Merigliano
Bridger-Teton National Forest
Jackson, WY

What an awesome time we had today doing trailwork at the West Hartford Reservoir (Connecticut) with Jen and Rich Edwards from the Subaru/IMBA Trail Care Crew! I am so totally overwhelmed with the amount and quality of work we accomplished. I sincerely thought that our trail project would involve much more effort than it did. We have a lot of work ahead of us before the trail is complete, but Jen and Rich really got us rolling. It will be awhile before I come down off this high!

Brian Smith
President, CT - NEMBA
IMBA State Rep
Farmington, CT