Interesting Discussion!

I went riding this weekend and passed a couple Mountain Bike riders on the trail.

I stop at my destination(sand hills) and was taking off my parka and mittens before riding hard. Well the Mountain Bikers caught up to me a started in about our sport.
He asked if I have ever thought of a less destructive sport? I replied yes, but haven't found one as fun.
He went into how "we" are destroying a great natural area and it is causing erosion and bla, bla, bla. The last thing he said was how I was trespassing on private property and the Railroad property and If I had gotten permission?

I asked him If he lived on the property above us, he replied "no", I then asked if he worked for the railroad, he said "no", I then stated well your trespassing aswell right! Yes but I'm not being destructive, but your trespassing correct?.
He said I was twisting his words. I simply replied I was riding on the same trails as he, and that I have been riding on for the past 15 years and have never been asked to stop or crossed a fence or went passed any signs.
I told him I try to stay on the trials, and really only tear up the railroad rightaway, not the private property.
I then asked him where he would ride without the motorcycle trials?

I also told him that no matter how long I rode I could never do as much damage as the power company did when they logged the first part of the trial(they did a horrible job and used the Cat and skidded the logs acrossed the hills and up the hills, creating a bigger erosion problem then I could) He agreed about the logging, and added how many weeds are now growing on the trials in that area.

At the end of our conversation I think I steered him more to the middle ground, once he heard my points, and I listened to his points. At the end I simply told him if he pushes to ban us from these types of areas the land owners will lock him out aswell. I said their are bad seeds in all sports and to look past them to get the big picture. We need to work together to keep areas open for all sports, and If he sees somebody abusing the area then confront them, if not be polite and realize that they are just having fun.

Can't we all just get along!
All in all it was a good discussion, I appreciated his points and he appreciated mine!

I had to bite my tongue a couple times, yet if I'm the only person he confronts I wanted it to be a good impression. Age does bring wisdom(what little I have), if it was ten years ago I would have made him suffer.:p
But to me it's important how other people view our sport, especially those that don't understand it.

The problem in the area are the few folks that don't stick to the trials, they want to make new ones, but the property is very long and skinny and the top of the valley is now lined with homes, we upset them and they will start putting up fences, for now they build for the view, not what is below them.
I think so far we have been lucky because there is about 3 mayor railroad tracks below them aswell, so the noise of the bikes is pretty minimal compared to the train.
I'm afraid that will soon change:ugg: