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A mountain biker rides down a trail in Switzerland. Ryan Dunfee photo.
The International Mountain Bicycling Association will not seek to use its political clout to amend the Wilderness Act to allow mountain bikes in federally-designated wilderness areas, according to a press release issued following the organization's latest conference.
IMBA has been under heat since last August when mountain bikers lost the right to ride two pristine singletrack trails in Idaho's vast Boulder-White Clouds Wilderness. This change was the result of a bill sponsored by Idaho Republican Senator Mike Simpson and signed by President Obama.
The loss of the Boulder-White Clouds Wilderness trails brought criticism to the IMBA because many bikers believed it did not take an aggressive enough stance on wilderness land designations.
IMBA used their most recent press conference to clarify their stance on wilderness access, saying that although they will not try to amend the Wilderness Act of 1964, they instead will concentrate on pursuing legislation to redraw existing wilderness boundaries to establish trail connections and corridors.
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Looking out over the White Cloud Mountains, the area where mountain bikers lost the right to ride last August. Wikipedia photo.
Many people who have been active in trying to undo the blanket ban against bicycles in federal wilderness areas have joined another organization called the Sustainable Trails Coalition, or STC.
IMBA’s president and executive director, Mike Van Abel, commended the STC for its passion and dedication to fight for access but also called their aims a “risky and unnecessary endeavor” that could have negative downstream effects on trail access, a recent Bike Mag article stated.
The same article stated that Van Abel put greater pressure on local IMBA chapters to take matters into their own hands, saying that the IMBA will take a more assertive stance with regard to future wilderness proposals and recommendations, but only if there's an active local chapter working in that area.
