Not so much a thread this as a sort of ‘call to arms’.

I’ve been noticing a lot of ‘trail vigilante’ action near me of late – you know the stuff, logs laying across tracks where they cannot have fallen themselves – often hidden over the crests of dips and just after a blind bend.

I’m hoping everyone already does this, but if not, can we all agree to stop (or go back once you’ve ridden the trail) and remove the offending article?

Preferably you should put it somewhere that’s difficult to retrieve it from (a ditch maybe), but failing that, just wang it as far as you can into the undergrowth. Anywhere it cannot just be dragged back out again.

If people want to stop us using trails, they should either man-up and tell us to our faces, or if they’re the landowner, make access too difficult.

I’ll take my chances, but there are lots of kids who ride bikes in the woods for fun (and get exercise as a happy by-product). They wear T-shirts and jeans, not kneepads and helmets.

Fight this cowardly activity – hopefully they’ll give up and go away if they actually have to cut down their own logs and sticks. Selfish idiots!

Guilty of winging a lump of wood at someone I caught doing it. Mind you, I imagine the pain they felt would have been less than what I felt had I hit it at speed. Cowards, the lot of them.

If people want to stop us using trails, they should either man-up and tell us to our faces, or if they’re the landowner, make access too difficult.

Or perhaps riders should stop being trespassers and check out the law rather than assuming they can use someone else’s land for their own devices!

I imagine some people would be mighty pissed off if they had a golf bunker dug into their front lawn etc.

Do you put car traps on your drive to stop people parking on it? Same principle!

Trail Vigilante’s = People who ride on land illegally.

Do you know what the word vigilante means Conan257?

Conan, you may have noticed (had you bothered to read it properly), that I didn’t specifically mention ‘illegal’ trails, although admittedly I do ride them.

Listen carefully, and you’ll hear the sound of someone being ‘holier than thou’ and making themselves look daft.

It’s about cowardly people who have an agenda, whatever the strict legal status of the trail – I’ve seen this done on plenty of bridleways as well – I’m not advocating trying to catch people in the act and ‘duff them up’ or anything like that (that’s up to the individuals concerned). All I’m saying is, let’s club together and clear the dangers so that hopefully these morons will give up and go away.

But you’re contradicting yourself!

You’re saying that if a landlord doesn’t want you riding on his land, he should make it more difficult for you to do so. So why is he not allowed to put things in the way of the illegal trails???

Can’t have your cake and eat it.

But surely, if I’ve bought a mountain bike I should be able to ride anywhere I see fit? No one, and certainly not the land owners, or the law of the land should stand in my way!

I have a sense of entitlement, and I’m not wasting it.

Is this a Southern thing? I’ve never heard of it in the North except at Hamsterly.

Maybe someone’s objecting to all the 29ers you ride down there…

I know someone who once found piano wire tied between two trees at neck height at a trail centre…..

Poor trolling conan, some got sucked in tho I suppose.

I’ve seen this in the Pentlands.

You hum it and I’ll play it. 😉

Seen this at Woburn which are not only “official” trails but I have a permit to ride there. Very shoddy show…

if the log is small enough to throw – presumably any competent rider travelling at speed will be able to clear it? sticking logs in ditches (which are generally there to aid drainage) is neither going to be good for the trail or make landowners happy. Whilst I sit in Scotland slightly smug at our access rights – I’d suggest you consider the following:

(1) Take some action to get similar access rights south of the border; write to your MP, write to CTC, write to the ramblers association, write to the landowner, write to the local council etc.

(2) Consider why someone put the obstruction there. Clearly for someone to go to that effort something is upsetting them. Is it irresponsible trail use? is it high speed bikers on popular walking, dog-walking, horse-riding paths? Is it trail erosion? Is it bikers building jumps/berms etc.

Alternatively you could always move to a country which (generally) welcomes mountain bikers, and anyone using the countryside responsibly.

Loads of nails thrown on bridalway at irwell vale this morning 🙁

You English you just love having it your own way.

Ride at dedicated trail centres and you wont get bothered, ride where other people/horses etc use then be prepared to share. A lot of mountain bikers bring this on themselves with the attitued of riding anywhere and **** to anyone who doesnt agree.

I must admit I have never come across this but if I caught someone putting piano wire across a trail it would be a body getting flung in a ditch!

Realistically though I believe that the land should be open for responsible use to all. Ramblers object because of various reasons, either true or imaginary but we should all have equality, provided we act reasonably.

WIth better access a better understanding could develope, trails that are suffering could be closed to recover, mtbers would appreciate this I am sure in the majority. However its usually the minority that makes it difficult. In this case the minority of people actually trying to kill a cyclist.