Why is biking popular? Why are the major environmental impacts of biking?
Is biking truly more harmful than other outdoor activities?
What does the International Mountain Biking Association say about this accusation?
What is the International Mountain Biking Association doing to prevent trail destruction?

Biking can be a very enjoyable recreational activity that allows people to travel through a natural landscape at an exciting speed. Biking is welcome at most multiple-use trails, and a number of mountain biking trails have been established. Of course, with a sudden influx of tourists visiting these courses, a risk of trail damage and destruction is created. Mountain biking, more so than other forms of biking, is often looked down upon as an activity deleterious to the integrity of multiple-use, public trails. People wanting to engage in other activities are concerned with cyclists' possible overuse and misuse of these trails.

Biking can, like other trail activities, lead to damage on steep trail slopes, as well as disturb fragile areas and sensitive ecosystems. However, the International Mountain Biking Association recently reviewed a number of studies that concluded that mountain biking was no more damaging than other forms of recreation, namely hiking. "Like all other forms of recreation, bicycling does affect natural resources," said Gary Sprung, IMBA's senior national policy advisor and author of the document. "The more challenging issue for trail users is not their differing environmental impacts, but rather their social conflicts, which are quite real, thoroughly studied, and manageable."

Just the same, the International Mountain Biking Association encourages mountain bikers to adopt a few simple rules. For one, they are encouraged to control bicycles in a way that maximizes control while minimizing impact on the trail. Minimum-impact cycling is commonly called "soft cycling." With this, good balance and proper braking are considered be essential, and skidding is heavily discouraged.

The IMBA also encourages bikers to be sensitive to the trails by adopting a "leave no trace" policy. By this, the association discourages using very wet trails because bicycling on damp soil can create wheel ruts, which can channel water and cause erosion. Bikers are also encouraged to stay on established trails, as tempting as it may be to explore elsewhere, and cyclists are urged to walk their bikes when leaving a designated trail.

To read more about trail desctruction, please visit the following sites: http://www.imba.com/resources/science/impact_summary.html
http://www.btceb.org/
http://www.wildwilderness.org/wi/destruct.htm