Bill Would Clarify Role of Mountain Biking at Ski Resorts

For Immediate Release
04-20-09
Contact: Drew Vankat, Policy Analyst
drew@imba.com
303-545-9011

A new bill (S. 607) sponsored by U.S. Senator Mark Udall (D-CO) seeks to clarify the appropriate role of mountain biking and other forms of summer recreation at ski resorts operating on Forest Service lands. This bill, which IMBA supports, would eliminate confusion over whether mountain biking should be promoted at these mountain resorts.

Some environmental groups have challenged the existence of mountain biking at ski resorts, claiming the activity does not fit with the intent of the law that allows ski areas to operate on federal land.

IMBA has worked with numerous ski resorts on Forest Service land to expand and improve their singletrack amenities. This assistance is governed at a national level by IMBA’s memorandum of understanding with the Forest Service, which states “When operators of ski areas on [Forest Service] lands allow summer mountain bicycling on their trails, work with those ski areas to implement IMBA's Rules of the Trail, trailbuilding and signage guidelines, and management principles.”

IMBA’s partnership has improved natural-resource conditions and summer visitor experiences at many ski areas. “IMBA has led the charge in retrofitting ski area singletrack to reduce sedimentation, protect watersheds and vegetation, and encourage positive user interactions,” explains IMBA Government Affairs Director Jenn Dice.

Mountain biking has flourished at many ski areas, which offer an ideal way to introduce new cyclists to the sport and start to instill a lifelong appreciation for nature and the outdoors. Ski areas’ controlled and mitigated settings are also ideal for freeriding, downhill and other extreme mountain biking niches.

According to the National Ski Areas Association, 162 ski resorts offer trails open to mountain biking in the summer, including 84 with gravity-fed, lift-operated trail systems. Whistler, BC, and the surrounding corridor generate $18.8 million per summer from cycling (Western Canada Mountain Bike Tourism Association, 2007) and more U.S. resorts are looking to expand their summer mountain biking.