Vassar Ecological Preserve Biking Policy Meeting

[robdamanii]

[oh_blinding_light]

My sources tell me that Vassar has a history of pretty much not caring what the local community thinks. That seems rude for a 501C3 corporation, that pays no income or property taxes. They get to use local resources: water, sewer, police, fire, emergency services, etc. and not pay for them. Some colleges make payments to local communities, even though not required. I don't know if Vassar does.

But doze dat haz da money makes da rules! Vassar's net worth, according to a quick web search I did, is over 1 billion dollars. They can easily ignore my 2 cents worth of opinion.

Hey, I'll write letters. It probably won't matter. I thought the meeting already happened. There's a new map out already. But if there's another meeting, I'll try to attend. That probably won't matter either.

The bottom line is if they want to shut us out, fine. The property belongs to them. They can do what they want with it. I probably won't bother riding there again. The new map makes it look like it will be hard to do a nice long ride without doubling back or riding the Farm road (sort of boring in comparison). I suspect it will be very difficult to tell what trails are now legal. I'll advocate for taking Vassar off our web page if that remains the case. No point in making the situation worse by advertising it as a place to ride.

It was fun the one time I got to ride it (thanks to RangerDanger, and the Rain Gods for that one dry day in June).

OBL
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Nimium est melior!

[tac2379]

I received this information from Keri VanCamp, the final map is the same as the one posted earlier in the thread:

Vassar Ecological Preserve Bike Policy

Purpose: The purpose of this policy is to minimize environmental damage to the ecological preserve, protect the space as an educational resource, and enhance the safety of all people utilizing the ecological preserve.

Policy defined: Bicycles are permitted in the following portions of Vassar Ecological Preserve- North Trail, Swain Trail, Drumlin Trail, Helen Johnson Woodworth Memorial Trail, and on the Farm Road. Bikes are permitted to use the Wright trail between Davies Trail and the Helen Johnson Woodworth Memorial Trail. Bikes are prohibited on the Wright Trail east of the bridge. No bicycle traffic of any kind is permitted elsewhere in the preserve. Any use of the preserve is done at the user’s own risk. Signs with the following symbol mark the entry points to all trails where biking is not permitted: . Biking in prohibited areas will result in penalties. All trails have a difficulty rating. Trail difficulty should always be considered when planning your route.

All cyclists must observe the rules of the road. Cyclists on the preserve must always wear helmets. Bikers must provide adequate warning when approaching a pedestrian and yield the right of way. The formal speed limit for bicycles is 10 mph. Stunt biking is prohibited on Vassar College property.


Rules for Use

• Visitors are welcome to use the property at their own risk. Visitors should always be alert and cautious.
• The preserve is open to the public between sunrise and sunset. Trails that are marked with trail markers are open for walking, jogging, bird watching, and hiking; please stay on roads or marked trails. All trails have a rating of easy, moderate, or difficult. Please consider the difficulty rating before entering any of the trails.
• Mountain biking is only allowed on trails designated for that use. Do not bike on trails with the following symbol . Stunt biking is prohibited on Vassar College property. A full map of trails is located at the information kiosk, near the primary parking lot, 1,400 feet from the driveway entrance from Route 376
• An adult (over the age of 21) must supervise children under the age of 18 at all times.
• Take nothing but pictures. Leave nothing but footprints.
• Pets must be leashed at all times; please clean up after your dog.
• Fires are NOT permitted at anytime.
• No camping.
• All motorized vehicles are prohibited except for authorized vehicles on the farm road.
• Adding or removing plants, animals, or artifacts is prohibited.
• Altering the landscape or aesthetics of the preserve is prohibited.


Individuals using this preserve in ways that are inconsistent with these rules may be charged with trespassing or other charges. In the event of an emergency, dial Vassar Security at (845) 437-7333 or Town of Poughkeepsie Police (845) 485-3666.

Questions or comments may be directed to:
Keri VanCamp- 845-437-7414 [email protected],
Jeff Horst- 845-437-5686 [email protected]

[edgeworker]

ouch

[robdamanii]

[oh_blinding_light]

Making noise is fine. We should. I feel like we were treated like ****, well let's use a less obnoxious word, like say dirt. What else should I feel like when invited to a meeting to determine the future of one of the few decent beginner trail systems in the area, and then told it's all been decided? They posted new trail maps before we got a chance to talk to anyone about it.

I'd argue for pulling Vassar off the FITC trails page. Or if we keep a listing, we should mention that Vassar changes their policy towards mountain biking frequently, and anybody choosing to ride there should check the map kiosk near the parking area to find out what is legal to ride this <unit_of_time> (pick one: year, month, week, day, hour).

I don't think it does us much good as a club to advertise this as a place to ride, especially if it's going to aggravate the situation. We risk getting blamed for pointing miscreants to Vassar as a place to ride.

Given the way I feel like we were treated (and an apology, or a really good excuse about email systems being messed up, might change this perception), I wouldn't offer the club's help in educating non-club riders as to what is or is not legal to ride.

OBL
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Nimium est melior!

[Ranger Danger]

Hey All - I finally got my game together and am sending letters to a bunch of people at Vassar about the Farm trails.

Here's who to send letters/emails to:

-Marianne Begemann, (Associate Dean of the Faculty, co-chair of Vassar Farm Committee) Box 338

-Lucy Johnson (anthropology professor, co-chair of Vassar Farm Committee) Box 375

- Jeff Kosmacher (Director of Media Relations) Box 009

- David English (Asst. VP for Budget & Planning, athlete, didn’t mind bikes on trails) Box 002

- Bob Fritz (cycling club advisor & biology professor) Box 133

- Caitlin Ly (Vassar Student Association president & athlete) Box 1566

- Kerri Van Kamp – I can’t tell if she still works there, her info doesn’t show up on the site

Snail mail ------ Name
Box #
Vassar College
124 Raymond Ave
Poughkeepsie, NY 12604

Email ------------- The emails aren’t posted online but you can send messages through the website.
Here’s the Pathway – from the www.vassar.edu homepage go to AskBanner -> general information -> employee directory -> type in a name to search -> click the blue “contact” link and then paste your letter in there & send it. It’s just that easy!

I'm sending letters via snail mail so they don't get lost in spam filters or ignored as easily.
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Chicks dig guys who do authorized trail work.

[Ranger Danger]

Here are some points you can mention in your letter to express your opinion on the Farm's new bike policy...

Trail Impact:- Scientific studies have shown that mountain bikes have about the same impact on trails as hikers. Considering this, prohibiting bikes from the blue, green and black trails while still allowing foot traffic doesn’t make much sense.

Some examples taken from www.imba.com (go to the site for plenty more…)
o Vegetation: Thurston and Reader (2001): Data analysis and statistical testing revealed that the impacts of hiking and biking were not significantly different for the three indicators (plant density, diversity, and soil exposure ) measured. They also concluded that impacts from both hikers and bikers were spatially confined to the centerline of the lane (trail).


o Erosion: Wilson and Seney (1994) evaluated tread erosion from horses, hikers, mountain bikes, and motorcycles on two trails in the Gallatin National Forest, Montana. They applied one hundred passes of each use-type on four sets of 12 trail segments, followed by simulated rainfalls and collection of water runoff to assess sediment yield at the base of each segment. Control sites that received no passes were also assessed for comparison. Results indicated that horses made significantly more sediment available for erosion than the other uses, which did not significantly vary from the control sites. Traffic on pre-wetted soils generated significantly greater amounts of soil runoff than on dry soils for all uses.

o Erosion: Marion (2006) - This study also provided an opportunity to examine the relative contribution of different use types, including horse, hiking, mountain biking, and ATV. Trails predominantly used for mountain biking had the least erosion of the use types investigated. Computed estimates of soil loss per mile of trail also revealed the mountain biking trails to have the lowest soil loss.

o Wildlife: Two wildlife studies reported no difference in wildlife disturbance between hikers and mountain bikers (Taylor & Knight 2003, Gander & Ingold 1997), while two other studies found that mountain bikers caused less disturbance (Papouchis and others. 2001, Spahr 1990). Wilson and Seney (1994) found that horses made significantly more sediment available for erosion than hikers or mountain bikers, which were statistically similar to the undisturbed control. One final point to consider, however, is that mountain bikers, like horse and vehicle users, travel further than hikers due to their higher speed of travel. This means that their use on a per-unit time basis can affect more miles of trail or wildlife than hikers. However, an evaluation of aggregate impact would need to consider the total number of trail users, and hikers are far more numerous than mountain bikers. http://www.imba.com/resources/science/marion_wimpey_2007.html

o A study published in the summer 2006 Journal of Park and Recreation Administration (Volume 24, Number 12) takes a close look at the environmental impacts of mountain biking. Researchers measured trail erosion and other impacts on 31 trails used for mountain biking in the southwestern U.S. http://www.imba.com/resources/science/white_et_al_study.pdf

Bikers as Trail Maintainers:- Mountain bikers contribute to trail maintenance because preserving access is very important to them. The cycling community can be a valuable source of volunteers for land managers.
o FITC members have done 347 hours of trail work this year to date
o FITC has 159 official members
o 30 members were trained in sustainable trail building and maintenance by IMBA’s Trail Care Crew
o FITC has partnered with the DEC’s Adopt-A-Natural Resource Stewardship program in 3 land management areas in the region

Why Vassar Farm is important - Vassar Farm is the only open space in Poughkeepsie where locals (kids to adults) can ride bikes on trails. It is one of only two places in the Hudson Valley for beginner mountain bikers to safely learn. Fats members have lead beginner rides at the Farm for years which has expanded the number of responsible trail stewards in the area.

Public Relations - Keeping the Farm open to cyclists is a unique opportunity for Vassar to increase positive relations with the community. The trails offer one of a kind venue for local citizens to develop fitness and maintain good physical and mental health. Trail closures separate the local community and some user groups from the college community.

Science & Bikes can Coexist Trails are not necessarily incompatible with scientific research. Perhaps trails can be rerouted so that both trail mileage and research space can be maintained.

The activity on this thread shows that people visiting this site are interested in access at the Farm. Don't be a slacker - show you're actually serious by sending in an email or letter.
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Chicks dig guys who do authorized trail work.

[Ranger Danger]

Ahem, I can't help but notice a conspicuous lack of enthusiasm on this.


There were plenty of expressions of dissatisfaction posted on this forum, is anyone following through with some actual action
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Chicks dig guys who do authorized trail work.

[jamesframes]

Thanks for the work in putting this together Danger-I am electing for emails-in the mail tomorrow.

ps-looks like their emails are first two letters of first name then last name.
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If I can bicycle, I bicycle.
David Attenborough




Support your LBS-Bicycle Depot New Paltz NY

[oh_blinding_light]

OK, OK, I've been kind of negative about all this. But it can't hurt to bring up some of the excellent points you've made, in email to Vassar policy folks.

I've been kind swamped with work, even working many hours this weekend. But I'll send some spam (err, I mean email) any day, Real Soon Now. Promise. If for no other reason than you, Ranger Danger, were nice enuff to show me Vassar. I hope it stays around.

Lord knows, we need some decent beginner trails. All the other "easy" stuff I've ridden (been sandbagged on ) has been a bit harder.

OBL
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Nimium est melior!