Trail Runners: The bane of the Trail Skier

[MikeK]

Ranting and raving does little use... but I feel compelled to do so about this. It's just too ridiculous for me not to.

So if you haven't heard there is this new sport called trail running. Fine. It's like hiking except get this... you run or jog instead. Sounds like something invented by some health nuts in California.

I have no issues with the sport itself, it's just the application of it. During winter it should be called postholing, not trail running... because really that's all these guys and gals are doing to otherwise nice ski and snowshoe trails. Sure the parks of suburbia suffer from hikers without skis and snowshoes... this was bad enough. Now people are RUNNING and leaving rutty divets even in hard packed trails. It's just common sense that runners would exert more force on the snow that hikers with each step.

I expect this is just an issue in America as Canadians seem to have enough sense and/or courtesy to wear skis or snowshoes when out and about in the winter. I suspect the root causes of this to be arrogance and ignorance.

I skied past a couple trail runners today and I really felt compelled to say something... I could feel my apathy for their lack of respect for anyone else boiling up and they came clomping up to me. I skied a mile or so through their divets and although I made it just fine, it wasn't as pleasant as it had been before I passed them. I'm of the firm mind that those walking snowy trails without snowshoes or ski should be punished to the full extent of the law... but that will never happen. At least these kind of occurrences are rare when one gets up in the North Country and farther away from civilization.

And the other thing I really can't understand is why what they are doing wouldn't be more fun on skis or snowshoes? In my mind there is nothing more annoying that walking, let alone running in snow that makes holes.

I wish there was something I could do... maybe I'll start a petition with the county parks department to see if they can at least discourage it and put up signs. Doubt anyone would listen though...

[connyro]

One person's use is another person's annoyance. That's just how it works. What about dogs postholing and crapping on the trail? That annoys some folks but most likely not the folks who bring their dogs along for a ski.

Those in control of the trails around my part of the world have decided it's a good idea to make the old mountain bike trails into multi-use trails. Talk about stupid. Mountain biking and dog walking and lolly-gagging don't mix and dumbs down the experience for everyone.

All the winter trails near civilization around here are the same thing as you describe: walkers/trailrunners postholing groomed XC trails. Dog crap everywhere. Solution? Go further away from civilization and break your own trail. It's more fun than fighting crowds anyways.

[MikeK]

True - my preference is to go far away.

They don't groom most of our trails, and that's what I like - problem is as people take un-groomed as meaning walk in the ski tracks once it's been broken.

Also skiing near my home is not exciting, no matter where you go... so it's just getting out and getting exercise. Steering around dog shit helps me with my turns We actually have more a problem with deer postholing than dogs - they are like rats here and they are lazy so they like to walk in ski and snowshoe tracks.

Don't take my gripe too seriously, but I am seriously thinking about contacting the parks dept. It seems that some people can figure out that skis and snowshoes are the way to go, but not everyone... maybe I can help that.

[CIMA]

It sounds a little funny that people living in the US concentrate at the same mountain trails and feel annoyances familiar to the people living in small countries like Japan.
How about taking out a Garmin GPS and rambling along your own trails?

[MikeK]

I'd LOVE to CIMA... just one problem... there's this pesky thing in this country called private land. And guess what, almost ALL of it is private!

The parks close to my house are pretty small, and going off trail is sometimes not so fun (swamps, heavy thickets, etc) - you are very blessed with the terrain you have.

That's why I often drive to the mountains on the weekend where there is abundant state land - problem there is sometimes off trails the terrain can be quite treacherous - but even so, those trails don't suffer the same fate as the ones close to suburbia.