Trail building equestrians of New Mexico

[Una Smith <una.smith AT att.net>]

Trish Hug wrote:
>I wonder about mountain bikers who ride through mud; what's the difference?

Fiber.

Also, the presence of mud is more predictable than a pile of manure.
Some mountain bikes cost thousands of dollars, and a rider may use a 
"cheap" bike when mud is expected, reserving the fancy one for drier
weather.  To put it in perspective, though, the likelihood of manure
contributing to a bike accident is very small.  Other things can jam
a brake and a smart rider tests the brakes before starting a descent.

Here in Los Alamos horse and MTB riders get along well.  I give the
MTB riders a lot of credit for that.

In some places MTB riders have certain hill trails they like to blast
down at top speed.  They decide among themselves which trails are for
two way traffic, requiring caution, and which are one-way down speedy
thrill rides.  Trouble is, other trail users don't know about any of
these local social rules.  There are certain trails in my riding area
where just by looking at the tire tracks I know riding my horse on it
would be unsafe.

        Una