“Mountain bikes were not (and still are not) banned by the actual Wilderness Act; that didn’t happen until 1984, when the United States Forest Service was persuaded by traditional environmental organizations to change their regulations, so as to ban bikes. The other four agencies that manage Wilderness areas followed the Forest Service’s lead and we’ve been on the outside looking in ever since. The original Forest Service regulations prohibited mechanized transport propelled by a non-living power source, i.e. a motor. The new regulations banned mechanized transport altogether. Bikes are called out specifically. You can argue, of course, that horses, skis, snowshoes and kayaks all provide a mechanical advantage that enables humans to travel further and faster through the Wilderness—but none of these other forms of transport are prohibited in Wilderness areas. Bikes are special and by “special”, I mean “screwed”.”

Head over to Pinkbike to read part 03 of this series. It’s paramount you read this series if you’re a mountain biker living close to Wilderness areas since a bill for MTBs to gain access to Wilderness area has hit Capitol Hill.