By law, mountain bikes are banned from federally designated wilderness areas. So it's more than a bit ironic that the Utah Mountain Bike Association would favor designating millions of acres of wilderness in southern Utah.
But it does.The 400-member association this week joined the Utah Wilderness Coalition in endorsing a controversial bill by Rep. Maurice Hinchey, D-N.Y., that would set aside 5.7 million acres of Bureau of Land Management lands in Utah as wilderness.
"We are bicycling enthusiasts, but we also care deeply about preserving the incredible wild desert beauty of Utah," said Doug Alley, president of the association.
In exchange for the association's endorsement of the wilderness proposal, the coalition will adjust the proposal's boundaries to remove some mountain-biking trails from the proposal, said Rudy Lukez, a member of the coalition's board.
Those trails, which total a minor number of actual acreage, are in three areas around Moab: the Moab Rim in the Behind the Rocks area, south of town; Spider Mesa in the Goldbar Canyon area, northwest of town; and Porcupine Rim in the Negro Bill Canyon area, northeast of town.
Lukez said the Mountain Bike Association's joining the coalition is significant because wilderness opponents have tried to pit bikers against hikers in the debate.
"Instead, today we are emerging as very strong allies who will work together for protection of the public lands that belong to everyone in this nation," Lukez said.
The Utah Wilderness Coalition is comprised of 35 local, regional and national outdoor and environmental organizations.
Wilderness is the most controversial public-lands issue in the state, pitting preservationists against developers, mining interests and motorized vehicle enthusiasts.
The BLM has proposed that 2 million acres be set aside as wilderness, while Utah's congressional delegation, with the possible exception of Democratic Rep. Karen Shepherd, favors a proposal closer to 1 million acres.
The wilderness coalition, however, is set on getting 5.7 million acres. Board member Rod Greenough said the coalition will ride the stalemate indefinitely because 3.2 million acres are already protected as BLM wilderness study areas.