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fallguy
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Purser Hulsey
10/24/22 at 10:51am
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Is the Enchanted Forest at  Purser Hulsey for walkers only?
I was told by a couple walking the trail  that the section was off limitts to bikes.
  

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JoeT
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #1 - 10/24/22 at 12:56pm
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I never heard that. Think they were pulling your leg. Did they make you walk your bike out?
  
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fallguy
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #2 - 10/24/22 at 1:29pm
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Oh no, I told them there were signs at the entrance and that I "appreciated" their concen.
  

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Shredder
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #3 - 10/24/22 at 3:35pm
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There's one little part that's for walkers only that skips the little step down followed by the berm. I'm guessing they did that to keep walkers from getting plowed there, that's a pretty blind section.
  
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Metalmok
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #4 - 10/26/22 at 9:58am
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I feel like our days are numbered for riding at Purser Hulsey. I know the trails were created for mountain biking and I know of zero complaints about anything but, the amount of people walking with little, little kids out there mixed with mountain bikers flying down really fun trails is a bad combination.

The walkers seem to have no concept of how fast someone can be coming down the trail on a bike. I have scared the living daylights out of people stopped in the trail looking at a flower or something around a blind corner. I always slow way down or even stop when I come upon people but they are still really freaked out sometimes. I had one lady dive into the bushes even though I got stopped in plenty of time. She was not happy and did not want to talk about it with me.

All of this is just one idiot's opinion.

Whoever decided to put painted rocks on the trail to attract little kids is partly to blame...
  

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JoeT
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #5 - 10/26/22 at 3:19pm
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Beatty is like that too. It's like an episode of the Walking Dead. Zombies everywhere. And they never learn. They keep getting scared to death. Over and over......
  
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #6 - 10/26/22 at 3:53pm
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I almost flattened some birdwatcher on the Lake Loop at Catawba the other day. He came walking out from behind a large tree with his binoculars up and had no clue. 

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Robert C.
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #7 - 10/26/22 at 5:12pm
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Metalmok wrote on 10/26/22 at 9:58am:


Whoever decided to put painted rocks on the trail to attract little kids is partly to blame...


PH, like FJB is a mixed use trail.  Although the majority of users may be bikers, there are plenty of others,including children that enjoy the trail....and the painted rocks.

If you can't tolerate sharing the trail then ride elsewhere, or go to a bike park.
  
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Metalmok
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #8 - 10/27/22 at 10:32am
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Hey! I've got no problem sharing the trail. All I said is we will eventually not be able to ride there because it is a mixed-use trail. Strollers, babies and mountain bikes don't mix, even when you stop or slow down.

The rocks look better than the water bottles and energy drink cans I keep picking up at the jump lines but, they do look like garbage in the forest.(IMO) I realize that this forest is in the middle of the suburbs but it is still kind of a respite from the city grind people find themselves in. It would be nice to be out in, sort of nature, without the encroachment of man made stuff everywhere. I don't think painted rocks were in the original plan for the trail.

I am not mad about any of this I am just saying, ride it while you can before some Karen shuts it down.
« Last Edit: 10/27/22 at 10:33am by Metalmok »  

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JoeT
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #9 - 10/27/22 at 2:08pm
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I hear you Metalmok.  The tail is littered with painted rocks that look Skittles and there is the Enchanted Forest that makes the place seem like another Mouse House but in the Carolinas.
  
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FourMat
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #10 - 10/28/22 at 9:19am
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From the perspective of someone who is trying to get more kids on bikes, I see the painted rocks as a great thing.  Face it, PH, is a low-skill level trail and it's going to attract kids, walkers, slow riders etc.  I bring kids out for their first rides, and a lot of the younger ones LOVE seeing the rocks, and it's the thing that makes them want to come back out.  Other trails can be scary, and intimidating and turn the kids off, making them reluctant to come back out. The rocks offer a fun and familiar feature for them.

According to the gurus involved with the administration of the trail system, the people who painted the rocks actually helped build out the trail. 

Given the population density of the area, you're right, you aren't going to be able to ride it the way you want.  The Strava Jockeys and the Afterwork Gotta Get My Heart Rate Up To Gigitybillion Beats For 60 Minutes Crowd will need to go elsewhere. Extreme Red Bull YouTube Huckers can go around using the alternate entrance.
« Last Edit: 10/28/22 at 12:42pm by FourMat »  
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Robert C.
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #11 - 10/29/22 at 12:11pm
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Bravo!
  
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fallguy
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #12 - 10/31/22 at 1:05pm
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I do not disagree with anything FourMat said. What I would like is to be able to ride the trails without being told bikes are not allowed or getting piercing death glares for riding. I ride there for convenience (it is a 15-minute bike ride from my house). I say excuse me and thank you EVERYTIME I pass by anyone, and it is rarely acknowledged. Although I have been riding bikes for decades (yes, I am REALLY old) I don’t ride with a computer, I 100 % ride for the pleasure. 

Bottom line for me is let’s share the trails and treat others as we would like to be treated. 
  

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Metalmok
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #13 - 10/31/22 at 3:24pm
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FourMat wrote on 10/28/22 at 9:19am:
The Strava Jockeys and the Afterwork Gotta Get My Heart Rate Up To Gigitybillion Beats For 60 Minutes Crowd will need to go elsewhere. Extreme Red Bull YouTube Huckers can go around using the alternate entrance.


What is the deal with this statement? Is the trail only intended to ride slow on? I don't see anything on the website or any signage on the trail to indicate this. Where does this opinion come from?  I do not fit into any of the 3 groups you so eloquently name here. I just like to have fun riding my mountain bike on the trail. I go fast on the downhills and slow on the uphill's like almost everybody, including you, I would assume. Telling people that ride fast or who are in great shape or have mad bike skills to ride elsewhere seems a bit extreme. I would assume that those people don't tell you to ride elsewhere if you ride slow...

I backtrack about the painted rocks, I just assumed some random person started putting the rocks out. If it is part of the trail master plan then, fine. It really doesn't bother me that they are there.
  

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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #14 - 10/31/22 at 4:38pm
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Wow, a little feisty back and forth on the forums.  Is this 2008???

Forgoing the poignant language, I think the theme is that this trail has become so popular that unfortunately the expectations of riders going to PH (particularly at peak use times) have to shift to anticipate lots of other trail users that will likely interrupt the flow of a traditional mtb ride.

As for the rude walkers, that sucks, but probably won't change.  Ideally Karen's won't get the place shut down completely but it highlights the need for advocacy and relationships with land managers.   

My recommendation is make sure the land manager (Mathews town council) understands how popular the trails (that the THTB built for them at no cost) have become, and that they now need to invest in more mtb trails/bike park spaces at PH and at other area parks to ensure there are enough recreational assets to meet the demand of all users.   

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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #15 - 10/31/22 at 6:40pm
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Metalmok wrote on 10/31/22 at 3:24pm:


What is the deal with this statement? Is the trail only intended to ride slow on? I don't see anything on the website or any signage on the trail to indicate this. Where does this opinion come from?  I do not fit into any of the 3 groups you so eloquently name here. I just like to have fun riding my mountain bike on the trail. I go fast on the downhills and slow on the uphill's like almost everybody, including you, I would assume. Telling people that ride fast or who are in great shape or have mad bike skills to ride elsewhere seems a bit extreme. I would assume that those people don't tell you to ride elsewhere if you ride slow...

I backtrack about the painted rocks, I just assumed some random person started putting the rocks out. If it is part of the trail master plan then, fine. It really doesn't bother me that they are there.



Just the MTB Yin, to the walker Karen's Yang.
  
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Metalmok
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #16 - 10/31/22 at 6:49pm
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Are you are saying my statement is the yin or your answer in the yin?
  

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FourMat
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #17 - 10/31/22 at 7:07pm
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Metalmok wrote on 10/31/22 at 6:49pm:
Are you are saying my statement is the yin or your answer in the yin?


Na, wasn't calling you out specifically.  You said you slow down, and I think you are genuinely concerned for safety.  It was more a blanket statement about entitlement on both sides of the coin.  While on rides, I've been buzzed and yelled at with my kids by riders who can't be bothered to use their sissy levers when approaching a slower group, on bikes or not.  Doesn't happen often, but when it does, the rider falls into a few general type A categories.  I've also been chastised by the Karen's for "just riding along".  A little patience on both sides will go a long way when things get crowded.  By and large, most people are great, it's a few of the outliers that leave a bad impression that seems to overshadow all the trail goodness that's out there.
  
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Metalmok
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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #18 - 10/31/22 at 8:08pm
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Got it. My main point was to say that there is a potential for conflict brewing out at PH. I think a lot of "mixed use" trails have problems with mountain bikers. They just don't mix very well with other trail users. Whatever we can do as a club to be proactive would be in our best interest. 

Mixed use appeals to our better natures but our better natures don't always manifest.
  

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Re: Purser Hulsey
Reply #19 - 10/31/22 at 10:18pm
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Mountain bikers will lose the fight every time on a mixed use trail.  Just look up "FJB Sheepdog Lady" , a Karen before there was such a thing. We've been having this debate for years.

It's not worth getting frustrated over, as we are in no position to tell non bikers how to behave on mixed use trails we do not own.

There was a time you could ride FJB race pace.  Over the years the popularity of the park brought in tons of walkers, and contributed to bikers going elsewhere (i.e. Sherman) if they wanted to ride fast and avoid pedestrians.

Will PH be closed to mountain bikers? Likely not.  Is it going to get more difficult to ride there without coming across walkers, given the massive amount of development in the area - absolutely.


  
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