It is unfortunate that The Durango Herald chose to set aside this concept of community to write an article (June 2) that was obviously heavily one-sided and negative toward the hard efforts that have been put in place by Trails 2000, local trail-building volunteers and the Forest Service to create a place for downhill bike users.

Durango is a hub for cyclists, equestrians, hikers and other trail users because we have more than 300 miles of trails that Trails 2000 helps maintain for everyone. It seems to me that we all could come to an agreement that parting with 3.5 miles of this trail network to create a place for downhill riders (and Devo has many of these riders ages 10-18) to ride safely without conflict is a small piece of the enormous trail system we have. (Equestrians actually have more trails to choose from than cyclists because wilderness is off limits to bikes.)

Devo teaches its kids to share the trails and yield to horses and hikers. We are not perfect, but it is a part of what we teach.

The proposed single-use 3.5 miles of trail for downhillers is to keep both equestrians and bikers safe. The reality is that while Durango has had a huge amount of success in users sharing trails with other user groups, the small amount of trail proposed at Logchutes as single-use is designed for downhill bikers only because this type of trail is not fun or safe for horses, cross-country riders or hikers.

Let’s bring back the “Share the Trails Triathlon” because there are miles and miles of trails in the Logchutes area for horses to ride and hand off a baton to a downhill rider who hands off to a runner.

Sarah Tescher

Durango