Dear Friends:

The rules for the Trail do not appear on the official website for the Trail, nor on the Friends of Paynes Prairie website, but you can access them via telephone at 327.9005 29#.  BTW, Florida Statute 316 applies to operating a vehicle, such as a bicycle, on the Trail, just as it applies to operating a vehicle on a State road.  This number is posted on the fence at the intersection of the Alachua Lake Overlook and the main Trail.  Common sense dictates that you never ride without your cell phone, so no problem there.

Given the historic lack of concern by the authorities for safety on this Trail, I would guess that the present hazardous situation will continue until there is a serious personal injury crash.  I am afraid such accidents are inevitable, given the number of riders with more spandex than brains.  After a few broken bones, or worse, there will be an enforcement crack-down.  Kill somebody's dog and see where you end up.

 I wish a law enforcement crack-down would happen sooner, but we all know the record on these things.  Too bad it will take such a serious situation, because Lee and I would like to ride the GHT, but we avoid it for reasons of safety.  The Nature Coast Trail and the Palatka-Lake Butler Trail are both better maintained and safer than the GHT.  Sad, but true.

George





On 5/2/2012 3:59 PM, Ken Duffield wrote:
Boy I hate to sound negative here but cyclists are people just as motorists and dog walkers are even though some prefer not to believe it. Red lights don't work for some motorists and signs are there to be ignored as well. If commons sense and courtesy won't make a cyclist slow for people on foot and/or a long dog leash I doubt a sign a few miles back would do much good either.
 
Best thing is to let it be. I work many Fridays keeping the trail clean as a Trailkeeper and for every 50 cyclists that smile and say thanks for doing what we do there will be one roaring with gestures and profanity because the equipment is offensive to them (as in ME ME ME) I find that makes the next smile and hello even more special.
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We do have signs on the trail explaining that we are there.
 
Ken Duffield

From: Susan Bedinger <susanb82@hotmail.com>
To: Roger Pierce <roger@gccfla.org>
Cc: "<GCCMail@gccfla.org>" <GCCMail@gccfla.org>
Sent: Wednesday, May 2, 2012 3:28 PM
Subject: Re: GCCMail: Riding on the Gainesville Hawthorne Trail

Has there ever been any thought to posting bike rules on the Trail at main entries?  My experience is that many cyclists don't seem to know they should announce themselves, do it loudly enough to be heard, and early enough to give the cyclist or pedestrian enough time to react. 



On May 2, 2012, at 2:56 PM, "Roger Pierce" <roger@gccfla.org> wrote:

The Rangers at Paynes Prairie State Preserve (who are in charge of the Gainesville Hawthorne Trail) have forwarded the following feedback that they received on their web site:
 
“Is there a way to remind cyclists that the Gainesville-Hawthorne State Trail is a multi-use trail and is open to equestrians, walkers, pets on leash and bicyclists? I frequently meet-up with other dog enthusiasts to walk a few miles together on the trail with our dogs on leash. We always encounter speeding bicyclists who do not announce their approach or presence, and we have had many near misses getting hit or having our dogs get hit. NONE of the cyclists in all the times we've hiked the trail EVER used a bell to announce their approach/presence. They silently speed up on us and ignorantly expect us and our dogs not to spook into their path when they suddenly appear. This is a genuine problem.�
 
While most of us don’t have bells, we can speak up.  As you approach pedestrians from behind, say something such as “On your left (right)â€� or even just “Bike!â€�.  Slow down for just a second as you pass; there aren’t that many pedestrians on the trail.
 
Pass this on to your friends who ride the Trail; I suspect that a lot of them are not GCC members.
 
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�

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