This page provides guidelines for our team specific principals, goals, and rule associated with trails.

4 KEY PRINCIPALS

When considering about how to act, be, and think about trails, here are four guiding principles for our team:

1. Represent yourself and the team well. Never leave a bad memory or experience with another trail user. Put yourself in their shoes and try to make it your goal to ensure everyone else on the trails has an amazing experience. The goal is to leave them with a good impression of you and who you represent.

2. Pay your trail debt. In other words, think about the wear and tear you put into trails. Try to spend enough time and care improving trails in the year that you at least even out or leave trails better than when you found them. Don’t leave the season taking more than you gave.

3. Be an example. Being an example is part by what you do, and part by how you help educate others around you - especially your teammates. Work together, communicate, and help each other be great trail users.

4. Care. learn to care for the land, the environment, the rights of property owners, for our public lands and their shared value, for your community, and for other trail users no matter what kind of user they are. Show respect and care for all of it. Learn to understand the value of these things, how to show your care for them, and how they give value to you. When you care, you will act in appropriate ways and be good stewards.

SPECIFIC GOALS

1. We want every person on the team to put in at least 3-5 hours of trail work in during the season.

2. Learn trail etiquette and pass the Club etiquette test.

3. Learn how to use different trail tools and trail building and maintenance techniques. Pass the Club trail tool test.

4. Always be willing to pick up trash and pick up one piece every practice if you can.

5. Everyone should participate in at least one #Trailsweek or other major trail activity (not counting normal build/maintenance days).

10 TEAM TRAIL RULES

1. No registered member of our team (coaches, leaders, riders) are to at any time, openly disobey trail closures that are known/signed.

2. No one is to modify existing trails without explicit permission from the current land owner/manager, or unless it is with an organization/group who does have that permission.
   (this does not include maintenance - meaning, restoring the trail to it’s official, original state)

3. No one is to build new trails on property that is not their own without explicit permission of the current land owner/manager or unless it is with an organization/group who does have that permission.

4. Littering knowingly, or refusing to acknowledge and fix accidental littering is not permitted. We don’t litter.

5. We do not carelessly abuse trails by destroying features, blowing out corners, skidding for fun on singletrack, or riding on property or features that are not public or appropriate.

6. We do not destroy, modify, harass, or harm natural plants or animals on or near the trail. This includes unnecessarily scaring, chasing, or yelling at animals, breaking branches for no reason, etc.

7. We are polite and respectful of trail etiquette rules and do our best to apply them at all times. Our personal fun and preferences are never to come before politeness, kindness, and consideration of other trail users.

8. No one is to confront strangers on the trails who are harming trails, etc. You are to report them to authorities or coaches and let them deal with it.

9. We do not cut trail corners, ride muddy trails, or ride off-trail for convenience or fun.
   (There is free-riding, in which there may be no trail at all to be on, but this should be done with the right conditions, and when there is no trail available only, and with minimal impact to the environment)

10. We do not put the rights to ride trails in jeopardy for ourselves or others by disrespecting property laws and rights, by being reckless, or breaking laws and rules of property use.

CONSEQUENCES FOR BREAKING RULES

If a member of the team is found to be breaking the rules, the following consequences will occur. We know these can seem harsh, but we do not expect anyone to ever get past offense #1, and hope no one will ever break a rule. The below consequences are open to coach interpretation and a fair judgment and consideration of the situation. We reserve right to set punishment. These are not based on a single rule broken 4 times, but 4 infractions period.

WARNING

Depending on the rule broken, you will first get a warning, depending on intent, seriousness of it, and awareness and attitude by the rider. There is no requirement for a warning, and with some rules, you will immediately warrant an offense #1 infraction.

Offense #1

We will take you aside and talk about what rule was broken, discuss the rule’s purpose, and provide a warning. If the person breaking the rule is a rider, depending on the infraction, parents will also be notified.

Offense #2

We will suspend you from practice for up to a full week (depends on the infraction), talk to you and your parents (where applicable), and require service hours on trails equal to time missed in practice that week.

Offense #3

You will be suspended from practice for a full week up to a month, and consideration of suspension from a race in the Fall is in play. You will put in service hours equal to the punishment, determined by coaches.

Offense #4

You will be removed from the team for the year.

We realize this is a severe consequence, but there is no room for an offense to be committed several times without correction, without showing respect to rules and expectations.