This paper is an extract from the Proceedings of the New Zealand Recreation Association Conference, Mt Cook, New Zealand 1995, pp 61-71. “Mountain Biking Impacts and Rider Preferences” by Gordon Cessford, Science and Research Division, Department of Conservation, Wellington, New Zealand.
A review of impacts from mountain biking concludes: that the physical impacts of mountain biking are not a good basis for decisions about allowing access, that the actual environmental impact and safety hazards associated with mountain biking may be less than perceived by other track users, and that the focus needs to be on recreation conflict issues. A survey of riders found that they displayed a diversity of setting and experience preferences, and many of these changed in importance with riding experience. Natural settings, challenging riding, variety, and
opportunities for excitement and speed were important components for most riders. From these results, recommendations for management of mountain biking and associated research are made.