Crozet Trails Etiquette

Crozet Trails are amazing, connect Crozet and Crozet neighborhoods in a remarkable way, and as they grow, and their usage grows, this is a new area for many of us to learn to live together and get along. 

Friend & neighbor Mark McCardell wrote the following on Nextdoor, and said I could re-publish it here.

I write this as a jogger, hiker, mountain biker, dog owner, and Charlottesville Area Mountain Bike Club (CAMBC) member (which maintains most of the multi-use trails in the county and city).

On multi-use trails there is a general etiquette that users should observe

1) Mountain bikers yield to all foot traffic. When approaching pedestrians from behind, MTB’ers should use their bell and announce they are passing on the left if space is permissible. If space is not permissible, you (the biker) must yield until there is space.

2) Runners approaching pedestrians from behind should announce they are passing on the left.

3) Dog owners should keep their pets leashed at all times. Because I use the trails for just about everything I have experienced just about everything. In one case an unleashed dog caused me to wreck on my mountain bike. In another case an MTB’er did not announce their passing and I could not short leash my dog in time, and she caused him to wreck.

Even when I have had my dog short leashed, it still wasn’t courteous for a runner or MTB’er to pass close by without announcing. Our previous dog was not dog friendly and unleashed dogs on the trails always led to negative encounters. Observing multi-use trail etiquette allows everyone to enjoy the amazing multi-use trails we have in our area.

Jim’s final note: when sharing trails and spaces, I advocate the “don’t be a butthead” rule, which is sort of like the Golden Rule, but more direct. When I’m riding my mountain bike on the Crozet Trails (or anywhere, on road or trails), I do everything I can to be nice to those with whom I’m sharing that space or road. Being nice is usually easier.