{"id":57875,"date":"2019-06-06T07:56:17","date_gmt":"2019-06-06T14:56:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=57875"},"modified":"2020-05-22T12:57:35","modified_gmt":"2020-05-22T19:57:35","slug":"mammoths-trailblazing-path-for-electric-mountain-bikes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/mammoths-trailblazing-path-for-electric-mountain-bikes","title":{"rendered":"Mammoth’s Trailblazing Path for Electric Mountain Bikes"},"content":{"rendered":"

When Mammoth Mountain Bike Park opens for the 2019 season\u2014a date that has been <\/span>pushed back<\/span><\/a> due to late winter storms\u2014riders will be able to explore the California resort\u2019s trail network not only aboard standard mountain bikes, but also using electric-assist models. <\/span><\/p>\n

This is the second season that pedal-assist mountain bikes, or electric mountain bikes, will be allowed in the park. The policy was precedent-setting when it was enacted a year ago: Up until then, e-bikes, <\/span>classified as motorized vehicles under the federal Travel Management Rule<\/span><\/a>, were excluded from use on most trails on <\/span>U.S. Forest Service land<\/span><\/a>, in <\/span>national parks<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and other <\/span>federal lands<\/span>. The success and extension of the program at<\/span> Mammoth<\/span><\/a> this year and the spread of similar arrangements at mountain bike parks around the country signal the continuing proliferation and acceptance of e-bikes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Like many ski resorts, Mammoth leases its land, some 3,500 acres, from the U.S. Forest Service, and operates under a special-use permit that allows it to develop ski runs and trails and install infrastructure such as lifts and snowmaking. The path toward e-MTBs began four years ago, when Mammoth approached the USFS to clarify whether its permit allowed for e-bikes, despite the USFS decision to<\/span> manage them as motorized vehicles<\/span><\/a>. The resort was greenlighted in 2016 for an e-bike category in an event called<\/span> The Boogaloo<\/span><\/a> at its annual Kamikaze Games. <\/span> That limited use was instrumental in proving that e-MTBs didn\u2019t have any more impact than standard mountain bikes on Mammoth\u2019s 80 miles of singletrack, thus shepherding their widespread adoption in 2018. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe special-use permit issued to Mammoth demonstrated that e-MTBs can exist in harmony with mountain bikes and allow families and friends of varying abilities to go out and have a great time on the mountain together,\u201d said Larry Pizzi, vice president and chair of the e-bike committee for the Bicycle Products Suppliers Association (BPSA).<\/span><\/p>\n

Whether or not e-bikes belong on trails has been one of the most hotly contested subjects in cycling in recent years, with opponents worried that faster-moving and heavier bikes will cause more trail damage and user conflicts, put inexperienced riders at jeopardy by allowing them to outride their skills, and lead to trail closures. \u201cThere has been a segment of people opposed to them, though attitudes are shifting with increased exposure and education,\u201d Pizzi said.<\/span><\/p>\n

What some people don\u2019t realize is just how similar some electric-assist mountain bikes are to their analog counterparts. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere is a lot of misinformation,\u201d said Janelle Walker, the U.S. Forest Service representative who oversaw the approval process at Mammoth. \u201cGenerally the public is not aware of the different classes of e-bikes and that leads to the assumption that they are more similar to motorcycles [than bicycles].\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

At Mammoth, the permit allows for Class 1 e-bikes, which have a max assisted speed of 20 mph and provide supplemental power only when a rider is pedaling. It precludes more powerful bikes and those with throttles. Because these bikes must be pedaled to function, \u201cthey perform comparably to a regular pedal bicycle,\u201d Walker said.<\/span><\/p>\n

As the numbers of e-bikes in the field increase, more people\u2014both cyclists and legislators\u2014are realizing that they bear far more resemblance to bicycles than motorcycles. An<\/span> environmental impact study<\/span><\/a> carried out by the International Mountain Bicycling Association (IMBA) found that Class 1 e-mountain bikes \u201cwere not significantly different\u201d than conventional mountain bikes when it came to soil displacement and tread disturbance. IMBA has since<\/span> updated its position<\/span><\/a> from its initial 2015 stance that e-bikes should be treated as motorized vehicles to current support for Class 1 models on mountain biking trails \u201cwhen the responsible land management agency, in consultation with local mountain bikers, deem such e-MTB access is appropriate and will not cause any loss of access to non-motorized bikes.\u201d That\u2019s precisely the scenario at Mammoth Bike Park.<\/span><\/p>\n

The effects of Mammoth\u2019s e-mountain bike program have reached well beyond the park. \u201cOur permitting process catalyzed the clarification of some USFS regulations,\u201d said Gabe Taylor, head of marketing for Mammoth Bike Park. \u201cIt should have made it easier for other resorts to apply for and receive the same permissions we were granted.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

Few U.S. resorts have as extensive a setup as Mammoth, but e-MTBs are now being used at Mount Snow, Vermont; Highland Mountain Bike Park, New Hampshire; and both Steamboat and Purgatory, Colorado; among others, with many resorts now eyeing adoption. According to Earl Saline, director of education programming at the National Ski Areas Association (NSAA), an increasing number of resorts are moving to invest in year-round activities. While there\u2019s no formalized list of resorts that have approved e-bike use, People For Bikes keeps an<\/span> interactive map<\/span><\/a> that\u2019s constantly updated and land-manager approved of all the trails in the country open to e-MTBs. <\/span><\/p>\n

The shift toward e-MTBs at bike parks mirrors the increase in their widespread acceptance. Numerous e-MTB-specific race series have cropped up, including the decision late last year by the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), professional cycling\u2019s governing body, to hold the first-ever e-MTB World Championship in Mont-Saint-Anne, Qu\u00e9bec, this August. Meanwhile, following a quarterly e-MTB roundtable with federal agencies on March 14, the BPSA said they expect the National Park Service (NPS) to reissue in the next few months revised guidance on electric bikes that will allow greater leniency in the interpretation of Class 1 and 3 e-bikes as bicycles. In a memo, Pizzi, the\u00a0<\/span>chair of the e-bike committee at BPSA, said the<\/span> Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is considering following suit and the National Forest Service is apparently under pressure from the National Ski Areas Association to create a new definition of e-bikes separate from motorized vehicles. These policy shifts could be the first moves toward e-MTBs gaining access not only at bike parks, but on a wide swath of public lands. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s unfolding as we speak,\u201d said Pizzi.<\/span><\/p>\n

At Mammoth, demand for e-MTBs has been brisk. The resort has a fleet of the bikes for its staff, which has allowed for easier and more frequent trail maintenance and allowed for faster response times for on-hill incidents. Pedal-assist bikes also now account for 30 percent of the mountain\u2019s rental fleet. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMountain biking is hard work, especially at our elevation (9,000 to 11,000 feet). For a lot of guests that\u2019s just more than they\u2019re up for,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cE-bikes lower the physical barriers to entry and make it easier for more people to enjoy more of the terrain.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n

And e-MTBs aren\u2019t just grabbing market share from standard bikes, but rather adding to it. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cE-bikes offer an activity that family members of all ages and abilities can do together,\u201d said Steve McCabe, director of mountain operations, who spearheaded the e-MTB initiative on the mountain. \u201cPut simply, e-bikes are allowing more people to enjoy mountain biking.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Read More:\u00a0<\/strong>REI Co-op Expands Bike Offerings, Announces Support for Nonprofits Focused on Unifying Regulations and Building Better Access Across the Nation<\/a><\/p>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Mammoth Mountain Bike Park opens for the 2019 season\u2014a date that has been pushed back due to late winter storms\u2014riders will be able to explore the California resort\u2019s trail network not only aboard standard mountain bikes, but also using electric-assist models. This is the second season that pedal-assist mountain bikes, or electric mountain bikes, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":57947,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,685],"tags":[1127,1846,1876,727,1484],"internal-tag":[],"class_list":["post-57875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cycle","category-news","tag-cycling","tag-e-bikes","tag-e-mountain-bikes","tag-latest-posts","tag-staff-society"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/mammoths-trailblazing-path-for-electric-mountain-bikes","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Mammoth’s Trailblazing Path for Electric Mountain Bikes","url":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/mammoths-trailblazing-path-for-electric-mountain-bikes","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/cycle\/mammoths-trailblazing-path-for-electric-mountain-bikes"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/2018-05-21_BIKE_PARK_EBIKE_PMM_0427.jpg?resize=150%2C150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2019\/05\/2018-05-21_BIKE_PARK_EBIKE_PMM_0427.jpg?fit=2500%2C1667"},"articleSection":"Cycle","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Michelle Flandreau"}],"creator":["Michelle Flandreau"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Uncommon Path \u2013 An REI Co-op Publication","logo":""},"keywords":["cycling","e-bikes","e-mountain bikes","latest posts","staff society"],"dateCreated":"2019-06-06T14:56:17Z","datePublished":"2019-06-06T14:56:17Z","dateModified":"2020-05-22T19:57:35Z"},"rendered":"