We endurance riders often like to imagine ourselves as pioneers of the early West, alone with our horse, blazing trails through magnificent mountains or across unmapped plains. But the truth of the matter is that the early explorers rarely set off cross-country. They followed native guides, trading routes, and deer tracks whenever possible. The goal was not just to be the first one to cross some untouched landscape, but to create a trail for others to follow. Mike Riter of Trail Design Specialists helps hikers, horseback riders, and mountain bikers to do just thatÑalthough his tools and methods are a little more modern!

Riter's background is in mountain biking, a sport which -- like horseback riding -- is frequently accused of "wrecking the trails."

The first AERC Trail Master certification course was held at the Colorado Horse Complex in Parker, Colorado in May. Riter and a group of AERC members spent four days going over the basics of trail design and layout, construction, maintenance and, perhaps most important, how to deal with your work crew. Mornings were spent in the classroom. A written test followed at lunch, and afternoons were for field work and getting one's hands dirty.

Day 1: Trail design and layout. Riter stressed the importance of knowing the area first, both on foot and by studying topographic maps, which he called "the trail designer's best friend." A good trail requires little maintenance because it is designed right. Flowing water, which accelerates the process of erosion, is the enemy of a trail. Proper design can avoid situations whereby the trail becomes a river during rainstorms. In the afternoon, participants learned how to use clinometers to assess the slopes around them in a scientific fashion.

Day 2: Trail construction. Attendees learned how to pick the proper tool for the job, when to use power tools, and how to cut trails into a slope. Riter also talked about how to build bridges and boardwalks, and when to incorporate switchbacks into a trail and how to do it right. He also went over safety procedures for tool use, and taught the best way to swing a shovel and not throw out your backÑvery important!

Day 3: Trail maintenance. Although a well-designed trail is easy to maintain, most trails that trail workers will be dealing with have been laid out in a less than ideal way. If you canÕt reroute them, you will have to fix and maintain them, battling wind, water, and gravity.

Day 4: A fun day on the trail. The final day included role-playing the part of a less than ideal work crew. Participants drew cards to determine their new personalities, and then took turns trying to make the Know-It-All, the Grumpy Guy, the Shovel Flailer, and the Bad Back work as a cohesive and productive unit.

This is a course designed for ride managers. Participants will learn to understand your trails in order to use them most wisely and maintain them in the best shape possible. In these days of increasing population and increasing pressure on public lands, it is vitally important for us, as riders and as members of the AERC, to be excellent stewards and caretakers of the land and our trails.

Over the next couple of years, the Trails Advocacy Committee hopes to hold this course at least once in every region, and every ride manager -- and all interested riders -- are encouraged to sign up and attend.

August's Midwest Region Trail Master class was full -- with a waiting list -- and a second one will be scheduled for later in the fall. Watch for notices of upcoming Trail Master seminars in Endurance News, or contact Jerry Fruth for more information: 812-985-2151 or jerryfruth@US-ETC.org.