EAST MISSOULA — New trail construction is underway at Marshall Mountain with a huge emphasis on accessibility for recreation.
“Under public ownership now with Missoula County, our first priority was to put in some trails that would be easier for everyone regardless of your abilities. But particularly if you really need a mobility assist bike, these trails would be designed specifically to accommodate that” said Mountain Bike Missoula executive director John Stegmaier.
The stakeholders involved in the new trail construction, such as Friends of Marshall Mountain, held an event to hear from those with mobility disabilities to better understand how they can make the park accessible to all.
“We're here today to speak with folks from the adaptive community to make sure that we have a very inviting and welcoming mountain for people of all groups and all abilities,” said Jed Dennison a member of Friends of Marshall Mountain.
Marshall Mountain park manager Jackson Lee says the event offers insight into what the county can do to make the park friendlier to anyone who recreates.
“Really the goal of this project in early phase trail development is to make Marshall Mountain more accessible for users up here,” Lee stated. “And so it's really the first step in the first year of public ownership of having a place where more Missoula County residents can come and have an enjoyable recreation experience.”
For those with mobility disabilities, the effort that Marshall Mountain is putting into creating more accessible trails means a lot.
“I think it's a statement to Missoula in itself, right? I think it's just like I said, that like-minded person that comes to Missoula, hopefully, we're attracting more of those people because they see that it's if we want to get ourselves on the map as anything," Missoula Adaptive Recreation and Sports board member Mike Manhardt told MTN.
"If we want to get ourselves on the map as a mountain bike destination. If we want to get ourselves on a map as a destination for people with disabilities you have to start with this inclusivity with this very first project because then it just becomes inclusion where you don't think about it,” Manhardt continued.
Dovetail Trail Consulting was the group that put on the event for Marshall Mountain, and throughout their talk, they offered suggestions — such as placing a sign at the front of a trail to let others know that mobility bikes are allowed on the trails — as there is still a strong stigma that exists around those with mobility disabilities.
“It's definitely a stigma of people with disabilities don't necessarily want to be here. They're not capable of being here. And so for them to have the foresight of, well, we're missing out on a whole section of society that actually does want to be here is huge” said Dovetail Trail Consulting co-owner Quinn Brett.
There are still hurdles that those with mobility disabilities - and disabilities as a whole - face when it comes to increasing access.
"The big misconception with that is that we're trying to pave or smooth out all the trails. So they work for people with disabilities that fit into that stigma that exists. We're trying to shine a light on the technology that exists today that allows people with disabilities to go further than they ever have been able to historically," Dovetail Trail Consulting co-owner Joe Stone stated.
"So we're on public lands and we should all have access and we recognize there will be some areas where everyone's not gonna be able to go," Stone continued. "And that's just the facts of it all. But we can make it as good as possible and create as many opportunities as possible. And that's totally doable.”
