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Todays Paper - Hart backs biking ban
http://manly-daily.whereilive.com.au/news/story/...
WARRINGAH Council general manager Rik Hart has stood by the decision to ban bike riding in sections of Manly Dam, despite a severe public backlash.
Angry mountain bike riders have bombarded Warringah councillors and Manly State MP Mike Baird with emails and phone calls in protest since the ban went in place last week.
A protest ride has also been organised for March 6 with more than already 150 people signed up.
Yesterday Mr Hart walked the sections of single track with the Mayor Michael Regan and senior council staff and said it had reaffirmed in his mind that the right decision had been made.
“Having walked the track today we are of the unanimous opinion, as an executive group, that parts of the track are highly risky from a public liability point of view,” he said.
“It is a public liability issue, which is getting worse and worse so we have to take into account the risks.”
Riders maintain they have used the track for 12 years incident-free but Mr Hart said he was aware of one definite close call that was reported to council.
“There was a close miss when a group of bush regeneration workers were lucky to escape a serious incident when a rider came off his bike near the group.”
Meanwhile, there was confusion yesterday as to whether councillors had been properly briefed on the ban.
Cr Virginia Laugesen claimed nine out of 10 councillors first heard about the ban via a council press release last Friday.
When questioned Cr Laugesen said the ban was only put forward to councillors as one possible option. This was supported by Cr Christina Kirsch.
Mr Hart, however, said, councillors were given a clear understanding of his staff’s position at a briefing on February 2.
“It was very clear that staff were to close the track and we sent out electronic copies of the presentation to councillors after the meeting,” he said.
Cr Laugesen later admitted she had made a mistake.
“I’ve checked with council staff and I am wrong and I apologise,” she said.
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this guy is a knob how do we get rid of him besides seeing him accidentally fall of north head lookout. only joking.
Mr Hart is not qualified to determine a legal liability based on a walk in the park.
He is even less qualified to decide somewhere is unsafe when *his own records* say they have 12 years without any problem. Talk about having an active imagination!
Yeah 12 years of precedence is the best proof. It's like a massive real life experiment, and the results say it's safe, beneficial to the community and an asset to the district.
All they legally need is to place signs at the entrances to the affected sections stating that walkers beware of mountain bikes and enter at your own risk. A parallel situation is swimming pools where signs say danger no diving, it puts the onus on the individual that it is their risk and no one else is liable.
1. Nice slapdown for Cr Laugesen!
2. So, given the Mayor's statement re the numerical ratios yesterday, does this mean that pedestrians (and bush regenerators) will be banned? They appear to be the ones at risk.
I look forward to the follow-up story on Friday or Saturday - maybe we'll see a backflip over the backflip over the backflip over the original decision
“It is a public liability issue, which is getting worse and worse so we have to take into account the risks.”
So, basing it on that comment we should all stay at home wrapped in cotton wool breathing out of oxygen masks.... but then again, i am sure there is something we can find wrong with that as well!!!
Is this HArt guy going to close down bottle shops, service stations, pubs, clubs, RSL's the list could go on. They are all a risk to the community as well!!! Hows about childrens parks and lets not forget the Manly Dam walking tracks, the water at the dam as well. I can see it now, a 10 foot fence will be built around the dam soon and no-one will be able to use it
Since most risk type analysis is likelyhood vs consequence....and 12 years without a problem seems to me like a uneducated person is making some serious decisions without proper assessment being performed.
But what would I know, I am just a visitor who travelled to NSW to ride The Dam, and was horrified to read the daily paper and see this debarcle!!
Keep up the fight comrades!!
“There was a close miss when a group of bush regeneration workers were lucky to escape a serious incident when a rider came off his bike near the group.”
Well I'll be a eunuch's merkin. Because of the possibility that in another 12 years, some poor hapless, probably novice, rider who more than likely will be put off his line by the acivity caused by bush regenerators on the side of the track, might possibly fall into them thereby causing one of their floppy hats to fall off and expose their balding head to 23 seconds of potential sunburn, Mr Twat wants to close down the whole trail to mountainbikers and send us onto the Wakehurst Parkway.
From the Manly Daily of 4 May 2009: Since 1979 there have been at least 12 fatalities on the Wakehurst Parkway... , article: http://manly-daily.whereilive.com.au/news/story/...
At least that bush regenerator will be OK.
I'd like to see him walk the Wakehurst Parkway. What a nob.
did you see his comment in todays paper?
Google his name...
i was amazed to see his name in the local paper as he is a well known anti mountain biking internet troll. a total nut job, from the States too.
dan
Yeah stargate i saw his comment today too and had a great laugh at him.
“Having walked the track today we are of the unanimous opinion, as an executive group, that parts of the track are highly risky from a public liability point of view,”
Mr Hart and Mr Regan should walk the section of wakehurst parkway they are forcing us onto and see how risky that is!
After five days of hell and 250+ emails (the novelty has worn off, guys) and calls from the press and trying to have a life ... last night I tore off a letter to the editor that in part said: "Nine of us [councillors] heard about [the track closures] from a media release on Friday afternoon." And I signed it with my real name.
Then I get a call ... "this and this councillor said it was clear to them on 2 Feb that the track was about to be closed, why do you say it was a surprise to you?". Making sleep-deprived me feel like crap, so I explain myself (as per media statement), but phone council staff just in case I missed something (fool!) and they convince me with, "no, no, no, we made it clear the track was about to be closed". My head spins. So I ring the MD and "apologise" and stupidly think they won't run it, not realising "Hart backs biking ban" was the real story.
Then: Christina Kirsch reminds me the final page of the presentation said: "Proposed Current Action: Bush track section to be closed to MBs. Council cease promoting the circuit track and withdraw publications and update website. Volunteer Program at MWWMP will not be recommended to recommence until POM issues with MBs have been resolved." Which explains my lack of alarm on Feb 2. I thought we'd be voting on the stuff that followed the word "Proposed", on 23/2. Otherwise I would have gone nuts on 2 Feb, not 10 days later when the release lobbed. Since when does "proposed" mean "final"? I have always thought it was down for our vote. I guess my trainer-wheels need to go back on (again).
Obviously all this correction is too hard to get across in the newspaper and what's the point and I'm past caring. I just don't want the NobMob crew to think I've become a staff suck-up all of a sudden. Apologies are SO not my thing, btw. Remember, I was tired.
Anyway, thanks for caring if anyone still does. Sorry for the long and needy post. But hey, this is cheaper than therapy. And since I committed to FebFast (no alcohol all Feb), I'm alert enough to be here inflicting you with my pain instead of ... that other way of unwinding ... 11 days to go
Welcome to NoBMoB Virginia.
I must admit I wasn't expecting you to post here, I think it's great you have. I can't remember the last council post, even in the days of trail maintenance (I do have a bad memory though).
Hope to see you out on the trails sometime soon, when we finally get some back
No, I ride a (very cool) Townie, not a mountain bike. I shlepp around with the vegies in the basket, all very tame. I'm too chicken for that fancy rock-jumping stuff: not that there's anything wrong with it ... if I'm on that trail, I'll be your speedbump
Welcome to the forum Virginia...
I dont know how you deal with the chaos of working with the council. The behaviour of these people explains so much, and you have all our sympathy and support.
Don't worry Virginia, thanks for all your efforts period.
Put your feet up for a bit now and know you've done a good job and have always had the right motivations. It's crap like this that puts decent people like yourself off trying to help and do the right thing. Gets me livid it does...
Well you can be rest assured of one thing, you can write the truth as it is here and it will be read and appreciated .... by hundreds....
The real twats at the centre of this are just lining themselves up for a true shellacking .... Believe me its coming. I don't think they realize what a shit storm they have started.
I really don't know how you work with some of those stooges. This Hart guy, has he seen what the tracks are like in Canberra, New Zealand, Canada? Has he seen a mountain bike race in his life? Has he any knowledge of the trail building handbook and what lies within it before making his "executive" call which isn't obviously worth it's weight in rocking horse shit...
I'd think not!
So if 9/10 Councilors had No F...... Idea just how "Clear" was it? .... not very by the looks of it.
Some scrubbing up in the communication skills arena might be a better use of his time.
I might start penning the rights to a book with this saga....
Could do well out of it ....
Hang in there Virginia....
And again Thank You ...
Brad Prescott
Thank god we live in a democratic society. Albeit the actions of one Mr Hart, who in his professional career of mountain biking trail building and minister for sports & recreation, was able to determine that a trail that so many have ridden over the years was unsuitable.
The executive team of seasoned riders, being bush regenerators that accompanied him also deserve credit for their unanimous decision to vote it being unsafe.
Power is within the people and irrelevant to the notions of red tape that you endure day in, day out. Just remember why you got into council in the first place and then your steel and resilience will remind why you do it.
You have a support within the proverbial upper tree branches. Mike Baird, Kevin Greene ... even Peter Garrett! Are we pushing the envelope if we asked for intervention from Kate Ellis?
Ruffle the branches and leaves will fall...
If the email bombardment is too much to you directly, it can stop if you want and the likes of Hawkeye and Rob can represent us all.
Or alternatively, tell us where it should be re-directed to and we'd be all too happy to oblige
Manly Dam is more than a bike trail to us. It has become an icon of this mtb community and the last form of recreational, healthy and social escapes for a lot of us ... it will become ever more transparent as the protest ride day approaches
Keep the faith, Virginia. You have now become an honorary member of this growing fraternity ... despite you being a roadie
The Executive Committee would like to thank their sponsors for their unwavering support on their most recent field trip to Manly Dam.
Rockport shoes
Aeroguard Insect repellents
Johnson and Johnson (Band-Aids)
The egg and spoon racing society.
Plus moral support provided by dear Aunt Flo
Sorry, couldn't help it....
Is it possible to request (under the freedom of information act?) a copy of the report that Mr Hart is using to back up his claims? We're taking this as fact based on his view/slant of things so may be useful to put this in context. For example, where did it take place and what relevance does this have to the closures? Does this report even exist or is it just hearsay?
Just a thought that's been bugging me.
All these bloody comments from Council who porbably haven;t even ridden a mountain bike.. I would suggest somone from one of the mountain bike groups to invite Mr Hart for a ride or to come witness what moutnain bikes can really do onthe single track!! All these broad sweeping unsupported statements are making me mad!
Thank you Virginia for your candidness... the moral of the story being never to trust a journalist!!
Never mind about it, you are doing what you can for Sydney's mountain bike riders so we appreciate all your efforts. To stop our emails, you should maybe ask us to send them to Mayor Regan instead? 
A big happy agreement here ---->
<----- for getting this Mr Hart onto the trail, preferably on a bike, to see what mountain biking, trail building, and sustainability is all about. He has no clue and needs education on this.
Re the regeneration workers. This, IMHO, is a worry and needs attention. These workers do a great job out there keeping the environment we love in a good state. For their protection, they need large signs erected on the trail (with reaction time to spare) informing fast approaching cyclists about them being on or near the trail. Then there wouldn't be any near misses, or collisions. I have seen them use these signs before, but do they use them all the time?
The dam aside, this guy does not sound like the kind of person I want making 'executive' decisions that effect the public. He seems uninformed, uninterested in democratic process and frankly on a bit of a power trip.
So how does one get a public employee fired? As a member of the public I don't want to employ him any longer..........
Here's a virtual big hug for you. Your doing your best and good for you on giving up the booze. Darren.
Yes, I'm sure its possible. I would go through the manly daily as they most likely file FOI requests frequently.Can members of the public file them?
PM me if you like if you want me to make the call today.
I know it's under a different council but surely the bike path running the length of Manly beach is a much bigger liability issue and still stays there. I use this most days and am amazed I don't see more accidents. You have a combination of bikers, skaters, scooters, roller bladers all typically screaming along (mostly without helmets, but thats another issue!!) combined with people walking, stepping out from their parked cars pushing prams, small children running in front of you from either of the 2 playgrounds or numerous picnic tables.
Is there anything similiar to this in the Warringah council area that could be used as a precendent for a shared use track that stays open even though there is an obvious liability issue????
Owen
Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Mr hart responsible for bulldozing some of the the best Dirt jumps in Australia recently(Grove DJ's in Seaforth)?
If so, we need to have a meeting with him to see why he is so anti biking? and turn him around before he does more damage.
http://youtu.be/2CN8xCdDH4c
Can you believe this was in seaforth up until recently, not mountain biking as such but still part same team!
Not Warringah Council. Not Mr Hart.
Many of the current Manly Councillors had statements about rebuilding the Grove as part of their election platforms.
Doesn't appear to have happened
Just added this comment to the Daily article.
"Amazing that Mr Hart can take one look a a piece of shared trail and declare it "too dangerous" despite a wealth of information from here and abroad that counteract that claim.
Smacks of ill informed knee-jerk-reactionism that we don't expect from highly paid and supposedly level headed public servants.
I'd love to compared the 1 alleged near miss in 12 years with the incidents of pedestrians slipping over on council footpaths or swimmers rescued from council patrolled beaches over the same period.
Quick Mr Hart! ban walking and swimming before someone else gets hurt."
Would be awesome if we could get those accident figures as a direct comparison
My mistake, just remember his name being mentioned when this all went down.
http://blogs.rezurgence.com/musgrove/2008/06/gro...
Interesting read, quite sad actually.
Hope this whole situation helps their cause as well
I'm not surprised that it turns out Mr Hart is reponsible for this.
I've had the unfortunate pleasure of meeting him professionally & was not impressed by his manner & attitude.
Unfortuantely, being the General Manager he's not readily accountable to the public for his actions. He's probaly on a fixed contract term that may still have a number of years to run. However, there should be a public document that stipulates his terms & conditions of employment that would've needed Councillors approval to instigate. Might be interesting reading....
The only action available would be to write an official complaint to the Internal Ombudsman, but there would have to be be a clear breach of misconduct or maladministration for any real action to be taken.
http://www.warringah.nsw.gov.au/council_now/ombu...
The best course of action is to keep the current pressure on the Councillors as he cannot override their decisions.
He has done exactly this:
1. Make an executive decision to ban mountain bikes
2. Implement that decision without explicit approval by councillors
3. Councillors agitate, mayor backflips and reverses your decision
4. Public slapdown to councillors, take a walk with the Mayor who backflips his previous backflip
5. Original ban remains
I think it is pretty clear who runs things at Warringah Council.
Sorry, what I meant was that if hopefully at the extraordinary council meeting that's planned for the 23rd that the Councillors vote in favour of allowing mountain biking, then Mr Hart will not have the power to override. As things stand now, he has merely used his influence & litigation scare tactics of to bend the Mayor's ear. We still need to keep the councillors on side.
Council should be able to provide their criteria for: excessive public liability risk. We can compare that to crossing Wakehurst Pkwy, using the local skatepark, falling over on the cracked footpath. Interesting this risk has been assessed by "walk through" after imposition of the ban.
By the way, here is the Plan of Management - Take a look at the goals and objectives and see pages 16, 29 and 147 http://www.warringah.nsw.gov.au/publications/doc...
Looking into Rik Hart's background a bit it appears he came from a similar role in New Zealand at Hutt City.
It would also appear he is into Yachting - competing in races as the owner of a yacht called 'Te Manawa', he appeared in a race mentioned:
http://www.rpnyc.org.nz/index.php?option=com_con...
not sure if he still owns the yacht - it looks like it was on sale at http://www.vicsailpittwater.com.au/ at some point but is no longer listed there.
I wonder if some kind of appeal drawing parallels to the sport he obviously enjoys, but clearly has it's dangers would be of benefit?
As being a little creepy and therefore shifting the focus off of trail advocacy.
An interesting statement that comes from Warringah Council's own report:
"Warringah residents are far more likely than people in Sydney or NSW overall to die from a stroke and less likely to die from accidents (3%), including transport accidents."
I don't think I need to say anymore. Original document can be found here:
http://www.warringah.nsw.gov.au/publications/doc...
In light of recent developments, should we be sending our emails to Mr Hart ?
While most of the elected councillors have had their inboxes flooded over the weekend, I'm sure Mr Hart didn't get a thing.
Given the spirited ( and typically rational ) response from councillors it would appear that Mr Hart is the person most needing to be persuaded by our arguments ( politely as always ...)
Any thoughts from those closer to the coalface ? Would this be useful or counterproductive ?
CB
I will email him and call his PA tomorrow.
I think he deserves a few emails and calls for his comments in the paper today.
This guy Hart has been described to me as a technocrat who appears largely immune to political pressure as he just doesn't rate it as important - that's what Councillors are there to deal with, in his view of the world. His job as he sees it is to keep them on the straight and narrow of legal and liability compliance.
What matters to him is solely the technicalities: legislation, PoM's, etc. So if you're going to bomb his inbox, DO YOUR HOMEWORK and do it properly - talk to him in these terms. Be aware too that he has a significant home field advantage.
Do it. We just hit 316 emails.
This whole situation is laughable and despite knowing I'm preaching to the converted I'm going to have a rant here anyway because I need to vent my anger at these developments.
Living in europe, I used to be suprised and offended when I came across people who viewed Australia as a slightly backward nation, behind the times in regards to what is happening in the rest of the western world. It is infuriating to continually discover that such assumptions are in fact correct, the country I grew up in tearing around local woods on my BMX no longer exists and that we now prefer our young population to spend their time in Westfield shopping malls (as long as they don't congregate in groups!) or at home in front of the telly or computer.
How long until Sydney councils start banning footy and soccer from local ovals because of the risk of injury? Where is the vision and leadership from our elected representative's when it comes to promoting such a positive outdoor activity as mountain biking? I'm aware we have a few supporters in Mike and Virginia et al but how can they be the minority and not the majority? If they're worried about damage to the landscape, allow legal, professionally designed trails to be built and maintained by rider groups. If they're concerned about litigation, put signs up and lobby the legislators to throw ridiculous claims for compensation out of the courts.
It can and has been done!!
http://www.dolectures.com/speakers/speakers-2008...
http://www.7stanes.gov.uk/website/forestry.nsf/b...
Where is the MTBA? If stepping in to represent our sport during situations like this isn't their job then what is?
I'll be thinking of you while enjoying the spoils of a forward thinking nation when I'm at Afan Forest in south Wales this weekend. Unfortunately this will inevitably mean I'll also be weighing up the decision to ever move back to my home town.
Consider it done.
Anyone got an email address for Rick Hart?
this is all i was able to find but i am sure someone may know more
General Manager Rik Hart
Address Civic Centre
725 Pittwater Road
Dee Why NSW 2099
DX 9118 Dee Why
Email [email protected]
Telephone 9942 2111
Fax 9971 4522
After Hours - emergency calls to Council 9942 2111
Council Hours 8.30am-5pm Mon-Fri
Council Meetings - second and fourth Tuesday of the month 9942 2444
What a fantastic waste of time and money this all is
Kind of sums up most local councils
Wasn't this the council that was sacked last year?
Who knows - I can't keep up with all the silliness
I MTB'd on Sydney's Northern Beaches for around 3 years
In that time, pretty much every good trail was gradually closed to riding
And now Manly Dam is closed, and let's get real, won't be opened any time soon
Red Hill is now the only one - but it's a bog for about 1 or 2 weeks after rain
And it seems only a matter of time for this as well
Makes you want to get your shovel and start digging (shock/ horror)
Try: [email protected]
These are the email address from council
Rik Hart
[email protected] and
Gayle Sloan, Director of Community and Environmental Services
[email protected].
has anyone contacted television programs about it at all? Or is there a radio personality that has heaps of pull that could lend a hand?
To start with it sounded like a bad idea, but the more negative feedback i am hearing about this council the more i think it might be worth getting someone with a bit more pull on our side.
In order to go to the media you need to be backed up with FACTS.
ie. I have been told that 330 people a day on the weekend ride Manly Dam, but where is it written and who did the study?
Christine asked for facts on here a week ago to put together a solid media release and do you know what she got? NOTHING!
I wouldn't want to be the person getting interviewed on radio by Alan Jones Or Ray Hadley and tell them the above statistic only for their reply to be 'what is your source of information?'.
It would be detrimental to bang it up in the media without having any facts to back yourself up with....
@dangersean you are right - we all know lots of people ride the dam - too busy enjoying ourselves to count them
you can bet someone at the council has counted numbers at some stage or stages......
It's probably part of their argument about why it's so unsafe.