Bush to open national parks to mountain bikes

Brent just e-mailed us about this Salon article from the AP wire:

Oct 14th, 2008 WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration is taking steps to make it easier for mountain bikers to gain access to national parks and other public lands before the president — an avid cyclist himself — leaves office.The National Park Service confirmed Tuesday that it is preparing a rule to allow park managers in some cases to decide which trails to open to mountain bikers. Once it's finalized, the rule would take this authority away from federal regulators in Washington, who sometimes take years to decide whether to allow bicycles on individual trails. A park service spokesman said the rule would be proposed no later than Nov. 15 in order for it to be finalized before Bush leaves office.