| # | Name | Comments |
|---|
| 51 | Deb Peters | |
| 52 | Jeannie Maurer | |
| 53 | Renee Houston-Lang | |
| 54 | Virginia Plouff | Horseback riding on Colorado public lands is our heritage. Please, don't limit our access to state parks. Keep trails in Colorado, existing and potential new trails, open to equestrian use. The proposed Staunton State Park should be equally available to equestrians as it is to other use groups. |
| 55 | Danette M. Swanson | Have we not learned our lesson yet??? From putting Native Americans on reservations, to crowding mountain lions, buffalo, and grizzly bears out of their natural habitats, now, trails for horse back riding get displaced by mountain bikes - and other non-eco traffic??? Take a look at "tracks for trails" -- horses and wheels and people on foot have happily and easily co-existed on trails together. If there should be restrictions, it should be the non-eco friendly traffic. We need to protect our environment and also protect the right for ALL of us to be a part of it!!! We have horse groups who work hard at "giving back" for the privilage of using trails -- by doing trail maintenance. I haven't heard one mountain biker talk about doing trail maintenance.... |
| 56 | Lynn Mareth | |
| 57 | Claudia McEvilly | Please allow access to horses and Staunton State Park. There is nothing quite like the feeling of riding one's horse through open space. I feel it is my right to bring my horse onto public land just as it is to bring my car onto any parking lot on public property. |
| 58 | Lisa Bialy | |
| 59 | Victoria Long | This country was built with the use of horse power and I for one want that to be a protected us of our lands. |
| 60 | Linda Evans | please allow horses on these trails we pay our taxes too and deserve to enjoy the parks! |
| 61 | Robert Hinkle | Plese provide equestrian and pedestrian access for this new state park. |
| 62 | Amy Fleming | |
| 63 | Brianne Shockey | |
| 64 | Lisa Wagner | |
| 65 | Anonymous | Please add my name to the petition. I am interested in keeping trails open to equestrians.
Thanks |
| 66 | Deborah Menke | |
| 67 | Debra Cheuvront | The argument that horses do not belong on public lands (paid for by ALL taxpayers) because the land is too pristine is absurd! Horses have been in our backcountry for centuries and their riders are far more respectful and protective of our landscape than bikers and hikers and do far less damage! |
| 68 | Sandy Powell | Horses have been a part of the growth and culture of our state. I am a 3rd generation native of Colorado and my grandfather and father rode horses not bikes when tending their cattle and sheep.
This banning of horses on state land is prejudicial and unfair. I would prefer to see half the trail area reserved for horses and pedestrians and let the elitist bikers have their own trails. |
| 69 | Joy Overbeck | Hello,
We are horse owners who are very concerned about the lack of access to the beautiful trails in our State Parks. Colorado has a wonderful ranching and horse heritage that has been ignored in the planning of these parks, in most of which horses are banned. The irony is most of these parks are former ranches that horse riding ranchers donated to the state! Only about a quarter of the state parks have trails of 10 miles or more for horses. To disallow horses is to ignore our proud Western heritage. It is also inequitable: why should bikers, whose recreational activity promotes erosion and destruction of the land, be allowed when horses, a natural part of the Colorado landscape for generations, be banned ? Horse owners are taxpayers who support the state parks; plus we pay hefty brand inspection fees, which bikers and hikers do not. The Colorado horse industry makes an important contribution to our state's economy. Our beautiful parks can also be a powerful tourist attraction to riders from other states. We deserve equal opportunity to camp and ride the trails of our Colorado parks. Please allow horse people to ride and camp at Staunton Park.
Sincerely,
Joy Overbeck and Buff Arnold
Kiowa, CO |
| 70 | Sharon Strong | In my experience, equestrians are less likely to leave litter or damage park facilities than hikers or bikers. As a rule, trail riders are a different generational group than Mountain Bikers, and are more responsible and mature. If necessary, equestrian use of the park during times when damage would be done could be controlled. Since we all contribute to creating and maintaining Colorado State Parks, it is discriminatory not to allow equestrian use of the park in the same capacity as that of hikers and bikers. |
| 71 | David Rommelmann | |
| 72 | Paula Dailey | |
| 73 | Anonymous | I would appreciate the Staunton trail be equally open to equestrians as much as bicyclists and hikers. Thank you. |
| 74 | Mr. Robyn P. Schappaugh | As a member of the Colorado State Drafthorse Ass. The Colorado state Muzzleloaders Ass. the National Rifle Ass. I want to express my desire to be able to use all the trails of Staunton State Park with my horses. for my recreational enjoyment. Horses do much less damage to the environment than bicycles and jogger/hickers depositing their refuse along "pristine " trails... Thank you |
| 75 | Anonymous | |
| 76 | Sandy Cochran | |
| 77 | Jillian L'Ecuyer | |
| 78 | James L. Digby | |
| 79 | Colleen E. Dotter | I think it is unfair to leave equistrians out of the use of all state parks, such as Staunton & Cheyenne Mountain. Bicylists have the use of many more trails & bike paths, and they should be limited in more of the state parks and equistrians and hikers should have more expanded use of state parks and trails. |
| 80 | Debra A Mulder | |
| 81 | Joanne Stein | |
| 82 | Maxine Doner | Please keep the parks open to horses and horse camping. This is our heritage and we are major contributors to the economy. Thanks, Maxine |
| 83 | Sharon Kleist | The "real west" is epitomized by the historic use of the mountain, plains, deserts, and open spaces by ALL citizens of Colorado. Horsemen and women are today's representatives of the people that settled and treasured the lands that are being protected under the state parks system. Our state belongs to all of us and should be shared on an equal basis by all citizens. |
| 84 | Joanne Pavlis | Horses on the trail are more natural then anything with a motor |
| 85 | Sandra Lee McDade | |
| 86 | Karine L. Kuehn | |
| 87 | Ellyn Prescott | |
| 88 | William Prescott | |
| 89 | Anonymous | |
| 90 | Wanda Martinez | The horse folks are losing more and more riding area to development. Please keep us in mind when you designate this park. Horses are a main staple of the Colorado legacy. New Mexico and other states are realizing this . Please say you will too. |
| 91 | Lilo Bradford | In the 15 years I have lived in Douglas county I have seen so much open country (ranch land) disappear and be converted to 35 acre lots or even higher density.
The state parks might be the only regions left for trail riders. Please consider the needs of the horse back riders when planning this new park.
Thank you. |
| 92 | Eleanore Blacketer | We are tax payers too! All parks are a source of recreation for all sectors of the community. |
| 93 | ann | hay we need more horse camping , trail rideing area's cause if we dont they wont be trail's cause of Bikers and hickers and dog walkers every were and wildlife mean mostly bear's and cougers being that we do encounter them on the trail's and that we need to be carefull cause with housing plant's going in there makeing trail's for us horseback riding extinct and moveing us farther in to the city |
| 94 | mandy mcarthur | |
| 95 | Kathy Walker | |
| 96 | Beverly Rampey | State Parks MUST be open to equestrian use. We are a vital part of Colorado's outdoors and should not be ignored or discriminated against. |
| 97 | Anonymous | I have been trail riding for over 20 years in Colorado. I am seeing a consistant trend to leave out or close down horse trails all over the state.
Horses in Colorado are part of our heritage and should be allowed in all of our state parks. Without the use of horses, our history would be much different, they symbolize the West and our Western Heritage. Many of our parks and open spaces were previous ranches - how wrong can you get to turn around and ban them now? Horses were being used long before everyone decided to buy a mountain bike.
Horses are a multi-million dollar business and contribute to the economy. By leaving no trails or camping areas for equistrians, the number of horses would be reduced, thereby, losing valuable jobs and dollars. Large animal vets, farriers, horse chiroprators, farm supply stores, tack stores, western clothing, hay and grain farmers, truck sales, and horse trailer sales are but a few of the industries that would lose jobs and the state would lose tax dollars. I'm sure even the most frugal of horse owners spend thousands more on their hobby then the most avid biker or hiker.
There are many out-of-state horse owners that are continually looking for places to ride and camp with their horses. I find it amazing that South Dakota has more horse camps than Colorado. If we had more places for them with long trails that are worth driving to, we would attract more tourist dollars in that area.
Equistrians pay just as much, if not more, in taxes and it is unfair to shut them out but leave the area's open to a special few interest groups.
Some places say they will allow horses, but only give us bike trails to ride on or right next to. They also don't give us the needed parking space to use the area. Or, they only have 5-10 miles of trail - not enough to usually bother trailering to.
Colorado is full of history - don't shut out the horse and the great part it played in our states history. Open all areas to trail riders. |
| 98 | Carolyn Knapp-Nelson | |
| 99 | Dorene Stark | |
| 100 | sherry lee jones | THANKS |