E Bikes, the new motorized access scourge?

[Yarak]

This is exactly my point, getting older sucks but using hi teck e Bikes to give everyone easy and "equal access" is detrimental to game security, there's no way around that fact.
I wish there weren't so many carve outs in the west, it's plain retarded for IDFG to make "non motorized access agreements" then allow electric motors..

I’m far from being “old” as you say
It’s my body that’s broke up
Just because you don’t like someone’s way to hunt you want it banned is what you’re saying ?
I have no idea what game security means
When I hunt you can rest assured game isn’t secure or safe
If I had the means to access the back country on my feet I’d do it but since I can’t you better believe I’m going to make the most out of life and if the opportunity arises for me to use a E-Bike to do it I’ll ride right past you to get to the “secure” game

 

[Rich M]

I took a friend elk hunting in a "non motorized" area opening day of the Idaho rifle season.
We were sweating up a long grade on mountain bikes in the dark when suddenly a couple fat boys from the Midwest came cruising past us on 1000 watt $7000
E bikes.
They were nice guys and we chatted a few minutes, apparently many areas closed to motorized access have carve outs for e bikes..
These dudes were in terrible shape yet here they were cruising up the mountain to get miles deep into elk habitat.

Are we basically regulating ATV access, and allowing Ebikes to take guys further into even more un-accessible terrain?
I see where this is going and I don't like the outlook for big game security.

Thanks, I needed a good laugh this morning.

Are you more upset that they were on Ebikes or that they were fat and hunting the same territory you were in??? LoL!

You say fat and terrible shape - some on here seem fixated on that.

This is just about having to share the mountain with others. One honest guy on here turned in someone cause they "messed up his hunt" more than cause the guy rode a pedal bike in. Punish him was the theme. He "messed up" my hunt. LoL!

You drive to the trailhead and use GPS, aerial photos, and "in-reach" and then complain about Ebikes?

But if you allow one technological thing, you gotta allow the others. Ebikes are great cause they are so quiet. I see nothing wrong with them - just the folks who think they should be the only ones hunting on the mountain, that's what's wrong.

 

[762 ULTRAMAGA]

Thanks, I needed a good laugh this morning.

Are you more upset that they were on Ebikes or that they were fat and hunting the same territory you were in??? LoL!

You say fat and terrible shape - some on here seem fixated on that.

This is just about having to share the mountain with others. One honest guy on here turned in someone cause they "messed up his hunt" more than cause the guy rode a pedal bike in. Punish him was the theme. He "messed up" my hunt. LoL!

You drive to the trailhead and use GPS, aerial photos, and "in-reach" and then complain about Ebikes?

But if you allow one technological thing, you gotta allow the others. Ebikes are great cause they are so quiet. I see nothing wrong with them - just the folks who think they should be the only ones hunting on the mountain, that's what's wrong.

Another dude totally missing the point..
The issue I take is with motorized access being treated the same as non motorized cuz its Flippin electric!
Here's the bottom line Bra, you give everyone easy access into areas that elk retreat into when the super heavy pressure starts in areas easily accessible, and the elk take a hard hit.

Think about this for a minute:
Elk are lazy, if they could they'd be chillin in the pasture with the cattle.
Hunting pressure near roads pushes elk deeper into more remote habitat that's more difficult to access, tons of pressure ruins the hunting in very accessible areas so guys push further and further back trying to get a leg up on the competition.
Eventually everyone gets motorized off road transportion into these areas, and now you've made the front country problem a back country problem.
It comes down to numbers, not everyone is willing to work hard accessing deeper county by foot or other non motorized methods.
Make that access easy and there's no more game security, period.

Everyone thinks more motorized access is beneficial but in the end everyone loses, if this keeps up many areas will see tighter tag caps and even go to special draw.
I just hope they start by taking away 90% of the non res tags like in Wyoming

 

[Rich M]

If you guys are as good as you say, you should be able to kill elk at will. A few NR guys in the mix should keep it exciting and no too easy.

So, now you want to eliminate 90% of NR hunters. Just keep enough to pay your way. Sounds about right.

Stay off my lawn! LoL!

I feel your pain and can relate. I get to share a lot smaller piece of dirt with a lot more guys and can play or stay home. One place I hunt from time to time is 6,000 acres, they issue 150 permits and allow a guest hunter per permit. It is insane. But it is what we got.

 

[tdhanses]

Another dude totally missing the point..
The issue I take is with motorized access being treated the same as non motorized cuz its Flippin electric!
Here's the bottom line Bra, you give everyone easy access into areas that elk retreat into when the super heavy pressure starts in areas easily accessible, and the elk take a hard hit.

Think about this for a minute:
Elk are lazy, if they could they'd be chillin in the pasture with the cattle.
Hunting pressure near roads pushes elk deeper into more remote habitat that's more difficult to access, tons of pressure ruins the hunting in very accessible areas so guys push further and further back trying to get a leg up on the competition.
Eventually everyone gets motorized off road transportion into these areas, and now you've made the front country problem a back country problem.
It comes down to numbers, not everyone is willing to work hard accessing deeper county by foot or other non motorized methods.
Make that access easy and there's no more game security, period.

Everyone thinks more motorized access is beneficial but in the end everyone loses, if this keeps up many areas will see tighter tag caps and even go to special draw.
I just hope they start by taking away 90% of the non res tags like in Wyoming

Haha, so ebikes are what will up hunter success rates, good to know. Shocked the horse, lama, and goat guys aren’t batting 100% with this logic and they can ride right up anywhere they want not having to stay on trails.

 

[cnelk]

Haha, so ebikes are what will up hunter success rates, good to know. Shocked the horse, lama, and goat guys aren’t batting 100% with this logic and they can ride right up anywhere they want not having to stay on trails.

Don’t go confusing the topic with logic

 

[Ehunter]

EV bikes are not allowed in wilderness areas in Oregon and most timber companies won't allow them. We used MT bikes for years behind closed gates. They are still allowed where we hunt as long as they are not motorized. I understand the posters issue though.

 

[RS_Non-Res]

Elk are lazy, if they could they'd be chillin in the pasture with the cattle.

If elk as so lazy, don't they need E-bikes?

 

[goathunter]

Haha, so ebikes are what will up hunter success rates, good to know. Shocked the horse, lama, and goat guys aren’t batting 100% with this logic and they can ride right up anywhere they want not having to stay on trails.

This is what I am reading is the OP's point that continues to be ignored over and over -

Who here could save up $1500 and store an e-Bike in their garage?

Who here could buy 4 horses, horse trailer, HD truck to tow it, have the land to pasture, feed, shoe, vet bills, and care for all year long?

e-Bikes are more accessible to people with less of a commitment. And this is why everyone's not horse hunting.

There are a bunch of areas currently open to motorized traffic in the Forest Service plan, e-Bikes welcome there - have at it. If riding where non-motorized vehicle are prohibited you are breaking that regulation.

 

[tdhanses]

This is what I am reading is the OP's point that continues to be ignored over and over -

Who here could save up $1500 and store an e-Bike in their garage?

Who here could buy 4 horses, horse trailer, HD truck to tow it, have the land to pasture, feed, shoe, vet bills, and care for all year long?

e-Bikes are more accessible to people with less of a commitment. And this is why everyone's not horse hunting.

There are a bunch of areas currently open to motorized traffic in the Forest Service plan, e-Bikes welcome there - have at it. If riding where non-motorized vehicle are prohibited you are breaking that regulation.

In WY you can rent horses for $600 a week, no need to own one.

 

[HighUintas]

I hike my butt way back into a wilderness area to get away from the majority of hunters. The only people I've come across are horse hunters. I guess I'm ok with that being allowed, because it always has been and there's not many of them. On the other hand, they F up the trail considerably. On the other other hand, the massive amount of sheep grazing allowed up there through the summer (because they're grandfathered in) has definitely Fd the ecosystem and flora up there, possibly irreversibly. Mountain bikes are not allowed there and I haven't seen one there.

With the growing number of hunters in general, maybe it's wise to restrict the mode of travel by permits to prevent the overuse of more impactful forms of travel, likes horses.

My entire post was on horses because that's what I see where I hunt.

Screw E-bikes. They all need to melt. They're like the high pressure capable scoped muzzleloader. Mountain bikes.... Let's keep them restricted to Moab.
I could buy 3 ebikes if I wanted. But I hate em.

 

[goathunter]

In WY you can rent horses for $600 a week, no need to own one.

It's not that cheap. What about trailering, transport, saddle and tack? That's not free. What are you out if one runs off? Also, knowing how to ride and not get yourself killed. And there's the whole caring for them when you should be hunting. They need food and water every day. Even renting is a huge commitment.

 

[tdhanses]

It's not that cheap. What about trailering, transport, saddle and tack? That's not free. What are you out if one runs off? Also, knowing how to ride and not get yourself killed. And there's the whole caring for them when you should be hunting. They need food and water every day. Even renting is a huge commitment.

$600 a week delivered to the trail head with saddle and tack, at least it was a couple years ago, might be $800 now.

It is a commitment but a very doable one that is way cheaper then owning and available. Also many outfitters lease their stock and don’t own every animal they use. It’s not that expensive to have a herd of horses you lease/rent out if you have the land.

 

[goathunter]

$600 a week delivered to the trail head with saddle and tack, at least it was a couple years ago, might be $800 now.

It is a commitment but a very doable one that is way cheaper then owning and available. Also many outfitters lease their stock and don’t own every animal they use. It’s not that expensive to have a herd of horses you lease/rent out if you have the land.

Realistically, you would never rent just one, they never go out on their own. And what kind of horse is someone that's never ridden a horse before going to get? The crazy kind? If what you say is true, yes I guess it could be afforded but good luck with that adventure!

The only reason I'm pointing all this out is you keep comparing e-bikes to stock. And I am saying, in my opinion, no, it's not the same. There's a reason everyone's not doing it, it's hard. And the OP's point is eBikes aren't hard.

I've used mountain bikes, side by sides, and horses to hunt all where legal. I would have no problem riding an e-bike where legal too but wouldn't argue that it's a bicycle and can be ridden on a non-motorized trail.

 

[tdhanses]

Realistically, you would never rent just one, they never go out on their own. And what kind of horse is someone that's never ridden a horse before going to get? The crazy kind? If what you say is true, yes I guess it could be afforded but good luck with that adventure!

The only reason I'm pointing all this out is you keep comparing e-bikes to stock. And I am saying, in my opinion, no, it's not the same. There's a reason everyone's not doing it, it's hard. And the OP's point is eBikes aren't hard.

I've used mountain bikes, side by sides, and horses to hunt all where legal. I would have no problem riding an e-bike where legal too but wouldn't argue that it's a bicycle and can be ridden on a non-motorized trail.

I doubt most could ride an ebike back where horses go, maybe a few but not many. Also doubt many could haul out an elk using one.

I just don’t see them as the pure easy button. Yes some will think they are and try, many will only do it once and they’ll pedal them out when the battery dies, look at the electric ford pickup, has a 300 mile range as long as nothing is in the bed or hooked up, add some weight on a trailer and it quickly reduces battery life to around 90 miles, same logic will apply to battery anything.

 

[goathunter]

I doubt most could ride an ebike back where horses go, maybe a few but not many. Also doubt many could haul out an elk using one.

I just don’t see them as the pure easy button.

I see your point there. I'd hate to have a breakdown and push one out

 

[Lowg08]

I won’t lie. If I had time I would rather have horses than bikes any day. I’ve rode horses since I was in school. It’s how I got running money. I would break colts for a local barn. I had horses at one point just don’t have time anymore. There is a guy in here. I can’t remember his screen name but he has some amazing horse threads on here. If I had time. I would want horses like he trains.

 

[uc3kimber]

Ebike=motorized.

I contacted the Bureau of Land Management and the Wyoming state land management about this exact thing. Response was if it has a motor it is restricted to the access trails for motorized vehicles. Now that was Wyoming, other states may be different.

Sent from my SM-G975F using Tapatalk

 

[cnelk]

Try contacting a State/Federal entity and tell them you want to have a motorized sticker (like an atv/dirt bike has) for your ebike.

They will tell you that you don’t need one

 

[CorbLand]

Try contacting a State/Federal entity and tell them you want to have a motorized sticker (like an atv/dirt bike has) for your ebike.

They will tell you that you don’t need one

You dont have to register drones like an aircraft but you still have restrictions where you can fly them.