Youth Mountain Bike Racing series pulls events from Enterprise South Nature Park

Jake Dedeker takes his mountain bike out for a spin around dusk at Enterprise South Nature Park in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014.
Jake Dedeker takes his mountain bike out for a spin around dusk at Enterprise South Nature Park in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2014.

A youth mountain biking racing series has pulled all its events from Enterprise South Nature Park after an incident Saturday involving parks officials and parents.

A disagreement between a park ranger, park official and the race director over course markings ended with a park ranger allegedly removing the markings during the race while participants were on the course, cursing in front of children and driving on the trails during the race, according to several parents who attended the event. At least one 10-year-old boy from Knoxville got lost in the park after he got off-course when the markings were removed. He was found shortly after in the woods, in tears by a parent of another racer.

"Multiple interactions that followed and miscommunication among all involved escalated the situation; reports describe a display of unacceptable behavior and inappropriate language for a park setting," Hamilton County Parks and Recreation Director Tom Lamb said. "The parks and recreation department is conducting a full review of this incident to ensure professional, courteous service from all staff. In addition, specific protocols are being developed to address the coordination of special events and programs in all Hamilton County Parks."

Tennessee Youth Mountain Bike Racing Series race director Eric Pullen said he put up markings for the course during the race, as he has for races at the facility for several years. The markings were to ensure racers - who are as young as 4 - stayed on the course and hikers didn't accidentally wander into the race while riders were racing.

However, park officials received complaints from visitors who thought the trails were closed to the public, which they were not. Race officials and park leaders had discussed keeping the trails open during the races. However, despite signs at the trailheads notifying visitors the trails were still open, the course markings led some guests to believe the trails were closed.

"My thought is the safety of these kids is more important," parent Joshua Reed said. "And if they really think there is a problem with the way the race was run, that should be addressed to the race director after the race as opposed to pulling down tape while kids are out on the course, creating an immediate safety hazard."

Reed is the father of the 10-year-old boy who got lost on the course and is a veteran rider who has raced and volunteered for mountain biking events and trail races for 20 years, he said.

The Tennessee Youth Mountain Bike Racing Series runs, on average, five-to-seven races per season for children and their parents. Most of the races are in East Tennessee, with a majority of events held at the nature park. Saturday's race featured 50 racers.

"I have had a wonderful working relationship with the park for seven years," Pullen said. "I have never had a problem. Most of the people there I would consider and call a friend to this day. I am absolutely floored by what happened. I can't even understand how it got to where it is."

Contact staff writer Mark Pace at mpace@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659. Follow him on Twitter @themarkpace and on Facebook at ChattanoogaOutdoorsTFP.

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