Demand for Trails and Routes - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 115

Table 4.11 Mean importance ratings for factors infl uencing a route choice

Infl uential factor Mean (1 not important, 5 extremely important)

Directness 4.0

Road conditions 3.6

Travel time 3.6

Safety 3.5

Weather 3.5

Businesses 3.4

Congestion 3.4

Distance 3.4

Stops/delays 3.2

Scenery 3.1

Stress of driving 3.1

Designated scenic byway 2.6

Roadside development 2.6

Historical/cultural features 2.4

Source: after Eby and Molnar (2002: 99).

select different settings to undertake trail pursuits. Experienced users, accord-
ing to McFarlane et al. (1998: 209), select more challenging and more remote
trails. Initially, they may be casual users who choose shorter or less-challenging
trails, but as they become more diehard enthusiasts, they graduate to more
arduous courses that take longer to complete (Torbidoni et al. , 2005).
Another way of looking at experience and choice is the conjoined notions
of loyalty and attachment (Kyle et al. , 2004). After experiencing a particular
trail or type of trail (e.g. wine route or mountain track) some people begin to
identify with that route and become 'loyalists' or otherwise socially attached
to it in a way that resembles what Turner (1973) termed communitas in the
context of pilgrimage. This phenomenon refers to spontaneous, existential
and temporary communities wherein individuals are treated as equals and are
bound by solidarity through common experiences, often of a spiritual or ritu-
alistic nature. Rickly-Boyd (2012) examined lifestyle rock climbers partially
through the lens of communitas and found that many of their subcultural char-
acteristics are in line with Turner's thinking and match many characteristics
of 'secular pilgrims' in the same way many devoted music and sports enthu-
siasts identify intensely with other fans who collect places, experiences and
memorabilia associated with famous musicians or athletes (Cusack & Digance,
2009; Frost, 2008).
Like these examples, a connection to individual famous trails is often
accentuated by one's ascension into the subculture of trail attachment and
fanship (Gobster, 2005). Loyalty and group solidarity develop. In this sense,