Mountain bikers struggle for their piece of the trails at Portuguese Bend
The price of preservation Mountain biker Tim Vaughan rides in the Portuguese Bend area of the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve. Photo by Kathalina Rodriguez Bill Ailor looked out over the Palos Verdes Nature Preserve on a recent weekday and grinned. A broad-rimmed hat shielded the sun. Catalina Island stretched across the sea. And the rolling hills that he worked years to preserve descended toward the cliffs below. The dream Ailor and his wife Barbara shared more than 25 years ago – when he founded the Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy – had officially come true. Supporters unveiled a monument in February at Del Cerro Park to commemorate the last section of the 1,400-acre preserve, a 190-acre plot acquired in 2009 known as Upper Filiorum. Brian Campbell, mayor pro tem of Rancho Palos Verdes, told a few dozen of the group’s many supporters gathered that day he was proud to know the land will remain untouched for generations. “Not too long ago we were walking along the trail here and I was able to tell my son that this view we’re looking at today, you’re going to be able to walk it someday, many years from now, and it’s going to look just like this,” Campbell said. When Ailor…
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