Originally Posted by
Mossdog
I think you're right to raise it as an issue, both in terms of possibly adding a richer diversity to fellrunning communities, making it appear less exclusive even if it isn't, but particularly in regard to encouraging wider participation in, and appreciation of, sports and physical activities generally that take place on the fells and wilder parts of the UK. This is because the wider the participation - the wider the political power. Currently, we have the CROW Act which has improved (despite room for improvement) access issues compared to what we previously had in the UK, other than in Scotland. But that could all change easily, such as with potential moves to try to monetise access (charging to enter our National Parks, etc.), or other shifts in political policies. If a wider proportion of the UK's population from all communities value free access, then its becomes politically more difficult to backtrack or introduce other restrictive measures.