Well, let's consider this carefully for a second. Now, I'm a southern boy, but I do have some experience with chains. In snow, and in some applications, on ice, chains have their place. They use the weight of the vehicle to cut into ice and hardpack to gain traction - we all know that. By the same token, they would use the weight of the vehicle to cut into rock, hard dirt and other trail obsticles. One guy doing it might not hurt a trail, but the long run is what we're looking at here. It seems only logical to forward the notion that if everyone is putting that kind of wear and tear on a trail, it ain't a good thing.

Maybe I'm not thinking right.