Off-road Cycling.

[Chippy_Tea]

Cyclists may upset the crag rats and land owners buy they have as much right to be on these paths as them and if its the land owners the same applies, this is taking it way too far.

(I was a trail bike rider back in the day so have a hatred of crag rats as they got the majority of the green lanes (ancient unmetalled roads) in the lake district downgraded to bridal-ways so no off road riders can now ride them )


BBC News -

"The worrying thing is we don't know who it is who's doing this kind of stuff.

"It's somebody with a vendetta, someone who has something against we assume mountain bikers or riders - but the things they're putting out do not discriminate.

"It's an incredibly dangerous and reckless thing to do."



"Incredibly dangerous" booby traps have been found on popular cycle paths in the Peak District.

Items found in recent weeks include large rocks moved out of position, pins dropped on the road and branches arranged at head height across paths.

Chris Maloney, who runs a local cycling information blog, said while cyclists appeared to be the target, the obstacles could harm anyone.

Police said they had been made aware and appealed for information.

The traps have been spotted on trails and roads in Bradwell, Bamford and Aston, near the Derbyshire/South Yorkshire border. There are no reports of anyone being injured.

Full article - https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-derbyshire-48961360

 

[the_quick]

Terrible, who would want cyclist to be harm so much? Very vicious !

 

[Leon103]

Someone as been doing this near me for years and never been caught. Every so often a new trap is found. Targeting walkers, runners and cyclists.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

They are cowards they haven't got the balls to confront the riders.

 

[simon12]

Someone local to here (Edenbridge) showed me a picture yesterday of barbed wire put at neck high to a cyclist put across a popular cycle route he found recently. Is this a cyclist vs walkers or farmers or just evil bastards or something else?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

If it isn't a public right of way a farmer has every right to stop bikes tearing up his/her land but not by using these methods.

It does make you wonder what sort of person would use barbed wire in that way.

 

[simon12]

If it isn't a public right of way a farmer has every right to stop bikes tearing up his/her land but not by using these methods.

It does make you wonder what sort of person would use barbed wire in that way.

Are you saying farmers are the prime suspect in these cases?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Are you saying farmers are the prime suspect in these cases?

No as I don't know if the track in the BBC article is a public right of way or not if it is a PROW why would a farmer be bothered (as long as they are closing gates behind them etc)

I am saying if cyclists are using a farmers field where there is no right of way for public he/she has every right to stop them using it but this would not be the way to do it.

 

[PhilBrew]

Hi Chippy

From the coverage I've seen, I believe all of these incidents have been happening on (PROW) bridleways ... I don't believe that the Sheffield MTB club (who seem to be quite vocal in complaining about it) would be dumb enough to complain about these "traps" being put up in places where they shouldn't be going anyway ... also, I don't know how long this has been going on for, but interestingly the wider coverage appears to have coincided with the dumb statements about razor wire being used to decapitate cyclists made in a local Sheffield magazine, as covered in the Independent article there (link)

One thing that occurs to me, all of the coverage I've seen has focussed on the danger to cyclists and (to a lesser extent) walkers ... but I just don't understand why none of the coverage seems to mention the danger these traps will be exposing animals (horses and dogs, and maybe sheep in some fields) to ... if you want to stop the Great British public from doing ANYTHING all you have to do is tell them it might harm an animal and they'll soon stop it.

Cheers, PhilB

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I don't believe that the Sheffield MTB club (who seem to be quite vocal in complaining about it) would be dumb enough to complain about these "traps" being put up in places where they shouldn't be going anyway

Good point Phil so is it cycle hating walkers or morons wanting to cause harm to cyclists, walkers and animals that are behind it, i guess we will never know.

 

[PhilBrew]

Hi Chippy

Good point Phil so is it cycle hating walkers or morons wanting to cause harm to cyclists, walkers and animals that are behind it, i guess we will never know.

... as you say, I guess we'll never know ... but the tenor of the coverage appears to suggest it's not "random" enough to be (just) morons ...

I do know that as a walker I've had my share of experiences with ar$ehole cyclists out on moors who seem to think that riding at you from behind as fast as they can and shouting "coming through" is sufficient recognition of your existence and right to be there ... and as a cyclist, even as the sort of cyclist who rides around the countryside dinging a bell whenever I see anyone remotely near me and will slow down and give a cheery "good morning, excuse me, thank you :hat:" whenever I'm likely to pass anyone, still find that walkers seem obsessed with crossing the path from one side to t'other just in front of a cyclist, as if just standing still was never an option ... this seems to be a speciality of dog walkers who have their dogs on those long extendable leads, who will often be found walking down one side of a path with the dog walking just off the other side, and as you come towards them and excuse yourself, they'll cross the path but not shorten the lead, and their dog will immediately cross the path also, recreating the initial problem that was preventing the cyclist from passing and leaving them to enjoy the countryside in peace

... so there does appear to be some potential for conflict. Personally, I'm not the sort to hold grudges, but this coverage appears to be suggesting that some people are not just holding grudges, but acting on them, possibly egged on by some stupid press coverage (who of course are keen to assert that their coverage was all in jest, but when there are people doing just as they suggested, they really ought to recognise their culpability )

Cheers, PhilB

 

[simon12]

I just did a quick google for cyclist traps and it seems to have been a problem for years in various areas and most suggest its walkers who are fed up with speeding cyclists but I never saw anything where anyone was court so it could be anyone, 1 specific case horse riders were the main suspect. I am going to assume that in each place the cyclists most likely know who there annoying even if they themselves are considerate.