A Yorkshire cyclist who was running low on water while out on a ride got a shock when a woman who refilled it for him asked for £3 – then tipped out the water when he explained he didn’t have that much money on him.
Neil Holloway, who is a member of Leeds & Bradford Triathlon club, posted an account of what had happened on Twitter, saying “Staggered this happened in Huby this week." It’s not clear whether he is the cyclist involved.
The post read: “Just getting this off my chest … 60km ride out on my new road bike this evening. 40km in and realisation that two bottle cages would be better than one as I run low on water.
“I pulled up near a row of cottages near Huby where a middle aged lady was digging the garden. I politely asked if she could refill my water bottle which she duly did.
“Upon handing it back to me she said: ‘That will be £3’ …
“Shocked, I explained I only had about £1 in loose change. She stared at me and without breaking gaze she emptied the bottle over the garden and handed it back empty.
“I was shell-shocked and speechless as she retreated into the house.”
The author added: “Morale of the story … God help us or bring more water in future.”
Granted, not all cyclists would feel confident enough to approach a stranger and ask them to fill a water bottle, and might prefer to have enough money on them so they could pop into a shop, café or pub instead.
But while charging someone to fill their water bottle may seem unusual in the first place, filling it up then tipping the contents out when the money demanded isn’t forthcoming sounds quite frankly bizarre.
Have you come across anything like this before – or any other bizarre behaviour when you’ve asked someone for a helping hand while out riding?
Let us know in the comments below.
83 thoughts on “Woman charges cyclist £3 after filling water bottle – then tips it out when he can’t pay”
A bit steep for ‘council pop’
A bit steep for ‘council pop’ maybe it was Evian?
First reaction to this was
First reaction to this was WTF, but this is quite funny in actual fact.
If true as described, the interuppted gardening woman must have had some serious front to do that !
A lesson learnt methinks – think twice asking yorkshire lasses for owt! And take two bidons 🙂
Water is obviously at a
Water is obviously at a premium in Yorkshire. To demonstrate the generosity of the cycling community, perhaps her address could be published. Anybody passing could then stop & take a leak in her garden to help water her blooms etc !
n.b not a serious suggestion.
n.b not a serious suggestion.
Hahahaha!
Living in
Hahahaha!
Living in Sheffield, I can imagine one of the locals doing this. Probably a tongue-in-cheek joke to be fair. Yorkshire humour is quite direct.
“Whaaa dint ya bring enuf watter wit ya, anyhow? bluddy saaaclists!”
Maybe she used to work for
Maybe she used to work for Nestle? B-)
Top tip:
Find a church.
Top tip:
Find a church. There’s almost always a tap in the churchyard for the gardener to use.
robonabike wrote:Top
Useful tip, thanks for that. =D>
Seriously? What a miserable person.
I’ve done this a couple of times, once in the UK and once in Iceland, both times they were very friendly. I can’t imagine anyone being that horrible and feel sorry for them. They must lead a very unhappy life.
Perhaps she’s peed off with
Perhaps she’s peed off with complete strangers stopping to get their bottles filled. My Mrs would tell you to ride on.
philbo wrote:Perhaps she’s
Your ‘Mrs’ sounds like an utter arsehole.
If my Mrs did something as
If my Mrs did something as petty and small minded as that I’d feel a bit ashamed of her.
Ridiculous. What a bitch.
Ridiculous. What a bitch. For the sake of a minute of your time and some free corporation pop I don’t see why you’d behave like that.
When I rode to Holme Moss last year to see the TdF I knew I’d need to pick up some water on the return leg. As I set off back towards Glossop I passed a dad and his daughter with a table set up at the bottom of their drive with a big barrel of water and some of those folding plastic camping bottle things just offering water to anyone that was passing. They weren’t asking for donations or anything. And when I’ve ridden Liverpool-Chester-Liverpool I’ve passed houses offering free cake. That’s more like it.
That’s pretty depressing to
That’s pretty depressing to be honest. We’re virtually all guilty of using treated drinking water to flush our loos or clean the car, so sparing bottle full to help someone in need should be the least we’re prepared to do. The bitterness inside that woman’s head must be shocking.
It’s sad that someone
It’s sad that someone wouldn’t spare water for another person. This site looks like an interesting initiative to promote the use of tapwater:
http://www.tapwater.org/refilling-stations
I remember same situation in
I remember same situation in Finland, the guy who was working in garden, pointed to his house, and said – “go there it open”…
London Prices have worked
:O London Prices have worked their way up north
Ah, good old friendly
Ah, good old friendly Yorkshire folk.
I’m quite curious as to how
I’m quite curious as to how she settled on £3. I can only think she’s been doing this for sometime and has determined the market rate. Either that or the chap was wearing Rapha :))
What a horrid mean thing to
What a horrid mean thing to do.
I can only think she got stuck behind some cyclists on a very important drive to the garden centre earlier in the day or something.
You should of wee`d on her
You should of wee`d on her flowers
Was the bidon empty when
Was the bidon empty when handed over?
How much of the cyclist’s own water did she throw away?
I’d be sending her a bill for this with an addition to compensate for the trauma caused.
I’d then start watching daytime TV to see if I could find a reputable solicitor.
Surely she just had to say
Surely she just had to say either ‘No’ – or quote a price – up front, and let the cyclist decide? Even if she was on a water meter (so water doesn’t come for free, you know), she’s ‘wasted’ that water… She probably had a right laugh about it at the WI meeting that night.
Steady – you don’t want to
Steady – you don’t want to incur the wrath of the WI :O
Nixster wrote:Steady – you
Of which Mumsnet is the paramilitary wing.
Huby – North Yorkshire. It’s
Huby – North Yorkshire. It’s quite close to Harrogate . . . .
Might have been spa water or she wasn’t keen to encourage any oiks from the West Riding visiting her well manicured village too often!! 😀
Quote:Might have been spa
I think it’s time to organise a Roadcc meet.
I wonder if her attitude
I wonder if her attitude would have been any different with say a 12 year old girl cyclist in the same situation? Just thinking out loud… Hopefully what goes around comes around for this ‘Lady’.
I thought it was illegal to
I thought it was illegal to charge for tap water anyway
djpalmer32 wrote:I thought it
IIRC That’s only if you’re a licensed bar or restaurant, something about preventing binge drinking. But not in Northern Ireland :S
So, what about water rates or
So, what about water rates or meters? I think its more a case of, if you fail to pay your water charges, they cannot cut you off, because water is deemed in law as a “basic human right”.
unless im dangerously
unless im dangerously dihydrated and not a shop for 10miles I would not ask water from anyone. if this story is true then that woman have some issues (mental probably) and I hope it doesnt happen to her when shes the one desperately needing water.
Try this if you’re in need of
Try this if you’re in need of water -http://www.tapwater.org/refilling-stations
This makes David Cameron
This makes David Cameron appear rather astute today.
On a recent hot day, I asked
On a recent hot day, I asked my local pub to fill my bottle with water – and add ice and lemon. Jolly nice it was too. And free.
msmtb wrote:On a recent hot
It would have been good to pop £1 in a charity tin on the bar, surely?
I always understood it that
I always understood it that it was a moral duty to provide water to travellers – churchyards are always good, but you often find taps on pubs – your chances go up the older and more remote they are. I’ve often had fillups from behind the bar when I’ve asked, some bar staff take a real delight in doing that, putting in ice and lemon.
all you have to do is ask – I’ve had a guy in Marlow fill me up from his garden house, and we had a great chat
but none of those nice people are equal to The Angry Man On Twitter – “cyclist still doesn’t understand why people don’t like them. You expect too much as normal.”
a cup of water! what next- air?
Some women, just want to
Some women, just want to watch the world burn.
Hilarious really. David
Hilarious really. David Cameron was caught saying “Yorkshire people hate each other” today. Had he been reading RoadCC?
We need a stream of riders to
We need a stream of riders to continually stop & ask for water only to then apologise for having no money.
We sure this ain’t an urban myth story. Surely someone could not be That much of a tightarsed bitch
What is the address of this
What is the address of this lovely lady?
Google map pin, streetview pic or GPS co-ords would do.
Anyone local could then pay her a visit for a chat whilst riding by.
Exup wrote:What is the
What are you going to do? Send the boys round?
Come back when you can pick on men rather than women.
Have you recently been in San Francisco?
Well said sir. What she did
Well said sir. What she did was nasty and wrong but going around threatening old ladies is OK ?
CommotionLotion wrote:Well
Who is threatening this lady?
The story should be robustly and accurately researched by getting her side of the story too.
Yes ‘robthehungrymonkey’ – that is more what I meant and No ‘freespirit1’ I don’t think I will “Come back when you can pick on men rather than women.”
Lady my arse.
Lady my arse.
freespirit1 wrote:Exup
What are you going to do? Send the boys round?
Come back when you can pick on men rather than women.
Have you recently been in San Francisco?— Exup
I took that as every cyclist going past just saying hello in an overly friendly kind of way. I didn’t take it as a threat to the woman.
Aren’t you being sexist and
Aren’t you being sexist and ageist , no ones encouraging violence, seemingly you’re promoting violence if they’re fair game!
Irespective of gender or age, if someone is being a c*** they should be made aware.
Not that I have much confidence in the stories facts anyway !
Different to this LEJoGer on
Different to this LEJoGer on Wednesday.
https://helencycleslejog.wordpress.com/2015/09/10/day-4-chepstow-to-shrewsbury/
They’re all right posh n up
They’re all right posh n up emselves when thas getting that close to ‘arrogate
Fair enough if she had taken
Fair enough if she had taken it inside and pissed in it instead of filling it from the tap. But to charge £3.00! That’s bloody outrageous!
It could have been worse –
It could have been worse – she could have given him back the bottle filled with Roundup.
Husband obviously out cycling
Husband obviously out cycling instead of helping her dig the garden!
Having cycled round Ireland
8> Having cycled round Ireland and the interior of Portugal, Italian alps and much of Scotland it is common place to knock on a door and ask for a water refill. I would say in Ireland it was almost expected that cyclists would do so. Charging for Water —- Its a Yorkshire thing.
I punctured three miles out
I punctured three miles out of Slaidburn on Monday and couldn’t find my tyre levers. I rolled down to the next farmhouse, asked if they happened to have any to spare and was treated to a lovely cuppa, a nice chat and a firm hand fittIng the tyre without levers. Moral of the story: Lancashire wins.
From a legal perspective, it
From a legal perspective, it is possible that an implied contract was formed for the sale/ purchase of the relevant quantity of water at the point at which the bidon was handed over.
As no price had been agreed, the law would imply a term that the price was to be a reasonable price.
The woman would be entitled to exercise a lien over (keep possession of) the water, and, possibly, the bidon, until a reasonable price was paid, or at least tendered.
However, prima facie, title/ property in the water would have passed to the cyclist when the bottle was filled. (Plainly, no retention of title or “Romalpa” clause was agreed.)
The exercise of the lien did not entitle the woman to pour out the water which was, at that point, the cyclist’s property.
By pouring it out, she was probably guilty of the tort of conversion, entitling the cyclist to sue for the market value of the water.
However, the woman would have been able to counterclaim for the price which remained unpaid. As a “reasonable price” and the market value of the water would probably be the same, absent special circumstances such a rapid change in the water markets between the handing over and/or filling of the bidon and the pouring out of the water, the two claims would probably cancel each other out.
That’ll be £500 for the advice, please.
Is soliciting allowed on this
Is soliciting allowed on this site? 8} 8} 8}
Is soliciting allowed on this
Is soliciting allowed on this site? 8} 8} 8}
I have absolutely no idea why
I have absolutely no idea why my comment was double posted; I can only apologise to you all for the inconvenience and throw away a mouse which seems to have acquired an independence of ideation along with a rebellious and disobedient attitude. :/ :/ :/
Weedkiller on her nice
Weedkiller on her nice garden.
I love this. Is this what
I love this. Is this what David Cameron was referring to with his comments today about Yorkshire folk?
I love the British
I love the British countryside!
Pubs. Part of the license
Pubs. Part of the license required to operate a public house is the requirement to offer water for free.
Her soul looks like a
Her soul looks like a dessicated fish
Two bottles on a 60K ride. I
Two bottles on a 60K ride. I see who has the problem 8|
gooseflight wrote:Two bottles
Hahaha! I had the same thought. Of course, we don’t know if it was blisteringly hot or not.
I find Yorkshire people to be
I find Yorkshire people to be among the most generous, friendly and hospitable people I have met. Just because this odd woman lives in Yorkshire doesn’t mean that is her original home. She is likely to e from London or South East
Beefy wrote:I find Yorkshire
I’d expect so. I’m a Yorkshireman and I wouldn’t hesitate to fill up a cyclists bottle with fresh water. Heck, I’d even offer ice and electrolyte tablets and let them use the bog.
Most Churchyards / cemeteries
Most Churchyards / cemeteries have an outside tap for watering flowers. Of course you have to assume the water is OK..
One of the best comments
One of the best comments threads we’ve ever had, but guys, it’s okay to call her a skiflint or whatever but let’s drop the “b—-” please?
Simon_MacMichael wrote:One of
Suggesting that we “drop” her is even worse! 😉
Just think, she’s probably
Just think, she’s probably some poor sod’s mother-in-law.
The horror.
This is the problem in rural
This is the problem in rural areas. Starbucks are not readily available.
“Guilty” of a Tort?
“Guilty” of a Tort? Longwayround you disappoint me.
Story in one sentence.
Story in one sentence.
Cyclist happens across deranged/mean/business woman.
I would get your local food
I would get your local food standards officer called out to check the kitchen has the required standards and have a word with the local council regarding her paying business tax…
Cycling in the Trough of
Cycling in the Trough of Bowland I stopped at a roadside van selling refreshments. As well as buying some snacks I also asked for a bottle of water to fill up my bottle. The guy told me, ‘Oh, you don’t have to buy water, I’ll fill your bottle up for free, would you like a bit of squash in that as well?’ Just another small reminder that the red rose county is better!
What a miserable bag she
What a miserable bag she sounds.
I was riding home earlier this week, bright sunshine & very hot day, half way up a steep bit of hill, I passed a woman with a small Pug dog panting like mad. Turns out she was quite a way from home and had been caught out without enough water for either of them. My bottle was empty so I left them walking, rode on a mile to the next pub on my route, asked at the kitchen door and got my bottle filled for free and rode back to the lady, handed it over to her and headed off home.
I was just happy to be able to do a good deed and if it helped her and the pooch, it’s well worth a new water bottle.
Edit, just read the above post: Lancashire here too.
You may not believe this but
You may not believe this but I’m fairly certain that it is actually against the law to refuse to fill a cyclists water bottle. I’m not joking she could be arrested.
Maybe it’s against the law to
Maybe it’s against the law to not allow them to pee on your rose bushes too.
They’re tight buggers up
They’re tight buggers up north 😉
As my mate said to me, Huby’s
As my mate said to me, Huby’s bandit country.
I once had a shouting match with a mad old gadgie in Huby, who was convinced that I was eyeing up the contents of his boot.
(This is the Huby near York, by the way)
I hope Satan does the same
👿 I hope Satan does the same thing to her in Hell!
…. perhaps an anonymous tip
…. perhaps an anonymous tip to HM Revenue & Customs would be in order…..see if she is declaring the income from water bottle refills on her Tax Return….. :))
You should all listen to
You should all listen to David Cameron Yorkshire folk hate everyone.Also remember that old Yorkshire saying Never do owt for nowt. 😀