A cyclist who was out riding with his partner in the Pennines on Saturday has filmed the moment a motorist pulled up slowly alongside him and tried to force him into the verge at the side of the road.
NB – As mentioned in several comments, there is an issue with the datestamp on the video; for the sake of clarity it was filmed on Saturday 17 October 2020 at approximately 2pm.
The footage shared on YouTube by road.cc reader Karl-Eric, begins with him tapping him on the side of a Kia car as the driver squeezes him towards the verge, the cyclist saying, “You’ve got to give me more space than that, you can’t do that!”
He told road.cc: “I am Belgian. This is relevant as the attitude to cyclists is slightly different there and I have learnt to bike on the road by using ‘my space’ (aka about an arm length from the gutter). When doing group rides in the UK, I’ve noticed that the other riders are often closer to the gutter than I would deem safe.
“I am a seasoned cyclist I already rode over 5,000km this year so far. I do a fair bit of off-road biking on my gravel bike – mainly due to the Tiles Explorer aspect of VeloViewer.
“I was with my partner, she has started cycling again about 18 months ago and she has some confidence issues. She should end the year with having ridden over 2,000km.
“The ride in question … We’d just got a hard to get, off-road Tile, hence we had our CX tyres on. This is relevant as when ‘attacked’ by the car I knew I could always go in the gutter with no risk.”
Karl-Eric explained that his action camera was turned off for the initial part of the encounter with the Kia driver, but he turned it on as things began to escalate.
“As we were riding back, I noticed that my partner who was behind me was leading a long line of cars,” he said, “the first one being way too close for comfort. She was cycling between the cat’s eyes and the side of the road, uphill. Remember she is a fairly new cyclist and has confidence issues. I decided to let her pass on the inside to ‘protect’ her from the pressure of the nearest car.
“As I moved into the road (no car there at that time) to let her pass, the driver of the car that was behind her overtook her, came to my side and started to shout at me (I couldn’t hear anything as the windows were closed!).
“They were getting very close to me. I was asking them to move away and indicating the same with my right arm. My partner was impressed that I never swore!
“The driver came closer to me – the wing mirror of the car being near my cockpit, so I pushed it in.
“This is the first time the car pushed me out of the road. I tried to ‘push him away’ by knocking his wing mirror again. The driver stopped, stepped out of the car and was shouting at me.
“I was not going to engage with him so, using my CX tyres, I rode on the side of the road and carried on back on it in front of the vehicle. I also turned on my Cycliq Fly12 camera.”
“He came again and you can see the footage. On the rest of the footage, you can see that car later, on a lay-by, waiting for us. Thank God he moved away before we got to there – I am not sure my partner would have biked past him.
“At the time, my partner was very shaken and only wanted to get out of that road and stop cycling. She felt better after a bit of pootling along the Trans Pennine Trail and a coffee/cake in Penistone.
“I was fuming. I will not let a bully, bully me out of the road! As long as it is safe (and I did think it was given the speed and the usable space to my left – thank God for CX tyres!) I will stand up to bullies.
“Since then I have had restless nights … trying to get closure. Have I overreacted when I pushed his wing mirror?
“I have contacted the police but apparently, this bit of road is owed between Manchester police, West Yorkshire Police, Derbyshire police and South Yorkshire Police.
“I have got great support from South Yorkshire Police but it is not really their ‘responsibility’. I have also contacted the insurance company of the driver to alert them of his dangerous driving.
I want to insist that this driver is not representative of all drivers,” he added. “The next three cars stopped and asked my partner how she felt.
“(When she saw what was happening she stopped cycling). Most cars on that road give you ample space when overtaking you. You just need one to spoil a ride though.”
70 thoughts on “Video: Slow-moving driver forces cyclist off the road on Woodhead Pass”
There is a fantastic overtake
There is a fantastic overtake by what I think is an aggregates lorry at 4:52.
The Kia driver, please someone remove their licence…
Not just removing his licence
Not just removing his licence, as he/she may not have one, being caged for many years would be just justice; and help victims recovery from the ordeal.
I would have caused
I would have caused considerable damage to their car ?
yep, there’d be at least a
yep, there’d be at least a number of SPD sized imprints on that car, if theyd tried that move on me, but maybe that makes me more a hothead in these situations and it certainly would havent improved things, though Id like to think if someone was using 1.5 tonnes of metal to try to crush me I was responding with proportionate force.
but I think the rider in this case handled it very well, and they are absolutely spot on it only takes 1 encounter like that to ruin a ride
The risk of this criminal
The risk of this criminal thug maniac driver reversing back and causing serious injuries, or even death, was the potential danger, which the poor victim cyclists had to consider.
It be nice to be lawfully permitted, as cops are, to use defensive implements to disable and restraint the maniac and make a citizen’s arrest and hand them over to the cops.
absolutely, but Ive had the
absolutely, but Ive had the maniac drivers try the reverse back into me move for literally just me holding my hand out in a shrug of why did you do that style, so forgive me for thinking the maniacs are just triggered by you responding aggressively to begin with.
There is that temptation, but
There is that temptation, but I think the way this rider handled it was better if I’m honest. I’ve reacted loudly to nutter drivers in the past, but I think it’s actually counter-productive. Nutters will be nutters. And if one cyclist responds with aggression, then nutters are quite likely to be even more aggressive the next time they get pissed off at AN Other road user of any description. It’s better to report it and hope the cops will take action.
0-0 wrote:
That would have put me on the driver’s level and I wasn’t going to go to the gutter (despite the driver’s efforts)
Interesting angle contacting
Interesting angle contacting their insurance company. Elsewhere I have read of motorists who, having volunteered info to their insurance company about [b]non-claim[/b] incidents (per the insurance T&Cs), find their premium hiked the next year, on account of their increased risk profile. And because their insurer registers the info on a central database, they find the same premium hike even if they try shopping around. So we can hope that receiving the above video their insurance company might see their risk profile for expensive liability claims raised sky high.
https://www.theguardian.com/money/2020/oct/12/car-insurance-quote-claim-renewing-cover
You in no way over reacted.
You in no way over reacted. You were calm and reasonable through the whole video. The guy’s obvs a psycho and needs removing from the road.
I’m so sorry t this happened to you and I hope your partner is able to recover their confidence and continue riding
Chapeau both!
Date and time need changing.
Date and time need changing.
I take it someone has done a psychological study on why having a 1.5 ton weapon at your disposal turns people into some rabid sociopath.
What is that short film someone linked to where 2 US cyclists are hounded by a monster truck?
Cycliq 12, date and time
Cycliq 12, date and time stamp are random.
Only if you haven’t connected
Only if you haven’t connected to the app recently. My Fly6 & Fly12 are generally within a few seconds of the true time.
My Fly6CE refused to connect
My Fly6CE refused to connect to the app before it was a year old. Still works fine as a standalone camera, but the timestamp is annoying.
Reformat your SD card once a
Reformat your SD card once a week and timestamp stays in synch. Also the day after the clocks change.
Thanks. But given that one of
Thanks. But given that one of the selling points (compared to e.g. a GoPro which I run on the front) is the looped recording, it would be nice if it just worked without having to faff with the cards regularly. PS: on the actual topic – shocking driving, I really hope you get an outcome from the police, but appreciate that sometimes pursuing it (rather than just trying to forget it) can be worse for your health.
Driving a motor vehicle tends
Driving a motor vehicle tends to confer the idea of status and territorial rights over cyclists, who are in a minority out-group. Drivers tend to see themselves as more important and more entitled. After all they pay road tax so they own the roads and they see their vehicle as a status symbol. These false notions engage the primitive areas of the brain and result in uncivilised behaviour.
That was horrible to watch..
That was horrible to watch.. good for you for not loosing your cool more than you did.
I certainly hope that some police will pick this up, that driver needs to understand that this is not acceptable.
In addition to the chapeaux
In addition to the chapeaux for keeping his cool, I’d also like to thank the rider for having learned English as a second (or more) language with a broad Yorkshire accent. As it should be.
Brauchsel wrote:
you have made my day with that comment #proud
“I have contacted the police
“I have contacted the police but apparently, this bit of road is owed between Manchester police, West Yorkshire Police, Derbyshire police and South Yorkshire Police.” Rather unhelpful all may patrol the road but that offence is definitely in Derbyshire the S York’s border is at the top as you cross the ridge line maybe try to submit to Derbyshire police with a map showing the location? Drivers who can’t control their anger need taking off the road…and if on a CX bike a good alternative to the top section is the Pennine Bridleway on the left just after the Holme Moss turning good views and much pleasanter not that you shouldn’t be able to safely ride Woodhead
In the words of Solo from Roy
In the words of Solo from Roy Chubby Brown UFO “That one’s not so bad”.
If you seen it you’d know how “not so bad” I mean.
You need to pinpoint the
You need to pinpoint the location. Do this by reviewing your video and Google maps street view. Then you will have a GPS longitude/latitude location. Report it to all police forces. Do this immediately as there is a 14 day limit to issue NIP (Notice of intended prosecution).
I hope the police prosecute this scumbag to fullest extent
Quite shocking that the
Quite shocking that the police try to pass the buck like this. It must be clear whose jurisdiction it falls under.
The driver of the car is genuinely dangerous and should be prosecuted for this behaviour.
Zigster wrote:
I can’t see why they’re not fighting to be the one that pursues it. It’d be a straight forward win for their KPI’s…
Another absoulte mouth
Another absoulte mouth breather who is annoyed at being held up but has plenty of time to intimidate and attempt to hurt someone based on their chosen method of transport…
There is a mention of ‘he’ so was that an idiot female passenger who was shouting in support of their car sharers violence?
It’s not a “wing” mirror, but
It’s not a “wing” mirror, but a DOOR MIRROR.
Clipless pedals and
Clipless pedals and unclipping?
Possibly language is how people use it
and no matter what you call it the proximity was the problem not the description
For some, the door mirror is
For some, the door mirror is a deeply meaningful object. To have it incorrectly referred to can be taken as a personal affront.
This is why a cyclist gently pushing said object can provoke a driver into unimaginable rage.
Indeed, the door mirror is seen as more precious than the rest of the vehicle – which the driver will have no fear in damaging in order to defend their most revered object.
swldxer wrote:
Congratulations! You’ve won the award of Least Helpful Comment of the Week. Well done.
It’s a wing-nut, not a door
It’s a wing-nut, not a door-nut
There is not much point in
There is not much point in having a camera if it is not turned on and most of the action in this incident happened off camera. The driver will simply claim the cyclist deliberately impeded him along with a whole load of other accusations and there is no proof either way without witness statements. The police almost invariably side with the driver in conflicts of this type. There isn’t a cat’s chance in hell of any prosecution based on this footage although the driver is obviously driving without due care and attention.
I get your point and have
I get your point and have often seen the worst incidents when camera out of battery or space 🙁
However, whatever went before this video, clearly the drivers actions to a more vulnerable road user are unbelievable!!!
Obvious and not helpful.
Obvious and not helpful.
I’m sure the victim wishes it was on earlier as well, but since it appears to be a pissy wet evening after an off-road section it’s understandable that it wasn’t.
So apart from making the victim feel even worse with your comment than he did beforehand what did your comment achieve?
It would be nice if these threads confined themselves to constructive critisms. At least the troll twins have disappeared I guess.
The point I made was that
The point I made was that reporting this to the police is a waste of time.
Secret_squirrel wrote:
Believe it or not it was about lunch time in glorious Yorkshire (or Derbyshire apparently ?♂️) weather!
If someone has a camera they
If someone has a camera they should have it turned on for road riding or what is the point in having it.
I have a Fly6 and the battery lasts for a few of my rides – I really only charge it once a week.
What footage there is should be enough for the cops to act.
Fifth Gear wrote:
Pub test? Without due care and attention despite guilt pleas to avoid more serious charges implies errors of judgement not deliberate and dangerous intimidation…even if the cyclist tried to force kia off the road before the filming started (not?) the actions of the driver are deliberate and repeated and have dangerous intent
Obviously there is no excuse
Obviously there is no excuse for the driving but the police will not see it that way.
DId you watch the first 10
DId you watch the first 10 seconds of the video?
Why do you think the Police will do absolutely nothing ?
I thought I explained that.
I thought I explained that. The police normally require 2 minutes of footage prior to the incident and 2 minutes after. That isn’t the case here. I have been using cameras for 8 years and have reported dozens and dozens of drivers. I have also made complaints to the police via my MP and the Police and Crime Commissioner amongst others. Some forces are a lot better than others but most police officers are on the side of the motorist. In this case the cyclist doesn’t have the required footage and hadn’t even identified the correct police force.
The police normally require 2
The police normally require 2 minutes of footage prior to the incident and 2 minutes after.
They will normally try this dodge- it’s just a number they have made up to be more than they think you have. Don’t let them get away with it! It has no basis in law- it’s just a standard dodge. You have to keep complaining- the mark of sucess is prosecutions or, at a push, driving courses. Anything less is equivalent to ‘no further action’
You are right. The police
You are right. The police just make up rules with no basis in law in order to avoid prosecuting motorists but can you refer me to any camera cyclist who has made a successful complaint against the police?
can you refer me to any
can you refer me to any camera cyclist who has made a successful complaint against the police?
No, but I have forced a change from ‘no further action because it was only a momentary loss of concentration’ to the joke driving course, and I have about 15 court hearings pending. I have also exposed the futility of complaining to the police about the police when the Detective Sergeant excused the PC for NFA over a gross case of crossing right over the unbroken white line at speed approaching a blind humpback bridge, because there was no confirmatory video from the offending vehicle- my video was Grade A. The police have no shame about giving really stupid excuses, but this notion of insisting the offender confirms the offence is the most shameful so far. I will soon be recounting this ludicrous excuse to my MP, when I can put several ignored cases together.
I once forced a change from
I once forced a change from Wiltshire Police but never from any other force. If you have 15 court hearings pending I’m guessing you don’t live in the Thames Valley or Hampshire. It is a postcode lottery at the moment but there are signs of improvement so I would love to be proved wrong.
Fifth Gear wrote:
Do you recommend I contact my MP?
I think the more complaints
I think the more complaints the better but don’t expect any positive results. My MP agreed with my complaint and suggested the Commissioner was contacted. We had a meeting and the Commissioner said I’ll see what I can do but don’t expect too much. The police just wrote a completely dismissive letter and the Commissioner was happy with that.
The police just wrote a
The police just wrote a completely dismissive letter and the Commissioner was happy with that.
PCCs are a waste of space at the best of times, and are essentially a branch of the police. You can tell because Lancashire Constabulary has just hived off the final stage of the ‘complaints against the police’ from the Chief Constable to the PCC. It’s just to engender more delay.
No , not really although you
No , not really although you did say that “the driver is obviously driving without due care and attention” In England there are various forces which have different policies int his and in any case, x minutes before/after is not law.
There was at least one other witness to the incident. Also you don’t know what other complaints have been previously made about the driver. In Essex, they take account of previously reported incidents that didn’t meet the threshold when assessing the current complaint. I’d say it’s a bit early to say nfa.
Fifth Gear wrote:
The cars beind the idiot driving like a wanker stopped and asked if the cyclists were OK. They would make great witnesses.
If this video of shocking and deliberately dangerous behaviour is not good enough evidence for a prosecution, then nothing is. There is no way you can ever justify this sort of driving.
Obvously they would make
Obvously they would make great witnesses but there is nothing to indicate that their details were taken. Of course you can’t justify this type of driving but that won’t stop police officers from doing so.
If their reg is caught on the
If their reg is caught on the footage that might help? I used that to get a witness (well, it was actually a name and number on a van), which got Wiltshire Police, who don’t normally take camera footage at all, to act.
Fifth Gear wrote:
The battery life is shocking so it is the only way I am afraid
if you know of a good alternative to Cycliq – I am all ears
Battery life is a problem
Battery life is a problem which is why I normally take at least 4 cameras and change them half way. I understood that Cycliq cameras had an unusually long battery life.
I’ve had a first gen and now
I’ve had a first gen and now a second gen Fly6 and battery life is at least 6/7 hours.
KalerDev wrote:
Before you abandon the Fly12, there are some things you can try to improve battery life:
whats the impact on image
whats the impact on image quality switching to 30fps ? even without using the light my Fly12 lasts 6hrs at most from a full charge, and I dont ride with it at full charge the whole time. I mean Im not using it to make documentary films of my rides, its there to record driving around me that puts me in danger and the number plates of those vehicles involved. The video above sure you dont need 60fps for that its slow,close and even though the weather & light is not perfect it would probably be fine, but for rides in much lower light levels or trickier conditions and with vehicles at normal close passing speeds, Ive often found the lower frame rates dont cut it
Using the Fly12 to capture
Using the Fly12 to capture bad driving and number plates, I’ve found 30fps to be fine. I don’t even bother with 1080p, just run it on 720p and it picks up number plates great – got the idiot that close passed me at 70mph 5-points and a court appearance.
At night, you’re actually better off with a lower frame rate as the shutter can open for longer, letting more light in (and the 12CE has a high dynamic range mode that is only available at 30fps).
The key is to have a stable mount for the camera – vibration is what kills the image quality, so mount it somewhere that’s not going to move – i.e. close to body weight contact points. I tried it on an ‘out front’ type mount and it was noticably worse than direct mounting it to the bars.
Thanks, some useful tips
Thanks, some useful tips there.
I’ve been using a Fly CE12 for a couple of years now. Highly reliable and pretty good video quality. I’ve found the biggest problem is capturing numberplates at night.
With the light on too bright a setting, the glare bounces back and obscures the letters and numbers.
Also, shame about the front mount affecting image quality – I kinda like having the camera and the Garmin off the bars.
I prefer the aesthetic of the
I prefer the aesthetic of the out front mount and to be fair the image quality is still pretty good if you’ve got a solid mount. The 12CE might do better in this location as it has image stabilisation, whereas I don’t think the original 12 does.
I find the Fly6 better for getting numberplates at night, still not perfect, but more chance with a flashing light.
As you say, it’s a case of playing around with the settings to find a combination of light pattern/lumen and camera resolution/fps/hdr that works the best for you.
I use a GoPro hooked up to a
I use a GoPro hooked up to a power-pack.
Normal battery life is c. 70 mins. Hooked up to the battery pack, it was at 55% after a 2hr ride.
Chilli cam battery lasts 4-5hrs but quality isn’t great. Good for a backup though. On the rear I use a Teentok light/camera combo. Similar to Fly6 but better IMHO. Battery on that is 6-7 hrs
So, I’m a bit confused… who
So, I’m a bit confused… who’s responsibility is it to identify which force is responsible for this stretch of road? It sounds very much like that responsibility is being offloaded to the victim.
That in itself needs a complaint going in somewhere.
Good luck
That bit is definitely
That bit is definitely Derbyshire. S York’s starts near the summit, after the Dunford Bridge turn off. Hideous road to ride but little alternative if you come from Holme Moss and want to ride back to W Yorks/Holmfirth area. But there were many examples of exemplary passes, including massive wagons. It’s a wide road with good straight sections and visibility. Police should stop messing him about and get on with it before Mr Kia kills someone.
M20MAMIL wrote:
Let’s also focus on this!!
Yes, I think most of us know
Yes, I think most of us know 99% *of drivers are careful and courteous. But if 1% * are massive tossers like Mr Kia and, as a regular rider, you get passed by 100 cars etc a day, that’s 1 near death experience a day. Which is why we end up focusing on the tossers.
*All quoted figures are ‘approximate’
As a local to the area and a
As a local to the area and a cyclist you are brave for cycling on that road. I would never take someone who is low on confidence on it unless you like lorries barrelling past you at 60mph around corners.
Aboslute no need for the Kia’s actions though.
What are alternative routes
What are alternative routes like in that area?
brooksby wrote:
hardly any and not much better than Woodhead pass
brooksby wrote:
Trans Pennine Trail – can get a bit muddy for a road bike, but fine on CX tyres. And the B6105 north out of Glossop is a cracking road. You still have to do a bit of the Woodhead Pass, but you miss the worst of it.
. . wrote:
I have done the TpT between longdendale and Dunsford Bridget a few times, on my CX bike and it is not easy, even in dry weather. Not really an option.
In any case, I think it is beside the point – as a cyclist I should be completely safe biking on the A628