[don simon fbpe]

Out for a pootle today as the weather’s quite mild and it’s nice to get outside. Most of my UK riding is done on cycle paths due to dickhead drivers.
Today’s ride was the Millennium/Dee coastal path and the spur up towards Parkgate. A nice wide path which is used by many local clubs of which I have complained about before. It’s a shared path you dickheads!
Anyway, back to today, oncoming club ride with riders taking up most of the path, no obvious shouts from the “leader” nor hand movements. I will always take the primary position and more than happy to let other path users have 50% of the path. One of this club, who I know and will be contacting, shouted to “move over”.
I passed them again as they were returning back up Wirral to their club in the north, again holding the primary position and this time hearing the shout of “push him over”.

This is not the attitude I’d expect from a cyclist and especially not in the current era where cyclists have been pushed and seriously injured by dickhead drivers.

I will be contacting the club and asking that this dickhead rider justifies his comments.
Rant over.

Topic

[don simon fbpe]

Reply Nº1 received a week

Reply Nº1 received a week after my email sent.

Firstly let me apologise for the slow response. I have soul access to the club email and I have been on holiday this week. 

Secondly let me apologise for any poor behaviour from our club members. I will endeavour to find out what happened as we do not tolerate any bad conduct in the club.   Without speaking to those involved, I can say with certainty that the shout of “move over” will not have been aimed at you but at the other rides in the group as that is just a way of making sure everyone is aware of an approaching cyclist/runner/pedestrian. 

Please let me investigate and I will come back to you next week.

Investigation complete and reply Nº2 received today.

Firstly, sorry again for the delay in responding to you.  I was on holiday when your first email came in and I have since come down with flu (probably following the flight home).
 
I have spoken to the members present on the ride on the day in question.
 
Each rider confirmed that they are unaware of any such shouts, and it may just be a case of a simple miscommunication as the group do use shouts such as “car back”, “bike up” and as part of this “move over” would be aimed at the rest of the group behind them, not at the oncoming rider/pedestrian etc.
 
In any event, I am sorry that you felt the need to complain and I have taken this opportunity to send a club wide communication about riding etiquette and interacting with the public, but must say I am satisfied that there has been no poor conduct on this occasion.
 
We hope you continue to enjoy riding safely.
 
Yours in sport

I will respond to them before deciding whether to name them.

My email to them.

Hi, I had the displeasure of crossing paths with a group of your riders through Burton Marsh yesterday.
As a solo rider I am extremely careful to not exceed 50% of the shared path, I saw a group of riders coming 2 or 3 abreast, I ride in essentially a primary position which is with the outside of the bars close to the centre line of the path.

I was greeted with a shout of “move over” from one of the group that was among your club riders. Shocking in itself and expected from a driver to a cyclist.

My second crossing of paths has left me enraged, especially given the potential consequences and high profile cases in the news, this time upon passing I could hear the shout of “push him over”

The benefit of club shirts is that it makes people identifiable.

I would be grateful if the gentleman could offer a response to this by way of email and explain why either comment were in any way acceptable.

yours,

[don simon fbpe]

You think?

You think?

[hawkinspeter]

Sounds like they’re doubling

Sounds like they’re doubling down on being arseholes

[don simon fbpe]

Not much else to report, an

Not much else to report, an unsatisfactory response so far. I have never ever heard a group ride issue “move over” as an internal instruction to their mates at the sight of an oncoming cyclist. I may have dismissed this had there not been the “push him over” comment a bit later. The response states that they are “certain” it was an internal instruction to other group members. The intonation said otherwise.

Further investigations and a full denial expected next week.

[hawkinspeter]

don simon fbpe wrote:

We have a response.

 

[don simon fbpe]

We have a response.

We have a response.

[lonpfrb]

I don’t doubt what you say
I don’t doubt what you say about your local group however hard core roadies still need to uphold the British Cycling guidance and best practices because we all share the same public highways.
I’ve heard some banter but that’s all and it did no harm.
Pushing other riders isn’t acceptable in any road. KOM, PB or whatever…

[lonpfrb]

I’ve noticed that clubs ride
I’ve noticed that clubs ride and communicate in a way that is not obvious to the general public so open to some misunderstanding.
It’s quite usual here to read about the ignorance of road users including cyclists on The Highway Code and the behaviour of cycle clubs is less commonly understood than HWC.

On joining a club most new riders will be briefed about the expectations and etiquette of the club.
Obviously the general public and non-member cyclists are not.

I recall being told that the etiquette was based on British Cycling guidance and long experience of club members.

I definitely have seen social media feedback that demonstrated significant ignorance and single mode assumptions.

An obvious example being the doubling up of riders in a group. No they’re not pretending to be in La Tour. Yes they are trying to reduce the overtake in half.

I’m making a general point not about the specific ride mentioned.

[mattw]

Hmmm.

Hmmm.

Make a report for riding without due care if you have video?

If it’s accessible to the public, even if not a Right of Way, traffic law applies – just as in an open-for-business supermarket carpark or National Trust estate road.
 

[Waleskun]

Unfortunately I find that
Unfortunately I find that attitude from drivers on most roads

[don simon fbpe]

Oh! There’s two that I can

Oh! There’s two that I can think of.

[don simon fbpe]

Who’d want to use the road?

Who’d want to use the road? It’s full of dickheads in cars telling folks to “move over” and in the worst cases actually pushing cyclists over!!

[don simon fbpe]

They have been emailed, they

They have been emailed, they will know once they read the email, I await their response and will more than likely post it up here, in its entirety.

[keirik]

I going to guess it’s a local
I going to guess it’s a local club that ride in green, I’ve had problems with them both when riding and when driving.

[Waleskun]

Think I can guess the club as
Think I can guess the club as I passed them yesterday. I find club runs to be problematic on this path. To be honest it really isn’t appropriate for large clubs runs to barrel up a smallish path with lots of dogs, children and other riders around. They can easily use the high road and go through Puddington/Burton/Ness. Also trying the pass a club run is a nightmare on the path. Some seem to actively make it more difficult than needed and just creates more risk for everyone.

[Author]

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