“I had f**king fantasies of running them all over – and maybe one of these days I will”: Clip resurfaces of Republican candidate’s horrifying anti-cyclist rant; Lime says its bikes are for cycling not jousting; Picnic licence delay + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
“I had f***ing fantasies of running them all over and maybe one of these days I will… I’ve thought about ways I could get away with it”: US Republican candidate’s horrifying anti-cyclist rant resurfaces as riders stunned by “how vapid his hatred is”
Brace yourselves. It turns out that Nigel Farage’s critique of north London’s “bicycling classes” has nothing on his mates across the pond in the Republican Party.
A clip has resurfaced this week of Republican congressional candidate Brandon Herrera admitting to hating cyclists, fantasising about running them over, and dreaming up the ways he could avoid jail for doing so. Yep, anti-cycling rants from British politicians seem positively quaint by comparison, don’t they?
In case you’ve never heard of him (and still wish you hadn’t), Herrera is a YouTuber, firearms manufacturer, gun rights activist, and member of the MAGA right wing of the Republican Party in the United States.
The 30-year-old, described by the Guardian recently as a ‘gunfluencer’, has become known in recent years for his controversial, deliberately provocative statements and videos, including one in which he goosestepped to the military marching song adopted by the Waffen SS and described the submachine gun used by the Nazis during the second world war as the “original ghetto blaster”.
View this post on Instagram
Herrera has also been endorsed by Kyle Rittenhouse, the gun rights activist who shot dead two men during protests in Wisconsin in 2020, with Herrera joking in a YouTube video about Rittenhouse’s victims.
Despite (or maybe because of) that extremist, ‘edgy’ public persona, Herrera is currently the frontrunner in the race to represent Texas’ congressional district 23 in November’s midterm elections.
And this week, a video has resurfaced of an appearance he made on the Rekieta Law podcast back in 2022, the same year he made the Nazi jokes. And it’s grim.
Asked by the host about what “drives him to unreasonable bouts of anger”, Herrera came prepared. Be prepared – Herrera is liberal (ironically, enough) when it comes to the use of one particular swear word.
Republican candidate Brandon Herrera:
“I fucking hate cyclists. Jesus fucking Christ!
….I had fucking fantasies of running them all over and, you know, maybe one of these days I will.
…I have thought about ways that I could get away with it.”
— PatriotTakes 🇺🇸 (@patriottakes.bsky.social) October 19, 2026 at 10:24 PM
“Cyclists, I fucking hate cyclists,” he says, against the backdrop of a wall of guns.
“Jesus fucking Christ! Where I used to live… cyclists would go out in bunches of 20 fucking people, like predators all hunting together. Except they’re the polar opposite of what a predator is. They’re just a fucking bundle of sticks. God, I hate them!
“They want to be treated like vehicles, like cars. But they’re not, they travel at fucking arrestable speed limits of not being a fucking car. And they expect you to respect the fact that they just want to be an asshole on Sunday mornings.
“I had fucking fantasies of running them all over and, you know, maybe one of these days I will.”
The grinning host then chips in, saying: “You should be legally allowed to run over the one that’s straying behind… plough right fucking through them with your car.”
“Oh buddy, I’ve thought about ways I could get away with it,” Herrera responds. “I feel like I could have done it without going to jail. But I’m not a bad guy. I know that’s somebody’s fucking mentally impaired uncle they would miss.”
As I said, grim.
The clip has horrified cyclists on social media, with US-based campaigner Peter Flax left baffled at how “vapid” Herrera’s hatred towards human beings riding bikes is.
“What amazes me about this clip is just how vapid his hatred is. People doing something fun that he doesn’t like or understand who briefly get in his way… makes him admit homicidal desires. As I rider it’s hard to square that so many people feel this kind of hostility over such trivial shit,” Flax wrote.
“When I go to Costco, I feel frustrated by folks who take a huge cart of groceries to the self-checkout line and gum things up for people with ten things hoping to get out of there quickly. But to admit or even entertain violent thoughts would be so utterly bizarre. That’s what this guy is like to me.”
Well, at least nobody in the United States would ever act on the ‘fantasies’ gleefully outlined by a congressional candidate on a podcast. Oh, wait…
> SUV driver arrested after swerving into cyclists and firing gun in shocking US road rage attack
“Probably the safest behaviour I’ve ever seen from a Lime rider”: Lime says its bikes are designed for cycling, not jousting and warns “safety must come first” after viral medieval mischief
Oh, to be a member of Lime’s PR department. ‘Oi Rupert, have you finished that statement on the council crackdown on pavement parking? Good stuff, what about the Timothée Chalamet fine thing? Well, once you get that done, there’s a video of a medieval joust I need to show you…’
We all knew it was only going to be a matter of time before Lime had something to say about two chaps dressed in armour jumping on two of their hire bikes and riding full pelt at each other while brandishing poles.
On Saturday evening, as we noted on yesterday’s blog, hundreds of people gathered in London Fields, Hackney to watch artist Jack Carden and actor Camtholomew the First (probably not his real name) showcase their 2026 take on the medieval game of jousting.
By all accounts, the event – described by Carden as “performance art” – was a lot of fun, with the New Zealand-born artist’s Instagram clip of the joust attracting over five million views.
View this post on Instagram
But, like any stern parent, Lime is happy for its users to have fun. Just not too much fun, okay?
“We always love seeing Londoners come together and build a sense of community in unexpected ways,” a spokesperson for the e-bike hire company said yesterday evening.
“While we appreciate the medieval spirit, safety must always come first. Lime bikes are designed for getting around the city, not for jousting.
“We discourage anyone from attempting similar events, to help keep riders and those around them safe.”
Ironically, Carden (the winner of the duel, in case you were wondering) told the Metro that Camtholomew did pick up a minor injury, so maybe Lime has a point.
View this post on Instagram
Over on social media, however, some aren’t convinced that Lime’s safety priorities should be focused on medieval jousting.
“That’s probably the safest behaviour I’ve ever seen from a Lime rider,” Jeff said on BlueSky.
“Cycle jousting seems like an entirely sensible sport in the grand scheme of things,” added another user.
However, there were plenty of people who reckon Lime jousting has a future, with Jo Kibble even calling for the format to be expanded next time.
“Sounds great, but I do feel it would have been improved by the challengers being on competing companies’ hire bikes,” she said. “Sir Gawain the Green Knight on a Forest bike, Señor Espada on his Santander cycle…”
“And of course Sir Walter on a Raleigh,” added Michael. Not a hire bike, but I’ll let him away with it.
And despite Lime’s safety concerns, hire bike jousting could well take off, if Carden – who had to limit Saturday’s attendance to 1,000 people – has anything to do with it.
“I suspect if we had publicised it fully we would have had easily 10,000 people show up,” he said, promising a rematch soon.
At this rate, there’ll be a UCI world jousting championships in 2028…
“I don’t think we spent enough time talking about the benefits of 20mph zones with the people of Wales”
Picnic PostNL’s WorldTour registration delay due to bike sponsor Lapierre’s bankruptcy, team says
Last night, the UCI sent out its annual list of teams which have submitted their registration documents ahead of the upcoming season. Which means only thing: frantic speculation about what teams are missing and why.
While 48 WorldTour and ProTeam squads have submitted their licence requests for 2027, Picnic PostNL are one of the WorldTour teams, alongside Jayco AlUla/Liv AlUla Jayco, who missed the governing body’s initial 15 October deadline to send in their registration files, bank guarantees, and 10 signed rider contracts.
Australian team Jayco missed the same deadline last year, due to bank guarantee and sponsorship issues, and say they have been delayed for similar reasons this year, mostly caused by owner Gerry Ryan’s decision to step back and become a minority shareholder for 2027.
“This is purely due to a technical transfer process that will be resolved very soon,” Jayco said in a statement. “Processing the bank guarantee required by the UCI involves cross-border financial operations that sometimes can encounter delays.”
Picnic, meanwhile, were given a one-year WorldTour licence for 2026 (instead of the usual three-year cycle) amid concerns about the team’s rising debt.
The Dutch squad, which has come under fire over the past after allegations surfaced of a “toxic” working environment and “culture of fear”, says it is still working to secure its WorldTour slot for next year, after dismissing reports that it was planning on stepping down to the second tier.
According to a statement issued by the team, the hold-up is a result of bike sponsor Lapierre’s recent financial problems, following its parent company Accell’s high-profile descent into administration and insolvency.
In late August, after launching legal proceedings to reorganise itself, Lapierre announced it had formally begun “judicial reorganisation proceedings” to continue trading.
But while the brand insisted at the time that it can now “move forward with greater clarity and confidence”, the uncertainty over its future has had an impact on Picnic’s WorldTour registration, with the team stating that it still needs to “provide information relating to the finalisation of a partnership with a technical partner for the coming season, following the bankruptcy of the current partner’s parent company”.
Meanwhile, Euskaltel-Euskadi and TotalEnergies are two ProTeam squads missing from this week’s list but who are still expected to submit the necessary documents before the final 1 November deadline (though TotalEnergies are still on the hunt for a new title sponsor).
Kern Pharma and Flanders-Baloise, however, are also missing as they are expected to wave goodbye to the sport at the end of the year.
Guess who’s back, back again… Ben O’Connor returns to Decathlon after two years at Jayco AlUla
The prodigal son returns. After two years away (or at home, depending on which way you looked at it) at Australian squad Jayco AlUla, Ben O’Connor is heading back to France and to Decathlon CMA CGM in 2027, it was announced this morning.
The mercurial stage racer spent the best four years of his career with the French squad between 2021 and 2024, winning stages of the Tour de France and Vuelta a España, while finishing fourth overall at the 2021 Tour, fourth at the 2024 Giro d’Italia, and second at that year’s Vuelta.
Aussie O’Connor made the switch to home team Jayco in 2025, and while he won a stage of the Tour in his first year with the squad, he’s failed to find the same consistency at the grand tours, with 11th at the 2025 Tour his best GC result in Jayco colours.
And now, with Felix Gall leaving for Lidl-Trek, O’Connor is set to return to Decathlon, where he will act as the French team’s plan B in the grand tours, as well as being a potential superdomestique for 20-year-old phenom Paul Seixas at the Tour de France.
“Hey everyone, guess who’s back?” the 30-year-old said in a statement. “Can’t wait to write another chapter Decathlon CMA CGM team, and take this jersey to good times and plenty of success. Can’t wait to see you soon.”
As anyone who’s followed O’Connor’s career will know all too well, we can’t predict if this ‘homecoming’ will prove a success. But we do know it’ll be entertaining. Seixas and O’Connor on the same team – now there’s a Netflix series waiting to happen…
New Santander Cycles app set to launch next month after four days out of service, as Transport for London says updates will make hiring a bike “quicker and easier than ever”
Speaking of hire bikes, Transport for London has just unveiled its new Santander Cycles app, which will launch on 17 November and feature a range of updates and improvements that TfL claims will make renting out a bike “quicker and easier than ever”.
Thanks to the new app, Santander bike users will now be able to buy passes before travelling, and find available bikes and docking stations more easily.
The process of hiring out a bike has also been revamped, with customers now able to unlock a bike by simply scanning a QR code printed on it. Payments will also be made easier through the introduction of Apple Pay and Google Pay.
The new app’s introduction next month forms part of a range of improvement measures to the scheme, such as the in-dock charging systems set to be installed next year, which TfL says will make sure bikes are “consistently charged and ready to ride when customers need them”.
To make way for the new app, the current system will be out of service for four days between the evening of 13 November and the evening of 17 November. Customers will be unable to hire bikes during this period or access their account information.
To thank customers for their patience during the outage, TfL is offering customers a free ride to everyone who downloads and registers on the new app, by entering the code: NEWAPP. I never would have guessed that one.
Meanwhile, annual pass holders, who would not benefit from the free ride offer, will receive a free seven-day extension to their subscription, with monthly pass holders getting five days for free.
“London is a cycling city, with more than 1.5 million bike trips a day last year, the highest number on record, and this shows no sign of slowing down,” Will Norman, London’s Walking and Cycling Commissioner, said in a statement today.
“The brand new Santander Cycles app has been designed to meet this growing demand, and features major new upgrades including a QR code to unlock your bike in seconds, and smoother payments with Apple Pay and Google Pay.
“By making Santander Cycles even more convenient and accessible, we can enable even more Londoners to choose cycling for everyday journeys, supporting the Mayor’s ambition for a healthier and greener London for everyone.”
Two Garmin product launches in one day, Jeremy? That’s insane
“It was never my intention to violate anti-doping rules”: Olympic silver medallist apologies after results stripped following three whereabouts failures
Polish cyclist Daria Pikulik has apologised and insisted she never meant to break anti-doping rules, after being stripped of her results over an 18-month period in the wake of three testing no-shows.
Pikulik, who joined Human Powered Health in 2023, was a silver medallist in the omnium, behind the United States’ Jennifer Valente, at the 2024 Paris Olympics. She also finished third at the 2024 European road race championships, a month after she placed sixth on the opening day of the Tour de France Femmes.
The 29-year-old has won nine times on the road, including the Tour of Guangxi and a stage of the Tour Down Under, while she also has a world championships bronze in the omnium from 2020.
View this post on Instagram
However, she has not raced since Omloop Het Nieuwsblad at the end of February and yesterday the International Testing Agency announced that she has since been sanctioned for failing to report for three doping tests within a 12-month period.
The ITA said Pikulik has been disqualified of all her results from 9 December 2024 to 8 June 2026, though since she raced sparingly during that period, the sanction amounts to little more than reputational damage and a slap on the wrist.
“The ITA reports that rider Daria Pikulik has agreed to the consequences for her ADRV under article 2.4 of the UCI anti-doping rules,” the anti-doping body said in a statement.
“Daria Pikulik committed three whereabouts failures within a 12-month period. The rider did not challenge the ADRV and agreed with the consequences proposed by the ITA. Accordingly, the case was resolved via an acceptance of consequences.
“In accordance with article 10.13.1 of the UCI anti-doping rules, the rider’s period of ineligibility is from 9 December 2024 until 8 June 2026. Additionally, all the rider’s competitive results within this period are disqualified including forfeiture of medals, points and prizes.”
View this post on Instagram
In a post on Instagram yesterday evening, Pikulik accepted the sanction, explaining what she says are the reasons behind it and revealing that she has been fighting for two years to “defend my good name”.
“Many questions remain, and I must face them head-on. I’d like to explain why you haven’t seen me racing since March. I was suspended for failing to report for three doping tests,” the 29-year-old said.
“This happened to me twice, in September 2023 and October 2023. Realising the seriousness of the situation, I tried to systematically complete my residence data in the system, but due to my oversight and a much greater workload, it happened a third time in September 2024.
“I spent the last two years trying to defend my good name, and ultimately CAS issued a judgment in March 2026 without a penalty, finding me guilty of omitting an inspection.
“In September, I was finally suspended from December 2024 to June 2026. It was a terribly difficult time for me and my loved ones. It was never my intention to violate anti-doping rules.
“Throughout my career, I have passed dozens of doping controls without any problems. However, I need to accept what happened and put it behind me. I apologise to everyone I’ve let down and thank everyone who has been with me through this time.”
‘Finished my zone two shift, my hill repeats – just need a few minutes on the bunny hop simulator and that’s me done’
Well, you have to get that cyclocross bunny hop training in somehow…
View this post on Instagram
Video of the day
Wait for it…
View this post on Instagram
Some big news from bike computer land
> Garmin launches Edge 1060 GPS bike computer with voice control, alongside new Edge Explore 3
Voice control? To be honest, I’m not sure I want my bike computer to be able to hear whimpering up every hill…
Why don’t cyclists use the cycle lane? #390,823
“Double yellows, blocked pavement, blocked cycle lane, and for the win, it was bin day,” Newcastle-based North Country Boy posted on BlueSky.
Does the van driver get a prize?
Joey Pidcock retires from professional cycling at 24 as brother Tom rues missed opportunity for last hurrah in China
Two years into his professional career, Joey Pidcock has pinned on a race number for the last time.
The 24-year-old has spent the last two years racing alongside big brother Tom at Pinarello Q36.5, after a strong stint as an U23, which included stage wins at the Ronde de l’Isard in France and the Rás Mumhan.
Since joining Q36.5 in 2025, the same year Tom made the move from Ineos, Joey quickly settled into a domestique role, racing a number of spring classics last year, including Paris-Roubaix, where he was the last rider to enter the velodrome after a long, solo ride over the cobbles.
He’s also managed to bag a few decent results of his own, including fourth overall at the 2025 Tour of Kyushu in Japan and seventh on the final stage of this year’s Sibiu Tour.
However, Joey will hang up his wheels (his pro ones, anyway) at the end of this year, after racing one last time with Tom at the Tour of Guangxi. He very nearly went out on a high too, with Tom being pipped to the win by Jarno Widar on the final stage.
View this post on Instagram
“And just like that another season passed sat here in an airport 8,000km from home,” the elder Pidcock posted on Instagram.
“Today I dreamed of winning with Joey Pidcock in his last pro race but we had to settle for second… again.”
Is this the perfect bike-Lurpaking bicycle?
View this post on Instagram
If you’re groaning, that was VecchioJo’s joke, not mine, for the record…
“As Mayor of Greater Manchester, you made bold changes to give people more ways to travel and create a fairer transport system. We urge you to bring that same ambition to the whole country, sending the message that we need better cycle routes for women”
Help us to bring you the best cycling content
If you’ve enjoyed this article, then please consider subscribing to road.cc from as little as £2.49. Our mission is to bring you all the news that’s relevant to you as a cyclist, independent reviews, impartial buying advice and more. Your subscription will help us to do more.
7 Comments
Read more...
Read more...
Read more...
Latest Comments
Ards and North Down Cycling Campaign earlier this week held an event with local police encouraging drivers to leave a safe passing distance of 1.5m when overtaking cyclists This will achieve nothing whatsoever, because the drivers and the discouraged potential cyclists all know that the police postscript to the pretend encouragement is: 'but if you choose not to, don't worry because we have no intention of even thinking about enforcing the 1.5m distance, just like all the other UK police forces, and it doesn't matter if it's only 10% of that. Try not to hit them unless you have to get them out of the way, but if you do, scarper and you'll probably get away with it. If you've been drinking, just say you had a few drinks after you got home to calm your nerves after hitting what you thought was a fridge or a sack of potatoes, if they show up at your door.
Sadly, I feel that the reaction to this will be the same as the many multiple shootings that the US endures, every year - shock, tears and platitudes, swiftly returning to the status quo (untill the next time)
@Velo-drone I did not submit reports of either of the two heinous close passes I experienced with my daughter while on holiday there in half term But you could show them to us! I sent one to upRide today: it's the silver Kuga above, and will likely be viewable in a couple of days, and the long holdup on here can be sidestepped by simply omitting the 'h' from the https at the beginning of the link. It's all very easy to do. Other hosting sites are available.
@matthewn5 On which - I've not been there (and I've heard from a couple of cyclists online who say that they *are* good...) but I suspect the following blog post (from 2012 - As Easy As Riding A Bike) nails it: "They built it, and they didn’t come – the lesson of Milton Keynes" Verdict: the place was designed (1) for very convenient driving (not surprising - aspirational driving was the thing at the time, they had a blank canvas etc). (2) While the designer genuinely tried to provide for cyclists that comes across as "we need to get the cyclists off the roads because we fixed it for the cars to move fast". As is common (across the decades) in the UK it's nominal safety from motor vehicles but at major cost to convenience. Not to mention lack of social safety. FWIW there's also videos online by Alexei Sayle of him cycling around giant car parks there...
@mitsky Doesn't matter ..... Insurance / No insurance, License / No license These types will drive anyway!
@VIPcyclist Agree regarding cycle lanes, but the article is referring to cycle _tracks_ in Milton Keynes, which if I remember rightly are segregated but also don't run next to roads, so they're often quiet, dimly lit and secluded.
First, the actual change from issuing a bunch of "warning letters" to basically taking no action on anything is more or less no change to be honest. There is no evidence that sending a warning letter does anything. Not all forces even keep a record of warning letters. I'm aware of no actual empirical study of outcomes from sending a warning letter. Its main purpose therefore can only be to say that something has been done, rather than to actually improve road safety outcomes, because nobody cares enough to check if it achieves any outcome. It's the equivalent of finding a bike thief, and popping in a note through the door saying "please don't do that", and considering it an effective response. The apparent discrepancy between the NPCC position given early in the article, and the judgment later on that the Derbyshire policy "appears in line with the guidance" muddies the water considerably. There is a gaping lack of clarity over what police forces can and can't (or will and won't) do under the NPCC guidance. The suggestion for cyclists to provide speed measurements is silly - most cyclists don't have that capability, or won't be using it on e.g commuting rides. It's not clear why the speed of the cyclist is particularly relevant in any case? The Highway Code guidance relating to passing cyclists refers only to the speed of the motor vehicle. Saying you'll only take action in "exceptional circumstances" but not giving any indication what those circumstances might be is tantamount to saying "don't bother reporting, because it's 99% likely to be a complete waste of your and our time and we're not going to tell you how you might assess whether your case might be in the 1%" So, unsurprisingly the Derbyshire Police policy does seem to have at least one clear impact. I did not submit reports of either of the two heinous close passes I experienced with my daughter while on holiday there in half term. Why would I? Why would anyone? And why would it be a surprise that some drivers in Derbyshire choose to drive as if they have a free rein to endanger cyclists lives without fear of any consequence - because in fact they do. The notion that "forensic analysis" is needed to determine if a close pass is actionable or not is nonsensical. I would say laughable, but it's not really a laughing matter. It is not necessary to determine if the car is 140cm vs 151cm away. It is generally perfectly obvious whether the car is less than a car's width away, or more than a car's width away. That's sufficient to make a reasonable judgement on whether the driving could be considered careless or not - bearing in mind that the vast majority of actioned cases would be easily visually identifiable as substantially below that distance.
@Pub bike 10,000 men find out a year they’ve got prostate cancer too late. We need to get those numbers down. There’s no screening unfortunately in the UK There's no blanket overall prostate cancer screening because the experts in the UK National Screening Committee have decided that it would do more harm than good. It's not because of cost, it's because the PSA test is not that good. There are big trials in progress to improve testing. When it comes down to PSA testing of specific groups, such as those with a genuine family history, the risk-benefit balance may well be different. I suspect thar Sir Chris has had at least tacit approval of his "just google ‘prostate cancer UK risk checker’ and there’s three questions, it takes you 30 seconds and that will help you assess your individual risk. If you’re high risk, go to your GP and ask for a PSA, a blood test" advice so it's probably reasonable. I am 74 and have never taken a PSA test. I have no family history I know about. 'Better to be safe than sorry' is bad advice when it comes to prostate cancer screening.
As well as a Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood test another non-surgical test you can have is a Digital Rectal Examination (DRE) which a GP can do very quickly and gives some more indication about the state of the prostate. See https://prostatecanceruk.org/prostate-information-and-support/prostate-tests/digital-rectal-examination-dre
7 thoughts on ““I had f**king fantasies of running them all over – and maybe one of these days I will”: Clip resurfaces of Republican candidate’s horrifying anti-cyclist rant; Lime says its bikes are for cycling not jousting; Picnic licence delay + more on the live blog”
Stupid! An incredible amount of space wasted on jousting! …. even stupider >>> my bothering to comment!
I think jousting inherently takes up a fair amount of space.
Sir Gawain, Sir Walter, et al will all be running scared when Sir Ron turns up.
Yee Ha! Pow! Pow! Pow!
Herrera sure gets ma vote!
Them pesky pinky Democrats think he’s mean, but he mows them lycra pussy cyclists down in the name of Jesus our Lord.
I just killed me a cyclist. Squashed some li’l kid on tricycle wi’ ma truck. He held me up while I was going to Walmart to get me a fresh supply of Trump sympathy diapers.
@Mr Blackbird I find out about that guy, and now I’m imagining how I could “get away with it.”
@andystow I’m just hoping that Canada and Mexico hurry and finish that wall..
Re, Brandon Herrera
1) Given the exceptionally lenient sentences drivers who kill with their vehicles receive, it is almost like they get away with it.
So, as has been said before, if someone’s intention is to kill then using a vehicle could be the way he “… could get away with it…”
2) If he is this incensed about cyclists on roads slowing him down a little bit…
How does he feel about all the other people IN MOTOR VEHICLES who force him to sit stationary in rush hour traffic?
3) My guess, as I’ve said before with the likes of him, is that he feels emasculated by cyclists. Which fuels his anger towards them.
He feels weak because he himself isn’t “tough” enough to be on a bike on public roads when faced with the danger of (ironically? paradoxically?) crazy people like him behind the wheel.