Lemming cyclist faceplants into hedge...
Discussion
Driver was a t
t.
Cyclist was incompetent (happened to me before though, happily nowhere near a car).
t.Cyclist was incompetent (happened to me before though, happily nowhere near a car).
Safer Roads Team said:
On this occasion, the correct thing to do would have been to come to a stop to allow the cyclists to pass safely.
He should have slowed. There was no need to stop.joshcowin said:
I am a cyclist, she fell because they (the cyclists) stopped and she didn't clip out. The driver is a moron clearly but he didn't make her fall over!
Yep, she was following the cyclist in front too close. Not enough time to stop in an emergency. What happened to the principle that any accident is the fault of the vehicle behind? This should apply to all vehicles, motorised and pedal powered. Cyclists want to say that they're vehicles/traffic too (I agree, we are) and wish to be treated acocrdingly, well they need to behave accordingly also in that case. She should have been further back from her friend in front, clearly, and I also believe bike riders shouldn't be clipped in on public roads, for their own safety. She should have always left enough distance to the bike infron to stop safely, which means enough time and distance to stop and clip out before falling over. She didn't. Equally, Land Rover boy has passed them too close and too fast and so deserves what's coming, whether the daft cyclist fell off or not. And also equally, the rider at the back shouldn't be stopping, turning and making abusive hand gestures at the Land Rover driver, however tempting it is it's never an appropriate response of behaviour on the road.Another case of two (maybe four, actually) idiots meeting, but the Mail Outrage is generated by the fact there's only one party who can be fined for their stupidity.
kambites said:
I wouldn't exactly say he left "acres of space"! I certainly wouldn't have passed the cyclists (or indeed anyone else) at that speed on a road that narrow if I was in the Land Rover.
Personally I think a prosecution for driving without due care is sensible in this case. Dangerous driving would have been massively overkill but passing at that speed was clearly an antisocial and rather stupid thing for the driver to do.
+1 He went past way too fast/too close causing her to wobble and fall off. Even if she hadn't fallen off he should be done for DWDCA.Personally I think a prosecution for driving without due care is sensible in this case. Dangerous driving would have been massively overkill but passing at that speed was clearly an antisocial and rather stupid thing for the driver to do.
Bannock said:
Another case of two (maybe four, actually) idiots meeting, but the Mail Outrage is generated by the fact there's only one party who can be fined for their stupidity.
The Mail outrage is generated by the fact it's the Mail is read by the sort of people who real the Mail. No more reason is needed. It can be summed up by:
1) Driver drove by far too fast for the size of the gap he was able to leave.
2) Cyclist was too close to the bike in front (and too slow to release her pedal clips).
The former was IMO clearly worthy of criminal prosecution; the latter (rightly or wrongly) generally does not get prosecuted, regardless of form of transport - if someone in a car is tailgating at low speed, the driver in front stops causing the tailgater to hit the kerb trying to avoid them, they wouldn't generally get prosecuted for it. By and large people don't usually (there are exceptions) get prosecuted for being a danger only to themselves.
Edited by kambites on Thursday 31st March 17:10
Davie said:
No win situation really.
Some stating the the Land Rover should have stopped and allowed the cyclists to pass but then you could argue a bit self preservation by the cyclists would have seen them stop and step into the verge to allow the Land Rover to pass.
Why should they stop and move over? They’ve got just as much right to be there as the Land Rover. In fact more so, as cyclists use the roads by right rather than by licence. Some stating the the Land Rover should have stopped and allowed the cyclists to pass but then you could argue a bit self preservation by the cyclists would have seen them stop and step into the verge to allow the Land Rover to pass.
All the Land Rover needed to do was slow down. Not stop, not move over, just slow down to a walking pace for a couple of meters. Would have made no effect on their journey at all.
Cant Find a Charger when I need one said:
She may well have been panicked by the moronic driving.......
That's an interesting one...As people, we should have the ability to risk assess constantly and therefore if you are a person who s panicked by moronic driving, a quick risk assessment would suggest to you that the roads are full of moronic driving and therefore is that really somewhere you should be putting yourself?
If I was the sort of person who panicked due to an approaching car and thus forgot to or was unable to unclip and thus toppled over, I think I'd be getting back out the ditch and thinking a) maybe the roads aren't for me and b) thank God it was a ditch I toppled into and not under the wheels of a 44 tons wagon. Then I'd probably find safer places to ride and / or ride with flat pedals.
Not dissimilar to a woman who was screaming at me when I approached two horse riders are walking pace, yet the horse wasn't happy... she was busy yelling that the horse was nervous around vehicles and I couldn't but help think that not only was her yelling much louder and scarier than the car and also, if you know your horse is that bloody unpredictable, why ae you choosing to take it on the roads?
Yes, we're all road users, some of us being more venerable than others but the biggest mistake is putting your safety in the hands of others. In differing circumstances, maybe flat pedals may have made this a non event or perhaps the Land Rover had passed other cyclists who'd had no issues in situations like this and maybe even offered a cheery wave as they both passed in tight confides. I've had that... rural roads, majority of cyclists are no problem but there's always one. Much like there's always that one motorist. When the two meet... it ain't good.
So yes, two potential idiots met here... both could have done better and both may have learned the hard way, have learned from their mistakes and will reconsider their actions in future... or not.
I cycle. I avoid roads at all costs. I avoid clippy pedals at all costs.
Davie said:
4ft...? On a single track road? Not possible unless passing motorists are expected to drive through the field so I think a bit common sense should prevail both before making comments like that or indeed, choosing to ride on single track roads where the possibility of encountering vehicles is high and where said vehicles can't leave the suggested 4ft of passing space. But again, self preservation and all that.
I wonder what the land rover, who can't find 4' of passing space on a single track road, would have done if it had been a car coming the other way instead of a cyclist? Edited by Davie on Thursday 31st March 16:56
Davie said:
Yes, we're all road users, some of us being more venerable than others but the biggest mistake is putting your safety in the hands of others. In differing circumstances, maybe flat pedals may have made this a non event or perhaps the Land Rover had passed other cyclists who'd had no issues in situations like this and maybe even offered a cheery wave as they both passed in tight confides.
I'd bet that Land Rover driver has had a lot of 'cheery waves' in his time.CheesecakeRunner said:
Why should they stop and move over? They’ve got just as much right to be there as the Land Rover. In fact more so, as cyclists use the roads by right rather than by licence.
All the Land Rover needed to do was slow down. Not stop, not move over, just slow down to a walking pace for a couple of meters. Would have made no effect on their journey at all.
This is what most logical people would do, many many don't, it is literally part of every/most rides, helps sharpen your handling skills! All the Land Rover needed to do was slow down. Not stop, not move over, just slow down to a walking pace for a couple of meters. Would have made no effect on their journey at all.
Davie said:
Cant Find a Charger when I need one said:
She may well have been panicked by the moronic driving.......
That's an interesting one...As people, we should have the ability to risk assess constantly and therefore if you are a person who s panicked by moronic driving, a quick risk assessment would suggest to you that the roads are full of moronic driving and therefore is that really somewhere you should be putting yourself?
CheesecakeRunner said:
Why should they stop and move over? They’ve got just as much right to be there as the Land Rover. In fact more so, as cyclists use the roads by right rather than by licence.
All the Land Rover needed to do was slow down. Not stop, not move over, just slow down to a walking pace for a couple of meters. Would have made no effect on their journey at all.
They did stop and move over... and why shouldn't a cyclist stop, why is the onus always on the motorist? Been plenty times, riding locally where I've seen vehicles approaching and either stopped or hopped up into the verge rather than hoping the motorist will make allowances for me. As said, if you put your own safety in the hands of others, well... good luck. All the Land Rover needed to do was slow down. Not stop, not move over, just slow down to a walking pace for a couple of meters. Would have made no effect on their journey at all.
There's also nothing to suggest that slowing to a walking pace would have changed the outcome. Not as if he blew her in to the ditch with the wind as he tore past. Her friend stopped, she stopped and couldn't get her foot down so fell over. Not sure a slower speed would have made any difference if the main reason for falling over was being incapable of putting your foot down. Land Rover driver is not the sole person at fault.
As said, when idiots meet... the irony of such a statement isn't lost on me either!
joshcowin said:
This is what most logical people would do, many many don't, it is literally part of every/most rides, helps sharpen your handling skills!
It certainly does happen depressingly often, which is why it's nice to see someone actually get prosecuted for it for once. Perhaps if the prosecutions happened more often, the incidents would happen less!Gassing Station | News, Politics & Economics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff