Events | 2009.05.18
Mass punctures halts cycle race
One of the UK\'s most popular long-distance amateur cycle events was brought to a sudden, if temporary, halt today after protesters spread carpet tacks over sections of the course, puncturing hundreds of tyres.
Tayside police were investigating the "reckless and irresponsible" stunt, which saw the Étape Caledonia, an 81-mile charity ride around Pitlochry, Perthshire stopped for about 90 minutes so the tacks could be swept from roads. Organisers said they found out what had happened when a number of riders in the leading group reported getting punctures on a hilly section about halfway through the course.
The race was subsequently resumed and most of the 3,700 riders finished, although about 500 received punctures from the tacks, among them the eventual winner, Veli-Matti Raikkonen. "As far as we know, no one came off their bike because of a puncture and there were no injuries. But to it could have potentially been very much worse," said Tricia Fox, a spokeswoman for the race organisers.
The Étape Caledonia is the only such event in Britain in which the entire route is closed to traffic, and a small group of local residents and business owners have complained throughout its three-year history about the disruption this causes, forming a group called Against Closed Road Events, or Acre. Police said they were following "a positive line of inquiry" but declined to say if this was connected to Acre.
In a website posting before the event, Acre said it was not organising any formal protest but offered legal advice to those who wished to obstruct the road or take similar action. One rider, Alec Morrison, said he had been told by police that officers were investigating reports that some tacks were spread by a cyclist who joined up with a group of riders.
The 42-year-old engineer from Perth, who completed the course despite suffergetting punctures in both his front and rear tyres, said he was "completely pissed off".
"I can\'t believe anybody would do such a thing. Hanging a little banner is fine but to take this kind of action is outrageous," he said. "They could have killed someone. It\'s not good advertising for the area. I cycled with a group from London and they said they would never come back."
Many of those taking part in the scenic but gruelling event, in which riders climb a combined distance of almost 2,000 metres, raise money for the Macmillan cancer charity.
One of the organisers, Kathy James, who runs a bed and breakfast in Aberfeldy, said the race brought a lot of money to the area.
"There\'s a chap outside who came off his bike, there\'s been a lot of people coming off their bikes and basically they\'ve had to stop the race further up. This area relies on tourism, it disgusts me as a local, I just think there\'s no logic behind it."
Étape events, named after the French word for stage, have become increasingly popular in recent years. Based on the Étape du Tour, an which sees thousands of amateur riders follow the route of a Tour de France stage, they are generally long and hilly, with many riders simply aiming to complete the course within a set time limit. Also known as sportifs, other such events in Britain are run on roads which are still open to other traffic.
For more information, please visit
http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2009/may[...]e-race-etape-caledonia-protest
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