Shocking incident between van driver and cyclists in Camps Bay

[90 Inch]

What happened to the "Alfa Bodyworks riders"..? are they thrown out of the league as well..? from the footage its the Alfa Bodyworks rider that throws the punches not a MC2..!

 

 

Alfa Bodyworks is a sponsor of the club, all the riders belong to MC2, Alfa Bodyworks Kit is for the league riders

[Malpiet]

Alfa Bodyworks is a sponsor of the club, all the riders belong to MC2, Alfa Bodyworks Kit is for the league riders

 

all makes sense . i only know of the one kit hence my question.

 

Thankx 90inch for clearing it up

Edited March 6, 2014 by Malpiet

[Gen]

 

 

You were being perfectly reasonable and I was trying to be funny.

 

 

....so where do you think the weapons should go? - hitting a guy with a bike is so lame

 

Not to mention the possibility of damaging the wheel

[eddy]

Personally I try to go as fast as possible on the segment / area just after clifton etc, where the road narrows, Cars generally don't go as fast around there cos of the way it twists and turns, and there are construction trucks and double parked cars all along there. SO I generally put foot there, and relax on the coastal road section when things widen up a bit. Same as Kalk Bay / Muizenberg main road. I hit that section as fast as possible so that drivers don't get frustrated. And I thank them for waiting. Or pull in when there's a gap between parked cars...

 

Sensible, I do it the same way when I ride alone.

 

However, I would not try doing it 19th wheel in a pace-line or in a group of more than 3 riders as that would just be stupid.

[Wyatt Earp]

 

 

Edit: another thought. All the cyclists here are angry - why was that? Surely, if only one cyclist stripped his moer, the others would have pulled him off (if reading this thread is anything to go by). No, they're all pissed off. That driver, or his passengers, did something they shouldn't have, I'm pretty sure of it. If the video had covered the entire situation, I wonder whether our perspective would be different? If it showed the driver doing something wrong, I doubt it would have got even a fraction of the exposure.

 

Now if Faizel was clever, he would have said this when he commented on their FB wall, instead of bragging about what a Chuck Norris he was.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Sensible, I do it the same way when I ride alone.

 

However, I would not try doing it 19th wheel in a pace-line or in a group of more than 3 riders as that would just be stupid.

 

Agreed. But then I tend to ride alone or with one other person when on the road

[Saudiq]

Once again you're reaching for excuses. Stick to the facts. I recognize there is cause and effect but that really has to be measured by an independent party.

Visibility on that stretch of road is pretty good. AS the motorist describes he was driving behind this group for quite some time and would have had a good view of the road ahead as he was looking for an opportunity to pass while observing the 1.5m rule (glad that campaign has had the effect intended, .....thanks PPA). These are facts as stated in his statement.

 

how cyclists would or should or could behave is really reaching for desperation because our behaviour is not exactly a best practice guide for road use in Cape Town now is it...

 

I'd like to know how it 'Fact' when the drivers account and the independent 3rd party's versions are completely different? One says he drove past the guys, the kids playing in the back may or may not have have sprayed the cyclist, then he stops and the next thing he gets a wheel in his face, whilst the 3rd party says the van was stationary, leader gets upset because van is double parked and attacks the guy?

 

I don't think anyone is looking for excuses, just about everyone on this 66 page thread (regardless of which so called 'camp') has stated that the retaliation/actions does not warrant anything that the driver and 6-7 occupants may or may not have done. I think some of us just like to ask what could possibly have sent these normally, law abiding citizens into such a furious rage. Surely this is not the first time these guys have had run in's with motorist whether solo or in a group, so what was different this time around?

[djsam]

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

I'd like to know how it 'Fact' when the drivers account and the independent 3rd party's versions are completely different? One says he drove past the guys, the kids playing in the back may or may not have have sprayed the cyclist, then he stops and the next thing he gets a wheel in his face, whilst the 3rd party says the van was stationary, leader gets upset because van is double parked and attacks the guy?

 

 

 

If you think about it for a second, the 2 are very very closely structured. Van may have passed earlier and gone in front of the guys for quite a distance, and then stopped to collect rubbish at the traffic lights, put his hazards on and therefore been double parked.

 

The question you need to ask yourself is this though - would there be anything that the driver did that would have justified this rampant attack from the 20 cyclists?

[Catatonic_Joe]

 

Damnit! I was just about to post exactly the same thing! Well please accept this as my only contribution to this thread

[Witkop]

When are we going to get a official statement from MC2 on the incident?

 

Something like:

 

"We at MC2 having reviewed the incident and apologies profusely for the perceived bad behaviour of the cyclists that were wearing our team kit. We have interviewed all our members involved and as charges have been laid against two member, and these members been taken in police custody, believe the case is now Sub judice. We ask the cycling community to respect the rule of law and processes of justice and not comment further on this case until the findings of the court.

 

We will institute the necessary disciplinary actions against the accused if found guilty and will hold disciplnary hearings for the other cyclists involved. As we do not assume guilt in any of these cases, we will continue to support our members until guilt has been proven, and ask the cyclist community not to conduct a trail by media. We are workig with PPA ext in this regard.

 

We will inform society in general on the findings of these tribunals upon their conclusion, so as to put this matter to rest."

 

This would go a long way to defuse the problem. In fact this should have been posted immediately once the video emerged.

 

ps my fees for PR/media consulting are reasonable, but as a backstop get a lawyer to check that you have not accepted any liability by the above statement

[Joe Low]

I don't think anyone is looking for excuses, just about everyone on this 66 page thread (regardless of which so called 'camp') has stated that the retaliation/actions does not warrant anything that the driver and 6-7 occupants may or may not have done. I think some of us just like to ask what could possibly have sent these normally, law abiding citizens into such a furious rage. Surely this is not the first time these guys have had run in's with motorist whether solo or in a group, so what was different this time around?

Why would you say they are normally law-abiding, I wouldnt know?

 

But anyway, hitting people is criminal behaviour unless it's a child or between consenting adults. I didnt see any bondage gear, so regardless of what the van folk did, these guys now have a case to answer.

 

There is no way now to know what went on prior.

[Tubehunter]

The courts are sure to take this into consideration and will show leniency - "he's been punished enough."!

 

You clowns can take almost anything out of context eh.... I don't know this chap from soap.

 

Also, as stated multiple times, the LAW must run its course and he should get what he has coming. Whatever that is, as a cyclist I doubt it will be harder to swallow than years of doing this race, prepping fully for a sub 3 ride and then having that taken away. This I say entirely as if I was in his shoes.

[Saudiq]

If you think about it for a second, the 2 are very very closely structured. Van may have passed earlier and gone in front of the guys for quite a distance, and then stopped to collect rubbish at the traffic lights, put his hazards on and therefore been double parked.

 

The question you need to ask yourself is this though - would there be anything that the driver did that would have justified this rampant attack from the 20 cyclists?

 

While they may seem very closely structured to you, it hardly seems plausible to me that a van passes a group of 20 cyclist 'who took up the whole lane', stops further down the road again and in a road that has very high visibility, is then not seen by the lead rider and then the driver is just attacked for double parking? And we going on 'facts' from a 19 year old who made global news, who would now admit to any kind of wrongdoing?

 

And if you read my second paragraph, you'll see that I mention that no one here condones or states that there is anything that this driver may have done to be attacked like that, everyone is in agreement on that bit it seems (myself included), all we're doing is asking what could've set this guys off like that.

 

I just think it's so easy for us to simply sit an just based on what was seen in a 59sec video and then the victims account without understanding what could've triggered the guys. Does understanding what caused it, justify anything, absolutely not, but in the same way some would like to understand what made guy shoot an intruder in his house, when he could've just warned the guy to leave, but chances are at time the person reacted, was fueled by fear, (due to the amount of break in's in the area, due to all the horror stories we hear in the news daily), he reacted and shot the guy. I'm pretty sure that guy, would regret his actions the next day, as I'm pretty sure these riders do as well.

[patches]

Edit: another thought. All the cyclists here are angry - why was that? Surely, if only one cyclist stripped his moer, the others would have pulled him off (if reading this thread is anything to go by). No, they're all pissed off. That driver, or his passengers, did something they shouldn't have, I'm pretty sure of it. If the video had covered the entire situation, I wonder whether our perspective would be different? If it showed the driver doing something wrong, I doubt it would have got even a fraction of the exposure.

 

Possibly... but never underestimate how irrational and contagious a mob mentality can be.

[Eddy Gordo]

Well after relooking at the video, I noticed that at around the 30 sec mark you will see one or two guys going around the side of the van, the same time one of them is trying to take the keys. As the car moves, you will notice that the van door is also open and there is a whole group of guys there. What happened on that side of the van where we couldnt see? No one has mentioned anything about this