Tiny dog run over by cyclists in Delta Park

[DieselnDust]

My first thought 

 

But seriously it is really not on for any one,  in any sort of accident to just leave, that's  no worse than the hit and runs we hate so vehemently.

 

Accidents happen and are unfortunate , just be there to sort out , could well be the dog was not seen or popped out from behind a piece of grass , what ever , just engage and sort out like the civilized mature adults we claim to be.

 

Gathering butt the facebook lynch mob, it would have being a tough one but the right thing to do 

 

 

Agreed. we also need to hear the cyclists side of the story. The hobby of creating favourable social media posts with the aim of pointing fingers and gathering support for ones hurt is very popular these days. Real issues get drowned out.

 

In a way I can relate to the cyclist. A coupleof years ago I was dropping my daughter at creche. Drve slowly up the street to her pre-school because I noticed a woman walking in the road. Im' heading east with the sun in my eyes. The street is also lined with parked cars of residents and other parents dropping their kids off. 

anyway, scene set i drive down the street and spot a parking and reverse in.

Next thing th ewman is at my car door hitting me with kids school bag claimin I drove over her dog.

Now I'm pretty bewildered as 

a) All I saw was her walking in the street and no kid

b) if I drove over anything I'd have felt something as 40 profiles don't exactly cushion the ride.

 

Then I spot a slightly shaken kid holding a shivering Dachie. Now I'm scratcching my head because I'm not getting a word in and she's still trying to moer the bag on me. I try to calm her down, (but my blood is starting to boil now) but she's just going at it. The school principal comes out and diffuses the situation. Dachie is now still in kids arms and has calmed down, tail wagging. SO i realise I didn't drive over the dog (it would be very dead)

I offer to take the dog to the vet right now. No she will take the dog and I must pay. (**** that I thought)

So I offer again, and shes says shes not getting in the car with a psycho drug dealer or whatever I am. ( I admit I wasn't dressed in work attire and had jeans and baseball cap on driving a hot hatch with some pigment in my skin so the profiling was working overtime)

So I offer to drive behind her to the vet. Nope now I'm a psycho rapist...... (by now the pressure valve was popping and  Scotty was telling me how its about to blow).

So I give her my number and tell her to do with it what she wants and walk my daughter to class.

 

When I come out she's still ranting and raving. Dog is running around on the pavement on a lead.

 

An elderly couple came up to me and said they saw the whole and if I wanted to lay a complaint at the cop shop they' would happily go with me. The situation diffuses as crazy lady now realises the tide is about to turn against her.

 

Turns out the kid was walking the dog on a lead but was between one of the cars. The Dachie was sniffing the front bumper and obviously got a fright when I came past. My daughter was quite concerned and asked about the dog when I picked up the afternoon. By then the dog owner had been to the vet who told her the dog was in great health and gave it some shots for god knows what. Still tried to get me to pay though.

I've seen this kind of behaviour in others a few times since in the Tokai lower forest. A bloke walking through the forest on his way to catch a taxi in Constantia gets accosted by two Weimeraners. He kicks the one dog in the face and runs for it. The owner says he was trying to rob her. I'm on my MTB and saw the whole thing. He was nowhere near her and her dogs were  off-leash and looking for trouble as young dogs do.

Also the dogs that attack but don't bite brigade....my perception of most dog owners now is that they're lunatics and I give them and their dogs a wide berth.

I try and walk my pooches around my neighbourhood mostly where I know who the crazies are what their dogs are like.

[RaymondC]

Thankfully my rides seldom cross those of dog walkers ...

 

Long long ago, before masks, we used to ride our trails then head home via Majik Forest .... that last few hundred meters were "interesting" ....

 

 

Closing in on dogs, and their owners, at speed typically results in a protective reaction from the dogs ....

 

So I slowed right down, greeting the owners before passing.

 

 

Jip, the odd dog would still try to walk in front of the bike. But I was slow enough that it was not an issue, and since the owner knew I was there they had time to react.

 

 

Had a few cases where I wondered if a dog was going to attack me ... thanks to the leash less owners .... thankfully never got to that point....

 

 

 

Punchline .... this was okay for a SHORT section ..... cant be fun doing this on longer trails.

Majik is fine, its the section of about 200m next to the dam. Lots of entitled muppets there, even if you stop and let them past you're a "****".

 

[Jewbacca]

Ja, but riding off?

 

You should never ride off.

 

That is cowardly and inexcusable, regardless of how you got there in the first place..

 

The skipping dodge part of this story is the only one I care about. That and the recovery of tiny dog.... 

[MudLark]

Ja, but riding off?

 

You should never ride off.

 

That is cowardly and inexcusable, regardless of how you got there in the first place..

 

The skipping dodge part of this story is the only one I care about. That and the recovery of tiny dog.... 

 

I get the sentiment. But I don't know what happened – the dog maybe ran in front of the bicycle. And now you have a whole very angry group of people to deal with and you run the risk of being assaulted. I would also ride away if that was the situation. The way the angry dog owner positions the event on Facebook is not necessarily the way it actually happened. Maybe the bikers did stop and then read the situation and decided to get the hell out of there. It's equally possible that they behaved badly. The thing is though, one simply doesn't know the full story. I don't know about you but I've seen enough situations where you hear one story and it looks pretty bad and then you hear the other side and suddenly the whole thing looks completely different.

[Jewbacca]

I get the sentiment. But I don't know what happened – the dog maybe ran in front of the bicycle. And now you have a whole very angry group of people to deal with and you run the risk of being assaulted. I would also ride away if that was the situation. The way the angry dog owner positions the event on Facebook is not necessarily the way it actually happened. Maybe the bikers did stop and then read the situation and decided to get the hell out of there. It's equally possible that they behaved badly. The thing is though, one simply doesn't know the full story. I don't know about you but I've seen enough situations where you hear one story and it looks pretty bad and then you hear the other side and suddenly the whole thing looks completely different.

If they did stop and they did make an effort, then I'm sure they would or someone would have stepped forward and said 'well actually Cotton....'

 

While I hate the Facebook platform and the way it rallies outlandish followers and statements, I can see cyclists hitting a baby bag rat and riding off. Hopefully I am wrong and they did stop, assist and are in contact with the outraged owner about tiny dogs recovery.

 

But Nah.... If you shot a red light and someone hit you and drove off because Mr Murphy and his Colnago were spitting in their face I would still say cowardly and disgusting.

 

If you hit a dog on your bike and don't stop to see if it's ok then yoh.... I'm glad you aren't my friend.

 

If it runs in front of you, jumps out of a tree or time skips a delorean at 1.21 gigawatts into your front wheel, if you hit something and have potentially injured it, you stop.

 

Unless it's a bear or a lion... or a Liger.... That would probably not end well.

Edited August 17, 2020 by Jewbacca

[DR ◣◢]

We don't know what they were thinking. 

 

It was definitely not a case of running over the dog and riding off as if nothing happened. 

 

One of the riders did ask if the dog is ok and the owner did say it was an accident. 

 

I think there was a definite miscommunication there. 

[Chris_]

Time to lay off the home-brew there big man... its clearly increasing in potency 

[Jewbacca]

We don't know what they were thinking. 

 

It was definitely not a case of running over the dog and riding off as if nothing happened. 

 

One of the riders did ask if the dog is ok and the owner did say it was an accident. 

 

I think there was a definite miscommunication there. 

If they stopped then I will sleep better tonight... While I am a dog owner, I am also dismayed at some dog owner traits, sometimes I even dismay and disappoint myself.

 

I am also continually dismayed by people in general..... ha!

 

Ligers.... Vote for Pedro

[The Ouzo]

Haha, I'm glad I'm not the only one that immediately heard Kevin Hart's voice in my head when I read the subject.

 

On topic, I agree with previous sentiments in the thread. I was at Modderfontein yesterday and although it wasn't dog related there were a bajillion hikers out. Sure, you can decide to be that guy and blast past a pair of walkers at 35kph because you're aiming to break the top 300 on Strava for that segment. OR, y'know, just be lekker and slow down, give them a nice loud MORNING as you're approaching and have a merry interaction with a fellow nature-enthusiast.

 

On the other hand though, don't get me started on the group of three midlife-crisisers I was stuck behind on the trail. 

 

• Middle-aged with a boepens - Check
• Riding an S-Works Epic / Scalpel Si - Check
• Having a dawdle on a fun, flowy portion of trail - Check
• LITERALLY DISCUSSING YOUR BUDDY DERRICK THAT'S STUPID BECAUSE HE BOUGHT A PORSCHE, WHEN HE COULD HAVE BOUGHT AN M5, BECAUSE HE'S JEALOUS OF YOUR PORSCHE - Check (I wish I was kidding)
• Ignoring me politely asking to pass after making eye contact, approaching them slowly and giving them fair chance to do so - Check

 

I have no issue with being middle aged rich dude riding an expensive bike slowly, its your money and your time. But, don't hog the trail  when you very obviously don't need to and are politely given a lot of time and opportunity not to. If I had raced up to them, tyres skidding as I stopped 5cm from their rear wheels and gave an obvious groan, sure, be a jackass.

 

There were a lot of very new riders out yesterday and we all worked together to ensure everyone has a great time at their own respective pace. People gave way for me and I gave way for others. But these dudes... Oi vey.

 

Just ******* be lekker.

Not just on the trails man.

 

Yesterday morning the wife wanted to go to a nursery and get a few things, so I hitched up the venter with the bike racks on and off we head.

 

Heading along a certain road in the area I see up ahead two "cyclists" riding next to each other, you can spot newbies a mile off.

No big deal, roads are fairly quiet, but there is no shoulder and its narrow, so from about 500m off I do a quick tap of the hooter just to let them know there is a car approaching, not that they should need it as anyone that has ever towed an empty venter will tell you how loud it is. But neither one of the riders turned to look back, carried on chatting away. At this point there is an oncoming car that based on my calculation would be in the way should I move over to safely pass, so I re-adjust my speed to give me plenty of space to pass safely once the oncoming car is gone.

 

Even alongside these guys as I'm passing, neither one of them bother to look over.

[TNT1]

Not just on the trails man.

 

Yesterday morning the wife wanted to go to a nursery and get a few things, so I hitched up the venter with the bike racks on and off we head.

 

Heading along a certain road in the area I see up ahead two "cyclists" riding next to each other, you can spot newbies a mile off.

No big deal, roads are fairly quiet, but there is no shoulder and its narrow, so from about 500m off I do a quick tap of the hooter just to let them know there is a car approaching, not that they should need it as anyone that has ever towed an empty venter will tell you how loud it is. But neither one of the riders turned to look back, carried on chatting away. At this point there is an oncoming car that based on my calculation would be in the way should I move over to safely pass, so I re-adjust my speed to give me plenty of space to pass safely once the oncoming car is gone.

 

Even alongside these guys as I'm passing, neither one of them bother to look over.

I'm hesitant to ask, but what is the point of your story?

 

You encountered a traffic situation which you handled correctly. (forget that it was cyclists, could have been any vehicle slower than you that you had to overtake correctly, which you did)

 

What did you want them to do? Go into single file and squeeze themselves against the road reserve so you could fit between them and the oncoming traffic? 

 

I always thought the choice was not about whether you run a cyclist over or have a head on collision, but about negotiating traffic by overtaking slower moving vehicles correctly?

[The Ouzo]

I'm hesitant to ask, but what is the point of your story?

 

You encountered a traffic situation which you handled correctly. (forget that it was cyclists, could have been any vehicle slower than you that you had to overtake correctly, which you did)

 

What did you want them to do? Go into single file and squeeze themselves against the road reserve so you could fit between them and the oncoming traffic? 

 

I always thought the choice was not about whether you run a cyclist over or have a head on collision, but about negotiating traffic by overtaking slower moving vehicles correctly?

The point of the story was that you dont just get guys not caring whats behind them on the trails but on the road too.

 

I did not expect them to squeeze to the side of the road, but with us cyclists being taken out by cars all over the show an acknowledgement of the presence of a car would have been fine.

As a cyclist I am aware of what its like being buzzed by a car, so I gave plenty of space and warning, these guys did not even look back. Who knows how the guy a minute or 3 behind me treated them.

 

Right or wrong, the first first rule of cycle safety is being aware of your surroundings.

[Pure Savage]

Ja, but riding off?

 

You should never ride off.

 

That is cowardly and inexcusable, regardless of how you got there in the first place..

 

The skipping dodge part of this story is the only one I care about. That and the recovery of tiny dog.... 

I am not sure what the riding off part comes from, in the comments the OP states that the mother was polite when talking to the cyclists after the incidents. 

 

Maybe it was a case of, "sho, really sorry, did not see the little thing over there, was not expecting it. So sorry, cheers." 

 

Maybe the OP expected the cyclist to do more?

[Pure Savage]

If they stopped then I will sleep better tonight... While I am a dog owner, I am also dismayed at some dog owner traits, sometimes I even dismay and disappoint myself.

 

I am also continually dismayed by people in general..... ha!

 

Ligers.... Vote for Pedro

Think humans just disapoint

[DieselnDust]

The point of the story was that you dont just get guys not caring whats behind them on the trails but on the road too.

 

I did not expect them to squeeze to the side of the road, but with us cyclists being taken out by cars all over the show an acknowledgement of the presence of a car would have been fine.

As a cyclist I am aware of what its like being buzzed by a car, so I gave plenty of space and warning, these guys did not even look back. Who knows how the guy a minute or 3 behind me treated them.

 

Right or wrong, the first first rule of cycle safety is being aware of your surroundings.

 

 

ah but there are a few assumptions here that could be right or could be wrong.

 

Newbie cyclists tend to focus only on whats ahead. Very one dimensional thinking as a lot of their concentration is focused on keeping the bike upright. They may not want to look back for fear of falling over in front of you. I encourage my daughter to look ahead when she hears a car coming and to try and stay to the left. if she focuses on the car she will steer toward it. I'd rather she be in control rather than trying to be polite and dead.

Its not always possible to hear cars when you are concentrating hard. 

The cyclists may have been deaf.

Its possible they were uncaring but I'm going to go with just not having enough cognitive ability at this stage of their cycling experience to be able to multitask beyond the basic requirements of keeping the bike going forward without falling over

[Edition 507]

As a dog lover and bike lover and frequenter of said park, my sentiments are as follows:

 

Dogs should be free to run, no leash.

 

Children should be free to run, no leash.

 

Cyclist should not be chops and ride at speed in the close vicinity of dogs and kids. Just common sense.

 

If a cyclist is going too fast to avoid hitting a dog or child, then the cyclist is going too fast. Period!

 

Riding a bike is predictable, you have pedals, brakes and steering. Dogs and kids on the other hand are unpredictable. As a cyclist you are in control of a predictable situation, use it to avoid the unpredictable situation i.e. slow down and go around, expect the unexpected, anticipate.

 

Hitting a dog or child at speed could result in their death. For this reason I would side with the dog owner/parent at all times.

 

P.S. Bunny hopping dogs, kids and picnic baskets is also not acceptable.

[TNT1]

As a dog lover and bike lover and frequenter of said park, my sentiments are as follows:

 

Dogs should be free to run, no leash.

 

Children should be free to run, no leash.

 

Cyclist should not be chops and ride at speed in the close vicinity of dogs and kids. Just common sense.

 

If a cyclist is going too fast to avoid hitting a dog or child, then the cyclist is going too fast. Period!

 

Riding a bike is predictable, you have pedals, brakes and steering. Dogs and kids on the other hand are unpredictable. As a cyclist you are in control of a predictable situation, use it to avoid the unpredictable situation i.e. slow down and go around, expect the unexpected, anticipate.

 

Hitting a dog or child at speed could result in their death. For this reason I would side with the dog owner/parent at all times.

 

P.S. Bunny hopping dogs, kids and picnic baskets is also not acceptable.

Of course, the exact opposite case is perfectly justifiable as well.