Littering on Sportives

cougie

Very annoyed to ride the GFC last year and see riders lobbing gel packets into the Welsh Countryside.

I wasnt upset to see one of those guys at the side of the road later asking for spare inner tubes - thats Karma for you.

If you're big enough to ride one of these - you're also big enough to take your litter home with you. I hope a strict no littering policy is applied and publicised on the race details this year - its just very annoying.

ugo.santalucia

100% with you on this

redddraggon

Bloody English

nasahapley

Can't see that a single person will disagree with you on this Cougie, and rightly so. It can be a problem in fell races too and it's something that really p***es me off. However, there is already a universal no littering policy in place - The Law - so I fear an organiser adopting their own will, unfortunately, make little difference.

(Slightly OT, but I rode Mt Ventoux last summer and the amount of discarded gel tubes at the side of the road was unbelievable - I really didn't expect it at what is the Mecca of cycling - and it's one of the things I remember most about the day. Sad really).

Ken Night

We can all do our bit by not littering of course, but more importantly, by fostering a mindset of no tolerance of litter

The latter doesn't mean bawling out someone who does litter, (I'm guilty of this-the bawling, that is) but politely saying

"there is a policy of no litter on this sportive"

"are you going to pick that up" and if no action " I've got your entry number by the way"

Richard_D

You could always add time penalties to any one caught littering. Especially if it was printed on the results. The old Name and shame tactic.

Mossrider

I almost reported someone to the Dragon ride organisers for it last year. Perhaps they should start a blacklist? Little they would do about it though; the reprobate would just deny it. Best action is to say something and thereby embarrass them (I tried and he apologised, but i suspect only because he thought he'd nearly hit me with his discard).

Kléber

No one should be littering. There is no excuse. Maybe that gel wrapper is sticky or that used inner tube is dirty but put it in your pocket. The whole point of a nice ride is to enjoy the countryside, not to make a mess of it. Remember, you do not look like Valverde lobbing a waterbottle into the hedge with 10 miles to go, you look like a knob.

Anonymous

I remember a guy who got named and shamed on the WRC last year....his number was put on this site and his CC was informed....a total apology followed...naming and shaming is a powerful tactic....and could act as a deterrent.....so take a pen and paper and get those numbers (and dont throw the paper or pen away after using it)

vermooten

I've posted this before, but I almost got into a fight with a rider on the Marmotte in 2007 cos he was chucking newspaper onto the road on the Col du Glandon. I didn't stop him from doing it but at least I pissed him off enough maybe to make him think twice before doing it again.

So if you see anyone chucking stuff then challenge them about it. "Who do you think is going to pick that up?" is a question worth asking.

Peter Harrison

vermooten wrote:

I've posted this before, but I almost got into a fight with a rider on the Marmotte in 2007 cos he was chucking newspaper onto the road on the Col du Glandon. I didn't stop him from doing it but at least I pissed him off enough maybe to make him think twice before doing it again.

So if you see anyone chucking stuff then challenge them about it. "Who do you think is going to pick that up?" is a question worth asking.

Maybe clubs have a role to play here. As a youngser in the Gosforth RC in the 60's you were taught to take your litter home or to the nearest bin. If you did throw something away the whole group was stopped and the offender made to pick it up.
As an old member of the club used to say about the countryside "this is our church" and you wouldn't litter a church would you!

ugo.santalucia

Richard_D wrote:

You could always add time penalties to any one caught littering. Especially if it was printed on the results. The old Name and shame tactic.

Excellent idea!