A big thanks for all the gel wrappers.

john1967

Stopped for a breather on top of the trough of bowland today and frankly it was a disgusting mess of gel wrappers and empty sweet packets and various other bits of cycling litter.So sad that a beautiful relaxing spot has just been used as a bin by people who should be more in touch with the open road.

cougie

I hope karma cones their way in the form of the puncture fairy visiting repeatedly on the coldest and wettest days.

FFS it's not hard to put your gels back in your pocket. Muppets.

peat

Sh!t, isn't it? It simply doesn't compute for me.

That said, I got told off by someone the other week for slinging a banana skin into a hedge.

PhilipPirrip

I hope you did something positive with that anger and cleared up the wrappers on the trough before you left.

Bumo_b

It seems to be getting worse these days, wrappers all over the place, although like the previous post, if it is a banana, that goes in the hedge.
That being said, I was bemoaning the state of London's roads with the thousands of CO2 cartridges left everywhere, also wondering why everyone was getting so many punctures, until a work colleague explained it is nothing to do with cycling and all to do with getting high! Who knew? I certainly didn't.

redvision

I got in to a row with a couple of riders a few weeks back over this very thing.

I was about to pass them when both dropped gel wrappers - literally like it was synchronised. So as I went by I said hello and suggested they put the litter in their pockets.

One told me to go f myself and the other threatened to nut me. Thinking back, maybe it was gianni moscon.

Some riders are just d1ckheads.

tangled_metal

Banana skins supposedly take a lot longer than apple cores to degrade so are really something you can put back in your pocket too. Pack it in, pack it out not hard.

I think it's something to do with the organisms in the soil aren't used to the banana skins on that they're not as simple to break down but I could be wrong. Whatever the reason it takes 2 years. Sorry about the lecture Peat. Me and some people I've known through various groups have picked up a fair few over the years from the fells. Some summits are a stinking mess if black and fly ridden mess after busy weekends because of them. Food / snack of choice for a lot of outdoor types but as much as people like the outdoors when it comes to a used banana skin they really don't want to carry it home.

https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/environment/2009/sep/24/bananas-litter-hikers-mountains-scotland

cougie

Don't even ditch banana skins.

They take 2 years to decompose.

Even apples take 2 months.

I'd expect you'd get annoyed if someone walking past threw a banana skin over the hedge.

peat

Bumo_b wrote:

That being said, I was bemoaning the state of London's roads with the thousands of CO2 cartridges left everywhere, also wondering why everyone was getting so many punctures, until a work colleague explained it is nothing to do with cycling and all to do with getting high! Who knew? I certainly didn't.

Different gas. Don't waste perfectly good N2O on bike tubes!

peat

Knowledge is a gift, so thanks.

Bumo_b

What happened to inhaling from deflated balloons? Times have changed from when I was younger in the 80's, and you were waiting in a clapped out banger for some location in the middle of nowhere to find out about some dodgy warehouse on a Friday night.
Point taken with the banana, will stop it and bin responsibly! I've learnt several knew things this week! When I know better, I do better :=)

slowbike

cougie wrote:

Don't even ditch banana skins.

They take 2 years to decompose.

Even apples take 2 months.

I'd expect you'd get annoyed if someone walking past threw a banana skin over the hedge.

Apples take 2 months - but disappear quickly when the wildlife get at it.

See plenty of Apple trees in the UK (2 in my garden) - not many banana trees ...

tangled_metal

On the topic of throwing stuff over the hedge. Does anyone throw their garden cuttings over their fence if they don't border onto another house?

It mildly irritates me to see obviously house proud gardeners that look a mess from outside their fence because of their garden waste rotting away. I've seen it from trains, from footpaths going past houses and even from cars driving past. If it rots compost it off not don't do the gardening equivalent of sweeping it under the carpet. Lazy and ignorant use of resources.

CitizenLee

It's all the full pro kit guys who think they're in the TdF and that someone will come along and pick it up for them.

I see it in the woods with gels and goggle rip-offs too, but get them told if I catch them doing it. Even chased a guy down a trail once to give him his gel wrapper back. I think he was too surprised to be angry so he took it back and said sorry

trekvet

As for gel wrappers it's easy; I roll mine up to get the last drop out, then stash the roll behind top of bottle cage. When out running I carry a jacket mesh storage bag for the empties.

tangled_metal

Easier than that!

Pocket, eat, pocket, bin.

4 stages and not one is difficult to understand. If needed I'm sure someone could create an app or other gadget to help you with it. Could Garmin update to include a reminder of what to do with your gel wrappers? They might listen to it if strava tells them to do it.

peat

Also, punctured inner tubes hung from gateposts/tree branches. What the hell is that about?

ugo.santalucia

Not sure about banana skins... banana is not a native species, it might well be that wildlife eat the skin and get sick... throwing anything is bad... throwing plastic is evil. Some countries have a less relaxed approach about it... a week of clearing bins on the streets would teach someone a lesson about waste

john1967

PhilipPirrip wrote:

I hope you did something positive with that anger and cleared up the wrappers on the trough before you left.

Its not really full on anger its more disappointment and i really didn't want to stuff my pockets full of dirty,sticky wrappers with god knows what on them but i would have no problem challenging someone to pick up their own litter if i saw them drop it.

fenix

I've started picking up rubbish as I'm out running now - makes me feel better about the area and doesn't impact my runs that much. A few plastic bottles put into a bin is a start. Maybe take a bag and pick up some wrappers next time you're up there ? I normally have latex gloves as part of my toolkit.

phil485

tuck the empty wrappers into my jersey or in my shorts leg.
Easy really.

norfolkwhite

Need to change behaviour in the pro peloton. The discarding of bidons and gel wrappers is the one thing that really gets my goat about watching professional cycling, I know you're out there with a sole focus of winning but always looks so wrong to me. Don't mind tossing them to the side where there are spectators for a souvenir (maybe not gel wrappers!) but c'mon guys launching bidons in hedges in fantastic countryside, you would have thought Team Sky would have had a think about it given their message about single use plastics, would have been amazing PR. If it's not seen as the thing to do by the pros then joe public wanna be racers will follow.-

ugo.santalucia

Fenix wrote:

I've started picking up rubbish as I'm out running now - makes me feel better about the area and doesn't impact my runs that much. A few plastic bottles put into a bin is a start. Maybe take a bag and pick up some wrappers next time you're up there ? I normally have latex gloves as part of my toolkit.

There should be a reward system... someone like you should get priority when booking a GP appointment or have a 10% council tax relief

Moonbiker

People shouldn't buy so many gels in the first place as its packaging in SUP that can't be recycled,so it is bad even if they are not littered everywhere.

Fat mammils riding 40 miles & eating 10 gels because thay think thats what the pros do is dumb, & maybe thats why there all so fat?

Iv'e never felt the need to eat a gel even for 150 mile rides etc.

I reckon they should ban them.

Also thoose stickers on banannas are plastic coated so need removing

secretsqizz

Norfolkwhite wrote:

Need to change behaviour in the pro peloton. The discarding of bidons and gel wrappers is the one thing that really gets my goat about watching professional cycling, I know you're out there with a sole focus of winning but always looks so wrong to me. Don't mind tossing them to the side where there are spectators for a souvenir (maybe not gel wrappers!) but c'mon guys launching bidons in hedges in fantastic countryside, you would have thought Team Sky would have had a think about it given their message about single use plastics, would have been amazing PR. If it's not seen as the thing to do by the pros then joe public wanna be racers will follow.-

Did you not pay attention?
Moscon gone thrown off the Tour for chucking a bidon, the fact that another rider got in the way of his chucking fist.........................

tangled_metal

Banana skins, nature's single use plastic.

I got shamed into taking stuff off the fells by a mate. He took one of the bin bags he used to keep wild camping kit dry to collect a load of stuff dumped at a viewpoint at the first decent viewing spot on the way up to a nice tarn. There was a nappy, empty bean tins and a load of other stuff. I had to take my share because I didn't want the nappy. It was ruptured because of overnight rain and he had the joy of cleaning his rucksack after it leaked over the outside on the way back.

At least you don't get many MAMILs leaving used nappies at the trough. Yet to see a MAMIL with a child seat attached to an aero bike.

fenix

I never use gels on the bike unless I'm racing - and then if I do = they're in a bottle and pre watered down. Cake is much nicer and cheaper.

dee4life2005

Might want to be careful stashing banana skins in your jersey pockets. I did that, rather than throw away into a hedge, but wished now I had. It was a long hot ride, so the banana skin was in there for a good few hours after I'd eaten it ... the oils from the banana got into the jersey fabric and the sun started the oxidation process. Now have a nice expensive white castelli jersey that has a large black/brown stain on one pocket that wont wash out - looks like I've had an "accident", so I've been told, so I dont wear it anymore (except in winter as a 2nd baselayer).
So, in the hedge it goes from now on. All other waste goes back in the jersey pocket though.

fenix

dee4life2005 wrote:

Might want to be careful stashing banana skins in your jersey pockets. I did that, rather than throw away into a hedge, but wished now I had. It was a long hot ride, so the banana skin was in there for a good few hours after I'd eaten it ... the oils from the banana got into the jersey fabric and the sun started the oxidation process. Now have a nice expensive white castelli jersey that has a large black/brown stain on one pocket that wont wash out - looks like I've had an "accident", so I've been told, so I dont wear it anymore (except in winter as a 2nd baselayer).
So, in the hedge it goes from now on. All other waste goes back in the jersey pocket though.

Sorry - why is your jersey more important than our countryside ?

Take it with you and put the skin in a bin on the way ? It's not rocket science.

FFS.

norfolkwhite

secretsqizz wrote:

Norfolkwhite wrote:

Need to change behaviour in the pro peloton. The discarding of bidons and gel wrappers is the one thing that really gets my goat about watching professional cycling, I know you're out there with a sole focus of winning but always looks so wrong to me. Don't mind tossing them to the side where there are spectators for a souvenir (maybe not gel wrappers!) but c'mon guys launching bidons in hedges in fantastic countryside, you would have thought Team Sky would have had a think about it given their message about single use plastics, would have been amazing PR. If it's not seen as the thing to do by the pros then joe public wanna be racers will follow.-

Did you not pay attention?
Moscon gone thrown off the Tour for chucking a bidon, the fact that another rider got in the way of his chucking fist.........................

Ahhh that's what he was up to

benjamess

Fenix wrote:

dee4life2005 wrote:

Might want to be careful stashing banana skins in your jersey pockets. I did that, rather than throw away into a hedge, but wished now I had. It was a long hot ride, so the banana skin was in there for a good few hours after I'd eaten it ... the oils from the banana got into the jersey fabric and the sun started the oxidation process. Now have a nice expensive white castelli jersey that has a large black/brown stain on one pocket that wont wash out - looks like I've had an "accident", so I've been told, so I dont wear it anymore (except in winter as a 2nd baselayer).
So, in the hedge it goes from now on. All other waste goes back in the jersey pocket though.

Sorry - why is your jersey more important than our countryside ?

Take it with you and put the skin in a bin on the way ? It's not rocket science.

FFS.

I'm with you on that, I do most my riding on my own and it's not that hard to keep an eye out or a bin and just have a gel/banana pulled up for a second then carry on the ride.

Alternatively (I think I got the idea on this forum) is to throw banana skin / gel wrapper in an empty bidon, easily done, clean and no need to stop.