excitement in Oakland, CA - van and car ambush cyclist

[eddief]

so we have this great semi rural route here in the East Bay...not more than a few miles from the big city. Reported a couple of days ago. A lone cyclist going up the road in broad daylight. A van stops right in his path. He dodges the van and rides like an MF to get away. But then there is a second vehicle working with the van. They pull a gun, grab the gold chain from around his neck, grab his bike, throw it in the van and drive away.

Don't wear anything that glitters. Can you fit a pistol in your jersey pocket? You just can't make this stuff up.

[ultraman6970]

A friend of mine in my country was carrying a small gun in his jersey. 2 times they did something similar to him but since his bike was clearly identificable it showed up after a week. Back in the day to have an ALAN carbon was a really rare bike. Since he was well known the accidents showed up in the TV with a picture of the bike and everything. Before a week the bike showed up in full in the middle of nowhere.

He did not wait for the 3rd time and started carrying a gun. Other guys started doing the same.

Peru back in the 90s had 2 kids that were junior world champion, their dad had a lot of money so while training they were followed by a small truck with 4 guys with shotguns and machine guns, no kidding. In colombia for example wouldn't surprise me that many riders are armed.

[benitosan1972]

this same thought occasionally crosses my mind when riding out in the rural hills/countryside even in affluent Silicon Valley. i'll occasionally have people stare at me riding by and saying "nice bike." sometimes i'm wondering if they want to steal it somehow... it wouldn't be that hard in this scenario: lone, skinny, tired cyclist riding solo on a nice bike in a remote area... you could basically knock me over by blowing on me then take my bike, lol.

anyways, i'm always aware, but i'm not sure if there's anything i could really do if i'm ambushed... i usually respond to people by saying "if you like mine, the guy about 2 minutes behind me is riding a $15,000 Cervelo, you'll LOVE his." and with that lie, i get the hell out of Dodge lickity-split

[Fixed]

Bad people live everywhere
Cheers

[redir]

Can you fit a pistol in your jersey pocket?

That glitters a bit too.

[eddief]

That glitters a bit too.

and weighs just about 9 oz. Just right for the average cyclist.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kel-Tec_P-3AT

[GuyGadois]

The day cyclists have to carry a gun for protection is the day I give up cycling.

[ultraman6970]

Was thinking the same thing.

The day cyclists have to carry a gun for protection is the day I give up cycling.

[Louis]

I'd guess that 99.9% of the folks around here don't even know that the bikes cost more than $200.

[Chance]

Can you fit a pistol in your jersey pocket?

Yes. A friend is a police officer and is required to carry his gun when out and about (or so he says). Probably a smaller piece than his service gun (which is quite large) but it does fit.

[Chance]

By the way, riding alone in isolated areas is a concern at times. Not because of the bike or someone stealing anything. That can be replaced. The issue that concerns me is that some idiots seem to enjoy hurting people for the fun of it. Occasionally we get reports of cruel behavior against innocent people just because they can get away with it. They may be few, but there are some really sick people out there. Avoiding them mostly comes down to luck.

[maxn]

a friend forwarded me the email from the GPC.. I used to ride that section all the time, but usually in the opposite direction. One of the things that always amazed me was how remote it was being so close to Oakland, and I really appreciated that fact. Crazy.

[alexstar]

I think the email is a fabrication. It has no specifics, just hearsay. Not to mention that no such crime was reported to the PD, Oakland Fire apparently hasn't heard of this, and the source is hazy: a "berkeley based cycling email list" but which one? And, who wrote this to begin with?


This was on another Berkeley based cycling email list tonight.

Thot I'd let you know. My son works for Oakland Fire and is currently
stationed off of Skyline. He just called me. A bike rider came in to
the station to report his mugging.

This just happened at approx 3pm today. He was a solo bike rider. He
had just come down South Pinehurst and turned onto Redwood Rd. Just
past the Redwood Park entrance as he was heading up Redwood, a van
passed him, then pulled over, a guy jumped out to stop him. He was
able to manage his bike around the guy by going into opposing traffic
and continued as fast as he could up Redwood. The van took off again
after him and passed him again. The biker went to turn around and
there was another car involved who pulled up behind him. The guy
pulled a gun on the biker, took his gold chain necklace, then took the
bike and threw it in the van.

The van was a 2 tone gray (dark & light gray) 70'ish. It was like one
of those workstyle Econo vans with window in the back and the side
door. The car was a Nissan 200SX, possibly red in color.

Please let everyone know. This was a brazen crime and there will no
doubt be more until these guys are caught. They have a lot of victims
out there waiting with all of us who do solo rides on these more
isolated back roads.

[jtakeda]

Sounds pretty specific to me. Named the car, what streets they were riding on and in what direction.

[BumbleBeeDave]

The issue that concerns me is that some idiots seem to enjoy hurting people for the fun of it. Occasionally we get reports of cruel behavior against innocent people just because they can get away with it.

. . . because they ARE out there. I think to some degrees it's the reason for all incidents of cyclist harassment. Whether immature kids or malicious adults, people do it because they think they can get away with it--do it and just drive away.

BBD

[thinpin]

Carry a gun?..cycling?.. all mad...or the country is plain mad.

[Onno]

If someone is going to rob me for my bike (which strikes me as freakishly unlikely in any virtually any part of the country), I'll give it up without a fight. Having a gun in a pocket or in my hand, threatening to kill, and inviting violence in return, just seems nuts. Insurance will replace the bike.

[benitosan1972]

Bike jacking is fairly common around here (from what I've read), and when you think about it, alot of today's bikes cost more than cars, and it's pretty easy to get away with, but let's not get paranoid and start riding around with guns or even stop riding. It's just something to be aware of, if you're not already...

[Chance]

Don’t see how protecting yourself or your property can be wrong when done within confines of the law. Don’t carry a gun myself but if other cyclists want to it’s perfectly OK with me as long as done legally. No different than having one "legally" in your car other than having to carry the weight around.

Would never use one to protect a bike but would not hesitate if to protect a person from harm. Fortunately it's not something that happens enough to be of great concern "yet".

[William]

Don’t see how protecting yourself or your property can be wrong when done within confines of the law. Don’t carry a gun myself but if other cyclists want to it’s perfectly OK with me as long as done legally. No different than having one "legally" in your car other than having to carry the weight around.

Would never use one to protect a bike but would not hesitate if to protect a person from harm. Fortunately it's not something that happens enough to be of great concern "yet".


Agreed.

I respect each person's right to decide if and how they may legally approach personal protection. There are a lot of nice, upstanding, law abiding people in this world. Unfortunately there are also a lot of nut bags and people who have absolutely zero concern/empathy/emotion for anyone outside of their personal sphere. Running into one of these folks is a combination of bad luck, timing, and not being aware or paying attention to what is going on around you. In a situation like what was posted, they are targeting the person when they are most vulnerable: isolated, tired, and probably not paying too much attention to their surroundings. In a bad guy sort of way, it's a smart time to hit you. I would be willing to bet that the person who got robbed never in a million years thought something like that would happen to them.






William

[BumbleBeeDave]

Unfortunately there are also a lot of nut bags . . .

. . . Mr. Squirrel?

BBD

[handsomerob]

and weighs just about 9 oz. Just right for the average cyclist.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kel-Tec_P-3AT

I have one. Great size, decent caliber as far as pocket guns are concerned. I would be more comfortable carrying it chambered if it had a safety. Also, I have a nice Uncle Mikes holster that is big enough to keep it from printing.

[William]

. . . Mr. Squirrel?

BBD

The biggest one of them all!!!:butt:





William

[ngilbert]

Like others have stated, I would give up cycling before having to carry a gun to protect my bike. To me, nothing is worth that level of violence except when protecting another life.

I've often considered myself a pretty easy target when out alone, and have ran across some pretty questionable rednecks. I once thought I was in a similar situation out on a country road all alone, but it was just an ill tempered hillbilly asking for directions...

[GuyGadois]

Bike jacking is fairly common around here (from what I've read)...

First, where do you live?

Second, how do you define "fairly common"? Where I live there are lots of Toyota Prius's. I would say they are fairly common.

GG

[William]

I have one. Great size, decent caliber as far as pocket guns are concerned. I would be more comfortable carrying it chambered if it had a safety. Also, I have a nice Uncle Mikes holster that is big enough to keep it from printing.

Kel-Tec P-3AT got a great review, as did the Ruger LCP...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?src_vid=oR-uRVn4irQ&v=2JWmBlmLTzQ&annotation_id=annotation_361534&feature=iv





William

[aaronv]

The most recent issue of Guns & Bikes if anyone wishes to revisit.


http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=108185

[William]

The most recent issue of Guns & Bikes if anyone wishes to revisit.


http://forums.thepaceline.net/showthread.php?t=108185


Naw, it was locked on a loaded issue.



:banana:

William

[jds108]

this same thought occasionally crosses my mind when riding out in the rural hills/countryside even in affluent Silicon Valley. i'll occasionally have people stare at me riding by and saying "nice bike." sometimes i'm wondering if they want to steal it somehow... it wouldn't be that hard in this scenario: lone, skinny, tired cyclist riding solo on a nice bike in a remote area... you could basically knock me over by blowing on me then take my bike, lol.

anyways, i'm always aware, but i'm not sure if there's anything i could really do if i'm ambushed... i usually respond to people by saying "if you like mine, the guy about 2 minutes behind me is riding a $15,000 Cervelo, you'll LOVE his." and with that lie, i get the hell out of Dodge lickity-split

Yep, just last week had a couple of rednecks yelling at us on the descent of King's Mountain Road.

[SneakyFast1]

Seems to be a hoax: http://sfist.com/2012/06/29/cyclist_robbed_at_gunpoint_in_oakla.php

Douglas

[eddief]

or maybe you can. gotta go outside and take the gun rack off my Roubaix.

[William]

or maybe you can. gotta go outside and take the gun rack off my Roubaix.


Yeah, take off the heavy artillery. Leave the compact strapped to the stem.;)






William

[coelacant]

This is crazy! I do that loop just about every day, just not at those hours lately...as if the hills aren't tough enough, now I got to keep an eye out for bike muggers too? Oy vey.

[monkeybanana86]

Yep, just last week had a couple of rednecks yelling at us on the descent of King's Mountain Road.

That's annoying. I'm there at least three times a week. Also look out for a reckless lady in a blue van on Old La Honda, I've seen her like three times now. She must be an angry local bc she doesn't slow down for bikers even on stretches that can barely fit her van.

[jds108]

Seems to be a hoax: http://sfist.com/2012/06/29/cyclist_robbed_at_gunpoint_in_oakla.php

Douglas

Picked up now by the big SF paper, but of course that doesn't mean it really happened....

http://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Bicyclist-chased-and-robbed-at-gunpoint-3679679.php

[benitosan1972]

That's annoying. I'm there at least three times a week. Also look out for a reckless lady in a blue van on Old La Honda, I've seen her like three times now. She must be an angry local bc she doesn't slow down for bikers even on stretches that can barely fit her van.

What do you ride, what do you look like, did I pass you? ;)
I do OLH/Kings Mtn/84/Alpine/Tunitas/La Honda/Skyline/Pagemill
fairly regularly, as I stay in San Jose during the week, and San Mateo
on weekends, the stuff in between around Portola Valley/Woodside is great riding! :)

[Joe Remi]

A gun in my jersey? Nuh uh, I'd spend the whole ride praying it doesn't accidentally go off.

[benitosan1972]

9mm Glock > 80mm Firecrests

[SneakyFast1]

Now it is being confirmed: http://sfist.com/2012/07/02/confirmed_cyclist_chased_and_robbed.php

There seems to be some facts behind it rather than just an e-mail.

Douglas

[handsomerob]

A gun in my jersey? Nuh uh, I'd spend the whole ride praying it doesn't accidentally go off.

I am going out on a limb and guess that you haven't spent much time around firearms. An "AD" (accidental discharge) is near 100% a user error issue. I can't recall a single credible instance I have read where a gun goes off by itself.

You know how bike forks have lawyer tabs... Imagine all the "lawyer tabs" a Handgun must have to get to production.

[54ny77]

no matter how safely it could be holstered and be 100% foolproof against accidental discharge (in event of crash, etc.), like others said, the day it's obvious a cc is needed to ride safe is the day i take up lawn bowling....:bike:

[bcm119]

Cycling is dangerous enough without the occasional nut job. Just a risk you decide to take on a philosophical level, and not think about often. Same with driving a car.

The bay area seems to have a lot of cyclist/motorist conflicts lately. My theory is that its due to sheer numbers-- obviously a lot of cars here, but a hell of a lot of cyclists too. The whole bay area is crawling with them. Increasing income gap doesn't help either-- a lot of folks rushing around in horrible traffic working their asses off for next-to-nothing don't have much patience for these Silicon Valley fat cats cruising along on $10k bikes at 2 in the afternoon, seemingly without a care in the world. Obviously no excuse for dangerous behavior, but I think it adds to the tension.