Cyclists in Bogota fear becoming crime victims (NYT)

[fiamme red]

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/13/w...smid=url-share

“The insecurity for cyclists is at a maximum high,” said Yim Ángel, a founder of the Bicycle Collective, an advocacy group. “Cyclists contribute to the environment, to transportation, to health, to sports, to recreation. But in this moment, we don’t have a guarantee of security to move around freely in Bogotá. We’re scared.”

David Santiago Cortés Peña, 23, who runs a bicycle shop in Bogotá and rode on a professional cycling team last year, set out recently on a roughly 30-mile training ride to a town outside the city.

Around 5:30 a.m., en route to meeting friends at the base of the mountain near where he lives, Mr. Cortés said a man jumped out from behind a tree in the dark. He tried to maneuver around the man, but he said the man fired at him, a bullet grazing his eyebrow and forcing him off his bike.

As he lay bleeding on the ground, Mr. Cortés said, he saw the man racing off with his bicycle, which cost him $3,500. To pay for it, he had taken out a loan, sold some belongings and got help from his older brother...

[EB]

Colombia is a stunningly beautiful country full of wonderful, humble people that will break your heart. It is a frustrating and impossible place to understand.

I recommend reading Oblivion by Hector Abad if the subject interests you.

[edgerat]

A few influencers recently spent some time in Colombia and the tourism company had multiple security guards in cars and motorcycles. As much fun as seeing the world is, I couldn't put myself and my wife in that kind of environment. Agree with EB's comments.

[Fat Cat]

Same thing happens in California. And probably any number of other places. Including outside the NYT offices.

Obviously some places are less dangerous than others but ... How many leave the door to the house unlocked or the bikes in the driveway?

Jus sayn

[EB]

I actually recommend visiting Colombia. Great people, beautiful country, as I said. For the most part, I felt safer in Medellin than some places in the US, and it’s extremely cheap by US standards and even compared to, say, Mexico. You need to have some comfort level with poverty and you need some Spanish skills as it is the least English-speaking country in South America.

Incredible road riding too if you can arrange it.

But it has intractable issues that defy understanding. And it does have quite a bit of crime. And a very long history of political violence that underpins at least some of that crime. But it’s a far cry from say, Ecuador or El Salvador or Venezuela.

Oblivion is the only book I’ve found that got me closer to an understanding of the pathology and history that underlies the problems there (it’s not the coca leaf).

[fiamme red]

Originally Posted by Fat Cat

Same thing happens in California. And probably any number of other places. Including outside the NYT offices.

Obviously some places are less dangerous than others but ... How many leave the door to the house unlocked or the bikes in the driveway?

Jus sayn

If you leave your bike unattended for a few minutes outside the NYT building, you should expect that it will be stolen before you return. On the other hand, if you're doing a road ride in the NYC area, you don't expect to be held up by armed robbers who want to hijack your bike.

Perhaps this article is sensationalism. I don't know, since I've never been in Colombia.

[zzy]

When I was there, the saying was 'no dar papaya' or don't show sweets. There is extreme poverty, and people are willing to kill over a shockingly small amount of money. As a gringo, never go out in public with anything you aren't willing to lose, and hand it over if asked. That said, I absolutely loved it. The fruit is particularly incredible. And I would love to come back with a bike one day - easily the biggest cycling scene in south america.

[Kyle h]

Originally Posted by fiamme red

If you leave your bike unattended for a few minutes outside the NYT building, you should expect that it will be stolen before you return. On the other hand, if you're doing a road ride in the NYC area, you don't expect to be held up by armed robbers who want to hijack your bike.

Perhaps this article is sensationalism. I don't know, since I've never been in Colombia.

Wasn’t there a thread here about bike jackings happening in the Bay Area or Oakland Hills?

[Kyle h]

The few times I’ve been to Colombia we were warned to keep our heads on a swivel in Bogota but in the coffee region things are a much slower pace and I never once felt overly worried about my safety. It is a third world country after all so I think being mindful of that and how you act and treat people is something to pay attention to.

I know quite a few people who have done tours there and they have never had armed guards, I’m guessing that whoever those celebs were did so out of an abundance of caution. I plan on going back for the 3rd year in a row in 2025.