Wiggle New Forest 100

Seems like the forest NIMBYs have been at it again.

http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/news/10720478.Mass_cycle_event_goes_on_despite_saboteurs_attack/?ref=mr

http://road.cc/content/news/95986-saboteurs-target-new-forest-sportive-second-time-year.

The comments section under the echo article makes threads on here look extremely civilised.

Get abuse on a fairly regular basis when I'm out riding, and I live in the forest. Usually from 4x4s (which are tatty and so therefore used for purpose) and battered Subaru estates. I can understand their point about damaging "flora and fauna" by the mountain bikers but most of the road bikes I saw yesterday would fall apart at the site of a manhole cover let alone a forest track.

In the past two weeks there have been three cows killed on Roger Penny Way (Cadnam - Fordingbridge road) and I'm pretty sure none of them were killed by cyclists. In fact I saw the aftermath of one - a comprehensively written off big Merc chelsea tractor missing most of its offside front corner. Hitting a ton of cow at stupid MPH will do that, even to a panzer of a Merc...

Cycling behaviour yesterday was pretty good - at most bunches were no more than three abreast and there was tolerant behaviour from drivers as well. Cyclists stretched from Blissford Hill all the way back to Bramshaw when I was on the way to the game.

I'm doing one in 2 weeks so I'll be interested to see if we are less NIMBY up here!

Oh and should also point out that I saw the guys vandalising/moving the signs on Friday evening on way home from work. Red and silver Toyota Landcruiser (not that that helps as there dozens of those around here)

In the interests of balance I did see/hear a few cyclists acting like cocks on Saturday morning, riding on wrong side of road on blind bends to overtake slower riders. Don't think they were on the sportive though, unless they'd done 45 miles in less than two hours on undulating terrain. Didn't spot any numbers on their bikes

I'm doing one in 2 weeks so I'll be interested to see if we are less NIMBY up here!

I think on the whole there is indifference to mass participation cycling events until it directly effects you. Round here the Hambleden Valley on the Berks/Bucks/Oxon border is frequently used for sportives and public tolerance for such events is declining. As someone who grew up around Fordingbridge I'd dearly love to ride in the forest like I did when I was a kid and we'd do Blissford Hill and the climb up Southampton Road on the B3078 for kicks. Happy days.

Too bloody dangerous to ride up that section now, got forced on to the pavement there (fortunately not on a road bike so could bump the kerb). Instead tend to ride up Stuckton hill to get to Blissford hill.

I think the issue is partly that cars have got bigger/wider, there's much less room for error when you have two Range Rovers passing each other at over 40mph. When I'm pootling around in 'er indoors Ka its just about safe to pass a cyclist without crossing the white line, no way you can do that in even a standard family saloon these days

I thought it was great to see so many out cycling through the Forest on Saturday but there were a few complete nobs in amongst it. I only have a Fiesta so slightly eaiser to overtake but there were a few groups going three and even 4 abreast, one guy actually getting annoyed at me as i wouldn't overtake on a blind bend.