UKC

I don't know about you, but this sort of thing leaves me personally speechless with rage and sadness.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-26705915

I'm giving £10 to Christian Smith's appeal (for MIND). I'd encourage anyone who cycles and/or has a special interest in mental health charities (both true of me) to give whatever they feel is right.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

+1

Link here:

http://www.justgiving.com/KentEpic

27k and climbing.

In reply to maisie:

Heading towards £29K. If anything deserves to go viral this does. Might make a few legislators wake up about cycle safety, too.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

I'd like to see all aspirant car drivers go do a Cycling proficiency or similar then be allowed to do their car test

In reply to Tim Chappell:

Such a tragedy.

£31000 and rising.

In reply to Tim Chappell:


Is cycling on public roads for 24 hours straight a safe thing to do?
If someone had been driving for that amount of time and had an accident I am sure the police would prosecute.

If the driver was at fault then I hope she faces the full weight of the law and if and this is a big if she was over the limit I hope they send her to the big house for a long time.

I say if because from my dealings with the media if the police breathalysed her (as they would after a crash) the media will jump on this as the headline drunk driver kills cyclist sells more news that car hits bike on unlit Road.

In reply to Tim Chappell:
Thanks for sharing this.
A couple of mates and I had a similar idea and went from Ardnamurchan to Peterhead in a day last year. It was a day that I'll never forget and for all the right reasons.
Heightens my feelings about this story.
Donations over £30k now.
J

In reply to Tim Chappell:

Tragic and sad.

With all due respect to you Tim, if this was a drunk driver then cycling legislation is not the cure.

In reply to Rampikino and Dax H:

Ramps, I didn't mean that they should change the law, though I did mean that they should change the ways they enforce some of the existing laws. And I didn't mean they should come over all reactive to this one tragedy; everyone tends to lose their heads a bit when that happens. The law should not be made on waves of emotion, however worthy. What I meant was that the way cyclist/ motorist relations are policed is a complete disaster area, and that if Christian Smith's death wakes people up about that, then that is one good thing to come out of this horrible event.

Dax: I've had a think, too, about the safety implications of riding for 24 hours straight. Personally I'd want pacers and support riders to keep me on line and to keep me awake if we was trying that, because I know I can fall asleep at the wheel while cycling if I'm tired enough--I've done it...

I don't know what Christian Smith had in place, and I'm not commenting on what he had in place, one way or the other. But clearly there are lots of ways this tragedy could have happened, and not all of them are the driver's fault, or anyone's fault.

In reply to maisie:

Now at nearly 34k--his appeal's raised seven times his original target in the last 90 minutes alone. Wow.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

One of the good things about justgiving is that it tallies actual donations, rather than pledges - or even worse, the eBay auctions which come to nothing. The money isn't any kind of recompense for a life, but for once, sympathy is being translated into something tangible and useful.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

Sir

As tragic as this case is initially reported, perhaps you should wait until the outcome of the police investigation before making such sweeping generalisations about the car driver, I understand she has been released on bail as opposed to being charged.

Whatever the outcome, the loss of life is terrible.

In reply to Albert Tatlock:

I haven't made any generalisations at all about the car driver, let alone any sweeping ones.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

Now hit 40k and still going strong!

In reply to Tim Chappell:

Very sad but how can there be "suspicion" the driver was drunk? They either breath her at the scene or not.

In reply to Morgan Woods:

Roadside breath test = positive.
Arrested on suspicion of driving over the prescribed limit.

At station given 2 more breath tests, to provide an evidential specimen, on the intoximeter.

Limit:-
(35mg in 100ml of breath)

Alternatively the police/CPS may be waiting for the results of a blood or urine test if no breath test carried out for whatever reason.

In that case it is only a suspicion until the results are in.

In reply to woolsack:


Don't even go there - because its just asking for the counter introduction of compulsory cycling profficiency testing. Anyway, wrong thread.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

When will these kids ever learn?

It takes something like this to realise life can be so short.

My thought are with the families.

In reply to Tim Chappell:



Why feel rage?

The only sure fact is that someone was killed in a crash. You appear to be rather quick to apportion blame?

In reply to GrahamD:



...and the problem with that is what? Many drivers show no consideration to cyclists and many cyclist display poor road skills.

In reply to woolsack:

Really, wrong thread. I love a decent p1sstake, me, or a bl00dy good argument. But not here, eh, fellas?

In reply to timjones:

I haven't said anything at all about who's to blame. In fact, as you'll see if you look at the thread, I have explicitly distanced myself from questions of blame.

In reply to Tim Chappell:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-26714073

Seems it's not that straight forward, they've arrested someone else now

In reply to Tim Chappell:


The title appears to suggest blame IMO.

In reply to Tim Chappell:


Your OP that I quoted had a bit about legislators sitting up and taking notice about cycle safety.

Obviously you retracted that after the initial shock wore off but it was out there for the world to read for a while first.

Regardless it is a tragic thing and I feel for all people involved.

In reply to Dax H:

Total raised now up to 56k.

Can we not just focus on that and perhaps a few quiet thoughts on the fragility of life? Not a place for an argument (and this, ironically, is coming from me)

Martin

In reply to Dax H:


No, my original post said nothing like that. Read it again.

I did later on say that I hoped that legislators would sit up and take notice about cycle safety. That didn't involve blaming anyone. Nor did I retract it. Nor do I retract it.

Can we focus on the main story please, not on strange misreadings of my posts about the main story?

In reply to timjones:

You are welcome to your opinions, but the title does not express any view at all about blame. It reports what the BBC said, that's all. And for the record: I have no fixed view about who if anyone is to blame for this tragic death. Why would I have a view? How could I, reasonably, form one at this stage?

Can we focus on the main story please, not on strange misreadings of my posts about the main story?

In reply to Tim Chappell:

Now over 60k, and a brief message from the family. Come on, guys, enough.

In reply to maisie:

Still possible to donate:

http://www.justgiving.com/KentEpic

In reply to Albert Tatlock:



Terrible grammar.

before making such sweeping generalisations about the car driver, I understand she has been released on bail as opposed to being charged.

What 'sweeping generalisations' has he made about the car driver exactly?

In reply to Desiderata:


http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-kent-26734694