Take a broom to the Olympic Road Race?

[gordon taylor]

Would it be a good idea if every cyclist who went along to watch the Road Race took along a broom or a dustpan and brush?

Would it send a highly visible message to the potential copy-cat carpet-tack saboteurs that we hate them?

No?

Oh well...

[Kim]

You'd get jumped by the Met for carrying an offensive weapon, surely?


(Has there been another tack incident recently?)

[Clare]

(Has there been another tack incident recently?)

The Tour yesterday, 30 riders with punctures and Wiggo neutralised the stage to be fair to those affected.

[Kim]

The Tour yesterday, 30 riders with punctures and Wiggo neutralised the stage to be fair to those affected.

FFS!

(As you can probably tell, I don't really follow this sport stuff.)

[simonp]

(Has there been another tack incident recently?)

The Tour yesterday, 30 riders with punctures and Wiggo neutralised the stage to be fair to those affected.

And one out who crashed with a broken collar bone.

[Notsototalnewbie]

Sadly I don't think the anyone of a mind to pull a copycat stunt would give a fig what we thought of them.

(We'll be watching it from Rob's grandparents' front garden in when they go through Ripley, as they're going past their house  )

[spesh]

(Has there been another tack incident recently?)

The Tour yesterday, 30 riders with punctures and Wiggo neutralised the stage to be fair to those affected.

And one out who crashed with a broken collar bone.

This rumour control, here are the facts. Kiserlovski was injured after Levi Leipheimer collided with him.

"Brajkovič had a flat tyre just after the last KOM, Kiserlovski moved from left to right to give him his wheel and I couldn't avoid the collision. I hit him and I crashed. I feel bad for him, but it was an accident," said Levi Leipheimer (Omega Pharma-QuickStep) on his team site.

See: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tour-shorts-frison-loses-bet-peraud-airlifted (fifth story down the page)

[rafletcher]

In deed he was - after crashing whilst trying to stop an assist a teammate with a punctiure - so an indirect victim.

[fuzzy]

I would take a broom or other road cleaning implement. I have been thwarted though.

Any plans I might have had to witness any Olympic event in the flesh that hadn't already been scuppered by lack of tickets has been well and truly scuppered by me being rostered for Olympics based back office duties for the entirity of the event (plus the Paralympics). Any viewing by yours truly will be by tellybox

[De Sisti]

I would take a broom or other road cleaning implement. I have been thwarted though.

Any plans I might have had to witness any Olympic event in the flesh that hadn't already been scuppered by lack of tickets has been well and truly scuppered by me being rostered for Olympics based back office duties for the entirity of the event (plus the Paralympics). Any viewing by yours truly will be by tellybox

Are you getting paid extra, in the form of an Olympic bonus?

[Jakob]

A broom, in baseball, signifies a clean sweep, which I guess the world champs, TDF and getting the Olympic gold in road racing would represent....

[fuzzy]

I would take a broom or other road cleaning implement. I have been thwarted though.

Any plans I might have had to witness any Olympic event in the flesh that hadn't already been scuppered by lack of tickets has been well and truly scuppered by me being rostered for Olympics based back office duties for the entirity of the event (plus the Paralympics). Any viewing by yours truly will be by tellybox

Are you getting paid extra, in the form of an Olympic bonus?

Nah, not allowed industrial action so can't get it

[David Martin]

There will be 1700 marshalls at the road races. There will be all sorts of back-up in place including emergency street sweeping teams in case any one of the 1700 pairs of eyes spots someone doing things they aren't supposed to do.

And BTW, Simon Lillistone was asked about people chalking names on the road - he said ' I have to tell you that it officially strongly discouraged' which was about as close as he could get to saying what he wanted to but wasn't allowed to in a room full of cycling volunteers.

[itinerant]

Believe it or not we (marshalls) were issued with brooms from an official white van 30 minutes before the women's race came through (A24 Dorking to Box Hill) after a torrential downpour produced areas of flooding in the road dips.  Good to see that the possible need for emergency brooms (tacks, glass, water) had been considered. The mini flood was swept away before the women came through.

[russellm]

Amusingly, someone had gaffa taped a large broom to the back of the broom wagon at the back of the women's race yesterday! 

[David Martin]

Saw that.. Raised a cheer.

Rumours have it (and there is always a rumour mill) that two people were arrested near box hill with tacks in pockets and a chap was arrested on the Fulham road spreading tacks on Saturday.

There is good backup for the eyes on the ground. The route crew were grip taping drain covers and so on.

[contango]

There will be 1700 marshalls at the road races. There will be all sorts of back-up in place including emergency street sweeping teams in case any one of the 1700 pairs of eyes spots someone doing things they aren't supposed to do.

In Richmond Park someone popped a bottle of champagne in the distance and the cork landed in the road. Within seconds half a dozen people were waving and pointing at the cork, and one of the guys in yellow vests retrieved it.

[Arch]

Rumours have it (and there is always a rumour mill) that two people were arrested near box hill with tacks in pockets and a chap was arrested on the Fulham road spreading tacks on Saturday.

I suggest issuing rotten veg to the crowd, and parading these people along the course in the open back of a pick up truck, after the race goes by.