Sounds to me like this thing was just badly organised. In Brisbane they have the Brissie to the Bay ride to raise funds for MS. They start it early on a Sunday morning and have the police close the roads for the first few km to give the riders time to spread out a bit. The also have different options (10km, 35km, 55km) that use slightly different routes so as not to bunch the field too much.
Of course, this still does not excuse the behaviour of the morons.
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I am clinically insane. I am proud of it.
That is all.