Road Cycling - Pepper spray (Halt) can be VERY dangerous!!

... but not in the way you're thinking. On my ride today, I was sporting my HALT (pepper spray type stuff for animals) clipped to my Camelbak per usual. I was rolling downhill @ about 30-35mph while 2 cars were passing. All of a sudden I felt a THUD under my rear tire, and I nearly went down. If I had crashed, my guess is that @ least one of the cars would have done me in.

To my suprise, when I looked back to see what the heck I hit - there was (in the distance) my HALT on the road! It had slipped off my Camelbak strap and fell below my bike. I went back to retrieve it, but it was laying in a puddle of HALT juice.

The moral of this story is to always secure stuff on your body. I nearly paid the ultimate price for not doing so!

I highly recommend getting a Halt! holder. Clips your Halt right on the handlebars so it always 'right there'!

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=115&subcategory=1130&brand=&sku=1152&storetype=&estoreid=

Glad YOU survived in tact, even if your Halt didn't.

Thats why I ride with a Smith and Wesson. It clips nicely into my shoulder strap and will not fall out ;)

Just kidding, but some days I do wish I had it along for the ride.

Originally posted by hillyman
I highly recommend getting a Halt! holder. Clips your Halt right on the handlebars so it always 'right there'!

http://www.nashbar.com/profile.cfm?category=115&subcategory=1130&brand=&sku=1152&storetype=&estoreid=

Hey, that's a GREAT idea. ThanX!!!!! :)

halt pepper spray? you mean like what the police use? that stuff is banned in the UK cos like if a woman carry's it in her handbag to prevent ******* or muggers and she uses it to protect herself she either gets sued by the ****** or arrested by the police.

i think that sucks, but what do you need it on a bike for?

I agree, what the heck are you guys doing, or where are you riding that you have to have your finger on the trigger of pepper spray!? I know here in minneapolis there have been some hodlem type kids hanging around some of the trails knocking people off their bikes. I could see BikinMan's point of carrying a Smith with, and now that it's legal to do so in this state, people might start doing that on bikes. But are there people that just ride around holding the bottle, spraying people and animals? Sounds kinda paranoid to me?!

I don't have any Halt yet, but I'm going to get some. Yes, if a dog was acting aggressive towards me while I'm on my bike, I'd spray him in a heartbeat.

i didnt realise half the members of this forum lived in iraq, thats the only place ive heard of dogs running wild... basically wolves over there.... unless you carry it to stop someone knocking you off your bike and trying to knick a grand bike? but i think id rather carry a waterbottle than pepperspray.....

Sheepy: Dogs can be a real problem outside of cities in many parts of the country. One county I ride in occasionally has 2-4dogs at every other house, with houses being 100-500meters apart. One pack alerts the next and they all think the road is part of their terrain and seem to know where the property lines are and escort you aggressively sometimes to the line. Halt does a fair job on dogs, but they can be hard to hit with the stream, they know you are trying to do them some harm and shy off. Most are just territorial but a few are actively trying to do you some damage. Leash laws are rare outside of cities and suburbs in the US. Steve

if I am carrying a pepper spray, and a dog is attacking me I will not have a problem using it,

was pulled off my bike when i was a kid...and while i am a huge dog lover....a dog chasing me on my bike still gives me pause for thought

a few weeks ago an out of control dog (rottweiller) was running unleashed in the park...it went nuts (owner said it hates bikes but not people)...it circled round and round....bit my rear wheel...it got on me so fast i had no chance to ride away...the owner screamed for me to stand still so he could gain control of his dog...took close to a minute or two...long enough for me to get a bit unhappy about the situation....im big enough i could have fought the thing off...but i would have some bite marks for it

if i had a gun i would have shot it...if i had some spray i would have let him sample some

i now carry police pepper spray with me every ride...used to carry it only once in awhile...mainly depending where on where i was going..i keep it in one of the rear pockets on my jersey...easy to access and doesnt get in the way.

if i lived in a crime prone area or was riding well away from civilization i would consider carrying a gun...but would find it hard to conceal under lycra :eek:

one thing i am shocked by is how oblivious many people are to their surroundings and to some basic safety measures. it could be in the park, in minneapolis (not as safe as it was 25 years ago), rural NC or anywhere

people carry cell phones thinking that keeps them safe

"um hello...i'm somewhere in the park getting threatened... i'm not sure exactly where i am...i have been jogging in the dark and listening to my headphones .....can you send an officer ..or maybe a spectre gunship?????"

911 = government sponsored dial-a-prayer

I'm wondering how well Halt really works. Two of my ill-mannered dogs got into a vicious fight (over food) and I sprayed Halt directly into their faces. It didn't deter them at all. They just kept on battling. A water hose finally got them apart.

its amazing how different the societies in the UK and the US live...... it seems to me that everyone in the US is protecting themselves from each other and vice versa..... carrying a loaded pistol on a bike ride? jesus christ!

LMAO Yeah sometimes I think that all that freedom goes to their heads ! I mean jesus christ, spraying your own dogs with pepper spray... Thats low trmcgeehan and if you lived in the UK I would report you to the RSPA and have you banned from owning pets, I don't think that your responsible enough !

Tim

i thought that when i read it too tim, since when do you spray your own pets with pepper spray? hellloooooooo? mans best friend?

Ummmm, when your neighbor's best friend is trying to bite your leg off? LOL I think Halt would be fine to use if a VICIOUS dog is threatening you while you're out on your bike. We're not talking about spraying Lassie and we do have leash laws, you know.

Originally posted by sheepy
halt pepper spray? you mean like what the police use?

No, this stuff is for animals and I bought it @ my LBS. I don't think it's as potent as the the stuff make for humans. However, if need be, I would test it out!

Dogs are a real problem where I ride. Several dogs have given me chase, but I've not had to HALT one yet - I hope I never do! :D

A brother of a good friend of mine was nearly killed by a dog that knocked him off of his bike some years back. The fall rendered him unconscious, and he laid there while the dog chewed on him for a little while until a passing car chased the dog away and the driver picked him up off of the road. That was about 3 miles outside of a major city here in PA. I would have no problem spraying a dog that is acting aggressively toward me.

For our friends in the UK, the dogs we are talking about are not on a leash and are chasing us to do us harm. What happens in the UK if a dog bites or mauls someone? Hopefully, that person would be held responsible. I haven't had problems with dogs on rides yet, but I have been attacked while working (mailman). Some of my collegues nationally have been crippled for life by dog attacks.

I can remember a route where the same damn german shepard would come charging out of the same damn house every single time we rode by.

About 1/2 mile before the house riders would ratchet things up in an attempt to be the one of the first riders to get past the house before the mutt knew we were there. You'd have thought we were contesting the green jersey.

Then there was the dog that lived at the bottom of a 8%, 1/4 mile climb. I never climbed well and was almost always dropping off the back with ever nearing barks following me.

To my American associates...

My comment was only directed at trmcgeehan, if you read what he actually said....
"I'm wondering how well Halt really works. Two of my ill-mannered dogs got into a vicious fight (over food) and I sprayed Halt directly into their faces. It didn't deter them at all. They just kept on battling. A water hose finally got them apart

He therefore sprayed his own dogs... I just think personally that its out of order. And with regards to the rest of you wanting to protect yourselves from dogs that may attack you I have no issue with. And I understand perfectly where that is coming from. The Gun comments though.... ?

LOL -- well, I have certainly never sprayed my own little doggie -- a Shih Tzu named Nicky, who has never been in a fight with any other dog & come to think of it, I don't think I've ever heard him growl. I certainly have no desire to carry a gun along on my rides either. :) I would consider Pepper Spray, though, to protect me from both dogs & not nice people. :D

I spent the brunt of my life in the country (upstate Connecticut). Then I moved to Manhattan about 12 years ago. Where's the only place I've ever been attacked by a dog? New York City's Central Park. Despite all of the signs and laws which state "dogs must be leashed at all times", there are always a few assh_les that could care less about your safety. Now, I carry Federal Standard Pepper spray at all times...and a 4 inch knife. I haven't been attacked since. :D

Pepper spray?! Just grab your water bottle and spray the dog in the face, they don't like it. Try talking to the owners about their dogs. If all else fails, switch routes. Note to our UK brethren: We are not all armed and dangerous over here.

I tend to wonder where people ride that they DON"T come across a dog or two from time to time. Halt is crap because there's not much capsicum,(the active ingredient in pepper spray.) If you really want to freak a dog,(or human,) out, get something closer to 10% capsicum. Also, I think there's a completely seperate "Annoying British Smugness" thread some of you might be better off posting at.

Originally posted by Dr. Manhattan
Also, I think there's a completely seperate "Annoying British Smugness" thread some of you might be better off posting at.

Why is it smug to comment on "Halt"?