General Cycling Discussion - Do you carry...........

Self Protection while riding? If so Who, What,When and Where?

Guns, or anything else?

self protection? you mean tear gas, a club, a gun, knife, etc?

I bring my swiss army knife with me... But is not for protection, i guess...

Only my winning personality.

what about condoms?

From the Girls Ive seen in GA I dont blame you. LOL!!!!!!!

WAR EAGLE!

Yup - a helmet!

:-P

Just the usual stuff: claymores, mortars, sand-bags.

bananas! You can use the peels to foil would be attackers!

what about condoms?
Condoms??
What are they for? To keep dirt and grease off your fingers when replaceing the chain or changing a tire? :D

I usually tow a 120mm howitzer. And of course a 15mm wrench for hand to hand combat.

Cool!!!!!!!!!!!

I know of riders who carry mouse guns (NAA, Kel-Tec and the like) in their pockets.

Depends...

On my daily commute I carry some pepper spray to ward off dogs or wildlife I may encounter. (road riding too)

When out on the MTB in the back country, I carry "bear spray." (also carry beer spray.. ahem) :beer:

I never carry a firearm.

Batteries!!!

Whenever I ride I am flanked by a couple of C-130 gunships

What exactally are people who pack heat afraid of?

What exactally are people who pack heat afraid of?

****, murder, assult....the usual stuff around these parts :D

I'd bet the fellow killed by the mountain lion wished he had one.

Although chances of those happening are pretty remote, we all remember the Boy Scout Creed.

Whenever I ride I am flanked by a couple of C-130 gunships It sounds like that would be plenty of protection ,but do you carry a walkie talkie to coordinate with your air cover?

I'd bet the fellow killed by the mountain lion wished he had one.

Although chances of those happening are pretty remote, we all remember the Boy Scout Creed.

A gun would probably not helped him out at all. The nature of the mountain lion is to stalk and attack from a position of opportunity. I would wager the cat had him before he knew what was happening.

This is not all that atypical for the western states. (Well, the attack was.) We have sightings all the time here in Montana. This week in Helena, MT there was one that came into town and was spotted near one of the elementary schools. :eek:

We have Cougar sightings right here in Olympia, I live about 3 miles NorthEast of the Capitol building & a fellow shot a young adult male cougar 1 1/2 miles North of here when it muffed an attack. Pounced at him but missed. He was alone out walking to a shooting area with an antique muzzle loader. Our town & surroundings are heavily wooded with lots of deer. In the last 6 years, there have been yearly sightings near where I work 4 miles East in Lacey and 1 year there was a sighting blocks from Olympia City hall (this is maybe 1/2 mile from the Capitol building. There are also lots of coyotes in the area so when small pets disappear its hard to say what got them. There haven't been many attacks given the number that seem to be active or passing through though.

common sense , awareness of my environment, prior planing of my action(s) should a danergous event present itself, and a strong commitment to do whatever is required to maintain a steady head to get me out of trouble and/or eliminate the threat should it occur.

In this area we have black bears, wolves and rattlesnakes. And sometimes nuts on bikes. I usually only ride on trails. The only thing I've ever been near is a rattlesnake. While all of these are potentially dangerous, only a bear would scare me. At this time I don't carry anything but pepper spray will be my choice as I ride more unfamilar areas. I've owned guns in the past but I don't think a gun would make me any safer.
I try to learn about the dangers of any particular place I go to ride before I get there.
Mountain lions are another matter. I agree that a gun probably wouldn't have helped the man in California. It probably happened so fast he probably had precious little time to even realize what was happening to him, let alone get a gun out and dispatch the cat.

I own them, but choose not to cary! ;)

common sense , awareness of my environment, prior planing of my action(s) should a danergous event present itself, and a strong commitment to do whatever is required to maintain a steady head to get me out of trouble and/or eliminate the threat should it occur.

Well said. I try to maintain this thinking too. This is why I DON'T feel the need to carry with a firearm.

my front wheel, is also good for defending yourself, I once had an altercation with a driver, when He stop his car, I got of my bike and took out my front wheel from my bike, he just sped away and very good form of intimidation......

I own many guns and also compete in IDPA (Practical shoots, lots of fun) I belive everyone should own a gun because you can. But lets look at a bike situation.

If you are attacked you need to get it out fast and fire accuratly. This is difficult enough standing. Next what are you shoot ing at? A dog or fast animal? Really hard to hit when they are running at you. I have friends that have shot dogs, but when they stopped before the attack. A fast attack from an animal may be hard to stop with a handgun.

A spray might be a better choice, wide pattern, fast acting. And you can attach it to your frame.

Gun laws may get you in trouble, some areas will not allow you to shoot, now you have a legal problem.

Bikeing and shooting would make a great sport, but for defense on the bike a spray may be more pratical.

"What exactally are people who pack heat afraid of?"

go here.

http://www.crimelibrary.com/notorious_murders/classics/carr_brothers/

Whenever I ride I am flanked by a couple of C-130 gunships
Correction, AC-130. Had to...Spectre derserves it.

Just go here:
http://www.rusarm.ru/exprod.htm
I am sure they take Money Orders and/or Paypal

Hey bombusben-
They even have a 120mm SP gun...no more towing for you!

If you are attacked you need to get it out fast and fire accuratly. This is difficult enough standing. Next what are you shoot ing at? A dog or fast animal? Really hard to hit when they are running at you. I have friends that have shot dogs, but when they stopped before the attack. A fast attack from an animal may be hard to stop with a handgun.


There are situations that would call for a dismount. With or without a firearm, if you are unable to outrun an animal it often wise to dismount and use the bike for cover. At that point, using OC or a firearm would be easier to aim than while trying to outrun the animal on the bike. OC SOMETIMES will stop an agressive animal. Other times it doesn't. OC has it's place in the force continuum. There are certainly situations where it would be good to use OC before going to deadly force. If it doesn't work, you could end up with a really angry animal be they two or four legged. At that point, it would be wise to be prepared to kick it up a notch.

Complex question