mike

I was invited to go on an afternoon bicycle ride when visiting Milwaukee this past weekend.

We bicycled the southwest section of the Oak Leaft trail. Part of the trail (or maybe it was an offshoot of the Oak Leaf Trail) was non-technical mountain biking on a muddy non-improved path through woods and along a river.

In fact, the area had a kind of dirty spookiness to it - like it was home to people you usually don't see in the light, if you know what I mean. There were things like rubber gloves laying along the trail and plastic bags in the trees... just kind of icky.

What shocked me was that parts of the trails were thick with broken glass of all kinds. It was obviously a deliberate attempt to cause flats to bicycle riders. Someone obviously went to the trouble of hauling all kinds of glass and bottles to the area and smashed them on the trail in what appeared to a very violent and dangerous attempt to cause injury.

Is this something you find on trails in your neck of the woods? I have never seen anything like it.

Why would someone do this? I could only guess that druggies and other dark criminals were trying to create a barrier to keep bicyclists and hikers out. Either that, or it was someone protesting the use of the area as a bicycle trail.

It was a fun ride, all things considered, but that part of the trail reminds us of the darker side of Milwaukee and humanity.

kellyjdrummer

Funny, back before I started biking every day, I never thought of breaking glass and then going out to find a bike trail to toss it on. How times have changed.

Get real.

Dirt Farmer

I grew up in a Milwaukee suburb. Why does what you say not surprise me? It's the armpit of America. Glad I moved west.

G-Monkey

I've seen the same chit on some of the trails I ride.
And I agree, it's deliberate attempt to spoil someones day.
I blame it on the roadies.

Luke52

I remember crossing a creek then following a narrow trail, which lead me to a place similar to what you described..

Four poles in a square with the remains of a tarp hanging off them, bottles, cans and rubbish everywhere, and an old burnt out bike frame in the middle..

It spooked me out, I turned around and rode off

ca7erham

I have seen things like that down in the woods across the street. People who drink illegally have an odd habit of smashing beer bottles where ever they are (at least I've seen people down there doing that). I'd assume that when the glass was hauled down, something was in the glass. After they got down there they probably decided to try place glass to flat. However, I have been on some organized road rides where people put things to pop bike tires because they didnt like the cyclists (things like nails through boards and glass nailed to shingles).

dminor 

I think this was the result of the summer I spent living in that van down by the river. No maliciousness intended; I think I just forgot and ran over all my empties on the way out .

DickyJ

You'd be surprised mate.
Same thing done to a couple of small local trails in Hampstead, London.

First of all the local authorities banned bikes from the trails (and the rest of the park, which has a police presence), even handing out a couple of 'example setting' £100+ fines to those they caught, claiming there was danger posed to walkers. Next thing you know, half the place is littered with broken glass...
I don't know who's responsible, but it's a bit too coincidental for me.


Haven't been up there for a few years since.

kellyjdrummer

No, I wouldn't be. 'Been riding for 42 years, but find it really incredulous that someone would prioritize that kind of activity and actually live in the sun. I could be wrong, though.

junkyard

I bolded your issue.

I thought that was New Jersey.

mike

It was a new kind of bicycling experience for me. It was like walking into a really bad neighborhood and suddenly realizing you are too deep into a bad place and wondering how you are going to get out without getting mugged.

It is hard to imagine that a forest can have bad neighborhoods, but apparently, they can. It was a forboding place. I felt that we were just very lucky with our timing in that no thugs were around. I had the very real feeling that we we could round a turn and be in the midst of very bad people.

Milwaukee has enough shootings and killings right on the streets in open daylight. I can only imagine what kind of Milwaukee slime feels it necessary to live in the shadows of the city forests.

mic2377

I also was raised in Milwaukee. I flew the coop as soon as possible. A place of no redeeming value, except, maybe, the beer.

I doubt it is roadies. Then there would be wine bottle shards. Most likely teenagers. At least there wasn't shell casings nearby!

DirtPedalerB

I live in hillbillyville, down any dirt road there is at least 1 huge pile of garbage you can usually follow a trail of beer bottles to this garbage. If there is no trail of beer bottles leading to it someone has already picked up the aluminum cans.

on the plus side I did find some nice light fixtures and a lamp one day though.

lofnsjoke

how does one nail glass to shingles?

pyroguy_3

liquid nail? Or just put the glass on the tar side and set in sun/oven.

kenhill3

Forget the glass. My favorite technique is to use roofing nails poking thru a chunk of composition roofing. That will stop them damn bike riders real good.

lofnsjoke

thats not a nail...thats adhesive

-Devil-

hah, sounds like one of our local trails ... 99% can promise it was not done deliberate, but at the same time it was ... one of our trails is also the favorite hang-out spot for underage drinkers, drug users, 'working women, and men' ... local hobo's .. and other types of drifters ... and even is an occasional spot for people that want to have a 'fling' (if you know what i mean) ...

so there is all kinds of items you will find on the trail that are not normal, and quite a bit of it is glass ... i have yet to get a flat from riding on it though .. (sure it will happen soon tho) ...

i would say a lot of it comes from some small group drinking at night time and they just decide to smash up the bottles for a laugh or two ... and then they just so happen to pile it on the trail ... seen it many times before. hah ... still prefer seeing that, then seeing the 'used' sexual devices that are often times left out there as well.

lmxloco

42 years and I'm saying you need to get out more. In my less than upstanding youth I knew more than a few people who go out of their way to do stuff like that for nothing more than some weird inner pleasure at the thought that it just might cause someone else to have a bad day...even if they never personally witness it.

It's sad, but it's society.

mtnbiker66

A NC guy that goes by Motomike on RM had his finger broken by some fence wire strung across a trail he was riding.It took two surgeries to fix it. People are pretty sick sometimes.

Dr.L'Ling

*supposedly* some preservationists out by me were putting piano wire across the trails. That's pretty sick


I'm not trying to offend you, but where do you live? There's a LOT of deranged people in bigger cities (there's deranged people everywhere, but I've experienced more in the city). Small town folk that I meet don't believe the sort of things that happen around here

Captain Crash

You want sick? Some people around here have been putting chains across the trail at head level to knock dirt bikers and atv riders off their rides. nobody got hurt because we told someone about it and they went back with some bolt cutters... The chains are no more. I know that sometimes people don't want you on their property, but its quite different when you're risking killing people...

mondaycurse

I bet your problem is some teenagers getting drunk in the woods. If you look other places, you might even find some of their dad's dirty magazines.