California Man Arrested for Digging 50 Holes in Bike Trail
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California Man Arrested for Digging 50 Holes in Bike Trail
#2
Two H's!!! TWO!!!!!
"Detectives watching the trails questioned Wilson, who said he had nearly been run over by a mountain bike rider"
I wish he HAD been run over. By a bus.
He could have killed innocent people with his actions.
I wish he HAD been run over. By a bus.
He could have killed innocent people with his actions.
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Yeesh. An equivalent would be to start throwing tire flattening strips into high speed traffic because someone in a car once came too close to you in a crosswalk. Or how about "someone wearing a green shirt once called me a name so now I punch anyone wearing a green shirt."
Way to endanger the lives of people who have done nothing to you just because they have something in common with someone who did.
Way to endanger the lives of people who have done nothing to you just because they have something in common with someone who did.
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Bike trails and roads are supposed to be the one place you can get away from a lot of the bull****. Hope he gets to spend some time in the slammer.
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He'll probably get community service. Hopefully they'll give him time cleaning up or helping build bike trails. It sounds like he's already spent 100 hours or so destroying them, so I think 1000 hours of making them better would be about right.
It'd also be nice if they made him ride a bike to work for a few months so he could appreciate the bike infrastructure.
It'd also be nice if they made him ride a bike to work for a few months so he could appreciate the bike infrastructure.
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Fill in the holes, contribute to SHARE in Orange County to maintain mountain bike trails and encourage multiple use.
Then put him away - far away!
S. California Rider!
Then put him away - far away!
S. California Rider!
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"Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving."
Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
#8
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I hope the trail gets repaired as soon as possible...the government or organization in charge of the trail will probably wind up repairing the trail (if they haven't already) to avoid the liability issues. If the suspect feels like it he can drag this out for a long time before finally being sentenced. Usually it's about a month from bail to arraignment, and then another month for the next court date if he pleads not guilty. At least he'll probably have to pay restitution for the property he damaged, in addition to any fines/jail time/community service/etc.
The story isn't clear on if all "almost 50" holes were dug at the same time, or if it was a few holes a day (or night) kind of thing. I think that would be a good thing to know to prevent this kind of thing from happening in the future.
I guess this is a good argument for paved bike paths
I've pasted a picture below of what appears to be the area in question. I believe the trail they're referring to is the dirt area around the lake, but I may be mistaken. Even if the suspect was buzzed by a person riding a bike that gives him no right to go out and vandalize the park with the intent to hurt people, but the dirt trail around the lake (pond?) doesn't look like a place to be riding a bike at much faster than walking speed either...
The story isn't clear on if all "almost 50" holes were dug at the same time, or if it was a few holes a day (or night) kind of thing. I think that would be a good thing to know to prevent this kind of thing from happening in the future.
I guess this is a good argument for paved bike paths
I've pasted a picture below of what appears to be the area in question. I believe the trail they're referring to is the dirt area around the lake, but I may be mistaken. Even if the suspect was buzzed by a person riding a bike that gives him no right to go out and vandalize the park with the intent to hurt people, but the dirt trail around the lake (pond?) doesn't look like a place to be riding a bike at much faster than walking speed either...
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I'm constantly picking up glass, nails, tacks, and thorny vines from a local rail trail. Walkers dislike cyclists so a few will attempt to sabotage there tires. Nothing to the extent of digging 50 holes! A new section of the trail was just paved and the engineer has consequently banned horses from that section so there's another group that hates cyclists as well. I just wonder what sort of "Horsing around" they will start.
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I think they should make him dig just one more hole... about 6 feet deep! Then throw him in... I'll help cover it up... for my "community service."
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Why is he only facing a single felony count of vandalism? Why not prosecute him for each hole?
- Wil
- Wil
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What the dude has done in life that no one knows about--that he's never been held to account for--would curl your toes. People like that do not just wake up, one morning, irrational, full of hate, blaming others for their problems, and living only to bring suffering to the innocent.
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The article says he has been doing this since June! That's 7 months. 50 holes over a 7 month period is, well I don't know what to say. He even admitted it was retaliation for being run over? WTF was he doing on a bike trail? I agree with Will Davis, prosecute him for each hole.
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It's a pretty clear case of insanity if you're going to continue to dig holes for seven whole months after some minor incident. It's not like he was even hit by the cyclist or anything. I thought road rage from motorists could be bad, but I guess peds are the ones to watch out for!
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The more thought about this the angrier I got. I just sent an email to the Orange County, CA DA's Office and, in brief, asked WTF was going on? 50 holes over a 7 month period is just over 7 a month. That's about 2 holes a week! Prosecute the guy for each hole to send a message to others. This is a public safety issue and bikes deserve to same consideration to bike safely as any other group. My suggestion, send an email to the Orange County DA. Here's the link to the Prosecution Unit contact form> https://www.orangecountyda.com/home/index.asp?page=145
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The problem is that in order to prosecute him for each hole, they need to specifically document each hole and prove that he dug that particular hole, or get a specific confession out of him for it. This is probably just about impossible.
However, prosecuting him for the whole thing is probably pretty much a slam dunk.
However, prosecuting him for the whole thing is probably pretty much a slam dunk.
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What a creep! It would seem there are people like that wherever you go. Look what I came across the other day when I went to grab one of Seville's community bicycles:
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In the article there was evidence that multiple riders complained of going OTB after hitting the holes.
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It said some had gone over their bars but none reported serious injury.
If it was indeed the dirt path around that lake and it was indeed a "bicycle trail" (pedestrian traffic not encouraged) then it's no wonder he almost got run down.
My buddy and I were bombing through some singletrack a few months ago at night, and I had > 500 Lumens of light shining. Had it not been for all that light, I would have annihilated a pair of dumbass cross-country runners that had absolutely no lighting or reflective gear on whatsoever, jogging on an MTB trail by only moonlight. Wear some freaking night gear, guys!
If it was indeed the dirt path around that lake and it was indeed a "bicycle trail" (pedestrian traffic not encouraged) then it's no wonder he almost got run down.
My buddy and I were bombing through some singletrack a few months ago at night, and I had > 500 Lumens of light shining. Had it not been for all that light, I would have annihilated a pair of dumbass cross-country runners that had absolutely no lighting or reflective gear on whatsoever, jogging on an MTB trail by only moonlight. Wear some freaking night gear, guys!
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Part of my route is on a MUP right in front of a high school, with trees on both sides scattered along the trail. For some reason I'm always paranoid that someone has strung a clothesline across it. I don't know why this occurred to me at some point but it weirds me out haha.
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This is like the mysterious @#$%ing POS who was tossing tacks on the Hudson (aka Westside) Greenway in NYC a year or two ago, only worse. I caught a tack in my road bike tire once, very annoying, but not deadly!
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I forget where I heard it, but I recall a similar story where vandals were stringing wire across bike trails to hurt cyclists. If only I could find the link...
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It said some had gone over their bars but none reported serious injury.
If it was indeed the dirt path around that lake and it was indeed a "bicycle trail" (pedestrian traffic not encouraged) then it's no wonder he almost got run down.
My buddy and I were bombing through some singletrack a few months ago at night, and I had > 500 Lumens of light shining. Had it not been for all that light, I would have annihilated a pair of dumbass cross-country runners that had absolutely no lighting or reflective gear on whatsoever, jogging on an MTB trail by only moonlight. Wear some freaking night gear, guys!
If it was indeed the dirt path around that lake and it was indeed a "bicycle trail" (pedestrian traffic not encouraged) then it's no wonder he almost got run down.
My buddy and I were bombing through some singletrack a few months ago at night, and I had > 500 Lumens of light shining. Had it not been for all that light, I would have annihilated a pair of dumbass cross-country runners that had absolutely no lighting or reflective gear on whatsoever, jogging on an MTB trail by only moonlight. Wear some freaking night gear, guys!
I often run at dusk, and I don't run with a light. I can easily see well enough to not get myself in trouble at 8 mph (if I can't, I stop running). I can also feel objects better with my feet, and can react to accidentally stepping on a branch or rock without falling, which I couldn't do on a bike. I try to wear some reflective gear...but it's up to each trail user to have enough light to keep themselves from hitting things in their path. And since bikes go faster than runners, that means there will be a point where the cyclist needs a light and the runner doesn't.