EventServices

Quick question:
How much do you notice as you're riding around in your town?
Do you ever see people committing crimes?
Do you ever report this activity?

Here's why I ask:
Your local police department relies on good citizens to be an extra set of eyes and ears.
The success of a community is based on the people that live in it.

So...
Have you seen anything?
Did you report it?
Or do you choose to mind your own business?

ckleps

I'm completely split when it comes to this kind of stuff. My problem is that I really hate criminals. I also really hate invasions of privacy. So if I really think something is going on I may contact the police, but sometimes I can't be sure that something is up and calling the cops will just waste the cops time and cause an inconvinence and possible embarresment to the people. I think most of us when we see the cops talking to someone assume they did something, I know I don't exactly enjoy the looks I get from people when a cop is talking to me, even when both the cop and I know I didn't do anything. So I guess my answer is I always see suspicious things when I'm on my bike, but I only report them if I'm farely certain something illegal is going on.

Laggard

Calling the cops in any situation is a last resort.

I see stuff. Sometimes I report it. Sometimes the cops even care.

Just my opinion.

TexasGuy

I see stuff sometimes, but I don't care to report it. I see more stuff while driving my car, like this morning, a car with the license plat of ___-___ that had no aft lights. Was tempted to report it and ask them to send him a friendlyh reminder that nobody can see him. I didn't.. A quickly ended military career has taught me that nobody likes a tattle tale and in the real world it often times results in the loss of career or life when one least expects it.

For the most part I prefer noticing pleasant things on my ride like on my ride around the IH 46 loop a nice 30 mile ride or so - I notice ducks. There was a duck by virtually every cow and the ducks were all looking up to the cow. There was this cute young lady galloping on a horse with 2 horses chasing behind. There was a farmer and his family working on a solar powered gate opening mechanism. They had recentlypurhcased some earth tearing up equipment. This lady who drives a carmen red mustang has dirven past by me 3 times in the last 3 days: 2 times on IH46 and once on fm 2763. I always run into this dude in a Grey chrysler plymouth like vehicle always pases me in the opposite direction. Usually he has headphones. Today for some reason his vehicle was parked along side the snake road in the early morning.

I am going to miss riding as much as I do now that I'm moving into San Anotnio I am going to miss this wonderufl community/country land that I have ridden 15k + for 2 1/2+ years.

citizen560

I'm slow so I see a lot of butts, but no crimes. Well, some of the butts may be criminal...


If I DID see something suspect, I would call the police. They're not oppressors, they're fellow citizens with the job of protecting us - I'd rather have the cops show up at my door every day to follow up a report than be victimized in view of a witness, and the witness doesn't care to call 911.

Laggard

Maybe where you live.

In lots of areas they're an occupational force. Nothing more.

This is sorta off topic. My apologies.

Carry on.

DiRt DeViL

No major crimes so far, just the usual early morning backseat loving session or naked chicks playing on the beach.

Other than that what really catches my eye is the amount of trash thrown around. I'm always wondering when my tire is going to be punctured by pieces of glass from beer bottles on the road.

MasterSezFaster

A buddy and I were riding and some arsehole snatched some ladies purse (we knew the woman as well). We took off after him, caught him and smashed him to the ground before he knew what happened. He ended up with a broken nose and some time in jail.

My EXTREAM dislike for criminals and dislike for people who do nothing about it started when I was 6 yrs old. It was during a skiing vacation where we witnessed a man giving his wife/girlfriend a beat down. My father grabbed my sister's and my hand and led us back to the car and left. I was infuriated that no one did anything about it as the arse threw the woman in his car and drove off.

On a lighter note, I also notice other riders, the different animals(including road kill), types of cars on the road and the drivers (especially the fine looking women in the convertables at the stop lights ), and a whole list of other things as well.

Kitohe

During any ride what sticks out in my mind are all the pretty girls who are out jogging.

'nother

I notice trees, streams, pretty girls, occasionally someone's wheel in front of me. This morning I saw rear end of a gravel truck as I drafted him at 30MPH. Also this morning I got above the fog and had a glorious view of the cloudtops hovering over Silicon Valley from the top of Montebello Road.

But no crimes to speak of. If I did ever see one I'm not sure what I would do, guess it would depend on the circumstances. If there was any chance of me being in danger as well, I think I'd postpone calling the cops until arriving at a safer location (I've reported some crimes that I've witnessed in this fashion, though they weren't witnessed while riding a bike).

One time I saw a busted sprinkler head at a local park on an early morning ride, and reported it to the city. They thanked me, as they were wasting a ton of water unknowingly (maintenance crew apparently wasn't doing their job). I guess wasting water is a crime of sorts around here.

bigskymacadam

i'm hyperaware of all my surroundings and zoned out all at the same time, if that makes sense. i don't notice a whole lot on my commutes or rides.

TexasGuy

Sounds like numerous cyclists I have seen or heard about.

ckleps

Just tried to explain this to my dad last night, he didn't really understand.

bike756

I saw two people having sex in thier car, and every once in a while I see a used condom on the ground. It must be a pretty romantic parking lot

kandnhome

I don't see any crime around here (there have only been a handful of murders in the last 50 years; burglary, theft, and vandalism are almost unheard of -- bar fights are about the worst we get, and even those are fairly rare) so I don't have to worry about reporting anything.

But, depending upon the severity of what I saw, I'd report it. For instance: if I saw someone toss a cigarette out of their car, or run a red light, I'd let that one slide, but if I saw someone breaking into a car or hurting someone, I'd report it for sure.

Regardless of your feelings for cops, you have to consider whether you'd want someone to report it if it happened to you.

1955

I ride on the Santa Ana River Trail right through...you guessed it, Santa Ana, and if I got on the phone every time I saw a crime committed I wouldn't have any time left to ride. I hate crime and it's frustrating to go through that.

Sprocket Man

Unfortunately, when I see naked people on the beach, they're usually over 60 years old and very hairy - and that applies to both the men and women.

On topic, when I'm riding, I'm usually too busy scanning the road ahead of me to see if there's anything that may be a potential danger - cars approaching intersections, kids who are running around, glass or nails on the road. The only criminal activity that I can remember seeing while riding was a couple of guys smoking weed in a park. Nothing worth calling the cops for.

soni_guin

part of my route through the park is an old abandoned road from the 1920's... There's a weak bridge that probably hasn't been maintained since the 1940's, other than to put concrete barriers on either side of it to prevent anything heavier than a fat dude on a 1960's Schwinn from crossing it...

This used to be one of the main roads in western Houston... I can imagine my grandfather driving across that bridge in his old jalopy, going from his home in Galveston to school in College Station back in the mid 20's... Or, I see prewar cars swerving to avoid each other on either side, since it's a narrow bridge...
I look from side to side and see the area as it was back in the 60's, when the population of Houston was a half million, and the farthest anyone needed to drive to the west was 15 miles east of where I am now... Lots of trees, lots of weeds, an occasional palm, Bambi and Thumper occasionally crossing the path (but no alligators yet)

Then there's another part of the path that reminds me of a hunting ground in a video game i used to play... The bayou runs though an excellently carved channel, with high banked sides... Level 30 skimmers flying about a foot above the water, not even fazed by the sound of the hooves of the horses running nearby... All it's missing is the guards by the bridge, the weird level 24 dog looking things, the level 22 mushroom looking things that bring 3 friends with them (and you level quickly on them), and my enchanter's area effect spells... LOL
(10 points to whoever knows the spot)

Thylacine

I seem to have accidently stepped onto the set of a Paul Verhoeven film.

lilHinault

The cops ARE the good guys. And yeah if you're going to call every time you see a crime in Santa Ana, you'd better have a lot of minutes on your cellular plan.

sunninho

I'm with you on this. It's never really about just one bad apple... it's the tree these apples grow on. Every cop is trained to be extremely paranoid and it's this training that makes them, in large part, not at all like us.

Edit: I spent 3 years as a junior cop in a medium sized city that has a lot of the same issues of the big ones.

KingTermite 

Never really seen anything criminal, but every now and then I see an 18 or 19 year old on what looks like a kids bike (20 incher) and wonder if he's ripping it off or just into those little dirt bikes.

jeff800

What a minute that sounds like the effects of an illegal drug! Are you sure your not smoking something before your rides?
I notice everything and pay attention to very little, if I saw a crime I would help.

skinnyone

+1...

bernmart

There are dozens of lovely females, jogging and biking, every time I do a local loop ride around the Rose Bowl. This morning a splendid woman passed me (everybody passes me) riding an Obea--a bike I've read about but not seen. I sped up to keep her in sight, and she knew it. She thought I was staring at her butt, but I was really checking out the bike. My God, has it come to this?