"lethal" bikes - daily telegraph

apologies if this is already discussed - i saw it last night , its behind a paywall so I'll copy and paste. the ignorance and prejudice is beyond belief. i realise the punchline is its the Daily Telegraph what else do you expect - read and weep/laugh

'Lethal' cycles with no front brakes being 'aggressively promoted' in UK
Santafixie accused of ‘aggressively promoting’ bikes with no front brakes as the ‘perfect choice’ for city and urban cycling
A Spanish cycling company that imports “lethal” bikes to Britain used in illegal alleycat street races has been reported to the Government and an advertising watchdog.
Santafixie has been accused of “aggressively promoting” bikes with no front brakes as the “perfect choice” for city and urban cycling despite them being illegal on public roads.
Matthew Briggs, 53, whose wife Kim was killed by a cyclist on a similar fixed-wheel bike – where the only brake is applied by jamming the pedals in reverse to lock the back wheel – has written to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) calling for a review of the Barcelona-based company’s marketing techniques.
He has also written to Mark Harper, the Transport Secretary, and Kemi Badenoch, the Business Secretary, explaining that he has repeatedly pleaded with the company to make clear that bikes with no front brakes can only be used legally on cycle tracks.
Mr Briggs, who is also campaigning for cyclists who kill to face the same life sentence as killer motorists, has said UK companies have “withdrawn wreckless advertising” for bikes that are illegal on public roads.

‘Disregard the law’
The letter said: “There remain, however, a small number of retailers who still choose to disregard the law and promote brakeless bikes in their advertising.

“Perhaps the worst offender is Santafixie, a Spanish retailer selling into the UK with a UK website domain.

“Despite repeated requests, they still routinely promote brakeless fixed-wheeled bikes across their websites and promotional material; aggressively promoting them as ‘the best urban bicycle’ or ‘the perfect choice for urban cycling enthusiasts’.”

Charlie Alliston, who was jailed for 18 months for “wanton and furious” cycling after hitting Mrs Briggs, 44, in 2016, told a court he was unaware that his fixed-gear bike, which had no front brake, was illegal on public roads.

Fixed-wheel bikes with only a rear brake are not themselves illegal and can be ridden on tracks, but they require a front brake to be fitted to be legal when ridden on public roads.
Santafixie’s UK website promotes one “fixie” bike as the “best urban bicycle” to “explore cities”.
The Santafixie Raval Matte Black bike is one of a number marketed with only a rear “coaster” brake – “so if you pull back the pedals the bicycle will brake” – and sells for £499.
The website also has an article explaining how illegal alleycat racing has grown in popularity as their “fixed-gear bikes have become more and more popular”.
‘Cyclist thugs’
A Telegraph investigation last month revealed how gangs of “cyclist thugs” break road rules as they compete for cash prizes on brakeless bikes in alleycat races.
Video footage glorified incidents in which children and elderly pedestrians are either hit or caught in near misses as cyclists shoot red lights and mount pavements in London, Glasgow and Bristol alleycat races.
Referring to a US alleycat race in which a cyclist was killed after he ignored a red light, the Santafixie article said: “There is only one rule; the bike must be in a fixed gear without brakes… As you can imagine, it is a dangerous race, very dangerous.
“Anything goes to get there first. Go in the wrong direction, run through traffic lights, pass within inches of passers-by and prams, the risk is high,” it continued.
It described the cash prizes and a “legendary afterparty” before offering a link to the New York race route.
Santafixie’s promotional material, which refers to London as the “fixie [bike] capital of the world”, embraces the alleycat subculture by describing its customers as “nomads” who are “metropolitan and frenetic” .
The company sells a variety of bikes, with some described as “track bicycles” having front and back brakes.
‘Hurtling towards you’
A London alleycat race entrant wrote how he is a “perspiring mass of arrogance hurtling towards you, I can do whatever I want… the rules of the road are meaningless to me – I stop for nothing… also because I have no brakes… just one single gear that is virtually impossible to slow. Move”.
Santafixie, which claims to be Europe’s “top online urban bicycle” seller of fixed-gear and single-speed bikes, failed to respond to a request for comment.
A Department for Transport spokeswoman said: “Dangerous cycling puts lives at risk and is completely unacceptable.
“It is already illegal to ride a fixed-wheel bike without front and rear brakes on public roads, and police have the power to prosecute if this and our many other tough laws are broken.”
ASA rules state that advert

Eh, whilst it's obvious rage-bait, it's also not wrong that a front brake is required for legal road use.

Obviously one could focus on any number of retailers who sell generally illegal items due to specific exemptions, or the number of deaths caused by bad/lazy/indifferent driving, but I'd honestly try not to get worked up by it.

Edit: also looking at SFs website, the random sample of frames I clicked on all came with two brakes, even if the marketing photos showed them without ¯\(ツ)/¯

Mr Briggs, who is also campaigning for cyclists who kill to face the same life sentence as killer motorists…

While I applaud this, someone should tell him…

Also, and I’m not baiting here, I assumed anyone of this parish would be riding with a front brake.

Also, this, very much 😬

Clearly wrong

Department for Transport spokeswoman said:
“It is already illegal to ride a fixed-wheel bike without front and rear brakes on public roads, and police have the power to prosecute if this and our many other tough laws are broken.”

Also, think of the children!

Video footage glorified incidents in which children and elderly pedestrians are either hit or caught in near misses

Amazingly written, thought provoking journalism. I know personally I can’t get any work done if I’ve not knocked over an old person on my commute in. Sometimes I settle for buzzing a pram but I’m just not quite myself all day.

(Seriously though, poor Mr. Briggs, such a sad, senseless death)

Do you consider yourself a "cyclist thug"

Is alleycat racing a thing? And did an unnamed London race entrant really write that at some unknown time?
It is very sad his wife died in such a way. I wonder how Mr Briggs would take on the motoring lobby, and our prime minister, had she been killed by a car doing 27 miles and hour in a 30 limit.

No, I’m a thug that just happens to cycle

I’m guessing the Telegraph has also sent its brave journalists to investigate the various car races taking place on public roads?

Oh

No they are right.
Fixed wheel is legally a rear brake making a font brake and fixed wheel two brakes. So a fixed wheel bike has a rear brake fitted no matter what.
In fact it’s impossible to have a brakeless “fixie”
:p

Clearly wrong

*Department for Transport spokeswoman said:
“It is already illegal to ride a fixed-wheel bike without front and rear brakes on public roads, and police have the power to prosecute if this and our many other tough laws are broken.” *

There's a 12ft ladder for that pay wall.

12ft.io

This so feels like a conversation from 10 + years ago. Can't we tell the Telegraph it's Cargo bikes to carry the kids, 40K kitchens and Golf.

but what about the batteries

Have you got his details, as I would like to waste my time in showing how fucking wrong he is.

Daily fail, whipping up something to hide something else...

Whose? Mr Briggs?

I'd probably leave him be; the poor bloke is grieving.

I can't believe that there's still a site like Santafixie.

It's really capturing the Zeitgeist of 2008.

..that the sentences are about 9 years for a repeat offender? Half a year more for trying to escape arrest (post-manslaughter).

Think those vehicles had functioning brakes though, maybe that was the mitigating circumstance.

Rep