Self-Protection Products in the UK while Cycling

Am getting a bit freaked out by the reports of cyclists getting beaten badly, e.g.:

http://www.londonfgss.com/thread27878.html#post889674
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/ethicallivingblog/2009/aug/17/bike-blog-robbery

If I was in the US, I'd either carry mace, taser, etc., but it seems in the UK that's not quite legal. So was checking out these products - does anyone use any of them, and how effective are they?

http://www.stoppashop.co.uk/self-defence-products/personal-attack-alarms-and-sprays/buy-online.html

D-locks seem to be in vogue.

whats wrong with just using your mits?

Ah for the old days...;-) if only!
that said, i've never had to use my lock yet.....nor my mits for that matter.
Touch very large bit of wood

whats wrong with just using your mits?

Alot of racers have little spindly arms :(

Do they use paranoia in the water over there instead of good ol' fluoride?

I'd just stay at home if i were you...

Perhaps paranoia, but I've also got my bike stolen twice already.

i usually use left fist , then the more effective right fist...seems to work well, if not d.lock

Perhaps paranoia, but I've also got my bike stolen twice already.

How long have you been here? I've been here 4 years and haven't lost any. Nor have I been set upon by a gang of yoofs.

i usually use left fist , then the more effective right fist...seems to work well, if not d.lock

what stolen , as in locked up and taken while you were away , or actually taken off you?

Perhaps paranoia, but I've also got my bike stolen twice already.

sorry, this was what i was looking at, but the question stands

Anywhere you can buy bear mace or something more powerful?

Perhaps paranoia, but I've also got my bike stolen twice already.

I have my bike stolen once, never again I said, learnt how to lock it properly, what lock to use, how long should I leave it outside, etc.

still hasn't got a bicycle stolen from be for 3 years (touch wood).

just use your D-lock for protection, a Kryponite Fah Mini is a perfect weapon, secondly don't be paranoid, while it's awful to hear about people attacking cyclists, it's hardly an epidemic that happened everyday.

where i live, most bikes are stolen from the back gardens in the early hours or at knife point, so there's no protection really. just keep it inside, lock well and don't hit that 12 years old with a d-lock, because you'll be in trouble. i know a woman who had a sentence for battering a carjacker with a steering wheel lock (she's hot blooded and overdone a bit)

..and don't hit that 12 years old with a d-lock, because you'll be in trouble. i know a woman who had a sentence for battering a carjacker with a steering wheel lock (she's hot blooded and overdone a bit)

Yhere's a bit of a difference between defending yourself against a gangs of yobs and beating up a kid who's trying to steal your car.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Desert-Eagle-p1030134.jpg

anyway, it can be scary. bikes, phones and laptops are easy to pick up and easy to flog for decent money. damn gumtree!

A D-Lock is your best bet as it's expected that cyclists will have one so when you 'instant arm' (grab the nearest available object to defend yourself) it will appear pretty reasonable to a court if it were to get that far...

Just don't get over-zealous, tempting as it may be!

i usually use left fist , then the more effective right fist...seems to work well, if not d.lock

Fists are fairly useless in a street fight at best you will break your fingers. Knees, elbows, palms better.

The Marquis of Queensbury is dead.

Learn Krav Maga. No, it is nothing like Karate, Kung Fu, yadda yadda.

You will feel more confident in that you know how to protect yourself and therefore will be able to deal with all kinds of situations. Avoidance is the best policy though. There is no shame in running away.

You carry a mace in the US?

Yeah, but only in carbon fibre.

In Eugene Sloanes " Complete Book of Cycling" Simon and Schuster 1974, he recommends carrying a 24 inch cattle prod clamped to your top tube, to deter dogs.

The problem with carrying weapons is that they can be used against you.

I cant think of anything immediately 'available' on me or on my bike to use as a weapon.I wouldn't have time to get the D-Lock out of my bag if suddenly surrounded by a hostile bunch of youths.
Avoid (or be extremely wary) back streets/parks/estates/isolated areas especially after dark.

Perhaps paranoia, but I've also got my bike stolen twice already.

Unless I am mistaken, I don't think cyclists are specially targeted. Inner cities always have violence and crime - also suburbs such as West Ewell, Southall, etc.

It is a sad state of affairs but one that we all have to be careful and prepare for such events by taking precautions - Edscoble talks about locking up appropriately...

One idiot friend of mine bought a £750 Specialized bike, and parked it outside Exmouth street market and went in for a few jars - guess his surprise when he came back and even his lock was nicked...nothing to say to him on this occasion.

On a more important note, I would be surprised (and worried) if my friends sat in a pub discussing how to get tooled up because there were reports of muggings or crime against pedestrians.

Please please when you get a chance speak to one of the many taxi drivers, especially minicab drivers - they will have enough anecdotes about having crow bars, machetes, baseball bats etc under their drivers seats and where this got them.

Where I grew up in West London, there was a time kiddies used to hide behind bushes in the Grand Union Canal in the dark by Stonebridge Park and scare the shit out of cyclists and watch them fall into the canal - however, there was no free newspapers and the internet to spread this news like wildfire and thankfully it didn't become a phenomenon such as "happy slapping" or "steaming" etc.

Now people cycle past the same canal and it is the cyclists scaring the crap out of the elderly returning with their shopping along the towpath - with their grunts, bells, swearing etc - thankfully there are no groups of pedestrians discussing how to tool up and deal with these self-centred cycle loons.

FYI, it is illegal to walk (or even cycle) around tooled up!!!