Cyclist attacked

What defensive/self protection measures are legal here? I'm a Yank, so it's an honest question. I carry my D-lock on my waist but I'm not entirely confident in using that against a group and I'm more interested in something for my wife to carry when she rides.

fellow yank here as well. and to answer your question, fuck all. there is nothing you can carry legally here for self defense. its an absolute joke.

huh?

Aaron, as I have said in other posts according to the law here you can use anything around you for self defence as long as its the 'first thing you see' and are unaware of the object. so, in effect, D-lock near you that's a shame better use that!

Fucking hell - sometimes I despair of living in the UK. BBC news today...

"A World War II veteran suffered severe facial injuries when he was robbed a few hours after scattering his late wife's ashes."

I saw that, fcuking scum that did that.

fellow yank here as well. and to answer your question, fuck all. there is nothing you can carry legally here for self defense. its an absolute joke.

because a system of carrying around a weapon works so well.

When i got battered the po pos basically said afterwards using my d-lock would've been fair game. He said if you find yourself set upon by multiple people, your life is in danger, and you can take any reasonable steps to defend yourself. Including using 'whatever comes to hand'.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/surrey/8215438.stm

The Rozzers have charged two teenagers and a named twenty year old...

That's not right, charged three; two teenagers and a named twenty year old...

Most of you don't live my way, so it's not that possible. And I highly doubt the Ealing people want to detour!

Lets say there are 5,000 members in london, there's bound to be someone going the same way. People meet up before an event to travel to it, so why not do the same thing after, arrange with people from your area to meet after an event and leave at the same time...

because a system of carrying around a weapon works so well.

who said anything about a weapon? im talking minimal things here. pepper spray, tasers. im not some wacky american gun nut.

Lets say there are 5,000 members in london, there's bound to be someone going the same way. People meet up before an event to travel to it, so why not do the same thing after, arrange with people from your area to meet after an event and leave at the same time...

Kinda missing my earlier point. I was trying to say in a roundabout way, that the person speaking for the group is pointing out the most obvious thing ever - " If you are cycling alone at night then these things can happen."
And I also was trying to say, whatever happened to a society where we could ride on our own without needing to fear our safety at night?

What would stop the people attacking the cyclist from having the same things?

This thread went daily mail the minute the poor robbed veteran, got his story hijacked by a jingoistic newspaper...

Perception of Crime vs Actual Crime Growler...

Sorry, is anyone getting this? It looks like the rozzers have caught the little fucks....

See Link on earlier post.

who said anything about a weapon? im talking minimal things here. pepper spray, tasers. im not some wacky american gun nut.

if there's such a situation, just legs it, run as fast as you can, it's as simple as that.

if there's no way of doing that, just grab the nearest thing you can find and use it for self-defense, such as D-lock (police advise you to do that actually if you're in a life-threatening situation).