Wiggle sportive in Dorset cancelled due to Remembrance Day clash

Knowing most cyclists, were a bunch of respectable people and I think most would have stopped to repay their respects at 11:00 which would have been a fitting tribute. The church in my parents village in Devon is next to playing fields/football fields. At 11:00 on remembrance sunday - the football continues with all the ususal shouting and foul language. The council have requested on many occasions that they stop at 11:00 but they state they hold a 2 minute silence when it is convinient for them. Says it all really!!!!

A considerable number of our club make stopping at one village's memorial service a part of the Club Run.  Our president has laid a wreath on behalf of the club. I've gone with those who've lost friends in conflict, and it's very moving.

So, why not stop and pay your respects? Take a spare layer or two to keep warm, and join in. I'm not religious, so I won't pray to a deity, but I'll join in the singing with gusto.

(Btw, all traffic does stop for any of the services around here - London/Surrey. The sheer number of people means everything halts. And it's not uncommon to see drivers stopped by the side of the road.)

Cancelling the sportive was the right decision. Organising it in the first place for such a day seems remarkably callous. Some riders may have stopped, but how many wouldn't, or would have lost track of time?

oldstrath - i've done quite a few sportives over the years and the noise you get from a constant stream of cyclists coming through is quite loud.

To some of us Remembrance Day is very important, to some it isn't so if your one of the people who it isnt why not cycle elsewhere so we all get what we want or is that not what your father fought for ???

For me, your father deserves our respect and i would gladly "doff me cap" for him.

You're shitting me, so the ride wasn't even going to directly clash with any parade? And they were going to dismount and pay respects? Which would have been a really nice bit of symbolism come to think of it.

Why am I not surprised that a Kipper is at the root of it all. 

I suggest a sacrifice of this hate-stirring, nationalistic Kipper to the dead. He does represent in large what they gave their lives for, does he not.

Wiggle was smart to cancel though. No matter the reality behind it, the press will make it out to be a bunch is disrespectful lycra louts terrorising Rembrance mourners. 

oldstrath - the respect i mentioned was for the fallen.

Whenever I cycle past a memorial it strikes me that given the modal figures at the time of the two world wars, it seems likely that many, maybe even most, of those being commemorated would have been (utility) cyclists.

They probably didn't wear lycra, though (an invention that came out of WW2 shortages).

Still, seems like it was an oversight to schedule the event for that particular day in those particular places. But Mark By's post also makes me wonder if its just generally a mistake to ever venture into UKIPland beyond the major cities.

It seems that this event was cancelled only after the local rag, the Boremouth Echo (BE), decided to print comments from a UKIP councillor that appeared to be inciting violence.  The BE didn’t add Wiggle’s comment regarding their respect for Remembrance Day to their online article, despite doing that for the corresponding article in their sister paper, the Dorset Echo (DE).

http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/news/14809289.There_s_going_to_be_a_rio...

http://www.dorsetecho.co.uk/news/14810481.UPDATE__There_s_going_to_be_a_...

I understand that the former serviceman part isn’t exactly correct. Perhaps a bit of journalistic licence to spice up the story?

Amongst the posts in the BE thread were several implicit threats of disorder and one explicit threat of violence (see attached picture)

There was no evidence presented to suggest that any cyclists would be interfering with any of the events.

To quote Wiggle:

“Event 'will not clash with road closures' - and cyclists encouraged to observe Two Minute Silence

A spokesman for the organisers said: “Out of respect for Remembrance Sunday parades and other associated activities, Wiggle, working with UK Cycling Events (UKCE), have ensured the route of this event does not and will not clash with any Remembrance Day road closures. They will also be emailing all participating riders in the run up to the event, reminding them about Remembrance Day and requesting that all riders show due respect when passing through villages on the route, especially around 11am, the time of the Two Minute Silence. Wiggle have also encouraged riders that wish to, to dismount at the appropriate time, to observe the Two Minute Silence.

“In addition, Wiggle and UKCE have organised a special Poppy Appeal collection with the Royal British Legion, which will take place at registration for the event and Wiggle will also be making a donation to the Poppy Appeal. Riders will be encouraged to wear their poppies with pride as they participate and all Wiggle and UKCE members of staff and event organisers will also be wearing poppies on the day.”

So it is probable that Wiggle only cancelled the event because of concerns over public disorder, specifically danger to cyclists participating in this event, fermented by xenophobic nationalists and advertised by the local paper.   So the message is; if you want to prevent a legal local event happening, just sing “I predict a riot” or perhaps there’ll be “Anarchy in the UK”.  And get an appropriate quote from your local UKIP councillor.

I've accidentally found myself passing through a village on Remembrance Day just as people are observing the minute silence.  The right thing to do obviously, is to stop and respect the occasion as do any cars passing through. Even though there were just four of us standing their in our lycra, it felt inappropriate  and a bit like we were impossing ourselves on a village's private grief. Organising a sportive, where people at the front are essentially racing and therefore likely to be pretty impatient seems really clumsy. 

At least it's saved us from the "Cyclists Disrespect Our War Heroes" headlines...

Bit like the Top Gear stunting near to the Cenotaph. Disrespectful by any definition but deep down I cannot help but think that so many of the young men and women who lost their lives in service to their country would be cheering such foolery.

I used to Hash House Harrier (drinking club with a running problem for those who don't know). Once when visiting an overseas Hash I was somewhat horrified to find us running through a cemetery. It seemed very inappropriate until a stop at the grave of an ex Hasher where a short silence was observed and a can of lager poured over the ground and the "DownDown" ritual performed. It was very moving.

Personally I always pay a nod as we pass a war memorial on our rides and on Remembrance Sunday I always stop by at the Memorial in town to pay my respects at the end of the club ride.

Think by riot they mean stumbling and incontinence issues 

Rename the ride to Remembrance Ride. Appease the village people? Their stuff can't be going on all day. I was in some sort of parade in the Army Cadets and it only last a couple of hours. 1 hour for the street part, rest in church. 

Don't ask why I joined in the Army Cadets, some guy in school said it'd be fun. Da fuck.

Simon wrote:

For this year, a search on the events page of the British Cycling website returns only one sportive scheduled to take place on Remembrance Sunday – the The "Keep It Growing" Movember Ride based in Elleker, East Yorkshire.

It's 'Ellerker', but it's not uncommon to see it spelt wrong:

https://twitter.com/eyctc/status/788095132516089858

Let's hope the Movember event doesn't clash with the locals' demolition derby.

Words, even rude ones, fail me.

I think that Remembrance Sunday is kind of a regular event...?