Out in cranham wood today with mrs lmnh and came across a few logs,tree branches across the trail so stopped to remove them, and spotted in the distance somebody pulling more branches across the trail. Walked upto said person and politly asked him what he was upto, his response was that bikes are wrecking the woods and he was sick off us (bikes I think). I removed the branches from the track and left him to it. The person in question looks like Jim Bowen(from bullseye fame) and drives a White nissan primera. I would say that this is the same person that has been cutting the saplings down and pulling them across the track…….just a word of warning guys, next time your out keep your eyes peeled for anything else other than sticks and branches across the track.

Report him to the police, someone like that is likely to do something stupid one day. Did you get the plate?

i would suggest that he be careful it only takes the wrong person and he might find himself on the way to hospital.

Keep those bombers handy 😉

got the reg number of the car as well. 😯

got the reg number of the car as well. 😯 only got it once though!

If he’s cutting saplings down and laying obsticles that are designed to harm / impeed others I would report him straight away.

Sounds like the sort of NIMBY Gloucestershire seems to attract 🙁

SSP

yep Alex is right report the guy , a visit from the boys in blue might save one of us from a ride with the other boys with blue lights ….

Mmmm what about the ‘legality’ of some of the trails that we MIGHT stray onto by accident? The fuzz might not think that’s too sporting either…… 😕

hi ian, def report him. the police were very interested re the nailboard type incident at the shrine last year. btw ive wed off work, any good?

I believe english nature might also be interested if he is damaging trees.

come on LMH we might ride a few cheeky trails but this guy is trying to hurt people !it might be a family out for a fun ride 🙁

Trail access would probably be a civil action, laying traps to hurt people is a criminal act. I would take a talking too from the fuzz if that nutter was stopped. Simple as.

SSP

Think ive crossed said chap the other week whilst riding the path along side the stream, didnt seem best pleased i was there and muttered something under his breath….just ignored and carried on my merry way.

Can anyone remember a year or so ago a mountain biker died a few days after comming off his bike due to a wire accross the trail ?
Is it worth taking photos of this guys actions ?

thanks for the description.. there are a few people who’d like a quiet word with whoever’s been sabbing the trails in that area, but have never caught anyone in the act.

If you come across someone like this, use yer camera/’phone, to film/photograph them and their activities. Then tell them that not only will you be forwarding evidence of their criminal activity to the police, but also be posting the pictures on several mountain biking websites, so that others can identify them.

Or, if no-one’s about, just murder them and bury them in the woods*.

*Possibly not quite legal, this course of action, however warranted it may seem…

Hi you should of ran him over with your DR.Couple of weeks ago, Thursday morining going down teachers just before you cross the track 3/4s of the way down 3 big branches across trail plus one lent against another tree so all the branches are head height nice.This could get nasty if hes that obsessed.Maybe we should put some branches gently on his car?

was up there this morning with one of the hounds and all the trails were clear, but got this horrible feeling that we might be seeing fishing line strung up across some of the tracks….. :(. Might take the forks off the DR and own him with them. Keep us posted with what you find guys!

Isn’t it an offence to obstruct a public right of way as well?

Just here to agree with what others have said about mentioning it to the police/take pictures or video and mention to him what you plan to do with said evidence.
I ride there a lot and luckily haven’t come across any dangerous material. one sapling seemed to be a bit low when i rode there last tuesday or wednesday i think it was.
I need to learn some of the names of the tracks I think.

Can anyone remember a year or so ago a mountain biker died a few days after comming off his bike due to a wire accross the trail ?

er…got anymore info on this???

😯

“his response was that bikes are wrecking the woods”

So he decides to wreck the woods!

I dunny get it?

Seriously though, report it. There have been incidents where people have been killed by fishing line/barbed wire across trails. What if a kid gets it? Do it now.

The guy knows Cranham well you take the 1st run from Birdlip end[racetrack as its known dont ask me where all these names come from CC i expect!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!.Theres a few broken branches their done ages ago,then as i said above teachers which alot of people dont even know exist.This happen years ago up Lecky i would be walking the dog looking at the downhill runs and someone would do the same move logs across you move them back they came bak then move them way away and it stopped.took a while but these were tracks people never walked on strange.Now look at Lecky tracks and jumps all over the place.He needs stopping soon somehow.

Hiya guys
I have recently experienced many problems on the Shrine trail and am currently avoiding it as I think like a few people on here that someone is going to really hurt themselves.

A few examples

Keep an eye out of low lying tree branches at pedal height as I recently found a young sapling tied to the base of another tree stretching across the trail, luckily I had made a mistake on the run so had stopped. For information, it was in the top section at the highest point in Birdlip where the single track moves up and down the bomb holes before the shrine mound (cant remember what the burial mound is
called).

But this is not the first time as 2 weeks ago I found a larger tree bent over from the top in what looked like an arc shape, I thought it had fallen in the winds so rode under it, only to be flung off the bike as the tip of the tree was tied around it’s base catching my foot. This was on the run down from the wall ride to car park on painswick road (just before the wooden steps on the Cotswold way).

I could go on as last Saturday morning 9am, I found 4 massive pieces of the wall on the wall ride nicely located on the other side of the gap in the wall (the second time you cross over it before the first sweeping drop) so out of sight until you go over it. Luckily I had enough speed to jump them, but moved them as it was an accident waiting to happen.

I could list a load more oddly placed obstacles but there are too many to list so only highlighted the most dangerous.

It has now got to a point where I will not ride it in bad light as you never know what you will find. Plus I ride alone most of the time

Has anyone notified the fuzz?

I haven’t as there is currently no evidence in which to proove it is this man doing it.
I am riding the route on Friday so will give you all a heads up when I get back. But will be carrying a camera from now on just incase.

Was up there again this morning, other than the mud, all was good. I think we needs evidence before we can call the fuzz, yes me and mrs LMNH’s did see this guy pulling branches across the track but they are all cleared now. Like others have said I thinks we need photographic proof of this guy blocking paths, trails etc. I hope that if we can keep clearing the tracks he will get bored and go and annoy somebody else. If any of you want his reg number drop me a mail. 🙂

Can anyone remember a year or so ago a mountain biker died a few days after comming off his bike due to a wire accross the trail ?

er…got anymore info on this???

It was a couple of years ago iirc, happened in West Yorks, near where we used to live.

I hope that if we can keep clearing the tracks he will get bored and go and annoy somebody else

If it’s true that previous trail vandalism has resulted in someone’s death surely you dont want to the guy to “get bored” and annoy someone else?

You want them nicked and/or beaten senseless, no?

Mmmmm beaten senseless! (goes off to place a wtd for a set of bombers)

I have seen some of the wall section that has been pulled apart and left blatantly on the other side of the drop, no way a bike going over it could have moved them, these were big rocks. Not seen this chap up there (we mostly ride it Sunday early or Tuesday late) but have seen branches pulled across the (known) trail in section 1 and 2 in a cross shape so you cannot ride over them, could be the same chap. Anyhow, if Jim Bowen is out and about in Birdlip upsetting bikers maybe we should “show him what he could have won”…….a fat lip!

I hope that if we can keep clearing the tracks he will get bored and go and annoy somebody else

Or he could take things up a level & do something even more reckless…

this guy needs reporting right now. A chap died in the Forest Od Dean about 10 years ago due to someone putting wire across the trail.

Sounds like this guy won’t stop till someone get seriously hurt or worse.

I think we all need to remember that the Cotswold way is not bike friendly and never will be and the Shrine woods are actually private property so anyone riding there is trespassing.

But that said, the guys who are ripping all the trees down have admitted to me and a mate that they are glad the woods are being used as historically most people go for walks on the beacon or down the Cotswold way. They also said that some of the tree felling is aimed to encourage riders (not sure how much of that is actually true) but they have removed some of the trees that make the trail faster.

I had heard that the bikes were being tolerated by the land owners, as long as no real damage was done.

My concern is the fishing line, had it happen on a path when at Uni and also when i was at school someone strung a line across a well used short cut. friend got a nasty gash across his throat as a result.

Parts of the Cotswold way are bridalways so perfectly legal to ride on. I am not concerned by the legal/illegal argument about access, I have been through all that BS before many times over, however as mrmo says fishing wire does take it to a new “level” let’s hope that never happens

One final point about bikes and Cranham. The trails are obvious, if the landowner was concerned they could quite easily erect signs etc saying keep out. They never have in all the years i can remember. Has to say something!

If I owned them I don’t think I would have an issue with it after all, what else are they going to be used for? The buzzards and owls still nest there, the dear are always at the top of the blue bell forrest so it is not as if we are a problem. But the fly tippers are!