[Closed] That RideLondon hold up - RIP Richard Kell

I don't know about others feelings on this, but i think the event has just got to big now.

I appreciate that when you have so many people taking part in "strenuous" exercise like this, that there is a high chance of someone having a heart attack like the first guy that passed away, it happens all the time at the Marathon, and is to be expected.

But having done Ride London 3 times now, there are just so many people of varying standards and riding right across the road, i am there were not more accidents involving crashes, i narrowly avoided being hit by others a few times as went down Leith Hill. I counted four ambulances attending to people at varying points as i went round.

Whilst i understand this gent was an experienced cyclist, there are a lot of people where this is the first and only time they may attempt a distance like this and often riding standards were pretty low especially bearing in mind you can easily reach 40-45mph down some of the hills.

RIP. Yes me too OP. Not just riding but taking on Ride 100. Chapeau.

On the flip side, given how many people do do it and the range of abilities/experience, there are relatively few accidents.

Saying that, where this happened was on a pretty nasty, narrow, dip and bend, so maybe the course routing could be looked at.

London Marathon also had a death and does from time to time.

RIP.

Off to a meeting with the organisers tomorrow for a feedback discussion. Riding standards will feature. I would be interested in the incidence of cardiac events compared with the London Marathon ( which is run by the same company).

scud - Member
I don't know about others feelings on this, but i think the event has just got to big now.

I appreciate that when you have so many people taking part in "strenuous" exercise like this, that there is a high chance of someone having a heart attack like the first guy that passed away, it happens all the time at the Marathon, and is to be expected.

But having done Ride London 3 times now, there are just so many people of varying standards and riding right across the road, i am there were not more accidents involving crashes, i narrowly avoided being hit by others a few times as went down Leith Hill. I counted four ambulances attending to people at varying points as i went round.

Whilst I understand this gent was an experienced cyclist, there are a lot of people where this is the first and only time they may attempt a distance like this and often riding standards were pretty low especially bearing in mind you can easily reach 40-45mph down some of the hills.

On the other hand, how many deaths would occur otherwise through obesity? Or how much more dangerous would that number of cyclists be if they were all out doing individual 100mile rides, without StJohns or other ambulances on standby nearby?

Tragic all the same, but you can't be seriously saying that unfit people shouldn't get fit in case they suffer a heart attach due to getting fit? And despite all the claims of people not being able to ride bikes taking part, this is the first death through injury?

I think there are too many allowed to enter and see no reason for the number to be so high other than revenue generation for the organisers.
The organisers are seeking input from clubs about how they can mitigate against accidents. Lets hope its a material effort and not just about better signposts.

i narrowly avoided being hit by others a few times as went down Leith Hill

That's probably cos everyone else was riding up 🙂

TiRed good luck at the meeting (tough story re the pot hole on the other thread)

I have no doubt the organisers want a mass participation event like the Marathon. Thats also the best way to ensure it's future including the road closures. A strava-centric weekend racer/sportiv crowd event with more limited entries isn't going to get the roads closed imho.

Off to a meeting with the organisers tomorrow for a feedback discussion. Riding standards will feature.

What did you think? From my perspective, I didn't see that much poor riding, rather the problem is trying to accommodate a range of abilities and desires in the same place at the same time. That said, I did think there were a couple of resolvable problems:

1. Toilet/ food stops on the right meant riders suddenly veering across the road (as the majority tend to keep left)
2. The descent from Leith Hill to Wotton is in parts steep, twisty, narrow and is lined with rocks & trees. Great fun for a club ride but I think unsuitable for so many riders.

It was just that corner, accident waiting to happen, nothing else.

I agree with Wilburt, it was a nasty little corkscrew corner. Other than that, the riding standards were generally fine (and there's nothing that anyone could about that anyway) and the route layout was fine.

That includes the toilet/food stops; admittedly some were on the right, but they were well signposted so if you were pressing on on the right you should have been able to anticipate that people might be moving across. And, to be honest, the only one that I can remember on the right were at Newlands Corner, where no-one's going that quick anyway, and in Bushy Park(?), where again they were just after a sharp bend so, again, speeds were generally fairly low.

I don't know about others feelings on this, but i think the event has just got to big now.

Don't make more out of this than there is: Bad things occur from time to time in anything. It's sad but s*** happens.

My thoughts go out to his friends and family.

Thisisnotaspoon

I didn't state that people shouldn't get fit, more that death from things like a heart attack are to be expected when you have so many people taking part in an event such as this, in the same way it happens on London Marathon.

I totally agree that anything that promotes people getting fit is a good thing. My issue is that with each year that i have done it, the numbers have increased greatly and the number of serious accidents (that i have seen) seems to have gone up. There was simply so many people trying to ride it once and at very differing paces.

As i say, don't get me wrong it is a great event, just some of the fun has been taken away and with greater numbers comes unfortunate incidents like this.

I totally agree that anything that promotes people getting fit is a good thing. My issue is that with each year that i have done it, the numbers have increased greatly and the number of serious accidents (that i have seen) seems to have gone up. There was simply so many people trying to ride it once and at very differing paces.

^^agreed.

I'm sure i'll get flamed for this - but a percentage of the poor riding standards I saw were from club riders (in club kit) treating it like a grand tour stage.. shouting at slower riders and bullying your way past is not what the event is about.

^^agreed.

I'm sure i'll get flamed for this - but a percentage of the poor riding standards I saw were from club riders (in club kit) treating it like a grand tour stage.. shouting at slower riders and bullying your way past is not what the event is about.

I agree, but equally, there's nothing wrong with asking to get past.

First off the death of anyone is always very sad. When it is a fellow rider then this should certainly be a time for reflection rather than hole picking.

Anyway it strikes me that there are an awful lot of people that do the ride 100, possibly too many for some of the very small lanes that are encountered. As I understand it the organisers do try to sort the fast from the slow to minimise overtaking but it is inevitable. When participating an event such as this it is important for folk to recognise the abilities of those around them and ride accordingly. It is not a race and waiting for a safe place to overtake is surely not much of an issue and safer for both the over taker and the over takee.

As to heart attacks - this is surely an inevitability for such an event with so many people, many untrained and not accustomed to such strenuous exercise.

Review of safety and ongoing improvements to both the ride, safety and administration are to be expected and supported.

RIP.