How are we dealing with Gates

Are you?

A. Sticking with road riding.

B. Slipping a latex glove on.

C. Carrying disinfectant wipes.

D. Seeing it as acceptable risk?

We have a lot of enclosures here in the New Forest with gated entrances and the gates can’t be left open for the horses and deer.

A sealed pack of disinfectant wipes in a handlebar food bag seems the most compact way of tackling these suspicious obstacles they have now become. What’s everyone else doing?

Just plan routes that avoid gates or I know can be opened with anything other than hands.

Freely admit I’m a bit paranoid about it.

Ramblers Assoc say,

Where possible, you should also:

• avoid touching gates and railings with your hands

Use leaves on the latches….natures biodegradable disposable wipe. Prefer to use rhododendron/laurel leaves as good size and stronger than you average hazel etc. Stash a few in my pocket if Im expecting gates.

Freely admit I’m a bit paranoid about it.

+ 1 …why risk it imo particular as virus can linger a while on metal from whats been reported

I’m always wearing gloves anyway. Throw them in the wash with my clothes when I get home and give the bike a once-over with IPA.

I’m always wearing gloves anyway.

Pointless for me as I wipe sweat off my face with gloved hands, touch the handle bars and bottle etc so just as bad as using bare hands

I don’t have to use many gates but I always have gloves on if I’m riding, so not a problem. I don’t bother washing them though. TBH the comparative risk is miniscule.

Locally I’m acting like I’m shopping in the supermarket- don’t touch your face and wash your hands when you get in. Presume everything is infected and expect everyone else to be presuming the same?
Although when running across the parish boundary I’ve taken some hand sanitiser and done my hands before and after.

What he said (scotroutes).

But then, we don’t have the crazy amount of gates that you suvverners do.

give the bike a once-over with IPA

Shocking waste of good beer.

I don’t find that gloves offer me any protection, as between touching a gate and taking my gloves off once home I am bound to have wiped off some sweat or touched my face. My local rides round the local windfarm have a few pedestrian gates, the ones with the big sprung lever, so I just pick up a decent sized bit of gravel and open it with that, then let them swing shut.

Trouble with gloves is that you just then spread the (potential) virus all over your grips/ shifter/brakes/ water bottles/face and all the other things you don’t even really think about.

In not saying it’s a massive risk but definitely not what I’m doing.

As a healthy adult in my 50s, who gets his news from reputable sources rather than Facebook and Twitter?

D.

(And I say that as postman in an urban area of NW England who’s been opening up to 800 gates and letterboxes a day, every day, since this kicked off. As have my colleagues – c.150 in my delivery office, not one of whom has been seriously ill, despite the area being a hotspot, apparently).

But don’t let that stop you pissing your pants.

Firmly in the D camp I’m afraid.

Mostly avoid them, not aware that I touch my face much whilst riding, wash hands when I get home as usual. Suppose there’s probably some residual risk of picking up the virus on a glove, then carrying it to the next gate, but presume that must be fairly small.

Mostly the BW’s round here are gate free, I can only actually think of one off the top of my head (3 gates in a row through some livestock fields), the rest are on the odd bit of footpath.

montgomery
Member
As a healthy adult in my 50s, who gets his news from reputable sources rather than Facebook and Twitter?

I don’t. It’s well documented regarding the potential of the virus to live on hard surfaces for some time.

But don’t let that stop you pissing your pants.

No your right, it’s just a bit of a cold going around. I’m off to a rave tomorrow.

I’m very lucky in that I have two hands, the left opens gates the right does everything else.

I am avoiding anywhere with gates – partly because nothing locally has them!

The same way I normally do, I open them and then shut them.

Given the work environment and the demographics of the work force, I think there’s a very interesting epidemiological study to be carried out in Royal Mail delivery offices, especially when a reliable antibody test becomes available.

I’m not encountering many but I can’t say I’m overly worried. I’m more focused on not touching face in general. Trying to wipe my face with my sleeve. Only touching my water bottle on the body and opening it with my mouth. As soon as I get in all clothes go in the washing machine, wash my hands, then shower. I’d say the chance of catching it from a gate is pretty much zero. Certainly not the most dangerous thing I’ll do that day.

Surgical antiseptic In an old sun cream spray bottle.

couple of sprays on gate latch, couple on glove  that touched gate. 10 seconds. Job done.

As soon as I get in all clothes go in the washing machine, wash my hands, then shower

By which point, you’ve put that virus you’re worried about all over the kitchen, the washing machine, probably a couple of interior doors…

Can’t be too careful. You should strip off outside, get a family member to hose you down then spray your clothes with bleach.

Firmly in the D camp, even as a New Forest rider on the odd occasion.

Sod all that process some of you are going through, just to open a gate.

Can’t be too careful. You should strip off outside, get a family member to hose you down then spray your clothes with bleach.

Or just camp out for the night and save bringing the virus home at all….

As long as you don’t touch any of your orifices or food then you’re good to go as far as i’m concerned.

By which point, you’ve put that virus you’re worried about all over the kitchen, the washing machine, probably a couple of interior doors…

What!? Straight into the utility room. Washing machine is already open so need to touch anything until I’ve washed my hands. I’ve also been wearing gloves. Very little chance of any transfer.

I’d agree with the last sentence, certainly.

A lot of gates in the new forest you can open with your arm if they have a bridle gate latch. Otherwise I try to use a bit of the gate that most other people wouldn’t. Prob doesn’t help but it makes me feel better about it.

The risk depends on the gate as well. Right out of a massive car park with hundreds of people using then take more care, gate in the middle of nowhere a bike ride away from somewhere busy the risk is obvs lower.

I’m not a virologist but I would imagine that the risk is pretty much negligible in the circumstances the op mentions. The spread in the community is likely to be low outside hotspots and by the time the sun had shone and time has passed most gate catches are pretty low risk.

I’ve got friends who are doctors travelling to London for work on the train dealing with Covid patients and I don’t see them using gloves to open train doors or in the local shop etc.

Stop at gate cos I’m shit at bunnyhops.
Remove one glove.
Sanitise using sanitiser taped to stem.
Open gate using sanitised hand &/or unsanitised foot to push/pull as required on suitable lower portion of gate. *
Do reverse of ^^^
Sanitise hands.
Re-apply glove.

(*) Other bodily parts, IE hips/arse etc may be put into use.

HTH.

I try to use a bit of the gate that most other people wouldn’t.

Except that everyone else had the same idea.

See the public loo door handle conundrum

Just use as normal, just don’t suck your fingers straight after or pick your nose.

Wash your hands when you get home

Good points noted. Especially

1. Not pulling up the drinks nozzle. I’ll use a Camelback Podium that has a twist to open. This isn’t time to break a tooth either. Dentists are shut.

2. Drink and eat before riding.

3. Learn to rock a Borg headband 70’s style.

4. Wear eye protection. No snot wiping. No touching face.

5. Wipe/ spray gate handle and gloves. Clean hands back in the car. Wash clothes and bike at when home.

How about small ‘Shepherds hook’ to poke and pull the latches clipped on the frame? Only then need to handle the ‘safe’ end.

Pretty much all our legal bike paths in the New Forest are through many of the enclosures. Riding on open forest is looked down upon due to the ground nesting birds, all though it’s not particularly policed and all recreational forest use is relatively very low impact.

Have people also seen walker’s wiping? If most people are then there is less risk to any given individual.

I carry a dedicated Gate Glove*.
So I arrive at the one gate that gives access to the trails. Slip the single Gate Glove over my riding glove and deal with the gate. Gate Glove goes back into my jersey or pack.

*a marigold with GG written on it.

This place seems to be full of weird OCD types.

JP

Elbows, sleeves, or last resort hand under the t-shirt.

Here in the FofD gates are just a reminder to local populace that they’re still under the jurisdiction of FE and serve no purpose for wildlife or livestock management.

So I open them and leave them open.

Still sending the **** shitty emails about Windows ME.

My daily routes involves two gates, neither of which serves any purpose in keeping animals or people in or out. Every day I open the latch with a stick, then insert said stick through the latch to hold it open so others don’t have to touch it. The gates are sprung, so hold themselves closed anyway. Next day the stick has been removed. Always. Presumably by a member of the “Always Close the Gate” contingent.
There is another gate, again serving no purpose until the cattle return later in the summer, which the landowner helpfully ties open to save people from having to touch the gate. Except that the bailing twine he uses is regularly cut and removed, and the gate closed.
FFS.

I asked one area with lots of gates if I should prop them open. ( there is no livestock just dog walkers) They said no but next time I went through the catches has all been removed so just needed pushing open. They gates self close so no problem there.

Talk to someone , they do listen.

D.

Get on with it. In the current sunshine especially, if you’re that fussed, climb over, but bollocks to avoiding routes with gates, must be shyte.