Riding over at Minley today, following a route that I’d got from a friend using Komoot.  All going pretty well and nearing the end other than the little ride back to where I’d parked the car. Just finished a nice wiggly section and looked down…. my mobile on a handlebar mount…. there it was…. GONE!

Panick I began trying to retrace my route but the last time I remember seeing it was at the entry into a section called “Sponge Bob” and that was a fair way back. Asked a few walkers and riders if they had seen it… no joy.

Then my luck changed… met two guys one running, the other on his bike.  Asked them, they stopped everything and started looking, calling it, spoke to my wife to track it down with Livetrack and Google maps…. bottom line is we found it not so very far from where I realised it was missing. The chaps were both Paras, great guys, not just a cursory search but fully committed to help. I can’t thank them enough.

Also, thanks to my son and his girlfriend who joined us on their bikes for the search.

I rate myself as very lucky as far as rescues go… back in November when I broke my pelvis and my 3 fantastic rescuers…. now these two Paras… thanks guys.

👍

Nice!

👌

Excellent. There are many more honest, kind, helpful people around that we all realise.

Excellent. There are many more honest, kind, helpful people around that we all realise.

Indeed. My phone has fallen out my pocket during a ride on holiday, only realising when I arrived back at the accommodation. Immediately checked location using Mrs a11y’s iPhone, saw it wasn’t moving, then set out to retrieve it using Mrs a11y’s phone to guide me. Arrived at location, couldn’t find it, checked phone again – dammit, it’s moving and is a further 3 miles away. Called it, women answered who offered to drop it off back at my accommodation! She promptly did so, beating me back and handing it over to Mrs a11y, so I never met her. Wouldn’t accept anything as a thanks. This was a fairly new iPhone 11 Pro so a fairly valuable item. Lucky boy.

A compass.
Was up on’t moors on the bike & passed 4 kids going the other way who were doing the DOE award, at this point I didn’t know I’d lost my compass from the side pocket of my backpack, just had a quick chat, told each other where we were headed etc. Realised the compass was gone a while after. No great shakes as it was a cheapish Silva. Came across a guy who was waiting for some more DOE kids & got chatting, told him I’d lost my compass but hey ho. Now I can’t remember exactly what happened but when I got back to the car another guy appeared who asked if I’d lost anything & when I told him what, he produces my compass! Obviously the lads I’d passed had found it & given it to him ( he was also supervising the DOE groups), probably saying the only person they’d seen all day was an old duffer on a bike.
Happy days & I’ve still got the compass.

People are nice.
🤗

There are good people out there. I drove 2.5hrs for a coaching session at FoD the other week only to find I left my riding shoes at home. Bloke next to me was mumbling to his partner about which shoes to wear and I jokingly said “At least you have a pair” after explaining my predicament he loaned me a pair of 5-10 boots and just said to leave under the back of his car. Made a massive difference to my entire day as I would have been slipping off the pedals otherwise. Also I made a few quid after selling them on eBay later that evening……………….

Thanks everyone…. the thing is, I only approached them to see if, by any chance, they’d seen one. They just instantly pitched in and stopped what they were doing and started a serious search, even facetimed my wife to try and get some coordinates.

👍🏽👍🏽👍🏽

Anyway, this reinforces the fact that I’ve now been very lucky to have had some great people help me out of a jam (Phone + accident) and if I can I’ll try and repay others in a jam if I can. I’ve always stopped and asked people who look to have a problem and helped with a few minor mechanicals but never anything major.

I organise an annual bikepacking trip across Spain, during the first running one of the group left his phone charging in a cafe and only discovered his loss an hour or so later after a rare muddy section. He retraced his steps while the rest carried on to a campsite about 40km further. When he got back to the cafe it was closed with no sign of life so he resigned himself to having lost it and set off for the third time through the mud. The rest of us arrived at the campsite and were enjoying a well earned beer when a chap arrived and presented us with Mike’s phone. No-one had mentioned our destination when we had visited the cafe, having found the phone, he had simply taken it upon himself to drive the 50km on the off chance we would be there. He was long gone by the time Mike appeared but we thanked the chap on his behalf.

Hey Master, glad you found it in the end, I passed you on the green Orange with my son and bro just after you realised you lost it. Well done to those who helped you, I did have a look later on around the sponge Bob area but didn’t see it.

Edit to add if you ever fancy a blast round Minley again drop us a pm, it’s my local and know it like the back of my hand. Hope you enjoyed it in there despite your palaver.

Hey Master, glad you found it in the end, I passed you on the green Orange with my son and bro just after you realised you lost it. Well done to those who helped you, I did have a look later on around the sponge Bob area but didn’t see it.

Hi @crab    Thanks for stopping and keeping an eye out. It’s appreciated.  In the end we found it in “Torq Final Singletrack”. The last time I knew I had it was at the top of “Sponge Bob” and realised it was missing when I stopped at the bottom of “Torq Final Singletrack”.  Before I saw you, and before I’d met my rescuers I’d gone up that bit of trail several times. Once we’d talked my wife through getting us the coordinates for my last recorded movement it became a bit easier. If it had gone on Sponge Bob it could have ended up anywhere.

Anyway, good to see you.

Glad you found your phone.

looked down…. my mobile on a handlebar mount…. there it was…. GONE!

What handlebar mount were you using? I’ll might avoid that type in the future.

What handlebar mount were you using? I’ll might avoid that type in the future.

It was this one.  https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09BHDHB7Z/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

In fairness in may have been my fault in mounting it too near the stem (and a bit on the handlebar taper. Up to now it’s seemed really rock solid. The good news is that there was no damage at all to the phone.

Letter to the paras boss would be a nice thing to do if you know the detachment. What goes around comes around.
These are the ones that we want as leaders, not who your dad knows.

Managed just a very minor payback today. Over at Swinley this afternoon, came around corner on “Tank Traps” and there was a chap lying across the track holding his leg. It seems that a part hidden, cutoff tree stump had caught him out. Spent a bit of time with him and after a bit helped him try to stand, which he managed… he thinks it is ligaments/tendons sought of thing. He managed to hobble to exit onto fireroad where a mate of his was waiting. Found the rest of his mates at the end of Corkscrew… all army lads. Hopefully all good.

Just to be the counterweight to all this ‘people are good’ nonsense..

A long time ago, before everyone had a mobile phone, we were running a race in the world famous Margam Park when a bloke pops up in front of Schmoo, the organiser, and demands that he call the police because someone had stolen his wheels. He even demanded that nobody be allowed to drive out of the park, or that every car be searched. It went on for some time. And then, somehow his wife managed to get a message to him asking why he’d left his wheels in the front garden that morning.

This is of course unrelated to any of the above, but something reminded me of it. 😀