Tour riders shot at with air guns

[demoleft]

Source: bbc

Spaniard Oscar Freire and New Zealand's Julian Dean were both hit by pellets from an air gun during Friday's 13th stage of the Tour de France.

Rabobank's Freire had a pellet removed from his leg while Dean, who rides for Garmin-Slipstream, was hit on a finger.

"Oscar heard three shots and then felt a sting. A small shot was removed," said a Rabobank team spokesman.


Read more: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/other_sports/cycling/8156974.stm

[elehhhhna]

1. Front page stuff in Europe, where gun stuff is much less common

[The River]

2. I've Been Watching

the Tour at least 4 times a day and have heard no mention
of it. With all the cameras present I hope they catch the F^*%er

[Ian David]

3. He though they were The Bicycle Thief.

[Journeyman]

4. Hmm. . . a "ride by" shooting -- not very common here in the States. . .

[MineralMan]

5. No, but ride by rock throwing is pretty common.

There was an epidemic of it in a neighborhood near mine. Lots of rear car windows broken.

Turned out to be a group of 13-year-old anglo boys out "on a lark" on their bicycles at night. Cost their mommies and daddies a pretty penny once they were caught.

[madokie]

7. do you know what klipity klop, klipity klop, bang, bang, klipity klop, klipity klop is

an Amish drive by

[kentauros]

14. or a centaur trot-by

:P

[dysfunctional press]

6. "Oscar heard three shots and then felt a sting..."

how do you hear an air rifle shot? or three? especially riding a bike in a crowd with a helmet on...?

[dbmk]

8. Well, the helmet does not cover the ears :)

[dysfunctional press]

10. it's still an air rifle, and he's still in a crowd of bicyclists...

[a la izquierda]

11. Top of the line bikes...

are nearly silent. Cyclists aren't shouting at the top of their lungs while riding. If I were riding with ten people, alongside cars on the road, I'd still hear a heck of a lot. And, there aren't always crowds of people alongside the road- there are long stretches of road where folks can't get in to watch...hence, it's pretty darn quiet.

[dysfunctional press]

12. and it's still an air rifle. they make less noise than a top of the line bike.

[hardtravelin]

13. Not necessarily true.

Most air rifles are fired by a spring compressing air in a chamber. The sound of the air leaving the barrel can be quite loud. Since the pellet is subsonic, it is easy to hear the rifle fire before the pellet hits you.

In fact, they sell air rifles with suppressors so that small game (vermin, squirrels, etc..) will not be spooked prior to the pellet striking them.

[tkmorris]

18. That is simply untrue

The bikes these guys ride make almost no noise at all. The whisper of the tires on the pavement (which isn't much, they are very skinny tires), is about all you will hear. Furthermore some models of pellet rifle are actually quite loud, especially those that have serious power. I think you are trying much to hard to find something to be suspicious of.

[Bossy Monkey]

9. Sheryl Crow is a TERRIBLE shot! :P n/t

[kentauros]

15. Well, I doubt Kraftwerk had anything to do with it!

:D

Tour de France
Tour de France - remix

[Baclava]

16. Why are the French attacking New Zealand?

This just won't do.

[lindisfarne]

17. Not smart. If they catch the person, s/he's toast - France doesn't take kindly to messing with the

tour, either by using banned substances while riding in it, or shooting at the riders.