Strewn thumbtacks create chaos for cyclists in Va. Beach

VIRGINIA BEACH

Thumbtacks scattered along a bicycle route in the rural Pungo area jeopardized more than 200 cyclists, flattened at least 100 tires and caused crashes that hurt at least two riders this past weekend.

The cyclists suffered flat after flat caused by the tacks along Muddy Creek and Charity Neck roads on their Saturday morning route, participants said. Two riders skinned their knees and elbows, said Jack Kenley, another cyclist.

The thumbtack trouble is the latest in a series of incidents involving city bicyclists.

In late May, a Beach-based cycling club doubled a reward to $2,000 for information leading to the arrest of the vehicle driver in a May 3 hit-and-run collision on Shore Drive that injured a 55-year-old cyclist. Last week, a 33-year-old woman riding her bike on Shore Drive broke her back and leg when she was hit by the rearview mirror of a passing vehicle that didn't stop.

Kenley and others said they believe the Pungo thumbtacks were scattered on purpose to upset the cyclists. Cars sometimes back up behind slower-moving bicycles and have to wait to pass on narrow lanes. While thumbtacks are too short to puncture car tires, they can pierce bike tires, stopping cycles suddenly and sending riders flying.

Cyclists also noticed thumbtacks on the road the previous weekend, though many had been squashed by passing cars. Jeff Craddock and several other cyclists picked up the thumbtacks that Monday morning, and he estimated they collected 100 or 200 at each of several intersections along the route.

"There's been an occasional bottle broken or something, but you're talking about one place at one time," Craddock said. "Last week was every intersection on the 20-mile loop. Every intersection had tacks sprinkled on it."

Such roadway risks are not normal, said Craddock, who has been riding with the group for about five years.

He said that this past weekend some riders suffered several flats, used all their repair-kit material and had to wait for friends to finish the route and pick them up in cars. Craddock had thumbtacks in both tires but managed to finish his ride before the tires went flat.

The cyclists average 25 to 30 mph and follow each other closely in single file to stay out of traffic on the narrow, winding roads, so one flat tire can cause chaos, said Joe Vizi, owner of Fat Frogs Bike and Fitness, which organizes the group that rode Saturday.

"When you come to a curve, we don't look down to see if there's tacks," Vizi said. "We're looking left and right to see if we have a problem with traffic."

Kenley said he had to replace both of his tire tubes, which cost about $9 each, and a tire at $70. He said one person cycled the route an hour before Saturday's 7:30 a.m. ride and didn't notice any tacks, but they were scattered around intersections by the time the ride started.

"When we went out, there was one fall after another," Kenley said.

Several riders filed police reports for both incidents, he said. Police didn't provide further information Monday.

The city has provisions for new road projects to include bike paths and lanes, said Councilwoman Barbara Henley, who represents Princess Anne, including the Pungo area.

"I think safety is the issue," she said. "It's an ongoing issue because we certainly don't have provisions for bike safety in this area."

Ruth Moon, (757) 222-5130, ruth.moon@pilotonline.com