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Car keys and drain (copyright John Stevenson)Bolton Abbey car key snatcher gives his version of events
Yesterday Nick Ahad, the BBC radio presenter whose car keys were taken by a cyclist in a road rage incident on Sunday, gave road.cc his side of the story. Today, the cyclist who took his keys gives his version of events.
Signing his email ‘The Phantom Key Snatcher,’ the cyclist told us:
“I am the cyclist who took Nick Ahad’s keys from his car at Bolton Abbey on the morning of Sunday 26th June. This is my side of the story.
“There are three reasons I am telling this story. Firstly, I am actually having a few (though not many) regrets, so this is a cathartic process. Secondly, I feel utterly sorry for the other cyclist who nearly got killed when they were mistaken for me (The Little Onion). Thirdly, Nick Ahad has got away with his version of events, neglecting a few key details.
“I am doing it anonymously for the simple reason that whilst I committed a crime of taking the keys, I prevented a far greater crime of assault. I believe that Nick Ahad is guilty of dangerous driving and possibly attempted assault (if there is such a crime?), and at the time I believed that if I had not taken his keys, he would have committed worse. As I explain below, it was always supposed to be a temporary confiscation. Unfortunately this country is woeful at prosecuting drivers for crimes against cyclists. If I had confidence that Nick Ahad would be charged, let alone punished for his crimes, I would come forwards tomorrow.
“On the morning of the 26th of June, I – like hundreds of other cyclists – was cycling around the Yorkshire Dales with a few mates. It was very pleasant. We turned off the A9 and headed into Bolton Abbey, with the intention of going over to Grassington after a cup of tea and some cake. I had a mechanical at the roundabout so my buddies went up ahead to get a table at the tea shop, so I was left to do the last mile on my own.
“As is usual for this road, I took a position about a metre or so out from the verge. This is to avoid potholes, but also to make yourself visible when the road is winding and has a few dips and rises, and to deter punishment passes. A riding buddy of mine knew Craig Armitage, who was killed by an overtaking car in Bolton Abbey last winter, so I am quite nervous.
“I was not quite in the middle of the lane, and certainly not on the right hand side, let alone veering into the lane of oncoming traffic, as Nick Ahad has alleged on Twitter. I was also holding a steady line, without any wobbling around the place. I think that most cyclists on this site would consider such positioning prudent, sensible and normal in such circumstances. It most certainly was not the crazy swerving all over the place, crossing into the other lane type cycling that Nick Ahad is making out.
“I became aware of a short queue of traffic behind me. This is normal for round there, and generally sensible drivers can wait a few seconds for a clear road to overtake sensibly. I heard some beeping and just ignored it. The road straightened out and a few cars overtook safely and considerately. And then a small black car pulled up alongside me, very close, and the driver started shouting at me with various swearwords and threats.
“I didn’t catch all the details, but it was basically that I should be letting him past. He then started moving left, pushing me off the road. I had to go on to the verge to escape, at which point the driver was also partly on the verge.
“I’ll be fair at this point and say that in retrospect I don’t know whether he was trying deliberately to hurt me, or whether he had just seen an oncoming car and was trying to get back onto the left hand lane. Either it was criminally bad driving, or he was actually trying to hit me deliberately. At the time, it felt very deliberate, particularly when combined with the shouting and ranting. It is a really narrow road, with only room to pass when there is no one else coming.
“I got out and unclipped and went over to the driver. I admit that I was absolutely furious and probably went like an English Alex Ferguson style hairdryer. I was out of control initially, but I calmed down. To be honest, Nick Ahad is quite accurate in that whilst he was initially screaming at me as he overtook me and forced me off the road, and continued to shout at me at the start, he was actually quite calm later on.
“I had a go at him for being stupid and dangerous. The conversation proceeded as you might imagine for about a minute, with him replying that I should have moved over to let him past, and that I should have got out of his way. At this point, I was still convinced that he had deliberately tried to hit me.
“I saw that his keys were in his car. I was genuinely fearful of being on the same roads as him, particularly as he was insisting he had done nothing wrong, and that I should have let him overtake. I knew that people had taken keys from drunk drivers and so on in order to prevent a crime. So, I waited a few seconds till he moved his hands away from the steering wheel, and I grabbed his keys and pedalled off.
“I legged it up towards Grassington. After about 10 minutes of high tempo riding, I turned back and went for a cup of tea at Bolton Abbey with my buddies (Guys, you know who I am. As I said to you, I only wish you were there to have witnessed it and to have provided evidence to the police. Or that you had bought me a GoPro).
“I honestly had the intention of posting the keys to the police. I think the process of having to explain why the keys went missing would have been sufficient. Unfortunately, in the rush to get away, I dropped them after hitting some rough surface a few hundred yards after the incident. So Nick Ahad, if you are reading this, you can go looking for them.
“I bear full responsibility for taking the keys. I would probably do it again in similar circumstances, although I would give them to the police. But I believe this is the lesser crime than being (a) so bad a driver that you end up forcing a cyclist to take to a verge to escape or (b) deliberately driving at a cyclist. I don’t know what Nick Ahad’s intentions were, and whether it was (a) or (b). But I do know that both his car and me ended up on the verge. I am sure witnesses will attest to Nick Ahad’s car being on the verge.
“My regrets are what happed to The Little Onion, and in not sending the keys to the police. I also have some small doubts over whether it was best to take the keys, or just sit there and phone the police. However, given that he was in a car and I on the bike, and that the police don’t care about cyclists, then taking the keys was a better option.
“I hope Nick Ahad drives more considerately in future, and sees cyclists not as an inconvenience causing a few seconds delay, but as vulnerable human beings who have exactly the same rights to use the road as him. And is more honest and open about what actually happened.”
Alex has written for more cricket publications than the rest of the road.cc team combined. Despite the apparent evidence of this picture, he doesn't especially like cake.
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54 comments
OK, I wasn't going to take sides, but now the driver is tweeting about how his religious devotion somehow makes him impervious to road rage:
That's grade-A bullshit right there.
He was in a rush to get to church, makes him even more of a dick in my book...
Didn't Bez write an article about how people who are "good" can get out of otherwise serious things - playing the god card, or the charity card, or the "never been in any trouble before" card...?
The Problem With Good People – Beyond the Kerb
The real story here is that 'they' introduced Bikeability (in 2007?) to encourage 'assertive riding' (primary position), but did nothing to encourage drivers to expect, understand and accept it !
There is now a little.
I think it needs to be very clear in both parts of the Highway Code.
I think overtaking (including overtaking bikes) should be an essential part of the driving schools' syllabus, and even the driving test.
Edits:
Nick Ahad tweeted that he had written a piece for a cycling website - anyone know where?
BBC DJ in car keys appeal after cyclist altercation | road.cc seems to have sourced from Twitter.
Oh - seems it's
Cyclist pinches BBC presenter's car keys and rides off - Cycling Weekly
about him, not by him ! - Sourced from social media.
"Er, your angry cyclist story is a thing"
Ah, it's here!
BBC radio presenter whose car keys were taken by cyclist gives his side of the story | road.cc
In the absence of independent witnesses or video evidence, which version is the more credible, the cyclist's or the driver's?
As almost every cyclist knows, such behaviour by drivers as described by the cyclist is a regular occurence. I've never heard of a cyclist behaving as described by the driver. Each participant has reason to shift responsibility onto the other, but the balance of probabilities is very heavily in favour of the cyclist's version.
I see Nick Ahad has been writing robustly against bigotry and racism. Good on him. Perhaps whilst doing so he ought to have a think about his own attitudes to people on bicycles.
Just ran into that myself. It just goes to show how rare a thing true empathy is. Everyone is (often quite rightly) demanding more from everyone else to help those they sympathize with but are so utterly unable to provide any empathy for anyone else they look down on. How can someone write that excellently crafted piece, and then go on days later to physically threathen someone's life in such a callous manner without a shred of remorse? And then, on the contrary, chose to react with studious (yet completely solipsistic) outrage at having his keys "stolen" by "righteous" cylists. It's stagerring.
Some people only really care about issues that directly affect them. Racism affects you? Hate it. Cyclists slow you down? Hate it.
To be someone unaffected by racism or any issue, and still rail against it, to be someone who sees a vulnerable road user and treats them patiently, that's a cut above.
Too many wanky sorts these days jumping on any old bandwagon for kudos in their wanky meejah circle. Look at the Guardian for example, full of wanky sanctimonious drivel pieces about looking after the working class, yet they wouldn't have anything to do with the working class in real life.
It's written because socialist-lite is the new new. Phony as f***.
So, two contrasting accounts, both blaming the other. No independent evidence (as yet).
What conclusions can we draw at this point? Perhaps only to use the road sensibly and considerately, keep your temper if provoked and use a camera if you're worried others won't.
Yes one version of events is very run of the mill. The other has a lunatic cyclist swerving all over the road.
Hard one guys, better get the independent witnesses in before forming an opinion.
Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, no?
Claims don't require evidence - they're claims.
Being run right off the road onto the verge is "run of the mill"? I'm glad I don't cycle where you do.
'Claims don't require evidence - they're claims.'
Ah that was cringe. What does that even mean.
As expected, this is the run of the mill impatient driver story.
Some people were actually convinced that there was a cyclist 'riding hard' and 'swerving all over the road', to stop cars passing.
I do this too. There's a road from Carwrath to Peebles, A720 maybe? (EDIT: A721, Roman Rd.) I'm new to this area, anyway. It's windy and narrow for a bit and dodgy on the side due to leaves and crap, so I get out in to the middle of the road to make sure cars behind don't try anything stupid like overtake on the bends. It's only for about half a mile. Never once had a car beep, and Edinburgh if known for it's share of twats. They just wait and once the road is safe again, I move over to the side and they all pass if it's clear.
No big deal, safer for everyone. You have to control traffic sometimes if you're up front.
Not once for a minute did I believe the BS this guy was saying that you were swerving all over the road. What sense does that even make. Katie Hopkins level bilge. Apply occams razor where there isn't video evidence and move on. See YT and you'll see stacks of these road rage incidents every day due to some twunt in a two tonne pram who can't wait a minute to get to his important meeting with a traffic light.
Driver in the red pram who went after TLO needs found, banned and convicted. This soap opera writing Hopkinite can just be laughed off.
Thats not just in the country. In urban areas, too. I used to move toward the side on a wide downhill road here in Bristol, believing that would make the cars use the rest of the road and leave me alone; but after a few too many cars decided that they could overtake me on the bends by cutting the bend, coming perilously close to pushing me up onto the kerb, I now say f- 'em, and go down the middle. To be honest, with the blanket 20 mph limits here they can't legally overtake me anyway...
Jacobs Wells Road, Bristol
Assuming this was written by the guy involved, I think that sounds a lot more feasible and consistent than Nick Ahad's version. I wonder if Nick's car fits the description?
I would not vehemently defend the police for any actions I felt I just or unfair, but in these circumstances they weren't called until it was too late.
I sympathise with the phantom key snatcher, however, taking keys out to stop a drunk driver is a different level to this and put himself in a dangerous position ( the driver driving with him leaning in the car for one ). It seemed more he swiped the keys out of anger and Spite than worrying about safety of himself or others. If he was genuinely worried about safety he'd have put his hands up and left the confrontation out completely.
The driver, can not claim to be an angel. Tough luck you were stuck behind a cyclist, would you have had the same argument with a slow moving tractor? No. Don't aggravate any situations and be patient.
Its my my opinion both parties were at some fault during this altercation and both should own up to their individual mistakes and be adults about it.
FWIW, you can only attempt an assault where injuries are caused. The behaviour might be counted as common assault ( putting someone in fear of immediate violence ) but it's on a low low level.
And don't forget how so many drivers will behave like angels around horses, too.
(In fact, I've seen a car slow right down, move right out into the other lane, to overtake a horse, and then accelerate away and pass a cyclist further along the same road with inches to spare. Yes, I know, anecdata...).
As far as I can tell, both have. Certainly the cyclist has.
How can Nick actually explain how his car came to be in the position that the cyclist was able to extract his keys? Occam's Razor is quite a good way of looking at it - what's the most likely story here? I've seen lots of impatient drivers, but very few experienced cyclists intentionally swerving to block traffic.
My point was that they are both still blaming the other but playing down their own part in this altercation. It's still a case of yes I was wrong but he was worse.
The world evolves and you can design out crime, hence why car stereos aren't pinched anymore, and few sat navs go, they are integrated into the cars. How long before dash cams are too. It'll be much easier for drivers to prove the cyclist at fault with the footage, and at the same time gives the cyclist the ability to accuse the driver of poor behaviour too. Give it a few years.
Has anyone else seen that film 'Rashomon'?
It seems by his own account and by all of his following comments that Nick Ahad remains unwilling cross the centerline while overtaking cyclists. He thinks squeezing them into the shoulder is the right and proper way to react if a cyclist won't do that himself. And that he can have a chat with someone while driving in the same lane without needlessly risking another human being's life. And finally that taking someone's keys is a far graver offence than driving dangerously. So yes, this account, which isn't really all that different to Ahad's, if you take the above into account, rings far more true. YMMV, as always.
all I would suggest to you or anyone reading this is to try and stay calm and video any 'chat' you have with any numpty driving .
I have pulled out my mobil before now when I have been shouted at ...... not too sure how to turn on the video bit of the phone but it calms things down ......
Cycliq camera's are very good for this type of encounter
Sigh, a description of what so many of us recieve everyday. This is all too familiar to anybody that rides a bicycle.
Bottom line, if the police could reinforce the message that car drivers do not have a divine right to a clear road ahead of them and must be patient, only seeking to overtake when safe for all, none of this would have happened.
But they always seem to side with the person in the box as opposed to the person the could have put in a box.
Law (and enforcement) has got it badly wrong in the UK
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