I Write with concern I witnessed the aftermath of the incident on Sunday The charity cycling event was actually held on the duel carrage way on the cycle path .I witnessed a vast amount of cyclists 50% without safety helmets,Inparts the cycle way had not been cleared of dead animals therefore they had to cycle around these obsticles into the road lane this proved to be dangerous as riding two abreast also proved to be, forcing cars to make lane changes. I feel that a chartity event of this size should been actioned away from a major highway for the safety of all concerned.

I was one of the riders on the event and I have to say partially it was the cyclists fault for not crossing the slipway correctly and secondly the organisers fault for using such a dangerous route. They should have had marshals at the slip roads to ensure all cyclists crossed correctly. Also there were a number of inexperienced cyclists allowed to ride hence the two abreast cycling. At times the marshals forced us to stay in the left hand lane at a roundabout to take the 3rd exit which is ridiculous as we then had to cut across cars that wanted to go straight ahead. The organisers should not put on another event unitl it can be done properly as other charity rides are.

To GOOD even if the guy had a helmet on the way the accident happened it would not have made a difference. Its unfair to say cyclists are not allowed on the roads since it is the law, you get the good cyclists and the bad ones just like drivers really.

I do have sympathy for all those drivers who ended up in traffic because the organisers couldn't coordinate it properly.

First and foremost my condolences to the family of the cyclist. I understand was a long time particpant and supporter of the Charity Bike Ride and I pay tribute to him and his endevours and may God bless him and his soul.
I was one of the particpants this year as per the previous 3 years. This Charity Bike Ride is in its 19th year and the organisers do a tremendous job of ensuring the safety of the Cyclists. The responsiblity is with both the organisers and cyclists. The organisers hold a comprehensive briefling session on the morning of the first day in Birmingham and the risks and dangers of the A5 section are made clear to everyone. Clearly the organisers need to rethink how to negotiate this part of the route (which, let us not forget, is legally made for cyclists and cars as the signposts indicate). Certainly there is a concern with regards to the car speed limit (70 MPH) which must be reviewed by the relevant authorities where cyclists are allowed. With regards to the Marshalls, they do an excllent job of enforcing the code of conduct expected. Unfortunately a few minority cyclists disobey instructions and put themselves and others at risk. In this case with tragic consequences. Clearly lessons need to be and I am sure, will be learned to ensure the safety of next years participants and the road code of conduct will be strictly enforced. Whilst I genreally agree with the above comments no one desrves these tragic consequences and we all need to take responsibliity for our actions.
I congratulate those particpants who put in such a huge effort and succefully completed the ride and raised so much funds for Children with Leukaemia.

quote

I wish everyone well and hope to see them on next years 20th chrity bike ride.

I think the first comments are fair the incident needs to investigated and more could have been done in terms of health and safety they even used young teenagers for ride marshalls was a waste of time. there were young kids on the ride. the bike ride needs to be banned permantly as to safety concerns and to poor management. i believe the organisers are fully liable for the death of the man who died. was part of that bike ride and it would be a positive step to for the local authorities to ban such an event.

Firstly my thoughts are with the family and friends of the rider. I have been personally doing this event for 5 years. I also attend the Lon - Brighton and London to Oxford. Both of these rides don't offer any safety briefings, bike checks, food, drinks, vehicle support, Emergency support etc etc. It's tragic what has happen but this year myself and my son were on the ride. If I sincerely thought it was not as safe as it could be (roads are always dangerous cycles, motor bikes, people crossing) I would NOT have let my boy on it. I would NOT have risked his life. There are hundreds of these types of events across the UK on the roads. I will also be doing the 20th year ride and will be even more dertermined to raise money for charity to help save other lives. Well done all the riders. To the organisers, I agree with a shorter Luton to London for younger and 1st time riders. GK

I agree with John and the other statement which were true. I was at the charity bike ride event. firstly, I feel the loss of the person who died. Secondly, the family has the legal right to take action against SACA who i believe and many other cyclists believe were ate total fault and liable for the death. in any case organisers will shift the blame from one to another. the Ride should never take place and needs to be banned and the organisers need to be prosecuted for negligence owing a duty of care to all cyclists. The organisers were well aware of the risks in advance and that a cyclist could die. But they send them to their deaths in raising money for charity. the cause is fantastic. But, the people behind it all are using the event to boost their own egos and publicity. Just remember someone has died and this could have been avoided the A5 is dangerous and it took 19 years to discover this........????????
???? think about that........health and safety was a concern for me thier an I would strongly recommend the the organisers be sued as they are legally liable. there are a lot of witnesses that would come forward on health and safety issues. It would be sad if they just kept quite about the event. Health and Safety is paramount and the safeguards were not there. don't blame the cyclist or rely on road laws. the bottom line is you know and I know the organisers are at fault for failing to provide a adequate level of duty of care to all cyclists.

Once again, don't blame the cyclist its wrong we should have done more to prevent such an incident. I feel and can see everyone agrees on that who took part in the charity bike ride, including the emergency services. The bike ride this year was a failure for many, but, for a few it was about publicity...........
???????????that is the truth........... Please don't send your children on such a death sentence on a one way ride to nothing. As i for the charity support it as much as it can, but I believe it needs to think about dissociating itself from this organisation in the near future or at the next charity bike ride as there were many flaws from start to finish for all organisers involved and its not them that lost a loved one??????????.

My sincere condolences to the family of the chap who died.

I have helped to organise charity bicycle rides in the past, including a London-Brighton.

We spent months planning the route, had marshalls every miles, pariticularly at difficult junctions (which are sometimes unavoidable and where the marshalls told the cyclists to dismount and cross safely). We also had, if I recall, five 'rest and check' stops' and ten support cars driving up and down the route checking on conditions and whether all of the cyclists were OK.

Yes, it took some organsing but everyone had a safe and enjoyable day.

I agree with Peter on this.

I was looking forward to the ride and I feel it has been ruined for me because I was so shocked at what I experienced.

On the second day they had one of the ambulance crew at the slip road ensuring we crossed over correctly and safely and that is what they should have had right from day one if they had done this noone would have died and thats a fact!

The organisers are liable and they should be banned from doing the ride until they can prove they will meet certain measures.

Also they should publicise the event more so the local community along the route are aware of the ride like with London to Brighton you just don't bother driving in that area that day because you know its going on. If they had spoken to the police about this I'm sure they could even of negotiated a slower speed limit on the A5 even down to 50 or 60mph if it was that dangerous or just change the **** route.

I want to do the ride again but because of all the dangerous things I witnessed I won't be going next year.

The organisers also said there would signs with checkpoint numbers and I never saw them at all; they also at the last minute scrapped some of the rest points - you just never knew when the rest breaks were coming up!

One of the organisers said to me yesterday that this is the first death in 19 years - and so what? One to many they have in my opinion been **** lucky noone else has died infact im surprised there hasn't been more.

Lastly I saw a 14year girl on the ride this year and she just couldnt ride her bike we were at some lights and about to set off there was a car slowing crawling along next to me - she just couldnt set off properly wobbled over into the middle of the road and fell over infront of this car - if the car had been going any faster that would of been another accident I cannot believe they allowed her to ride!

I disagree with Nigel as anyone will defend the organisation. The bike ride was poorly planned and has opened up a a route for legal action and those responsible should be bought to account for their input into planning. There needs to be more media coverage on this tradegy as many things did go wrong and this was evident. Everyone is entitle to their views. But, I know and spoke with the majority of cyclists who have given up their professions for the weekend to do this ride. They felt diss-illusioned at the poor organisation of cyclists. Many cyclists had no helmets, first time riders, no understanding of nutrition, no marshalls at the A5, teenagers given job titles of ride marshalls, lack of communication between marshalls, marshalls forcing or adding pressure on cyclists to complete ride. What hell are people saying here????? There seems some individuals are to prepared to learn from this tradegy and and only a few to praise the organisation. The bike ride was flawed and this is evident. My father wanted to come on the ride. Thank GOD!!!!!!!!!!!he did not let alone my teenage son.......the list is endless in health and safety hazards. As with the presentation had many flaws in it and was not clear at times or useful. As with sleeping and food arrnagements was fine. Im asking those individuals on the bike ride speak the truth about what you had seen and heard during the whole weekend. And it was mainly health and safety concerns. Someone is accountable for this loss of life. I hope the family pursues this matter further there is a case for legal action and the Police authorities would be more then co-operate. As from SACA it may be the opposite to hide the facts. to sum it all up they knew the person had died so why still go on to celebrate a party in the park after such a tragic event????????which had no meaning or any connection with the charity bike ride. This is a commercialsed bike ride and the charities are not aware of this. Many people are profiting form this event, even though some money still goes to charity. I agree with many of the statements ban the charity bike ride. I also believe that if many of the cyclists knew of the death they would feel the same. This message goes outs to all the riders from southall, east london, birmingham, coventry and other places within the UK. Do the right things whats wrong is wrong we can all feel, see and hear what went on during this weekend and urgent action needs to be taken to stop it from happening again. Support charities, but not like this where even these charities are mislead. I have had first hand experience and its shocking for me as a female rider this event is still going on after 19 years. Its all about personal growth for the few who are in charge. I would even urged public bodies to investigate further. the facts speak for themselves, ask the riders?????????????w

hat they think for a change!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

!!!

Sheila

Is that true the charity was not aware and there was profitering going on?

I am also with you on the fact that they kept telling us he was ok and breathing when infact he had passed away - one of the drivers told me that the police at the scene told them to cancel the ride but they didn't cancel it because they would of lost all the money for the charity. If they had told us I would of chosen to go home from Luton gurdwara out of respect.

The ride has been going on for over 19 years and i have personally taken part since the last 5 years. In our rider information pack it does highlight the importance of wearing a helmet during the ride - pls refer to the packs we were sent if you are a rider! Throughout the ride we were accomapnied by a team of paramedics which consisted of 4 vehicles throughout the ride - which was very helpful and they also negotiated the ride through the traffic at points of the ride. I found this very reassuring when i was riding.

I know these guys are people of their word and have not abused any of the charity funds. I have since been going through many charity websites and found evidence of the money going to the charity. pls look at just one of the links i came across:

http://www.leukaemia

.org/media-centre/pr

ess-releases/886

Its seems that Sheila just has something personal against the organisers (there were over 300 of us). How can you say that they should cancel the ride as we look forward to it all year. I think the organisers made the right decission for us to carry on as i know emotionally and mentally other riders and myself would not have been able to cope. i have since spoken to one of the organisers and they told me that the police did not want them to inform anybody. as an experienced rider i have seen many fatal casualty on other rides including the London to Brighton i took part in last month but you do not here about these - but we do witness these as riders..
we should be supporting the family at this time and instigating accusations towards the oraganisation. pls let this rest for the sake of Mohammeds family.

I was also a rider at the SACA charity Bike Ride. I've been to many bike rides including the London to Brighton. Honestly I've never attended a bike ride as well organised as this one (this goes for 10 of my friends who also attended). We were given a very clear and precise road safety presentation (which were very relevent to this ride). They had a convoy of ambulance crews accompanying the ride, they had well equipped pitstops and were very responsive to any incident. No ride on a main road will ever be safe if motorists dont respect cyclists. Certain things on the ride are not in the organisations control and know one can blame them for that. I do agree with helmets though it should be made compulsory nationally. Our thoughts go out to Mo's family- and will not let his death go in vain. I will raise more than ever for the charity he was so passionate about.

I took part in the birmingham to London bike ride for the first time this year. I do not consider myself to be an experienced rider; however for this reason took on board the safety instructions given to me by the organisers. I also wore a helmet (something I did not do when taking part in the brighton bike ride) this time knowing the route was obviously a longer ride I put safety above everything else. I felt a huge amount of support was available from ride marshals, first aid team etc throughout the ride and was very aware of their presence throughout the ride.
The ride was an eye-opener as a cycylist and a driver, accidents do happen and I do not agree with passing blame on anyone especially the organisers. In my view they provided the utmost support in an event that I chose to take part in.
My prayers and thoughts are with the rider that so tragically lost his life and his family.

Firstly, my deepest condolences to the family of the rider who passed away. It's the saddest thing and it would still be deeply disheartening news wherever the accident could have taken place.
What it comes down to is that an accident occured, and it could have been any one of us at any point in our regular day - going to work, going to the gym, going out for an evening out. The family have every right to know the full details but to blame any one individual or the organisers is ridiculous.

This year's 19th saca bikeride was a first for me. I've not taken part in anything like this before and am still thoroughly impressed with the scale of organisation that is required to manage cyclists across 130 miles. I signed up for the vent knowing full well what was involved and i had to take the onus to be completely prepared and aware of what was required of me, I knew that there wouldn't be anybody by my side to watch me. Indeed, this is the case for all charity events.

In this instance, there was a full safety briefing and many road marshalls along the way, aswell as medical staff on quad bikes throughout the two days. If anyone had any hesitations why didn't they speak to the organisers before setting off? It's not fair to imply that any one person or organisation is responsible.

We are really upset what happened on Saturday. The 2 of us were on this ride for the first time. We are just over 14 years and 5 months old. We have been training for 2 months, we went on the cycle tests and also read the charity bike ride website for information. We really enjoyed it until the accident. For us it's bad enough what happened to uncle ji but even more upset at some of the comments here. We did what the marshalls told us in a single line in the bike lane. The 1st aid and motor bike and marshalls kept asking us if we were ok, they asked us if we wanted drinks or were tired. I had a good breakfast and 4 other stops for food and drinks. After the accident the ride stopped, we told the people in charge we want to do Sunday aswell for the uncle ji in the accident. I am almost sure uncle ji would have wanted us to finish the ride. We have raised nearly £130 together and my schools friends are going to give even more for uncle ji. Next year I want to do it again. We are with uncle ji's family.

Firstly, my deepest condolences to the family of the rider who passed away. It's the saddest thing and it would still be deeply disheartening news wherever the accident could have taken place.
What it comes down to is that an accident occured, and it could have been any one of us at any point in our regular day - going to work, going to the gym, going out for an evening out. The family have every right to know the full details but to blame any one individual or the organisers is ridiculous.

This year's 19th saca bikeride was a first for me. I've not taken part in anything like this before and am still thoroughly impressed with the scale of organisation that is required to manage cyclists across 130 miles. I signed up for the vent knowing full well what was involved and i had to take the onus to be completely prepared and aware of what was required of me, I knew that there wouldn't be anybody by my side to watch me. Indeed, this is the case for all charity events.

In this instance, there was a full safety briefing and many road marshalls along the way, aswell as medical staff on quad bikes throughout the two days. If anyone had any hesitations why didn't they speak to the organisers before setting off? It's not fair to imply that any one person or organisation is responsible.

Last year alone we raised £25,368.44 for CHILDREN with LEUKAEMIA. Please visit the following link:

http://www.leukaemia
.org/media-centre/pr
ess-releases/886

2006 - We donated £19,000 for WHIZZ KIDZ www.whizzkidz.org.uk

2005 we donated £17,000 for SCOPE www.scope.org.uk
2004 we donated £15,000 for SCOPE

Very distressing to read the loss of life on a fund-raising event. Blaming someone is too easy, and actually so unfair. I took part in the bike ride for the first time, and felt the organisers were truly amazing in their efforts to support all riders. The first aid team also were fantastic. The accident was exactly that, and I think until the facts are known, people should keep negative comments to themselves. How about recognising the efforts we all put in including the rider that lost his life. I would definitely take part in such an event again.

There are some very irresponsible coments here, please respect the life that has been lost and take time to think about the impact of your comments upon the family of Mohammed. Let the authorities complete their investigations and the whole event and incident should be judged once the investigations are completed.

responsible negative comments should be taken on board by all and not just the organisers, positive comments about the ride should be celebrated like Mohammeds life after all he wanted to take part in the event which he deemed worthy of his time. He is a martyr who lost his life serving others through a charity endeavour.

I dont get it, Why are people slaggin off the ride? My school (slough grammer)entered the ride, there were quite a few of us. We had the best weekend. no support?? we were practically 'mothered' all the way through the ride. I didnt expect so much support to be at hand. We were fed , hydrated and supported through out the ride. Have these ppl that are slagging it off been to the SAME ride. I'm starting off a petition to show support for the organisers. I hate ppls good name being ruined like this. What kind of society do we live in. If someone trys to do something good they get slagged if they dont they still get slagged. I've just been on all the charity links posted above...and guess what? the ride has raised 10s of thousands of pounds for charities. People are clutching at straws-WHY? our sympathies to the ride that lost his life in a tragic 'ACCIDENT'

I think its time for goverment involvment in these so called charititys, by implementing new laws, were they should be high pay outs by these organisations when there as been a loss of life. Organistaions are teh cause of death and thsi should be controlled and given proper approval before it goes ahead...

I can't believe some of the comments from the earlier posters. People who claimed they were on the ride, and they are slagging off the organistion of the ride? These people clearly were not on the same ride as I. I'm only 16 years old, yet me along with 7 other classmates in my school (Slough Grammar) decided to take part in the fabulous fund-raising event. We all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and we all felt at home throughout the whole weekend. I don't know how people could possibly feel the whole ride was unsafe, we had marshals riding past and alongside all of the time we were riding, copious water and food stops to keep us hydrated and fed, and a very quick ambulance team who responded with amazing briskness once this terrible incident occured. I arrived on the scene just mere minutes after he had been hit, and we could see that it had been a horrific accident. Marshals, ambulancemen and police were all already on the scene, with traffic being immediately diverted. The organisers had done their best there. Also, people claim that this road wasn't suitable for a bike ride. Every junction along the A5 had signs depicting what cyclists were meant to do, as that route is cycled along quite often. We also recieved a safety briefing in the gurdwara that morning emphasising that we had to treat slip roads very carefully. The organisers did all they could to try and make us aware of the hazards, and for me and many others, we avoided them. My many condolences to the family of the deceased man, but we did recieve a fantastic safety briefing and the marshals did an amazing job, so it can in no way be blamed upon them or the organisers. I, for one, will be biking the whole thing next year, and shall be doing it hopefully with more of my classmates. I thouroughly enjoyed the experience, and I know everyone else did as well. The SACA bike ride should NOT be cancelled, we should continue on, every year, as that is what the rider who lost his life would have wanted - to keep raising money for those in need of it. Just remember, he lost his life raising money for others, putting himself through pain for children he didn't even know. Some of you posters should do the same thing some time.

Firstly I have to express my deepest condolences and sympathy to the family and friends of Mohammed Abdullah Shah. This must an extremely distressing and sad time for all family members.

I’m compelled to write as I believe the negative opinions expressed, some which are extremely derogatory do not help a tragedy which is in fact an unavoidable accident.

To my knowledge the event was extremely well planned and thought of by selfless, well meaning volunteers and organisers coming together from different ethnic backgrounds, which is a fantastic achievement in itself.

Mohammed Abdullah Shah’s death as tragic as it was, was definitely not in vain, as he died, selflessly trying to raise money for a Charity for children with Leukaemia. That is the point! Surely, many lives have already been saved or have improved by his and SACA’s efforts.

SACA, the volunteers and the organisers are now faced with painful dilemma of how to deal with a tragic death of a friend, whilst also trying to face needless criticisms.

There are many worthy charities in the world, with the likes of Green Peace, Amnesty International, and The Salvation Army etc., where volunteers and workers have lost their lives or have been injured..….. Should they stop their work?

The pessimists and the critics need to look truthfully, inwardly at their own minds and hearts before pointing fingers. Now is the time to come together and reflect on life and provide love and support to each other. SACA, please carry on the great work in the years to come as the world needs you.

I was one of the riders on the Birmingham to London Charity Bike Ride and this was my first year attending this ride. Last month I also went to the London to Brighton ride.

I've read the article above and would like to express my views as a first time rider. But first would like express my deepest sympathies to Mohammed’s family. He was a great man and regrettably left us, carryout a charitable act and raising money to finding a cure for children’s cancer. We will never forget him…..

THE RIDE
At about 7am on Saturday morning at Birmingham (departure point) the organizers of the bike ride gathered all the riders into a hall for the 'Safety Briefing' this lasted for about 40 minutes and examples of crossing major roundabouts and slip roads were demonstrated and made very clear. That was quite refreshing especially as the Brighton ride had NO 'Safety Briefing' and I thought I knew everything about riding a bike! Obviously not everything (over the year, one does tend to forget and yes, I have done my cycle road safety) we were also given an Emergency Contact Card, which had the telephone numbers of the First Aid and the Control Vehicle. The organizers also discussed pit stops and sign’s/arrows/mars
hall points which we would see on the way and I must say, this was organised extremely well.

With reference to the lady that has written in (the main article) anyone attending any cycle ride is inevitable responsible for themselves, so, this is to ensure they can safely ride a bike and are fully aware of the high way code.

MY VIEW’S OF THE RIDE:

1. I was at the Safety Briefing (like all the other riders) and understood everything that was discussed; I find it hard to comprehend which part the lady failed to understand.

2. I also saw a rider wobbling on their bikes as they set off from a traffic light but, surely that’s down to the rider and his/her experience? On a 140mile ride you’d expect people to have trained. So, you can’t blame the organisers if a rider is wobbling, surely?

3. Overall, I thought the ride was brilliants, I felt safe with the ambulance team that was riding along with the riders (the quads bikes were a great idea, worked really well) and with the number of mini-buses that picked-up riders that were tired. Unfortunately, I didn’t get this level of support on the Brighton ride:

- NO Ambulance Services on route
- NO Mini Busses to Support Riders
- NO Pitstops for Food and Drinks
- NO Moterbike Marshalls to ensure no rider was left behind

So, I’m grateful for the level of support that was given.

4. As for the vehicle driving pass the riders, it’s NOT hard to see a parade of some 300 riders and to then SLOW DOWN.

5. I cannot believe the A5 has a speed restriction of 70mph and there is a cycle lane. I would urge Bucks Country Council to reconsider the speed restriction especially on roads with cycle lanes. I would ask the organiser to please change this part of the route.

6. As for the BMW driver that hit our rider, I’m also an owner of a BMW and this is only due to the impeccable safety and breaking function, if the driver was paying attention to the road and saw the 150 odd riders that were cycling at the time, he could have avoided the collision. I can only think that he was speeding, not looking head or was distracted?

7. I understand it was hard for the organizers to tell us of Mohammed’s situation and I also understand that they had to respect the family’s wishes. The rider’s decided to continue to rider for our fellow rider Mohammed as we’d hoped he’d wanted us complete the ride on his behalf. I’m deeply upset to understand that one of our riders was involved in an accident. I, like other riders don’t expect this to happen. My prayers and deepest sympathies go out to the family.

And I will continue to do the ride every year. Raising money for a good cause and for Mohammed Abdullah Shah, who will always remain in our hearts.

Its so sad for the driver, the person on the bike, idiot i should say should have been wearing his helmet. Its a disgrace. My condolence goes out to the driver