How much time is gained by throwing gel wrappers on the ground?

2old4dacold

Walked about half the run route of our local triathlon (which was held this weekend) today and it was LITTERED with gel wrappers. Where do people think these wrappers go? Who do they think picks them up? Do people think they are actually saving time? They could be tucked into your tri suit without breaking stride or you could even just take them in transition and leave it with their gear. There is a small amount of disruption for a community where an event is held, and I think most communities accept that with good grace, but littering is disgraceful.

RJM85

Adds 20w to your threshold automatically cause you look so pro doing it. Bonus points for firing bidons at unsuspecting passers by.

I do it on all my training rides.

Kurt.Godel

RJM85 wrote: »

Adds 20w to your threshold automatically cause you look so pro doing it. Bonus points for firing bidons at unsuspecting passers by.

I do it on all my training rides.

I know you're joking but I think you have a point there. Gobshytes copying what the pros do on TV.

It beggars belief just how acceptable some people feel littering is. Gel wrappers thrown in the most remote places during mountain races. All manner of foods wrappings discarded on bikes. Plastic cups flung into bushes during runs.

A few years back I was pacing the Dublin Marathon, had a large bunch running around me through the Phoenix Park. Past a water stop, one a$$hole flings his plastic bottle as far as he can into some bushes. Cue three or four lemmings do the same thing. Since I had a "position of responsibility" I roared and f***ed them out of it for the next ten minutes; who did they expect to go and retrieve their plastic? They were genuinely shocked that it was a Bad Thing to throw plastic water bottles into bushes.

68 lost souls

Watching DCM 2 years ago at chesterfield avenue just after the water station I got nailed on the chest by a half full bottle by some clown.

Also in terms of copying tv they need to be more like Katie Zafires in Yokohama who dropped sunglasses took two steps stopped thought about it, went back and picked up her glasses for fear of a dq for littering.

Chester Copperpot

Could be rectified right away with a disqualification for acting like an antisocial fool for littering

Pkiernan

Wannabee Lance Armstrongs abound.

Dial Hard

If you brought it with you full you can sure as hell take it away with you empty.

Numpties.

RJM85

Kurt.Godel wrote: »

I know you're joking but I think you have a point there. Gobshytes copying what the pros do on TV.

It beggars belief just how acceptable some people feel littering is. Gel wrappers thrown in the most remote places during mountain races. All manner of foods wrappings discarded on bikes. Plastic cups flung into bushes during runs.

A few years back I was pacing the Dublin Marathon, had a large bunch running around me through the Phoenix Park. Past a water stop, one a$$hole flings his plastic bottle as far as he can into some bushes. Cue three or four lemmings do the same thing. Since I had a "position of responsibility" I roared and f***ed them out of it for the next ten minutes; who did they expect to go and retrieve their plastic? They were genuinely shocked that it was a Bad Thing to throw plastic water bottles into bushes.

It's completely unnecessary; indefensible; rude; and gives the rest of us a bad name.

RacoonQueen

Kurt.Godel wrote: »

I know you're joking but I think you have a point there. Gobshytes copying what the pros do on TV.

It beggars belief just how acceptable some people feel littering is. Gel wrappers thrown in the most remote places during mountain races. All manner of foods wrappings discarded on bikes. Plastic cups flung into bushes during runs.

A few years back I was pacing the Dublin Marathon, had a large bunch running around me through the Phoenix Park. Past a water stop, one a$$hole flings his plastic bottle as far as he can into some bushes. Cue three or four lemmings do the same thing. Since I had a "position of responsibility" I roared and f***ed them out of it for the next ten minutes; who did they expect to go and retrieve their plastic? They were genuinely shocked that it was a Bad Thing to throw plastic water bottles into bushes.

Had the same when pacing with gohardorgohome way back when...we'd just been chatting about people dumping the bottles when some fool in our pace group fu*ked his bottle over a wall. The two of us looked at each other in disbelief. :rolleyes:

griffin100

Whatever about dropping bottles in a city marathon I've seen muppets firing plastic bottles as far as they could into fields during the Connemara marathon. What do they think is going to happen to this rubbish?

tunney

2old4dacold wrote: »

Walked about half the run route of our local triathlon (which was held this weekend) today and it was LITTERED with gel wrappers. Where do people think these wrappers go? Who do they think picks them up? Do people think they are actually saving time? They could be tucked into your tri suit without breaking stride or you could even just take them in transition and leave it with their gear. There is a small amount of disruption for a community where an event is held, and I think most communities accept that with good grace, but littering is disgraceful.

Emmmm most races cost alot "because of the organisation". Route clean up should be part of this. Its not just the people littering that are the problem, its the organisers pocketing money without doing the full remit of their jobs.

Macy0161

Kinda surprised a post race litter pick wasn't part of the plan to be honest.

In our club race it was part of the marshal briefing to make note of numbers of anyone littering to disqualify. I'm not aware of it happening, but don't know whether that was because of no littering or no reports tbh, but was made clear to us as marshals and in the race briefing.

I don't think it's just a triathlon, bike or run issue, it's much wider than that. I live on a popular cycling route including some races, and have done litter picks as part of tidy towns etc - coffee cups, cigarrette butts, takeaway cartons, cans and bottles make up the majority of discarded rubbish. Gel wrappers would be such a small enough percentage to be in the realm of dropped by accident tbh.

cjt156

It should, of course, be the organisers' responsibility to do a sweep but it still pisses me off.
Especially on the bike; imagine hammering into a hard corner with your front wheel heading right for a nice squidgey gel wrapper. You carry it out, you can carry it back.

Macy0161

cjt156 wrote: »

You carry it out, you can carry it back.

This is ultimately it - it's not like the tri suit won't need washing after a race anyway.

shotgunmcos

Macy0161 wrote: »

In our club race it was part of the marshal briefing to make note of numbers of anyone littering to disqualify. .

Nail on the head.

This behavior infuriates me too. From a mild tut to watching someone chuck a cigarette butt out a car window and feel like chasing them down, dragging them back to it and insisting the pick up..

The problem is there are no consequences.

Some people are slobs in life and will be slobs in every aspect of it. Most others I suspect just don't know/listen to the race brief or etiquette. Races give out gels and water bottles but should really 1) indicate clearly before and in real time what you do with the litter and 2) have consequences for ignoring the rules.

Whatever about life in general but in race management this is a controllable issue. What is the point in putting the only bins for rubbish 10m from the aid station? One of the best things I've seen in terms of race management that both got the job done and made racers smile was at the Roth Ironman years ago. At random points on the bike leg there were soldiers in full uniform holding up a big net with a bin on the ground in the center and a target sign painted on the net. It was nearly inviting enough to stop and see if you could land it clean in the bin rather than hit the net.

2old4dacold

Macy0161 wrote: »

Gel wrappers would be such a small enough percentage to be in the realm of dropped by accident tbh.

Unfortunately this wasn't the case. I know because I picked them up. If there were as many more on the half of the course that I didn't walk, (I had my 3yo walking with me), then almost 10% of entrants threw a wrapper on the ground. This isn't triathlon bashing, I did the race myself. It is totally unacceptable behaviour in my book.

Macy0161

2old4dacold wrote: »

Unfortunately this wasn't the case. I know because I picked them up. If there were as many more on the half of the course that I didn't walk, (I had my 3yo walking with me), then almost 10% of entrants threw a wrapper on the ground. This isn't triathlon bashing, I did the race myself. It is totally unacceptable behaviour in my book.

I wasn't suggesting it was in your case/ location. Just making the point that littering, in general, remains a bigger issue than triathletes, runners, cyclists. It's not acceptable in races - if you got it out to that point of the race, you can get it back.

kal7

We need to keep telling all club athletes to drop rubbish/wrappers only at feed station, or keep it on there bike/person.

More DQ's if done anywhere else. The list of litter DQ in copenhagen ironman was several pages long.

I did, with other marshalls, the pick up of bottles used at recent olympic tri, just had to walk 50m either side of water station.

Great to see some athletes trying to hand me wrappers as they went by. I told them just to drop it by my feet, easy to get them and bin them when quiet time.

cuculainn

yeah did a 10 mile race in Roscommon a few weeks back. they had lots of water stations and locals handing out cups of water (it was hot day in fairness)

they had designated Zones for dropping empty cups/bottles clearly marked. The amount of people ignored these zones and threw the bottles as far as they could into random hedges was shocking.

if they at least just dropped them on the road there wouldnt be as much work gathering them after but you would literally (no pun intended) have to climb threw brambles to retrieve the litter

Neady83

Sorry for resurrecting an old thread but just wanted advice - I think I know the answer but I wanted the thoughts of others.

Doing a 10mile road race in East Clare yesterday, taking it as a recovery run and tipping along with my other half so wasn't pushing too hard. Pass the first water station and I see a bottle being fired over a ditch and into a field, not sure who did it, but I just shout "hey, don't fire your bottle over the ditch, how do you think the organisers will pick it up?".

Cue a roar from this tank of a man beside me who'd obviously thrown the bottle, in a club singlet, telling me to "go and get it myself, to keep my mouth for running not for shouting, before calling me a c**t and telling me to f**k off". I was absolutely raging so I might have told me to f**k off back.

Anyway, I took his bib number and he's from a club in Kerry. He used to be a 2:40 marathon runner and represented our country so he should know better than to be firing bottles in over the ditch. His response I'll get over but I'm still raging at the bottle incident.

E-mail to his club and tell them to tell their members not to throw bottles? Or just leave it?

Kurt.Godel

You were dead right to say something. His response was obnoxious, but (being kind) people can get bullish with raceface on. No doubt he'll think twice about firing bottles again- some people see nothing wrong with this until its pointed out.

Personally I'd leave it at that.

boombang

I'm so glad to see so many within the sport declare abhorrence to this practice. It truly mystifies me that people do this. Not just at events, but even on the simple training route. Plenty of gel packs and bottles to be seen littering the Phoenix Park.

shotgunmcos

Neady83 wrote: »

Sorry for resurrecting an old thread but just wanted advice - I think I know the answer but I wanted the thoughts of others.

Doing a 10mile road race in East Clare yesterday, taking it as a recovery run and tipping along with my other half so wasn't pushing too hard. Pass the first water station and I see a bottle being fired over a ditch and into a field, not sure who did it, but I just shout "hey, don't fire your bottle over the ditch, how do you think the organisers will pick it up?".

Cue a roar from this tank of a man beside me who'd obviously thrown the bottle, in a club singlet, telling me to "go and get it myself, to keep my mouth for running not for shouting, before calling me a c**t and telling me to f**k off". I was absolutely raging so I might have told me to f**k off back.

Anyway, I took his bib number and he's from a club in Kerry. He used to be a 2:40 marathon runner and represented our country so he should know better than to be firing bottles in over the ditch. His response I'll get over but I'm still raging at the bottle incident.

E-mail to his club and tell them to tell their members not to throw bottles? Or just leave it?

I'd have fired him into the ditch after that response. Or maybe expressed that rather than actually do it.
Muppet

I'm sorry to hear you got that treatment. Things happen in the heat of sport though so I'd leave it back out on the road/field

Neady83

Thanks guys, I'll let it go. Hopefully he won't do it again and might even pull someone else up on it if he sees them do the same thing. There might be some kind of ripple effect

Kurt.Godel

Just read the race briefing for Two Provinces Triathlon tomorrow, and Laneboro Tri Club have come up with a novel way of keeping their route litter free:

In an effort to reward and acknowledge athletes commitment to keeping our village and surrounding areas in pristine litter free condition we will hold a prize draw for everyone who keeps their gel and nutrition packages and deposits them in a bin at transition after the race. We will note down the number of every athlete who disposes of their rubbish in this way and hold a draw for a pair of Oakley racing sunglasses that will go to the athlete whose name gets drawn out after the race concludes.

Kurt.Godel

How this initiative worked today... there was a bin in Trans and a marshall taking a note of the number of anyone who deposited rubbish. Random draw has been made, 2 pairs of Oakleys going to lucky winners, but hopefully the main purpose will have a lasting effect! Lanesborough looked very well today, there seemed to be a lot of local help and involvement, and local support out on the route. The last thing anyone wants is that local goodwill soured by discarded gel wrappers etc, so well done to Lanesborough Tri for coming up with a very practical solution!

TriFirst

Kurt.Godel wrote: »

How this initiative worked today... there was a bin in Trans and a marshall taking a note of the number of anyone who deposited rubbish. Random draw has been made, 2 pairs of Oakleys going to lucky winners, but hopefully the main purpose will have a lasting effect! Lanesborough looked very well today, there seemed to be a lot of local help and involvement, and local support out on the route. The last thing anyone wants is that local goodwill soured by discarded gel wrappers etc, so well done to Lanesborough Tri for coming up with a very practical solution!

Yes an innovative idea, I though the whole race was very well organised.