Tim Shadbolt (mayor of Invercargill) has warned of unforseen side effects to John Key's national cycle trail: the Poo left behind by the
cycle-touring equivalent of "freedom campers".

He would like information or articles on the subject, and I'm sure he will get a certain amount of opinion along with it.

original article:
http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/ ... everywhere

A little help for the worried mayor?

All these bike trails the Government is building are only going to make it worse, with all those cyclists eating scroggin and yoghurt. (They will have) huge bowel motions when pedalling on bicycles all day, and there will be no toilet facilities.

Huge bowel motions are the best. Only bettered by massive colonic evacuations.

thank you, I knew someone would stoop to the usual level.

It is actually a serious question, Tim's PA has asked for articles on "freedom cycling camping".
After all the trouble the Southern Lakes area has been having with rogue pooers, Tim sees the cycleway as a serious threat to public health.

Velocipedestrian wrote:thank you, I knew someone would stoop to the usual level.

It is actually a serious question, Tim's PA has asked for articles on "freedom cycling camping".
After all the trouble the Southern Lakes area has been having with rogue pooers, Tim sees the cycleway as a serious threat to public health.

Shadbolt is a serious threat to what little dignity local government has.

Is this a problem on the Otago Rail Trail? If not, why should it be so on new trails?

So stupid. How about improving local water quality by controlling dairy cow poo, Tim? Once you've done that, you can start thinking about the relatively miniscule impacts from cycle tourists.

The irony of Tim Shadbolt who in the late 80's (maybe early 90's) was on fair-go for building dodgy septic tanks, complaining about inappropriate shitting

BrokenKonaRider wrote:So stupid. How about improving local water quality by controlling dairy cow poo, Tim? Once you've done that, you can start thinking about the relatively miniscule impacts from cycle tourists.

disagree.

he's talking about the future on cycleways - not the waterway issues from dairying (which I agree in certain parts of the country are a bloody disgrace)

think the article sums it up well - "freedom shitters" are making a mess.

Its a pretty easy connection to make - if you concentrate people in an area without sufficient and appropriate toilet facilities there will be plenty of freedom shitting going on. Its already happening in this country in with high levels of Freedom camping.
Cyclists aren't immune from shitting. Ther is no reason to think they will behave any differently from others.
plans for appropriate toilet facilities are a must - otherwise all users will suffer

If you don't believe me go up the hill behind the Craigeburn shelter - where there is a perfectly functional long drop that people don't want to use - and enjoy the hundreds of little scrunches of origami crap wrap flowers left to decorate the turds left behind by the freedom shitters.
nearly as bad as the Inca trail (is /was) - new thread? - worst literal shit holes in the world?
I'm off for a crap

Leave a (collapsible?) spade out every few kms. Need to shit? go dig a hole. Sorted.

Also 1984 style surveillance for, um, fining people purposes

this is a problem ALL over nz. those fucking van driving 'freedom' campers, they all shit everywhere. sorry to be generalist, but i've heard its mainly Germans, who think they're doing the environment a favour by NOT putting it in those nasty toilets nicely provided by DOC... cos, like, all that shit in one place cant be good, right? (even tho, a lot of socalled longdrops (like on the able tasman etc) get pumped out every few months and taken to a sewage treatment plant)

so, in general, Tim's probably got it about right...

Nah, I disagree with little timmy boy way down south. Most cycle tourists will be going from place to place, town to town choosing to stay in hotels / motels / bar lobbies. Every couple of hours they'll probably stop at a Cafe anyway. The problem with the freedom campers seems to be more that people are not staying in towns, just pulling up to any public place and sleeping the night in the van. It is the evening and morning evacuations that are an issue.

This is one of the main problems with Freedom camping/tramping/dogging whatever they call it in NZ.

A shit and a shower.

I think Tim could be highlighting a unforseen aspect of cyclists - the bushshitter. Those MTB types taking a dump next to the track and using an unpreceedented amount of the native plant Brachyglottis repanda.

However I like it how the Germans are to blame for the shitting in NZ they seem to be ok in Europe, I haven't had one shit in the forest near me.
Is there a kiwi watching them taking notes.

Nah they're just evil.

I talked to Tim Shadbolt once. He scares me.

Fango wrote:Is this a problem on the Otago Rail Trail? If not, why should it be so on new trails?

bubbaa wrote:

BrokenKonaRider wrote:So stupid. How about improving local water quality by controlling dairy cow poo, Tim? Once you've done that, you can start thinking about the relatively miniscule impacts from cycle tourists.

disagree.

he's talking about the future on cycleways - not the waterway issues from dairying (which I agree in certain parts of the country are a bloody disgrace)

think the article sums it up well - "freedom shitters" are making a mess.

Its a pretty easy connection to make - if you concentrate people in an area without sufficient and appropriate toilet facilities there will be plenty of freedom shitting going on. Its already happening in this country in with high levels of Freedom camping.
Cyclists aren't immune from shitting. Ther is no reason to think they will behave any differently from others.
plans for appropriate toilet facilities are a must - otherwise all users will suffer

If you don't believe me go up the hill behind the Craigeburn shelter - where there is a perfectly functional long drop that people don't want to use - and enjoy the hundreds of little scrunches of origami crap wrap flowers left to decorate the turds left behind by the freedom shitters.
nearly as bad as the Inca trail (is /was) - new thread? - worst literal shit holes in the world?
I'm off for a crap

I'm sure Tim will appreciate the relevant views, keep it up