Man suspected of stealing bike from Swindon primary school hospitalised after crash

PaulCee52 wrote:

I hope the bike was in good, working order when it was stolen...

Knowing the way the justice system works, I can see the rightful owner getting done for something being defective on it 

I used to use my sister's very old 5-speed Raleigh Cascade as a hack bike to get to the station, figuring no-one would ever bother stealing that.

I was wrong.

I did expect (hope!?) for a while that I would see a news report along the lines of "bike thief in hospital after crash" - it was pretty sketchy even if you were used to it, especially in the wet, as the scar on my elbow proves when I lost the front wheel on a manhole cover!

tourdelound wrote:

I notice The Swinden Advertiser refere to the suspect as a "cyclist".  No, he's a bicycle thief, (or whatever "phrase" you care to use). If the suspect had stolen a motor vehicle, would he be refered to as a motorist?, no, he'd be refered to as a car thief, ( or whatever "phrase" you care to use).

If someone is driving a car, then they're a motorist and if someone is riding a bike, they're a cyclist (at least while they're on the bike).  I think you're reading a bit too much into the 'cyclist' used as a description.

hawkinspeter wrote:

tourdelound wrote:

I notice The Swinden Advertiser refere to the suspect as a "cyclist".  No, he's a bicycle thief, (or whatever "phrase" you care to use). If the suspect had stolen a motor vehicle, would he be refered to as a motorist?, no, he'd be refered to as a car thief, ( or whatever "phrase" you care to use).

If someone is driving a car, then they're a motorist and if someone is riding a bike, they're a cyclist (at least while they're on the bike).  I think you're reading a bit too much into the 'cyclist' used as a description.

If someone swings a Golf bat at someones head does that make them a Golfer?

It's one of my bug bears too, generally when a 'cyclist' knocks an old lady down on the pavement or some Hi Vis wearing lunatic commuter undertakes a tipper lorry they are reffered to as a 'cyclist' rather than a person who just happens to be riding a bike. 

Cyclist implies some degree of competency or enthusiast status.

tourdelound wrote:

I notice The Swinden Advertiser refere to the suspect as a "cyclist".  No, he's a bicycle thief, (or whatever "phrase" you care to use). If the suspect had stolen a motor vehicle, would he be refered to as a motorist?, no, he'd be refered to as a car thief, ( or whatever "phrase" you care to use).

Quite right, and very similar to attributing the responsibility for a collision to the car, not the driver, as in "The car lost control..." or "The car collided with.....".   On the other hand, whenever it is a cyclist's fault, they always say "The cyclist lost control...." etc.

It is a subtle way of removing responsibility from drivers, which nevertheless seems to work.