In early September, police arrested 39-year-old Ian Hespelt in an attack on a motorist during a Critical Mass ride late August on Marina Boulevard. In a video that quickly went viral, a group of bicyclists pulled into the side of the road with oncoming traffic; when the driver of a Zipcar tried to get past them, a confrontation ensued, which included one cyclist who struck the Zipcar’s windows with a bicycle lock.
District 2 Super-visor Mark Farrell issued a statement on the incident, noting, “The actions by the cyclists caught on video this past Friday evening participating in Critical Mass are disturbing and should never be tolerated in our
city — especially the one cyclist seen attacking the vehicle with a bicycle lock repeated times. I understand the history that Critical Mass has in San Francisco as a protest movement, and respect that a majority of the participants are peaceful and respectful of others while participating. But the participants in Critical Mass must understand that actions like the ones this past Friday reflect poorly on the entire group and hurt the group’s overall message and movement.”
ABC7 News reported that Hespelt also had an outstanding felony warrant from Washington State on drug charges.
