A MUSIC teacher fears riding his bike again after hitting a wire strung across a cycle path in North Albury.
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Kevin McGrath, 71, was heading north along the Bungambrawatha Creek trail between Logan and Union roads at 8.55am on Sunday when he was coathangered.
“I’m coming down the bike track, probably doing 15 to 20 kilometres, not fast, sometimes I go a lot faster than that,” Mr McGrath said.
“I just came around a blind corner and before I knew it I was just on top of it and I braked hard and the locked the bike up and the back wheel came up and I literally slid into it.”
Mr McGrath said he was left with “rope burns” on his arms after striking the wire which was about 1.2 metres off the ground.
The coil had been cut from the wire fence alongside the creek and wrapped around a cyclone fence on the other side of the path.
“I just think of little kids and older people on motorised scooters that could have been knocked off and could not get up,” Mr McGrath said.
“It was a pretty horrifying experience and I don’t want anybody else to have it.”
Mr McGrath rode his mountain bike to QEII Square along the path at 7.15am on Sunday and the wire was not hanging across the track.
The Lavington resident is now fearful of riding along the path again, particularly at night.
Albury police Inspector Scott Russell said it was an alarming incident.
“It was a deliberate act and the consequences of injury or even worse to any person using that track,” Inspector Russell said.
“Fortunately on this occasion there were no injuries however we are seeking public assistance that may be able to help us find the person that has strung this wire across the track.”
Police say it is not the first time an incident such as this occurred on the North Albury track.
“It was obviously put out there to cause injury to persons that use that track,” Inspector Russell said.
“It is concerning they have put the wire across there and we need to prevent this occurring again.”
Anyone with information on who placed the wire on the track should contact police on (02) 6023 9299.
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