Posted on 12/08/2008 2:21:20 PM PST by FreeManWhoCan
Mud contaminated with sheep faeces was the most likely cause of 161 competitors in a mountain biking event falling ill, a report has said. An investigation into the outbreak of vomiting and diarrhoea following the Mountain Bike Marathon, in Builth Wells, mid Wales, was carried out by the National Public Health Service for Wales (NPHS).
The 664 riders who took part in the event on Jul ADVERTISEMENT y 5 and 6 were invited by NPHS to complete an internet questionnaire after an initial report of eight people falling sick.
Of the 355 responses, 161 reported symptoms such as diarrhoea and vomiting following the event.
The responses were used to investigate the risks competitors were exposed to.
And the report concluded that the outbreak was probably caused by Campylobacter, spread to the cyclists by mud which was contaminated with sheep faeces.
It said the heavy overnight rain was likely to have contributed to the outbreak by increasing the amount of liquid mud on the course.
The report went on to recommend pre-packaged food being eaten out of the wrapper at future events, avoiding use of soiled drink and food containers, and washing hands when possible.
Dr Sian Griffiths, of the NPHS, said: "We have been delighted with the help we have received from the mountain bikers when investigating this outbreak of illness.
"We would also like to thank the race organisers for their co-operation and our colleagues in Environmental Health at Powys County Council.
"We hope that this report and the recommendations within it will help reduce the risk of something like this happening again."
Mega Vomit Carnage Alert
One lucky British journalist has won the trifecta.
Sheep poo is “organic”. I thought organic things were good for you
Congratulations! You win the “Thread Title of the Year” Award!
And so the clever sheep begin their global conquest, as foretold in The Prophecy.
It said the heavy overnight rain was likely to have contributed to the outbreak by increasing the amount of liquid mud on the course.
It likely contributed to the outbreak of liquid mud in the biker's shorts as well....
You know the reporter waited his entire carreer to write that title.
That's good. I like "Campy Lobacter" too.
Well... now THERE is a headline you don’t see every day.
“Mountain Bike Vomit Carnage”
You gotta be kidding me, that is hillarious....
This was a crappy story....the writer must have sat on a very loose stool when he wrote it....The words just spewed onto the computer....
What’s brown and sounds like a bell?
Yep, via the frame-mounted water bottles (per the report). It wasn't so much the mud that got 'em, but the water spray off the tires (er, sorry - tyres).
I'll bet fenders and Camelbaks are all the rage next year.
This is just the beginning. Here in America we're about to see four years of the kind of damage that can be wrought by, "the sheep."
See tagline.
His punctuation was pretty sloppy as well with the lax use of colons.
I refuse to ask.
mountain bike vomit carnage?
Dung!
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