THE North Ribblesdale resident behind the leaflet campaign to stop rogue motorcyclists breaking the law has hit back at claims he was victimising bikers.

Ken Meredith, of Stainforth, distributed leaflets in Langcliffe, Stainforth and Horton-in-Ribblesdale calling on residents to report excessively noisy and speeding motorbikes to the police and to back Settle police's bid for funding for a speed camera.

Angry fellow Stainforth residents Cliff Rider and Keith Leftwich contacted the Herald, saying while they recognised some bikers did speed, the most common road safety law breakers were cars and wagons. They felt it was unfair to pick on bikers.

But Mr Meredith told the Herald: "I am definitely not anti-motorcycle. I am a motorcyclist myself. What I am fed up with is noisy, speeding motorcyclists.

"I would say 40 to 60 per cent of bikers that come into the Dales are using illegal exhaust pipes and it is these which are so noisy and are the brunt of the problem.

"You only have to look around Settle Market Place on a sunny Sunday to see them quite clearly marked 'not for road use'.

"That and behaviour like excessive speeds, going four abreast, overtaking each other past Stainforth and pulling wheelies is what people are objecting to.

"I am quite happy to see motorcyclists come to Settle and the Dales - most are responsible, but it is those which aren't which we want to stop."

When Mr Meredith delivered the leaflets in North Ribblesdale he said everyone he spoke to told him they felt it was about time something was done to stamp out the motorcycling minority which was behaving illegally.

"Every comment I got was: 'it's about time somebody did something about these motorbikes'.

"I did try and stress in the leaflet that it was noisy, speeding motorcycles we were after, not all motorbikes in general," he said.