Former professional cyclists, Thomas Dekker and Laurens ten Dam, were arrested in Marietta, Kansas, after using water bottles in a parking lot to freshen up during a training ride, leading to allegations of ‘indecent behavior’ and a bizarre indictment referring to them as ‘gay cyclists’.
Two former professional cyclists, Thomas Dekker and Laurens ten Dam, were arrested in Marietta, Kansas, for “indecent behavior” on May 28, 2023, after a training ride. The Dutch cyclists, in town for the Unbound Gravel race in Oklahoma, stopped for lunch at a Mexican restaurant and decided to freshen up using bottles of water in the parking lot.
Ten Dam, speaking on the “Live Slow Ride Hard” podcast, recounted the incident: after rinsing off with water, the situation escalated when a man shouted at them and called the police. Police arrived quickly, with five cars responding, and both Dekker and ten Dam were handcuffed and searched. The indictment bizarrely noted that they “sprayed each other with water bottles like two gay cyclists.”
The cyclists were detained for 10 hours, during which they were fingerprinted and made to wear orange jumpsuits. They were released after paying a $185 bail and, to their relief, were later informed they would not need to appear in court.
