From complaints submitted to the City of Reno, Nevada, last year.

One night this summer I was walking with my wife and two friends from out of town. We witnessed someone cracking a whip about twenty yards away. It was embarrassing. Now we have a running joke about people cracking whips being a thing in Reno.

I felt safe until I experienced a man walking in my direction cracking a whip.

Whip cracking is not an average city noise.

Whips sound like gunfire.

The whips terrify my son.

The whip crackers have taken over.

They crack whips 24/7, often resulting in sonic booms, which in turn cause seizures, tinnitus, vertigo, nosebleeds, and other medical issues. They make our lives a living hell.

I have not gotten a full night’s sleep in two years. I was woken up today at 4 am by a man with a whip. I can hear whipping as I type this at 2:21 pm.

Whips break both tree limbs and industrial lights. They cause neurological insults and injuries. Can we consider an ordinance prohibiting whip cracking?

No good comes from allowing people to slap long pieces of leather on the sidewalk.

As a longtime whip maker I am concerned about the City of Reno’s approach to a minor problem. Do whips have a negative history? Certainly they have been used in manners that are considered abhorrent. They have also been useful. Whip cracking is therapeutic and relaxing. I could more easily harm another person with a two-by-four.