NATASHA Peterson and her boyfriend Ian La Rue had an unpleasant surprise last weekend when police came knocking on their doors.

Both were handed a mittful of traffic tickets for alleged offences they committed in last month's Critical Mass bike rally. Peterson got six tickets and La Rue got four.

The evidence? Police videotape footage taken by officers during the downtown rally July 28.

"It seems like a very sneaky thing to do," said La Rue, 25. "I feel like I've been personally targeted."

"It's a real eye-opener for me," said Peterson, 22. "They said they went through the videotapes and issued tickets on how many laws you broke during the ride.

"I'm very skeptical of the police service."

The tickets are for violations ranging from riding too far away from the curb to not bicycling in single file.

Peterson and La Rue said they were each issued a ticket during the rally for going through a red light and police used their personal information to later show up with more tickets.

Police confirmed the tickets against Peterson, saying tickets can be issued for Highway Traffic Act offences up to six months after the incident.

But Const. Jacqueline Chaput said police would not discuss the use of video cameras to later ticket alleged offenders, saying that would speak to police tactics.

However, she said police said in a news release several weeks ago officers would take "alternate" measures to police Critical Mass rallies.

"During the ride police never commented or contributed on how it was going," Peterson said. "(The police) didn't say anything to imply the ride was going badly, and then behind everyone's backs start showing up at people's houses'' to hand out tickets.

Another Critical Mass ride is scheduled for next Friday.

The monthly Critical Mass bike rally promoting environmental sustainability has been a flash point for the Winnipeg Police Service since May, when a scuffle broke out among cyclists and officers, and at least four people were arrested. City councillor Jenny Gerbasi, who mediated online and face-to-face forums between officers and Critical Mass cyclists, said she was troubled by the continued sour relationship.

"The (police) are making a lot of effort to make life very difficult for people," she said.

Gerbasi said she was concerned police were being overly "legalistic" in their crackdown on cyclists.

"It's pretty severe for young university students to get tickets for seven different things," she said.