Sportive Etiquette.......Do you wait for your mate?

tambo46
tambo46 Posts: 19
edited May 2008 in Sportives/audaxes/training rides
Just a question on Sportive etiquette. If you are having an OK day but your mate is suffering, do you do the "right" thing and drag him all the way round or do you just drop him and meet up for a beer once he finally makes it to the finish? All this bearing in mind that neither of us is likely to ever wear a yellow jersey........... :roll:

Comments

  • kmahony
    kmahony Posts: 380
    No. You head off at your own pace. You can even give you mate 'the look' and attack. That's the good thing about sportives.
    http://2008etape.blogspot.com/
  • Tom Butcher
    Tom Butcher Posts: 3,830
    If you are suffering yourself yes wait and pretend you are doing it because you are a mate, if you are strong then ride off on a hill without looking round and pretend you didn't know he couldn't hold your wheel.
    it's a hard life if you don't weaken.
  • Not Another Hill
    Not Another Hill Posts: 382
    I agree with above comments. You have to ride at your own pace. I rode recent Kirklees Sportive with 5 friends and lost 4 within first 7 miles and other after about 30 miles. If I had stayed with them I would have been an hour slower. The longer the distance, the greater difference to your time, if riding 2/3 mph slower than your normal speed.
  • fizz
    fizz Posts: 483
    Sort out with your mates what you want to do before you start, and then stick to what you agree. Might cause an intial bit of flack but not as bad as if you b*gger off halfway through and your mates are'nt expecting it.
  • gavintc
    gavintc Posts: 3,009
    I agree with fizz. You need to agree your strategy before the start. This avoids embarrassment and hurt feelings. I have done both, and had friends wait for me. But, you need to be clear if you are doing it as a team or solo.
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    All depends...personally I'd never leave my mate if he was suffering....its not about a time for me...its for the whole occasion...last year on the FWC my mate ran into severe difficulty on Newlands pass....I could have rode away and left him...but being a very understanding guy there was no way I was going to leave my mate to endure the next 65 miles on his own...theres a good chance he would never have finished...I paced him through to hardknott and tried my best to motivate and the guy succeeded on both Hardknott and Wrynose! Best ride I've ever seen after what he went through,showed true guts...I came in with a time of 8.40 odds...maybe I could have shaved time off but for me seeing that fella so elated at the end was far more rewarding....and now hes absolutely flying this year...and I know he would do the same for me...so what goes around comes around...maybe this year I'll blow and I sure would appreciate a helping hand through THAT event...

    In the end i'll never ever come close to winning any of these things and times a bit of a joke for me..I mean If I say I got 8 hours...everyone I know will shrug there shoulders...If I get 9 hours...everyone I know will shrug there shoulders :roll:
  • vermooten
    vermooten Posts: 2,697
    edited May 2008
    PutneyJoe and I have an agreement that if one stops or slows, the other must continue unless there is an excellent reason for it to be otherwise, eg imminent death. Point being we decided and agreed it.

    PS he's a bummer
    You just have to ride like you never have to breathe again.

    Manchester Wheelers
  • chopper1
    chopper1 Posts: 45
    Decide with your mate what your going to do before you start!
  • bonk man
    bonk man Posts: 1,054
    I would expect to get left behind on a mass participation ride if I was not having a good day, there is usually some one as rubbish as yourself to ride with and we are all mates and in it together in a sportive or audax ride.

    In fact I don't expect to do a whole ride with club mates etc and it seems to be an un-written rule with us, as we have different abilities and strengths. Maybe if a junior club member was with us and having a bad time there would be an obligation to look after him/her but most of us are old farts and don't mind having some time to ourselves.. :D

    Club rides are very different and we always wait unless the slacker has stated that they are really ok on their own.

    A competitive event should be just that; a chance to push it a bit [ audax is a competition against the terrain and clock], when you finish it is interesting to compare notes and experiences with your mates, something you might not do on a club run as you have experienced the ride together.

    I suppose the most important point is that it is usually best to ride at your own pace and not worry about anyone one else's suffering. :twisted:
    Club rides are for sheep
  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    edited May 2008
    The real answer is it depends on how much you like your mates and how far apart you are in terms of ability.

    Started far too many of these with a "we ride this together" rallying cry from club mates before the off, which goes out of the window as soon as the adrenalin kicks in! "All for one and one for all" turns into "Every man for himself!" within about 3 miles :roll: . I've learned to accept that some in the club can ride quicker than me, but if I promise to ride with someone to the finish, I will wait for them if they are struggling and do the turns on the front.

    I rode the 2003 Etape with a group of 6 from our club, and we ageed before the start that we'd do our own thing, although I'd also agreed with my best mate I'd stick with him. This was probably a mistake as I ended up waiting for 20 mins at the top of a col for him (you can only do big climbs at your own pace I reckon), so missing my silver medal in the process. Now you know why I'm called Bronzie! :P
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels
  • SteveR_100Milers
    SteveR_100Milers Posts: 5,987
    Bronzie's on the money here - are they your *real* mates or not ha ha :D
    http://www.pontypoolrcc.co.uk/
    www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=44397853765
  • robbarker
    robbarker Posts: 1,367
    Completely up to you. There's no "etiquette", it's just an organised non-competitive ride. Sportives are not races - that would be illegal - whatever the wannabees might want to believe. I view them as short sharp audax rides with less luggage.
  • Brian B
    Brian B Posts: 2,071
    I did a sportive yesterday and for the first 40 odd miles(out of 82) I did a lot of work in a group each taking a shot at front but I did quite a lot in the windier sections as I am a big bloke.

    I had done a bit too much and so in the 2nd halve I was struggling for 5 miles and a group came past and I tagged on to the back of them. When I felt a bit better after eating 1000 calories and got my mojo back I dropped this group on a climb and never saw them again.

    Was it bad for me to use them until I had recuperated as I felt i should have taking a shot at the front but at first I was strugggling just to keep with them.
    Brian B.
  • bonk man
    bonk man Posts: 1,054
    I did the Forest of Dean one today Brian B , I had no problem getting a wheel and not feeling guilty, just for short sections I think it is acceptable to get a tow, we all do it.

    I did drag a big group up one long shallow[ish] climb, when I started to feel like they were taking liberties I waited for a sharp turn and steeper bit and kicked really hard, instant chaos behind, the whole thing fell apart but funnily enough a few of the riders came past a bit later at a higher speed on their own so I suppose it can get too easy riding in groups when you could be making better progress.... it was amusing though.

    As for waiting for my mate, he took about 40 minutes longer than me so it would have been frustrating for me and could have made his ride more hellish trying to keep up.
    Club rides are for sheep
  • Brian B
    Brian B Posts: 2,071
    Cheers Bonkman that makes me feel better - I feel that if I am in a group I should be taking a shot but funnily enough as the day progressed I picked up stragglers and ended up with a small group and I was at the front for a lot of miles but I could see that the other were faring worse than me so I did not mind them sheltering behind me.
    Brian B.
  • milese
    milese Posts: 1,233
    I did the North Cornwall Tor with my Dad, who is much fitter than me.

    We stuck together on the calmer parts, because it was possible, but as soon as we hit the nasty bits on the coast he dropped me because he physically didn't have the gears (or inclination) to go as slow as I was going, and rather than wait at the top of every hill for me he waited at the next feed station.

    Took the pressure off me to try and keep up, and he got to ride his own ride for a bit and had a big rest with lots of cake.

    Not sure if he'll be able to stomach my slowness for 100 miles on the Dartmoor classic next weekend though :lol:
  • Stuck on a Giant
    Stuck on a Giant Posts: 256
    When your riding partner is also your wife, now there's an extra issue! We're doing Dartmoor next weekend. She's saying, it's an early season ride, don't expect to go to fast etc. Which to me means; you'd better wait for me, or else.

    I'd much rather we do our own thing, although then I risk the embarassment of finishing behind her! Looks like a potential no-win situation.
  • popette
    popette Posts: 2,089
    Stuck on a Giant wrote:
    When your riding partner is also your wife, now there's an extra issue! We're doing Dartmoor next weekend. She's saying, it's an early season ride, don't expect to go to fast etc. Which to me means; you'd better wait for me, or else.

    I'd much rather we do our own thing, although then I risk the embarassment of finishing behind her! Looks like a potential no-win situation.

    yes, it's a no-win situation :) . When me and my husband enter sportives together, I find I'm either cursing him because he's lagging behind, or I'm cursing him because he's ahead and keeps looking around to see where I am. He also takes more risks at junctions and I end up having to sprint to catch up again . On the Etape, I'm going to suggest that we do our own thing as I'm really going to have to watch my HR rather than what he's up to. It would be great to do it together but with 9000 riders around, it's going to be very difficult.
    http://www.2010etape.blogspot.com
  • dennisn
    dennisn Posts: 10,601
    So, what happens when maybe, just maybe, you're having a tough time of it in a strong
    headwind and could use a wheel to suck on for a while and someone to help split up the load a bit and your mate looks over his shoulder and pulls away. Sounds like pretty sh*tty
    teamwork to me. Be the better person and help out if you can, instead of just blowing the other person off as a lost cause. It's a bike ride not the Tour and he's your friend. Lend a helping hand if you can. You'll feel better about yourself. Think of him as a girl with a great a** that you'd like to meet. You'd pull her all day if you could, Right???? Right!!!

    Dennis Noward
  • skavanagh.bikeradar
    skavanagh.bikeradar Posts: 1,097
    I'm doing the Marmotte with 3 friends and I'm assuming we will all do our own thing as it's so bloomin' long and hard - no point trying to climb for 30km at someone else's pace...but on English sportives we will stick together and help each other through. Hopefully!
  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    Same here Skavanagh - 6 of my club doing the Marmotte - it will have to be everyman for himself on that one - nobody will be having an easy day that's for sure
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels
  • bilbo.baggins
    bilbo.baggins Posts: 76
    Brian B wrote:
    I did a sportive yesterday and for the first 40 odd miles(out of 82) I did a lot of work in a group each taking a shot at front but I did quite a lot in the windier sections as I am a big bloke.

    Brian, I'm guessing with the distance, date, and location that you were doing the Drumlanrig Challenge. It was a good day out. Surprisingly the first loop is easier than the second one.

    Cheers.
    Why the name? Like the Hobbit I don't shave my legs
  • Brian B
    Brian B Posts: 2,071
    Yes it was the Drumlanrig and I thought it was a great day out. The 2nd half as you say was much harder and coupled with the headwind heading up to Moor Top made it interesting. The climb after the bridge at Moniave(or some place like that) was an eye opener after being in relatively big gears.

    I got lost in Penpoint as I had missed a sign but luckily met a few others who had made the same mistake and I did not lose as much time as them. All in all a great day out and even the sun came out despite the forecast.
    Brian B.
  • oldwelshman
    oldwelshman Posts: 4,733
    Bronzie, you can start with us lot from spirit, mixed bunch of abailities :D
    I do not know what all the fuss is about with th op.
    It is not as if your riding in the middle of the dessert with only 2 of you?
    There are hundreds of others in the rides who can all offer support to each other in hard times.
    I often ride with mates for a while, and often one or the other goes better for various reasons but no need to actually wait either way.
    Thats part of the fun, riding past, being passed, or riding with others with others, unless you just agree to twiddle round chatting.
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  • Bronzie
    Bronzie Posts: 4,927
    oldwelshman wrote:
    unless you just agree to twiddle round chatting.
    This is always the most sensible option :P
    It's a Lifestyle! -+-+- Coggan Training Levels

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