Bike Blenheim Sportive Sunday 4th October
jhop
Posts: 369
I am entered for this but have yet to receive any info apart from receipt for registering.
Should I be concerned?
Should I be concerned?
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Comments
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Some people haven't had any info, including me, got an e mail this morning, the info is here
https://regonline.activeeurope.com/custImages/283677/Competitor%20Information.pdf
and the competitor list here
https://regonline.activeeurope.com/custImages/283677/BT%20Sportif%20Start%20List.pdf
Looking forward to it, it covers new ground for me, being from the S Downs area.0 -
yep looks good 1200 entries and lots of good info in the pack - seems pretty well orgnised so far0
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Yep, and after 25 miles you can have a bacon butty, bowl of soup, stop in the pub for a couple of pints and then try to finish :shock:
Seriously looks good though and looking forward to it.0 -
I too have today received by email all the pre-event stuff so things seem fine.0
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I'm doing this with agroup of 6 of us , hope the weather is good.
Tiny bit of a shame the bacon butty are at 25 miles, I don't normally have an appetite or bothered about stopping that early in a sportive, still nice idea0 -
I'll be there too. Looking forward to it. Only doing the 60 miles so we can get back for the Brompton Champs.
Bacon butty does pose a dilemma as wouldn't normally stop for 60 miles but after an early start I'm not sure it will be possible to resist.0 -
I could've murdered a bacon butty when I finished, but 25 miles in ... no.
The food needed some help, but the organisation, signing and most of the marshalling was good (I'm looking at you blonde girl chatting on the phone rather than actually marshalling).
Nice route, but I was an idiot glancing at the profile and thinking "it's all OK after Guiting Power" when it blatantly wasn't. This was stupid as I vaguely know the area.
That was my first 100 miler. I think I did about 6:40, despite blowing up with 15 miles to go. And not training enough. And being a fat git.
The family enjoyed riding around the palace grounds and watching the Bromptoms. Does anyone know who won that?
Now: isotonic sports beer.0 -
Heras won the Brompton WC, followed by Hutchinson and Kay.
Good signs, great motorcycle escort. No goody bag as promised but really enjoyed it.0 -
Thanks rj.
One more good thing - the lack of traffic. Very quiet roads - a little damaged in places, but very quiet.0 -
Top event, well organised, well sign posted , lots of safety bikes and the some the marshalls weren't bad looking either
As said above those bacon butty's looked cracking but I couldn't even think about tucking into one of those at 25 miles , nevermind eh
Got round the 100 miler in about 5:40 , so happy with that0 -
Great event and really enjoyed it. I unfortunately did partake of a bacon butty and felt bloated for the next 45 minutes :roll: Only did the 60 miles but was a cracking day, excellent organisation.
Anyone know where the results will be posted?0 -
On the positive side...
I really enjoyed the route - mostly good, quiet roads and great scenery. A few splendidly challenging climbs in the middle section. Toilets that still had loo roll in them at the end. Some gorgeous marshalls to help ease the pain :oops: Plus good motorbike / St Johns support. And a dry day.
A few moans...
Some of the marshalling was excellent but it was a bit inconsistent. If someone is going to call you out onto a main road I want a really confident shout of "clear!" - not a half arsed wave that suggests the road ahead might be clear. And towards the end many of the marshalls were on mobiles / reading / none existent.
Food - bacon butties might be a nice idea but they aren't sportive food. At 65 miles I'd have liked a banana & a piece of flapjack at least!
At £29 I was disappointed at the end. Most of the stuff going on at Blenheim was finished / exhibitors packing up at 3.30pm. And what happened to the promised goody bag? Not good VFM overall, I'm afraid.
But... to finish on a positive note... I really enjoyed sprinting along the last mile, heading up towards the Column of Victory.0 -
My riding mate dropped his bacon out the butty - he got cramped legs later so could have done with the salt! We were still first back though ( 60 miles) so benefitted from having a motorbike with us most of the way.0
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I thought it was a really good day out, I agree about some food at the end, by the time I got back there weren't any hot drinks left and just about all the food had run out.
A lot harder than I thought it would be but a great course.0 -
I agree with most of the above, great ride, great route and generally well organised. I managed to get away with the lead group of the 100 miler. Great help from the motorbike outrider at first. When we got to the feed station in Lower Swell, where the two routes split, the outrider had gone off for a bacon butty, and nobody knew where the 100 mile course went. The people on the food stand pointed towards the 60 mile route, anyway we all decided to carry on up the hill in the right direction as it turned out.
Again good support from the marshalls and out riders on our 100 mile route, as we were the 1st through. Then when we joined up with the 60 mile route again at Lower Swell, they had all gone to sleep, buggered off or where on thier mobiles. Mainly because the majoriy of the 60 milers had gone through, they did not realise the 100 miles where now coming through. Having been used to a marshall waving us through or a motor bike stopping the traffic, to all of a sudden have nothing was a bit inconsistent.
For me this spoilt a great event other wise well organised, and a great route.
I also think it would have been better to have the final finish timing mat at the start finish, not half a mile back in the main grounds, although it was a welcome site, it meant you rolled back the the actual start finish in a bit of a damp squib.
I think the 3 of us in the 1st group back did it in around 5 hrs 10 mins0 -
I can see why they did that with the finish mat. The family cycle was going through that bit and it would've been a little dangerous with small kids there and roadies trying to get through at top speed to shave a few seconds off.
The run down the straight to the Column of Victory was epic. Went from hardly being able to turn the pedals to shooting the cattle grids at 28mph.0 -
Most of the earlier posts echo my own thoughts. I thought the entry fee was a bit steep but I signed up anyway. It was a very good route, especially the last stretch in the grounds. I also agree that the feed station felt way too early. At the finish I was distinctly underwhelmed by the Bike Blenheim event. I had a look round at what was on offer but couldn’t find anything to make me stay – the TT and the Brompton race were long-finished and I didn’t fancy waiting for ages to see a BMX demo.
Fatlarry is right, it wasn’t very good value.0 -
Went from hardly being able to turn the pedals to shooting the cattle grids at 28mph.
It's the duck poo splattered across the road surface that gives you an extra 10 mph.
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stevo1602 wrote:i think the 3 of us in the 1st group back did it in around 5 hrs 10 mins
so how come there are about 15 others apparently did in in 4.25h. i odnt believe that at all. my fellow rider was in that top three and there is no way someone did it 45mins quicker. i dont get their timing. it was a great route, lovely venue, but they need to learn how to run proper sportives....
the marshalling was v patchy. i missed all food stations somehow. and no goody bag at all. it was clear that the sportive riders were second class citizens to the bromptons...0 -
It does say the results are provisional. If you type in the numbers of some of the very quick riders into Phil O'Connors pictures site then I'm not sure they necessarily were that quick, with the greatest of respect still. Although looks can be deceiving and no offence meant.0
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I'm guessing, maybe incorrectly that some of those only did 60 miles. 6th Place in the 100 was on a hybrid with nobbly(ish) tyres :shock:0
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There is definitely something dodgy going on cos I overtook Vinoukorov (Astana 731) the 4.25 hours winner of the 100 on my way round and I came 139th in the 60 miler using my hastily reallocated number of 740 as some booger impersonating me used my original number of 397.
Mind you, he did clock 5 & a half hours for the 100 and my name is down against it giving me huge and unearnt opportunities to wind up my mates. Hurrah! 0 -
I could be wrong about this but it looks to me the fastest times were around the 5:13 mark which I guess came from the lead group in the first wave. Those times posted before maybe should be treated with sceptism and were most likely riders signed up for the 100 who rode the 60. This has happened a few times in sportives I've ridden this year and I think there is a case for timing mats on parts of the course that are unique to the route.
Paul0 -
Hey svzdg
I must have been riding with you then, There was a guy from New Zealand and another guy just a bit younger than me, I was the old git on the Wilier Izoard.
I have looked at all the numbers before us on the photo site, like the others have, and quite rightly they look like they were the 60 milers to me.....no offence to any of them.
They probably entered the 100 mile ride, but just did the 60, so it looks like we were the 1st 3 in.0 -
stevo1602 wrote:Hey svzdg
I must have been riding with you then, There was a guy from New Zealand and another guy just a bit younger than me, I was the old git on the Wilier Izoard.
stevo. correct. the NZ guy is a friend of a friend who said he thought he won it...my friend was on a colnago (al-dopepedallers)...and i was with you lot for a bit until i turned off for the 60mile route..which i then did on my own for 45 miles... i was also on a wilier, but the slightly less exclusive mortirolo version... i gunned the 60miler, but came 11th apparently. however, was first over line!! first time ever.
its a pain really, as nice to see your name (or friend of friends name) in lights, but these dead slow 60milers seemingly winning the 100 in times that roberto heras would be proud of...same happened at the dragon ride. anwyay well done to you hard core bunch because 5.10 ish was an amazing ride for that route.0 -
svzdg wrote:
i gunned the 60miler, but came 11th apparently. however, was first over line!! first time ever.stevo1602 wrote:Hey svzdg
I must have been riding with you then, There was a guy from New Zealand and another guy just a bit younger than me, I was the old git on the Wilier Izoard.
My mate and I were first over the line for the 60, listed as 5th and 6th in the results. We were leaders all the way round with the 60 mile motorbike for company as well, who gave us time gaps etc.0 -
rjsmith wrote:svzdg wrote:
i gunned the 60miler, but came 11th apparently. however, was first over line!! first time ever.stevo1602 wrote:Hey svzdg
I must have been riding with you then, There was a guy from New Zealand and another guy just a bit younger than me, I was the old git on the Wilier Izoard.
My mate and I were first over the line for the 60, listed as 5th and 6th in the results. We were leaders all the way round with the 60 mile motorbike for company as well, who gave us time gaps etc.
Sorry to disappoint you but that's definitely not an error.
I was riding with ten work guys; we got there late and subsequently started at 8.15-8.20. Three of the faster ones hared off after a ferociously-paced first ten miles and kept it going to take 2nd, 3rd and 4th. Gotta love "unofficial office championships"...
To paraphrase, what I'm saying is that they started 20 minutes behind you - just because they weren't up with the lead motorbike doesn't mean they were slower.
And frankly, they're sceptical/doubtful that the guy in first really went round - a whole 13 minutes - quicker, in 2.54, considering they were giving it some the whole way!0 -
Climber_Andy - not disappointed at all as I already knew that. I never said/thought we were quickest but said we were first over the line. Easy to understand that the cycling Weekly guys started later and were quicker overall. Worked that one out as soon as we saw the results and always knew with chip timing it might well be the case.
Being first back was fun though.
Agree about the guy doing it so much quicker than the CW guys0 -
rjsmith wrote:Climber_Andy - not disappointed at all as I already knew that. I never said/thought we were quickest but said we were first over the line. Easy to understand that the cycling Weekly guys started later and were quicker overall. Worked that one out as soon as we saw the results and always knew with chip timing it might well be the case.
Being first back was fun though.
Agree about the guy doing it so much quicker than the CW guys
Oh great, just checking. Must be a great thrill, a proper 'head of the race' feel to it.
Indeed, the course wasn't exactly flat, was it, so 2-54 is really shifting!0 -
Hi svzdg
Ok I got confused there. I deffo did the 100 miles we set off first, and nobody caught us (the first 3). Your right the New Zealand guy was from dope peddlars.
I think all the other posts were talking about the times for the 60 mile ride, even though the results show them as riding the 100 miles. I could be wrong and some guys started behind us and went faster.0
