what is a Sportive

LesHoops

As in the title, what exactly is a Sportive event?????????

Smokin Joe

A timed mass participation ride, mostly with feed stops and mechanical backup. Organised in the main by sadists who keep trying to outdo each other as to who can find the most 25% hills in any 100 miles.

Pross

It's a mass participation ride over a set course with all the organisation that you would expect for a race. They are often timed officially but I don't think results are supposed to published in order to try to keep it distinct from a race. Think organised charity ride but without the sponsorship (although you could always get some if you wanted). They can be a good way for new cyclists to get involved in organised riding. Distances are often set at landmark distances such as 50 miles, 100km or 100 miles with most events having a choice of distances.

Chip \'oyler

It's an organised ride that everyone thinks is a race

geoff_ss

A very expensive Audax. for those who can't read maps or feed themselves :twisted:

Geoff

andy162

I'd echo all of the above. If you fancy having a go, do it! Pick your event carefully as some are much more difficult than others. CW are publishing a planner next week so you can pick out any you fancy having a go at.

Be aware that some of the bigger events sell out in hours. Etape du Dales is full after a few hours. White Rose Classic & Challenge (2 different events) are open for weeks.

Don't listen to certain naysayers either...none are easy & if you like a challenge give one a try. I race, but few if any road races offer the climbing opportunites a sportive does. I admit tho that I do treat them as a bit of a race to be honest & they are great training.

For me the Ryedale Rumble or Fred Whitton Challenge are the ones best avoided unless you are in top climbing form, Etape du Dales ( or any Dales one) are much more doable in most cases.

Enjoy!

Scrumple

Hope C+ does an honest difficulty rating.

I want some to pencil in as a newcomer... to get my new bike broken in!

Chrissz

Results are often published on an excel spreadsheet - you can check your own time and, if you are so inclined, you can re-order them by time so that you can then compare your time to other peoples

No prizes for fastest times (usually) but plenty of kudos

idreamoftailwinds

Try this link Sportive

Infamous

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

Gesmi

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

So what?

CiB

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

Fat bloke wanting to ride with like-minded individuals at my level not a bunch of racing snakes on uber-bikes, with the benefit of marshalls on junctions, rest halts with food & drink freely available, and a means to compare times at the end.

I can do a century without much difficulty, but doing it solo against doing it with others is a world of difference. The Blenheim Sportiv 100 miler in October was the best thing I've done on a bike in years. And it was £27, not £40.

Anonymous

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

Isn't that the rest of the Astana team after Contador and Vinokourov ?

Anonymous

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

What a flaming post? Disgraceful and ignorant.

Any form of cycling enjoyment should be encouraged....by all cyclists....especially here in the UK...whether that be Club runs,Races,Audaxes,Sportives.Track etc

This 'infamous' idiot causes divide and elitism...

Disgusted.

STEFANOS4784

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

Oh deary me, i think you may pay for that :arrow:

Mark Alexander

to be fair, there are fat blokes in Silence-Lotto kit too.
It's not just those there are fat and slow blokes in Ogmore Valley Wheelers kit too (me) all out for a great ride up some hills to make the challenge what we want. Sure it's £40. sure some are faster, but I passed a guy on the Dragon ride on a unicycle. I did Marmotte and got a load of cash for my chosen charity.

it's good for everyone, the 'racing snakes' as a change of scenery and mammoth group ride, to the other end of the spectrum. The aim is fun non competitive ride.

oldwelshman

They are getting too commercial.
Better to do the reliability rides and provide your own food and dont worry about marshalls
Did not do one this year, did a few previous years.
May do Italian one next year, possibly Dragon just to have a weekend out in my tent

Infamous

RICHYBOYcp wrote:

Any form of cycling enjoyment should be encouraged....by all cyclists....especially here in the UK...whether that be Club runs,Races,Audaxes,Sportives.Track etc

You're right, especially when it's for charity.... which some sportives are.

CiB

Don't agree. Why should riding your bike for your own pleasure & benefit invoke the need to badger friends, relatives & colleagues into stumping up some cash? Sponsorship has started to bug me - other people are expected to stump up for some charity that they probably don't want to give to, so that we can go off on a ride that we would have done anyway and any kudos in raising the money goes not to the people who donated the dosh, but to the rider who's been off doing his hobby anyway.

If you want to give to charity great, do it. Expecting others to assist you in your hobby is a bit much I reckon.

Goes off muttering & grumbling to self....

sagalout

I agree about some charity rides, but it depends on the event. The Colomba Chemo one a few weeks back was £15 entry, all of which went to charity, but there was no sponsor forms or anything.

Mark Alexander

Chris, If you feel that you don't want to give to that charity, fine, don't. It's you who is feeling pressured. Not everyone doing these ride for charity, I've ridden the Dragon Ride twice and the Tour of the black mountains without feeling the need to raise money.

My only objection is to the London Marathon theory that you can run 'for' a charity as long as you can guarantee a minimum amount.

Chip \'oyler

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

You pissed off that there's no more Astana XXXXL kit for you now?

Infamous

It's slimming.

oldwelshman

ChrisInBicester wrote:

Don't agree. Why should riding your bike for your own pleasure & benefit invoke the need to badger friends, relatives & colleagues into stumping up some cash? Sponsorship has started to bug me - other people are expected to stump up for some charity that they probably don't want to give to, so that we can go off on a ride that we would have done anyway and any kudos in raising the money goes not to the people who donated the dosh, but to the rider who's been off doing his hobby anyway.

If you want to give to charity great, do it. Expecting others to assist you in your hobby is a bit much I reckon.

Goes off muttering & grumbling to self....

Thats a bit harsh.
Some organisers donate money to charities others are purely commercial so good on the ones who donate.
If riders want to raise money riding so what? People generally prefer to make donations to some one if it involves a challenge and maybe 100 miles to you is not but to many sportive riders it is a very big challenge.


I rode to PAris for charity for personal reasons and raised a lot of money as some charities are totally dependent on funding this way. It was not much of a challenge for me to ride it personally but I met several great people, just regular non cyclists raising money for all sorts of reasons, very hubmling.

geoff_ss

oldwelshman wrote:

ChrisInBicester wrote:

Don't agree. Why should riding your bike for your own pleasure & benefit invoke the need to badger friends, relatives & colleagues into stumping up some cash? Sponsorship has started to bug me - other people are expected to stump up for some charity that they probably don't want to give to, so that we can go off on a ride that we would have done anyway and any kudos in raising the money goes not to the people who donated the dosh, but to the rider who's been off doing his hobby anyway.

If you want to give to charity great, do it. Expecting others to assist you in your hobby is a bit much I reckon.

Goes off muttering & grumbling to self....

Thats a bit harsh.
Some organisers donate money to charities others are purely commercial so good on the ones who donate.
If riders want to raise money riding so what? People generally prefer to make donations to some one if it involves a challenge and maybe 100 miles to you is not but to many sportive riders it is a very big challenge.


I rode to PAris for charity for personal reasons and raised a lot of money as some charities are totally dependent on funding this way. It was not much of a challenge for me to ride it personally but I met several great people, just regular non cyclists raising money for all sorts of reasons, very humbling.

I can relate to that. My wife and I did a local charity ride from Ripley (Derbyshire) to Skegness on our tandem. The 90 miles wasn't that much of a challenge for us then (it would be now) and we arrived about an hour before anyone else but the most remarkable effort was by a young woman on a shopper complete with basket. I think she took nearly twice as long as us but she wasn't a regular cyclist and was a on very unsuitable bike. I thought she was fantastic.

Geoff

sherer

surely the point of the charity rides it is reaches out to people who might not have given any money otherwise.

I did one this year and if it wasn't for the event I wouldn't have given them any money. The only problem is with events like London - Brighton where if you want to do it every year you have to keep asking the same group of people all the time

roger_merriman

Geoff_SS wrote:

oldwelshman wrote:

ChrisInBicester wrote:

Don't agree. Why should riding your bike for your own pleasure & benefit invoke the need to badger friends, relatives & colleagues into stumping up some cash? Sponsorship has started to bug me - other people are expected to stump up for some charity that they probably don't want to give to, so that we can go off on a ride that we would have done anyway and any kudos in raising the money goes not to the people who donated the dosh, but to the rider who's been off doing his hobby anyway.

If you want to give to charity great, do it. Expecting others to assist you in your hobby is a bit much I reckon.

Goes off muttering & grumbling to self....

Thats a bit harsh.
Some organisers donate money to charities others are purely commercial so good on the ones who donate.
If riders want to raise money riding so what? People generally prefer to make donations to some one if it involves a challenge and maybe 100 miles to you is not but to many sportive riders it is a very big challenge.


I rode to PAris for charity for personal reasons and raised a lot of money as some charities are totally dependent on funding this way. It was not much of a challenge for me to ride it personally but I met several great people, just regular non cyclists raising money for all sorts of reasons, very humbling.

I can relate to that. My wife and I did a local charity ride from Ripley (Derbyshire) to Skegness on our tandem. The 90 miles wasn't that much of a challenge for us then (it would be now) and we arrived about an hour before anyone else but the most remarkable effort was by a young woman on a shopper complete with basket. I think she took nearly twice as long as us but she wasn't a regular cyclist and was a on very unsuitable bike. I thought she was fantastic.

Geoff

I saw and thought same doing last years Capital to Coast, lots of folks on bikes dragged out of sheds, yes they struggled up anything over 5% but they did it.

CiB

sherer wrote:

...The only problem is with events like London - Brighton where if you want to do it every year you have to keep asking the same group of people all the time

That actually was my point (and I was in a reeet grumpy mood yesterday ), and is the reason I don't bother to do L2B and other charity rides anymore - repeat entry to L2B is effectively conditional on getting enough sponsorship, and the circle of people in my work / social / family life is small enough for me to be aware that the same people are being 'invited' to stump up some cash for what seems to be me having a jolly. The last time I did L2B I didn't ask anyone for sponsorship, just stuck in an amount similar to what I'd raised the prev year.

Nuggs

RICHYBOYcp wrote:

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

What a flaming post? Disgraceful and ignorant.

Any form of cycling enjoyment should be encouraged....by all cyclists....especially here in the UK...whether that be Club runs,Races,Audaxes,Sportives.Track etc

This 'infamous' idiot causes divide and elitism...

Disgusted.

Great, another sense of humour donor graces the pages of BR.

I think he was joking but you may want to check your blood pressure.

Infamous

Is it my eyes, or is there a fat bloke wearing astana kit in ChrisInBicester's avatar?

Nuggs

Nuggs wrote:

RICHYBOYcp wrote:

Infamous wrote:

Fat blokes in Astana kit, paying £40 each to ride on public roads slowly.

What a flaming post? Disgraceful and ignorant.

Any form of cycling enjoyment should be encouraged....by all cyclists....especially here in the UK...whether that be Club runs,Races,Audaxes,Sportives.Track etc

This 'infamous' idiot causes divide and elitism...

Disgusted.

Great, another sense of humour donor graces the pages of BR.

I think he was joking but you may want to check your blood pressure.

I'm going to look like a complete tit if you tell me you were joking too.

My own petard is ready for detonation...