Meon Valley Riser
rogerthecat
Posts: 669
Just to say what a great ride, a little lumpy for some but designed and run Well; Well done guys for putting it together.
RTC
RTC
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Comments
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Didn't rate it.
- masses of intersections, including numerous right turns.
- very poor after race support for the money - no water, no sinks with water to wash, horrendous diluted cupa-soup and cheap white bread etc. etc.
Sure it took some organising but really not a good event at all I'm afraid.0 -
Overall I think this was a pretty good event - I didn't hang around afterwards so I can't comment on the quality of the bread/soup - not something that's at the top of my priorities anyway. Loved the hilly section to the NW of Petersfield - some lovely descents down wooded valleys - not an area I have ridden on before.
Roads were generally good - you always expect some of the little back lanes to be full of pot-holes so they were no big surprise. The one really bad road surface was on the Clanfield through Hambledon to World's End section - horrible bobbly rubbish all the way. It would be nice to see a different route avoiding that next year.
Obviously quite hilly - but that was to be expected given the area, and suited me as I snapped my front gear lever off (cheapo Campag black plastic) after only 20 miles so spent the next 68 miles twiddling manically.0 -
I have to say I wouldn't do it again: the roads were simply awful, awash with gravel, potholes and mud. Even many of the main roads were very badly surfaced.
And the food at the feedstops was poor, just flapjack and bananas, nothing savoury at all.
The 'food' afterwards was a joke I'm afraid.
Bring your cyclocross bikes next time!0 -
Hi - my first sportive so nothing to judge it against, but it was it was an enjoyable (well, in hindsight, some of the climbs were a bit of a grind at the time) event and a reminder of how hilly the Meon Valley can be. Road surfaces were pretty much as expected for this time of year, and I was pretty self-sufficient food wise so never sampled the oganiser's wares.
My time will be dire when i try to find it out, due to a lack of training (this was only my third time on the bike this year) and stopping to help someone change a tube, but with the event so local to me I was keen to support it.Chocolate makes your clothes shrink0 -
I punctured a couple of times and then ran on a flat/nearly flat rear after which I couldn't be ar5ed crossing the line - all the same I got 4h 53m on my garmin which would have been the fastest time.
I've done loads of these events and I know they are a huge amount of work so I don't want to slag off, but in the spirit of constructive feedback:
- poorly planned route with far, far too many intersections. Really ridiculous in fact. Many of these were right turns - a no, no in sportifs.
- very poor nutrional support during and after the race. e.g. no water after the race.
- no water in which to wash - even the hands and face, after the race.
- a small number of the intersections / roads were dangerous due to gravel, though i'm more ambivalent here, as you get this a lot at this time of year.
- timing chip - please not an A5 sized piece of card on the front of the bike! use a more discrete system.
It's the first event I've come away from thinking - "that was run to maximise profits and they cut corners".0 -
As the main organiser of the event, it's not great to read some of the comments - but totally appreciate constructive feedback. Our focus when planning the route(s) was to offer riders quiet roads and some great climbing and views. It does take a lot of time and effort to plan these events and we studied the area lots. Following the event though, I already have some ideas improve the long route for next year.
Having said this, we have also had some very positive feedback from riders saying how much they loved the event. I suppose this highlights the beauty of opinion.
I do find it interesting that in general positive feedback is given on the day of the event, and people only seem to post the negative on forums. I would be more than happy to address issues that people may have on the day - we only want people to come away happy.
I totally agree about the timing chips being on A5 - I take part in lots of sportives and wouldn't have liked this. These however were supplied by the timing company. We are looking to use the chip stickers that go on riders helmets next time.
Catering wise, we include food after the event which lots of other events do not do. Perhaps a couple more options at the feed stations will be appropriate next time.
In summary, as much as it isn't nice to read bad things about your own events, it is useful to help improve things the next time around.
Cheers0 -
Renster wrote:As the main organiser of the event, it's not great to read some of the comments - but totally appreciate constructive feedback. Our focus when planning the route(s) was to offer riders quiet roads and some great climbing and views. It does take a lot of time and effort to plan these events and we studied the area lots. Following the event though, I already have some ideas improve the long route for next year.
Having said this, we have also had some very positive feedback from riders saying how much they loved the event. I suppose this highlights the beauty of opinion.
I do find it interesting that in general positive feedback is given on the day of the event, and people only seem to post the negative on forums. I would be more than happy to address issues that people may have on the day - we only want people to come away happy.
I totally agree about the timing chips being on A5 - I take part in lots of sportives and wouldn't have liked this. These however were supplied by the timing company. We are looking to use the chip stickers that go on riders helmets next time.
Catering wise, we include food after the event which lots of other events do not do. Perhaps a couple more options at the feed stations will be appropriate next time.
In summary, as much as it isn't nice to read bad things about your own events, it is useful to help improve things the next time around.
Cheers
renster - fair play to you for coming on here and accepting the feedback in the spirit it is intended. I know it's plenty of work doing these events, so thank you very much for your efforts.
I did consider giving verbal feedback on the day but though it better to reflect on it and see if it wasn't just the punctured that hacked me off!
Don't get me wrong, there were some really great stretches of road and nice climbs and descents.
If there's a single thing you really should change IMO it's to very significantly reduce the number of intersections and particularly right turns.0 -
Cheers wildmoustache. With so much on offer out there feedback is crucial. Your comments are duly noted.
We are thinking of taking riders down Stoner Hill next time to the feed station. We will also probably cut out the section that goes through Hawkley, which is the part with the most potholes and gravel. These winters that we have been having have taken their toll.0 -
I also did the Riser ride on Sunday but wasn't going for a time as riding with a mixed ability group. I was a bit surprised that there was no route card+emergency telephone number with the pack as I've done a number of sportives and locals often like to take down signage. The pasta based soup at the finish wasn't quite what I was expecting and would have been very disappointing if the weather had been bad. Perhaps forget the soup and give everyone a nice ham roll at the finish (sorry veggies!). Staff manning stands were all very friendly. Roads were gravelly but expected that for this part of the world and after coming off before in this area was taking it very carefully. Timing chip on reverse of number is fine with me. Riding colleagues didn't like the flapjacks but I found them ok.
Overall it wasn't a great course for a good time but a lovely route and a good early season ride to get miles in your legs.0
