To those who cut into the Dragon queue...
Comments
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Jesus. I have a solution for a number of the issues identified on this thread. Basically, you just turn up (with your mates if preferred) on any of the other 364 days of the year. Advantages are:
1. No parking issues
2. No waiting around at the start
3. Fewer gel wrappers everywhere
4. Save £35 or whatever, which you can spend on a reusable watch to time yourself
5. Less likely to be crashed into by a dentist on a Pinarello
Wow, bet that took some thought. As a dentist who races and doesn't ride a Pinarello your stereotyping is boring and unimaginative.
The gel wrappers are a problem everywhere, having done the Fred, the etape du dales and the Dragon I can vouch for this and have had the same feelings everytime. The worst thing is it's so obvious who's doing it as I doubt many drivers are taking gels to keep them going (although the number of McDonalds wrappers suggests they get hungry).
Overall I have to say the organisation was disappointing though.0 -
alexjones5 wrote:Wow, bet that took some thought. As a dentist who races and doesn't ride a Pinarello your stereotyping is boring and unimaginative.
Not really - it was actually quite obvious. I'm surprised it doesn't occur to more people, particularly those tho apparently queued for about 2 days to start. I mean, really - why not just bloody start? What exactly do you lose?
Stereotypes are always boring and unimaginative. That's because they often reflect a mundane truth.0 -
alexjones5 wrote:Jesus. I have a solution for a number of the issues identified on this thread. Basically, you just turn up (with your mates if preferred) on any of the other 364 days of the year. Advantages are:
1. No parking issues
2. No waiting around at the start
3. Fewer gel wrappers everywhere
4. Save £35 or whatever, which you can spend on a reusable watch to time yourself
5. Less likely to be crashed into by a dentist on a Pinarello
Wow, bet that took some thought. As a dentist who races and doesn't ride a Pinarello your stereotyping is boring and unimaginative.
The gel wrappers are a problem everywhere, having done the Fred, the etape du dales and the Dragon I can vouch for this and have had the same feelings everytime. The worst thing is it's so obvious who's doing it as I doubt many drivers are taking gels to keep them going (although the number of McDonalds wrappers suggests they get hungry).
Overall I have to say the organisation was disappointing though.
Take my advice and don't rise to this sad troll nutcase. He spends a huge proportion of his twisted time just trying to wind other people up. Like a bad smell, try and pretend it's not there you never know it might just go away. Make a note of the ID and give it a wide berth.
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Pffft, if people are daft enough to pay £35 to wait in line for an hour then do a clubrun they could do on any other day of the year without the wait, then I'm pretty sure they won't be clever enough to avoid internet trolls.0
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Well, my dentist (who is a fine chap - lest I be accused of dentistism), rides a Dogma. So on the extensive sample base we have to date, 50% ride Pinarellos...
Regarding the queue, I asked the question earlier: faced with an hour+ wait in line, why not just bypass the entire queue and simply set off on your ride (note, not 'pushing in' further up the line)? If the organisers are behaving like idiots, why be complicit and act like sheep?0 -
Lots of posts question why those at the back did not just skip the start and ride the course anyway. Quite apart from the timing issue, there is a question of responsibility.
Correctly or not, I will credit the organisers with trying to get the people off as quicky as possible and I sssume that THE POLICE impose a limit on the numbers and intervals between groups.
That limit might be right or wrong, but its what the organisers, and so the entrants, signed up to.
Therefore I can only assume that skipping the start would not be a socially responsible and safe thing to do.
So I waited in line till about lunchtime...and moaned a bit...and probably will not do it agin next year.0 -
I'm a dentist and I ride a Pinarello.
Sod it, no I'm not I'm a bricklayer who rides a Alu Boardman :oops:0 -
I might ride this route on Sunday. I hope the queue isn't too long at the start.0
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Being English I love queuing as well as training up to the event in the anticipation of getting the chance to ride with others over the same course that is testing but without any successful timing from which I could gauge my progress........guess it was a win, win for me
Steve
PS I also had some cash I had to get rid of....thats win, win, win!
PPS I also wanted to wait ages for photo's and get the impression from the organisers that they don't really give a sh!t..thats win,win, win, win oh god I'm bored and this thread is going to run and run.My Marmotte 2012 Blog:
http://steve-lamarmotte2012.blogspot.com/
cervelo R5 VWD
Spesh Roubaix
Genesis Equilibrium
Spesh FSR Stumpy Expert
Spesh M4 Stumpy
Brompton SL2
Giant TCX
Canyon Grandcanyon 29er0 -
thread is going to run and run.
Yep, if there's one event to f$%k up the timing they sure picked a beauty.0 -
Not sure why I just read this whole thread when i've never done a sportive, but I used to work as an event manager and I think thats where the blame resides. Event Management is a difficult job and far too many are good at selling, but poor at delivering the event.0
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I had a good outing earlier this year at the Wiggle No Excuses Sportive, fantastic value for money cost me 0p. I was that impressed that I had considered doing the Wiggle Mendips Sportive but after listening to this lot it seems like the more you pay the less you get :!:0
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Laughing If you send me £30, I won't tell you how long it took you to get around.
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I'm a pilot who rides a Pinarello, can I be a stereotype please? 0
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Pilot Pete wrote:I'm a pilot who rides a Pinarello, can I be a stereotype please?
only if you wear an irvine jacket and a silk scarf.....0 -
Pilot Pete wrote:I'm a pilot who rides a Pinarello, can I be a stereotype please?
Sorry, my advocacy website pinarellos4dentists.com will become unwieldy if I broaden it to include all highly skilled professionals in whom the public place great trust.0 -
Sounds like a private, not military, pilot to me. hardly worth the time of day!!!
I've some agreement though, anyone jumping the queue is a twat, anyone dropping litter is a twat, anyone riding recklessly is a twat.
KISS guys and the worlds a winner. 0 -
After doing this event three times I'm actually falling into the "doing it one of the other 364 days of the year" camp. I love the area but cant stand the queues/costs/bed for the night problems.
Was thinking of doing the old medium route - taking the Bwlch/Rhigos/Bwlch climbs - but does anyone know where there is somewhere reasonable to eat around roughtly Glenneath?
Anymeal under £30 and methinks Im in the money :!:0 -
I do a ride occasionally starting in Treorchy over the rhigos and across to Glyn neath then down to neath over the Bwlch and back to Treorchy I think its about 45 miles from memory, I have ridden it clockwise as well but strangely it seems to be less enjoyable that way ??
The Angel Hotel at Pont Nedd Fechan is only a short way off your route and worth a lunch visit.Its just to the north of Glyn Neath opposite the National Parks waterfall information center .0 -
tripleo wrote:After doing this event three times I'm actually falling into the "doing it one of the other 364 days of the year" camp. I love the area but cant stand the queues/costs/bed for the night problems.
Was thinking of doing the old medium route - taking the Bwlch/Rhigos/Bwlch climbs - but does anyone know where there is somewhere reasonable to eat around roughtly Glenneath?
Anymeal under £30 and methinks Im in the money :!:
For the same sort of distance stay somewhere nearer Cardiff and do the Bwlch and Rhigos but then turn right and try Maerdy Mt and Llanwonno and maybe finish up Penycoedcae. Have a nice Italian in the Trattoria in Talbot Green then straight back on m4 j34 to wherever you need to get back to.0 -
Surfr wrote:Gotta hold my hand up and admit to a bit of queue jumping yesterday. Due to the traffic hold-ups we got a bit delayed so some joined the queue to 'reserve' a place. The rest of us joined as we arrived. We checked with the others behind but obviously it effects everyone to a degree. Sorry, it was bad form and I'd have been mildly miffed if it had happened to me
:oops:
To be fair, 'owning up' pretty much anonymously on a forum doesn't really count for much, does it? 0 -
Disappointing;
Weather
Route
Organisation
Start-line fiasco
Road quality
Litterbugs
Wombles (the wobbly, half-witted types, not the
ones that clean litter - they'd have been handy
for the gel and Powerbar wappers!)
BUT; I'm guessing that the 100 or so whinging on here (me included),
that won't return in 2012 will be replaced by 100 other bright-eyed and
bushy-tailed newbies who will continue to line Lou Lusardi/Verenti/Wiggle's
pockets with silver until people get bored with this event and save up to go
and do some proper cycling in France/Italy/Spain where they have proper
weather, proper roads and well-organised Sportives that make the Dragon
look like the shambolic bun-fight that it has become :evil:
My options for next year will NOT include the Dragon - 3 in a row is
more than enough, tvm, but I'll be off to spend my Euros in sunnier climes.
Quebrantahuesos?
Marmotte?
L'Eroica?
Decisions, decisions..........If Wales was flattened out, it'd be bigger than England!
Planet X Ti Sportive for Sportives & tours
Orange Alpine 160 for Afan,Alps & dodging trees
Singlespeed Planet X Kaffenback for dodging potholes
An On-One Inbred for hard-tail shenanigans...0 -
If you want to stay in the UK I can recommend the Fred Whitton and the Etape du Dales, apart from the weather (which is out of anyone's control) both events were excellent. A lot harder than the Dragon but excellent organisation, marshalling and feed stops (cup of tea, malt bread with jam and a banana before Hardknott).
Plus some of the best scenery the UK has to offer0 -
About time these condor riding dentists got off this forum and did some dentistry...0
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tripleo wrote:After doing this event three times I'm actually falling into the "doing it one of the other 364 days of the year" camp. I love the area but cant stand the queues/costs/bed for the night problems.
Was thinking of doing the old medium route - taking the Bwlch/Rhigos/Bwlch climbs - but does anyone know where there is somewhere reasonable to eat around roughtly Glenneath?
Anymeal under £30 and methinks Im in the money :!:
As a Club we sometimes do a "Half Dragon" which is roughly what your talking about but instead of eating in Glyneath we continue over Cimla and eat in the Cafe at Afan Argoed Visitor Centre.
Full of MTBers but you cannot have everything A punctured bicycle
On a hillside desolate
Will nature make a man of me yet ?0 -
rdt wrote:Pilot Pete wrote:I'm a pilot who rides a Pinarello, can I be a stereotype please?
Sorry, my advocacy website pinarellos4dentists.com will become unwieldy if I broaden it to include all highly skilled professionals in whom the public place great trust. 0 -
jet26 wrote:About time these condor riding dentists got off this forum and did some dentistry...
Not sure I feel comfortable with all these anti - dentite comments.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ythrdCsOFJU0 -
Hi
I can totally appreciate everyones frustrations with the down sides of the ride
However for me personally i enjoy riding with so many like minded people and the feeling that we all belong to something special, so for me it's worth the cash
Having driven five hours from a slightly less hilly Norfolk i am always blown away by the stunning scenery and challenging routes, something we do not get in Norwich the whole weekend is one that both me and my club mates look forward to each year
I think the local riders may forget how great the terrain is as it's on your doorstep and available when ever you want to pop out for a ride
Being a reasonably expierienced sportivester i have seen increasing ques at each one i do due to there popularity the Cheshire Cat this year was the pits, the ones that seem to get it right are the ones where you can go when ever suits you
I got to the start at 7.15am as i anticpated delays, stayed next door in the travel inn and drove back straight after
I cannot afford to go abroad to do a Marmotte or Etape so i will be back next year
On another note i thought the helpers at the feed stations where top notch and extremley helpfull, so thanks to them0
