Badass

maddog 2
maddog 2 Posts: 8,114
edited August 2016 in Sportives/audaxes/training rides
see http://bowlandbadass.com/2014/04/06/the ... s-again-2/

Runs this Sat, just not quite in the same way we ran it last year though. Anyone who wants to have a pop at the daddy, get yourself to the Lakes Doors unit at 6:30am on Sat. I'll be there (takes deep breath...)
Facts are meaningless, you can use facts to prove anything that's remotely true! - Homer

Comments

  • bjj.andy.w
    bjj.andy.w Posts: 111
    I'll be there also, looking like a rabbit trapped in the car headlights crying for my mummy. That's before I even start :|
    When you go to the ground you are in my world. My world is the ocean. I am the shark and most people don't know how to swim
  • maddog 2
    maddog 2 Posts: 8,114
    good effort Andy. You have earned your stripes young man.
    Facts are meaningless, you can use facts to prove anything that's remotely true! - Homer
  • bjj.andy.w
    bjj.andy.w Posts: 111
    Cheers Maddog :) It's one hell of a route. I thought the Fred Whitton was a hard ride but the Bowland Baddass is on a whole new level !
    When you go to the ground you are in my world. My world is the ocean. I am the shark and most people don't know how to swim
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    Is this event another casualty?
    left the forum March 2023
  • slowmart
    slowmart Posts: 4,516
    ugo.santalucia wrote:
    Is this event another casualty?


    https://bowlandbadass.wordpress.com/

    It seems the event has now gone and from the narrative from the sight it seems it was a self serve event. The route is still available for your GPS though.....
    “Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to cycle and he will realize fishing is stupid and boring”

    Desmond Tutu
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    Slowmart wrote:
    ugo.santalucia wrote:
    Is this event another casualty?


    https://bowlandbadass.wordpress.com/

    It seems the event has now gone and from the narrative from the sight it seems it was a self serve event. The route is still available for your GPS though.....

    No GPS here... :?

    It seems to me there are only 2-3 tough sportives left in the country... some are sold as tough but seem rather underwhelming when you look at the profile
    left the forum March 2023
  • Gavinus
    Gavinus Posts: 14
    While not a sportive anymore a few of the more extreme masochists still ride it once a year. I believe that Honeybadger99 is one of them. Maybe PM him to see if there is anything going on this year.

    Something less extreme in the same area but still relatively hard is Le Terrier.
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    Gavinus wrote:
    Something less extreme in the same area but still relatively hard is Le Terrier.

    Cancelled.

    I am a bit worried... the all movement is contracting very rapidly... casualties include some events we can definitively do without and others that will be missed.

    Right now, the only two events which are challenging enough are FWC and EDD, then there is a small (100 entrants) ride in wales (The Monster) which I am not quite sure how it will survive with those tiny numbers. Having seen the profile of other events in Yorkshire and Wales, they seem one or two notches down on those

    Is it the London Ride 100 /Velothon Wales effect? people only want to do mass events these days?
    left the forum March 2023
  • Gavinus
    Gavinus Posts: 14
    I don't think that it is just the high mass events like Velothon and Ride London that have caused this change. I've ridden both and had fun on the closed roads but I'm not particularly bothered about doing them again. In fact I think that Velothon Wales discourages people from doing more sportives.

    I think that part of Le Terrier's problem was that the date changed, it has been on the first weekend of June in recent years and perhaps the swap to the 19th this year did not help. And lets be honest it was never heavily advertised to anyone who hasn't used Si Entries. Hopefully it will be back next year since it was my favourite sportive and the only one I've done more than once.

    The proliferation of business oriented sportives like those from Wiggle frankly dominate the mind share of the typical new sportive rider. And now we are seeing that even smaller 'commercial' sportives are struggling because they can't keep the entrance numbers high.

    The main problem is most events can't offer something unique such as closed roads or significantly altering the route that keeps people coming back year after year.

    In the future there will be a few notable events that are hard like Fred Whitton for those who want a real challenge, and there will be the likes of Ride London that will probably never stop. I think that a lot of the middle ground sportives, even those run by companies will disappear over the next few years. I just hope that smaller volunteer based events do a better job of penetrating the cycling community.
  • slowmart
    slowmart Posts: 4,516
    Most things in life are cyclical and that's not a poor attempt at a pun.

    My local club ran a 66 mile sportive, entry was £12 and we had just under 400 riders doing either a 66 or 33 mile route with a couple of feed stops and a timing chip. The number was a high point for the seven year old event so while the larger more commercial sportive operators will find increased difficulty attracting numbers a more community based model will pick up the bottom end of the market and will act as a feeder to the more challenging events.

    At the end of the day its a commercial market which suffers from over supply.
    “Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to cycle and he will realize fishing is stupid and boring”

    Desmond Tutu
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    I guess I will stick with the FWC if I get in or the EDD if I don't. Might givethe Monster a try if it doesn't fold next year. I like doing sportives as a way to explore new areas, but I need motivation to train and it seems the only challenging ones left are there. I looked at the south west, as it's packed with climbs, but the events which are left seem to selectively avoid the tough ones, providing a watered down ride catering for beginners. Even the route of the Tour of Wessex only seems challenging as the sum of the three days.

    Oh well...
    left the forum March 2023
  • dish_dash
    dish_dash Posts: 5,647
    Shame about Le Terrier... was on my list to do but hadn't got around to it. Hope it revives next year.

    Ugo... for the South West what about Dartmoor Classic? http://www.dartmoorclassic.co.uk/index. ... nfo/grande

    Tour of Wessex is good fun and I'd recommend it.

    Also, have you looked at White Rose Classic. Local club organised and a great vibe. http://www.ilkleycyclingclub.org.uk/whi ... ic-2015-2/
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    dish_dash wrote:

    Ugo... for the South West what about Dartmoor Classic? http://www.dartmoorclassic.co.uk/index. ... nfo/grande
    I did look into it... it seems to pack a lot of vertical metres out of not many big climbs, I fear it's an up and down all day course but never really going up or down, if you know what I mean

    grande-profile-a.png


    dish_dash wrote:
    Also, have you looked at White Rose Classic. Local club organised and a great vibe. http://www.ilkleycyclingclub.org.uk/whi ... ic-2015-2/

    Similar ride to the Etape du Dales, but easier... on balance I'd probably ride the EDD again, which also is very good
    left the forum March 2023
  • dish_dash
    dish_dash Posts: 5,647
    Agree about Dartmoor being up and down, but that's what the terrain is like. With some damn sharp uphills.

    WRC only very marginally easier... height gain 100ft less than EDD and longer by 5 miles.

    Ugo - I do recommend you give it a shot. Hits all the things you go on about - organised by volunteers, local club, non-commercial, excellent route, great feed stations, competitively priced (only £30), and a charity contribution. Still got a couple of weeks to sign up and I'll see you there ;)
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    I'm at the Eroica the weekend before... :-)
    left the forum March 2023
  • dish_dash
    dish_dash Posts: 5,647
    ha ha fair enough... see you next year then ;)
  • sebbyp
    sebbyp Posts: 106
    I'm mainly interested in tough rides now, flat just doesnt do it.
    Found out about the PEAK EPIC and bagged the last entry place.
    103miles 4000m. guess I'll find out come Sunday...
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    dish_dash wrote:
    ha ha fair enough... see you next year then ;)

    If Yorkshire, will probably stick to the EDD... it's earlier in the year and gives me the kick in the butt I need to get out and train when it's cold and wet
    left the forum March 2023
  • RallyBiker
    RallyBiker Posts: 378
    Maybe worth you making the trip to the west coast of Wales to tackle the Big Dog?

    http://www.welshcyclingevents.co.uk/big_dog.asp
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,312
    RallyBiker wrote:
    Maybe worth you making the trip to the west coast of Wales to tackle the Big Dog?

    http://www.welshcyclingevents.co.uk/big_dog.asp

    Nice... and they have included Bwlch Y Groes, which makes it more exciting!
    left the forum March 2023
  • Escher303
    Escher303 Posts: 342
    The Badass was cancelled for reasons not to do with money or attendance so doesn't really fit in with the others that are now defunct.

    Real shame about Le Terrier. It's my local one and I've ridden it twice. Brilliant route and fantastic organisation. Just never got the big numbers. The last 40 miles of the Roeburndale finish are epic and put Hardknott to shame. Hopefully it'll be back.

    The Badass will get ridden this year I'm sure, there's always a couple of rides of it each summer. Not sure I want to do it again though, it's really hard!
  • joe2008
    joe2008 Posts: 1,531
    There is a small sportive near me on July 3: http://www.pushyourselfevents.co.uk/The ... rtive.html

    It's a hell of a good route around the best roads of Exmoor. 100 miles, 12,000 feet of climbing. Should be tough enough for you ugo.
  • slowmart
    slowmart Posts: 4,516
    I rode 122 miles and climbed 6500 ft yesterday which is the farthest and the most elevation I've climbed during a day which left me totally goosed.

    I'm the big 5 0 next year and would like to do a holiday as a celebration in the Dolomites and the majority of holidays of a week or so have 50-60k of climbing. I bottled entering the Fred this year as I felt i wasn't strong enough but I have that itch and it need scratching.

    So using my birthday as a driver what do I need to do other than lose about a stone in weight which will put me at 10% body fat.
    “Give a man a fish and feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and feed him for a lifetime. Teach a man to cycle and he will realize fishing is stupid and boring”

    Desmond Tutu
  • norvernrob
    norvernrob Posts: 1,448
    sebbyp wrote:
    I'm mainly interested in tough rides now, flat just doesnt do it.
    Found out about the PEAK EPIC and bagged the last entry place.
    103miles 4000m. guess I'll find out come Sunday...

    I've followed the medium route a few times (not done the actual sportive), and that's a tough few hours with 7300ft over 63 miles, so the full course will be challenging for most people. It's a beautiful course too, some sketchy descents and surfaces on the single track roads though so watch out for people over doing it.
  • honeybadger99
    honeybadger99 Posts: 46
    Did the badass again last Sunday on my jack jones. Still the (unofficial) hardest sportive route I've ever done. The Fred Whit is just playing at it :wink:

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