£49 for the Tour de Yorkshire

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Comments

  • Tjgoodhew
    Tjgoodhew Posts: 628
    markhewitt1978 wrote:
    It's a very well known phenomenon. I forget the exact name of it, probably Cost / Value fallacy or something ;)

    But it happens quite often with products where if it's sold at a low price to encourage people to purchase it, then sales are relatively low as people perceive it to be of low value. But charge a high price for exactly the same item and people will automatically assume extra value with the purchase, and believe it to be more prestigious etc.

    I remember one test they did with food where they told people the value of the item / drink they were consuming vs those who didn't know the price. Those who knew the price did have a different physical reaction and got more enjoyment from the high priced food rather than the low price. For those who didn't know the price there was little difference.

    It's not an easy one to break out of even if you know you're doing it as we all use shortcuts when comparing purchases as we can't possibly know everything about each before we buy. So we look at brand and we look at price. If I'm presented with a £250 TV and a £500 TV I would; of course assume the £500 is better even if I don't have anything to back that up.

    The most perfect example is Apple technology. An iphone is not as technically advanced as some of the Android phones from 2/3 years ago. But because Apple have created this elite image people will pay more for a inferior product and think nothing of it.

    When i see these events and think they sound great. But after 5 minutes of thinking about it i realise they are stupidly overpriced. On the flip side i have paid about £20 to do the Tour of Flanders.
    Cannondale Caad8
    Canyon Aeroad 8.0

    http://www.strava.com/athletes/goodhewt
  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Posts: 79,667
    Am not sure its worth comparing UK events to European ones on a cost, infrastructure or culture basis.

    If it were a nice day in Yorkshire and the event was half decent I think a lot of people (especially if you live fairly near) would rather be mildly ripped off than go abroad to save £30 on the entry.
    The infrastructure and culture are what they are so don't lose any sleep over those.
  • rodgers73
    rodgers73 Posts: 2,626
    Yorkshire in early May isn't guaranteed to be enjoying pleasant weather. Not near the North Sea coast. You can all rest easy in the knowledge that those who pay for it will be rain-soaked and wind-blasted.
  • markhewitt1978
    markhewitt1978 Posts: 7,614
    They are talking about there being a ballot etc so it's looking like it'll get sold out.

    Leeds isn't exactly what I'd call a coastal town...
  • phreak
    phreak Posts: 2,953
    Seems very common. I notice that the Hell of Ashdown is £30 this year. It's a nice traditional season opener, but considering it's short enough to not really require additional food and the roads are ones often ridden in training, I'm not sure that kind of money is at all good value. Sure it'll be sold out though so plenty must do. Each to their own and all that.
  • markhewitt1978
    markhewitt1978 Posts: 7,614
    phreak wrote:
    Seems very common. I notice that the Hell of Ashdown is £30 this year. It's a nice traditional season opener, but considering it's short enough to not really require additional food and the roads are ones often ridden in training, I'm not sure that kind of money is at all good value. Sure it'll be sold out though so plenty must do. Each to their own and all that.

    I really liked sportives when I started out, but now that my range is 60-80 miles from home and from there I can get to the Pennines it's less attractive.

    If the event is local then chances are it'll be on roads I've ridden before, so not that interesting. But if it's further away then it's going to be a longish drive to get there.
  • phreak
    phreak Posts: 2,953
    markhewitt1978 wrote:
    phreak wrote:
    Seems very common. I notice that the Hell of Ashdown is £30 this year. It's a nice traditional season opener, but considering it's short enough to not really require additional food and the roads are ones often ridden in training, I'm not sure that kind of money is at all good value. Sure it'll be sold out though so plenty must do. Each to their own and all that.

    I really liked sportives when I started out, but now that my range is 60-80 miles from home and from there I can get to the Pennines it's less attractive.

    If the event is local then chances are it'll be on roads I've ridden before, so not that interesting. But if it's further away then it's going to be a longish drive to get there.

    Aye, there have been comparisons earlier with continental rides, but for me, the beauty of a granfondo is that we usually make a holiday of it and do a week or so of riding in the area, with the event at the end of it. So not only are the events themselves usually better value, but you also get some cracking riding in the days around the event, with those days often as enjoyable, if not more so, than the event itself.

    This is purely anecdotal/speculative, but I wonder if people start out on sportives and then move on to either racing or continental events?
  • mrushton
    mrushton Posts: 5,182
    Audax - that's all you need to know. A lot of people have garmins so can put the route into that. The camaraderie is good, it's always interesting to see that someone riding what appears to be pieces of gas pipe held together with a carradice bag actually hammers round the course in some crazy time. Costs are generally sub-£10 but you don't get a medal/jersey/goodie bag!
    M.Rushton
  • northpole
    northpole Posts: 1,499
    phreak wrote:
    Seems very common. I notice that the Hell of Ashdown is £30 this year. It's a nice traditional season opener, but considering it's short enough to not really require additional food and the roads are ones often ridden in training, I'm not sure that kind of money is at all good value. Sure it'll be sold out though so plenty must do. Each to their own and all that.

    Hell of Ashdown not only charges for the event (which in itself is fair enough) but its timing is such that the weather can more or less render it unsafe. Last year I'd like to see the stats for number of people entered vs number who started vs number who finished - the allure of riding on sheet ice wore off on many folks who I passed walking back to the start in a state of abject dispair/ anger (the event should have been cancelled/ postponed until later in the day).

    Peter
  • ugo.santalucia
    ugo.santalucia Posts: 28,313
    mrushton wrote:
    Audax - that's all you need to know. A lot of people have garmins so can put the route into that. The camaraderie is good, it's always interesting to see that someone riding what appears to be pieces of gas pipe held together with a carradice bag actually hammers round the course in some crazy time. Costs are generally sub-£10 but you don't get a medal/jersey/goodie bag!

    I've done a few Audaxes... I wouldn't say they are anything special to be honest. Cheap and cheerful rides with no signage, zee atmosphere and not much of the camaraderie you mention... I question why one has to pay under 10 pounds for that either, if we are looking at the penny. One of them had free food at the finish and that was nice and probably worth the entry fee, others had nothing.
    left the forum March 2023
  • charliew87
    charliew87 Posts: 371
    Thought this was the NSPCC Tour of Yorkshire being slagged off for a bit (http://www.tourofengland.co.uk/tours/tour-of-yorkshire/)

    Just realised that isn't the case...highly recommend that if anyone is looking for a good ride in Yorkshire. Fairly pricy but includes support cars, motorbikes, cameramen, top food & drink and part closed roads and it's for charity.
    Canyon AL Ultimate 9.0
  • js14
    js14 Posts: 198
    bernithebiker wrote:
    Easy to get to (Brittany), it only costs 26 Euros. Roads are CLOSED, which is the way it should be when you have 7000 riders, and all of the 26 E goes to charity.

    http://www.laplbmuco.org
    Thanks for the tip, Bernie. Incidentally, the organisers say that French taxpayers can reclaim part of the entry fee as it is a charitable donation, which makes it a real bargain at 10€ for the locals!

    For anyone wanting to combine a trip to France with one or two sportives, the site Velo101 has a calendar that seem pretty comprehensive : http://www.velo101.com/cyclosport/calendrier.

    Forgive me for mentioning a local sportive, the Fleche Normande in Cabourg on June 7th, which could be combined with a weekend visit to the D-Day Beaches. It's around 20 km from the Portsmouth - Caen ferry terminal at Ouistreham.
  • disgruntledgoat
    disgruntledgoat Posts: 8,957
    Here in Belgium, all junctions are marshalled with traffic stopping powers and entry is usually o more than 10 euro.Same for road races
    "In many ways, my story was that of a raging, Christ-like figure who hauled himself off the cross, looked up at the Romans with blood in his eyes and said 'My turn, sock cookers'"

    @gietvangent

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