Anybody checked to see if they made the ballot for PRL100?

FoldingJoe

You can check to see if you were successful here:

https://regonline.activeeurope.com/register/login.aspx?EventId=1589802

daddy0

I guess the website is a tad busy - not loading for me...

Anonymous

Seemed to work yesterday (I got 'accepted') but now seems the site has been taken down. A friend phoned them up, and RL100 were saying it was a mistake, that all statuses will revert to 'cancelled' and you will know when the postal stuff gets sent out.

That said, they are probably covering their arses, as this is exactly what happens each year and it's always correct.

slowbike

Checked my wifes last night - she's in ... but can't as her stoker will be a bit young still (1mth!) ...
Checked my emails and saw I'd missed the one that said I had to complete my deferred registration from last year by the 20th October so I'm out ... arse ...

Oh well - I'm sure I can find something better to spend £100 on!

Kieran_Burns

It brings up a blue screen on my pc but I was able to get in on my phone. Got to view / receipt. Mine shows as cancelled.

il_principe

Never again. Ok last year was an exception weather wise, but there was some truly awful riding on display even in the early, fast groups. Late leavers found themselves walking in Richmond Park. Even more spaces made available this year... greedy.

I cannot understand why this event is allowed to be run by a firm who don't run any other cycling events at all (it shows).

itboffin

I'm not sure its any different to any sportive event including those in Europe
The marmotte was a joke, people actually died which is normal I believe and to be honest judging by the total lack of care or bike handling I saw I'm not surprised. Similar story for the Amstel gold, almost every UK sportive I've been too especially the dragon ride, last years LBL was okay but we were running late and as there's no official mass start just timed climbs I guess that's why.

jzed

Cancelled for me too, but can't say I'm too bothered.

itboffin wrote:

last years LBL was okay but we were running late and as there's no official mass start just timed climbs I guess that's why.

You have to go to Bastogne for it to be LBL.

There was some poor riding on LBL, probably around the Bastogne bit before the groups thinned out. Of note where the 20-30 Italians in some fluorescent racing kit. Strangely they would kamikaze down the descents. All of them, all over the show. Through the middle of you, round the outside, on the wrong side of the road. We'd reach the bottom and they'd all then be going really, really slow. And they couldn't climb and that's coming from someone who is not built for climbing in the slightest.

itboffin

Triantelopes no doubt

il_principe

F*ck Sportives, especially big Euro ones. I'd rather ride by myself or in a small group, oh and avoid getting f*cked over as flight & hotel prices go through the roof.

It's kinda hard to enjoy the majesty of a mountain when you're surrounded by 10,000 other cyclists. I'm certainly not willing to pay for the privilege of riding in Surrey. If you want empty roads just get out of bed early.

Last year I did it with work, no way would I fork out my own money. I saw 2 crashes as well, both caused by idiotic riding. If you can't ride in a bunch then don't enter a Sportive.

asprilla

I think I'm in.

I enjoyed it last year.

veronese68

I agree with IP, there was some truly awful riding last year. I saw several accidents, most of which were on straight stretches of road. A mate of mine got taken out by some utter tool early on. Wiped him out big style but the other guy managed to carry on after a wobble. Didn't even apologise or check my mate was ok. I didn't mind the weather though.
It's put me off these big events. I'm going to do the L2B off road again as my son wants to do it. But as usual I'll get an early start and try to stay ahead of the masses.

Kieran_Burns

Kind of odd reading this as I've done the Notts Cycle Live sportive 3 years now (on for the 4th this year) and it's always been fine. Even at the start when the groups are still bunched together (staggered start of approx 100 at a time)

There was meant to be 1000 riders doing the 100 mile route and gawd knows how many on the 25 & 50 mile routes at the same time. The 100 milers basically rejoin the shorter routes for the last 8 miles or so (which is always a huge boost as you go cruising past all the slower riders) and even then, with some care as their road-craft is not always great, it's fine.

Must be you Southern lot.

Anonymous

Imagine 1000 riders on a stretch of 1-2 miles then imagine that for 100 continuous miles.

That's the difference.

london-red

Il Principe wrote:

If you can't ride in a bunch then don't enter a Sportive.

Elitist bollox.

il_principe

London-Red wrote:

Il Principe wrote:

If you can't ride in a bunch then don't enter a Sportive.

Elitist bollox.

Nothing elitist about it. It's a safety issue. It's not hard to learn, find a cycle club near you and go along to some of their club rides. Some clubs e.g Kingston Wheelers even put on Skills Days so people can learn how to ride safely in a bunch, signals, etiquette etc. You're not allowed to ride in a velodrome without first booking an intro session. Sportives can be far more dangerous than the track so basic etiquette says you should take the time to ensure you can ride safely.

Anonymous

Perhaps for RL100 or whatever but most Sportives I've been on are pretty quiet.

FoldingJoe

Agreed - of all the sportives I've done the RL100 seems to attract more than it's fair share of club riders riding fairly rapidly in pace lines.

Nothing wrong with it - but there are, however, many thousand riders taking part who may not be quite as aware of the unwritten rules of the road.

veronese68

Il Principe wrote:

London-Red wrote:

Il Principe wrote:

If you can't ride in a bunch then don't enter a Sportive.

Elitist bollox.

Nothing elitist about it. It's a safety issue. It's not hard to learn, find a cycle club near you and go along to some of their club rides. Some clubs e.g Kingston Wheelers even put on Skills Days so people can learn how to ride safely in a bunch, signals, etiquette etc. You're not allowed to ride in a velodrome without first booking an intro session. Sportives can be far more dangerous than the track so basic etiquette says you should take the time to ensure you can ride safely.

I don't think that's necessary, people just need to be aware that there are other people around them. Pay attention to what's going on around you, look before you change your line as someone may be passing, don't slam on the brakes and stop without warning and ride within your limits. Just a bit of common sense and not being a phucktard is all it needs.
I've never ridden with a club and haven't been taught signals but I like to think I know how not to ride like a twunt.

desweller

IMO it's the club riders that were some of the worst offenders.

There are too many people on the route to go hammering down the outside at a delta V of 10 mph, yet my experience last year was of pacelines in club jerseys repeatedly whisking through a 2 foot gap on my right.

They're just as guilty of not riding to the conditions.

rick_chasey

I'm likely to do it with a charity, as part of something for work.

What's a good time to aim for overall - given completing it won't be an enormous feat & not something colleagues will sponsor me for?

il_principe

You should look to average well over 20mph. So 4 hours something. Get in a fast bunch and that's doable. I think 2013 saw people managing 4 hours 10 or something. If you can average 20mph+ on a solo 100 miler then you should be able to smash it - weather permitting. However that will require an early start time.

spasypaddy

pacelines are not the same as chaingangs...

i dont remember seeing any pacelines 2 years ago

tgotb

DesWeller wrote:

IMO it's the club riders that were some of the worst offenders.

There are too many people on the route to go hammering down the outside at a delta V of 10 mph, yet my experience last year was of pacelines in club jerseys repeatedly whisking through a 2 foot gap on my right.

They're just as guilty of not riding to the conditions.

I've never understood this. If you want to race your bicycle against other people, isn't it more sensible to enter a bicycle race? There seem to be plenty to choose from, pretty much every weekend. If trying to achieve a target time is more your thing, there are these things called time trials. Entry fees are lower than sportives; the only possible issue is that only the fastest riders get a prize...

il_principe

TGOTB wrote:

DesWeller wrote:

IMO it's the club riders that were some of the worst offenders.

There are too many people on the route to go hammering down the outside at a delta V of 10 mph, yet my experience last year was of pacelines in club jerseys repeatedly whisking through a 2 foot gap on my right.

They're just as guilty of not riding to the conditions.

I've never understood this. If you want to race your bicycle against other people, isn't it more sensible to enter a bicycle race? There seem to be plenty to choose from, pretty much every weekend.

Not many on closed roads that anyone can enter...

bigmat

It has adopted the continental gran fondo format - race at the front, sportive at the back. People probably need to realise more quickly (i.e. when they get their start time) whether they are in the race or not. Re fast time, for the 100 4 hours is realistic. This year the front group was faster pace than that, albeit without any proper hills. Riding in a group at that speed is a lot easier than it sounds particularly on closed roads.

tgotb

Il Principe wrote:

TGOTB wrote:

DesWeller wrote:

IMO it's the club riders that were some of the worst offenders.

There are too many people on the route to go hammering down the outside at a delta V of 10 mph, yet my experience last year was of pacelines in club jerseys repeatedly whisking through a 2 foot gap on my right.

They're just as guilty of not riding to the conditions.

I've never understood this. If you want to race your bicycle against other people, isn't it more sensible to enter a bicycle race? There seem to be plenty to choose from, pretty much every weekend.

Not many on closed roads that anyone can enter...

On a typical week in the Summer, I reckon I could find a TT or road race on a traffic-free circuit, within riding distance of my home/office, pretty much every day of the week (most evenings you'd even have a choice). The TTs are open to anyone, and most of the road races are open to anyone with a licence (which you can buy for less than the cost of many sportives and will last you a whole year).

il_principe

TGOTB wrote:

On a typical week in the Summer, I reckon I could find a TT or road race on a traffic-free circuit, within riding distance of my home/office, pretty much every day of the week (most evenings you'd even have a choice). The TTs are open to anyone, and most of the road races are open to anyone with a licence (which you can buy for less than the cost of many sportives and will last you a whole year).

Really? On closed roads excluding built for purpose tracks such as Hillingdon? Where do you live? Bloody hard to find that around London/Surrey. There's a big difference between 'traffic free' and 'closed roads'.

itboffin

i'd second that on the club riders being the worst, five or six a breast or steaming past in a bunch then for no reason slowing to a ridiculously slow pace, part of the reason i did as well as i did on the Marmotte was because i spent the entire day weaving around bunches on climbs and hard on the brakes for most of the descending, partly because of the knobber riders and partly because of all the exploding inner tubes.

as IP said its much better to just go out with a group of friends, for the same money you can ride for a week.

tgotb

Il Principe wrote:

TGOTB wrote:

On a typical week in the Summer, I reckon I could find a TT or road race on a traffic-free circuit, within riding distance of my home/office, pretty much every day of the week (most evenings you'd even have a choice). The TTs are open to anyone, and most of the road races are open to anyone with a licence (which you can buy for less than the cost of many sportives and will last you a whole year).

Really? On closed roads excluding built for purpose tracks such as Hillingdon? Where do you live? Bloody hard to find that around London/Surrey. There's a big difference between 'traffic free' and 'closed roads'.

No, they are predominately purpose-built tracks. Like roads but without the potholes, and specifically designed for bike racing. We're actually pretty lucky in the London area with no less than 4 purpose-built circuits:
Hillingdon
Cyclopark
Stratford
Hog Hill
On top of that you have Crystal Palace and Dunsfold, plus quite a few others a bit further afield
If you want to race on the track you have Herne Hill and Stratford, plus Welwyn and Palmer Park within reasonable driving distance (and Preston Park if they can resolve the safety issues).

il_principe

TGOTB wrote:

Il Principe wrote:

TGOTB wrote:

On a typical week in the Summer, I reckon I could find a TT or road race on a traffic-free circuit, within riding distance of my home/office, pretty much every day of the week (most evenings you'd even have a choice). The TTs are open to anyone, and most of the road races are open to anyone with a licence (which you can buy for less than the cost of many sportives and will last you a whole year).

Really? On closed roads excluding built for purpose tracks such as Hillingdon? Where do you live? Bloody hard to find that around London/Surrey. There's a big difference between 'traffic free' and 'closed roads'.

No, they are predominately purpose-built tracks. Like roads but without the potholes, and specifically designed for bike racing. We're actually pretty lucky in the London area with no less than 4 purpose-built circuits:
Hillingdon
Cyclopark
Stratford
Hog Hill
On top of that you have Crystal Palace and Dunsfold, plus quite a few others a bit further afield
If you want to race on the track you have Herne Hill and Stratford, plus Welwyn and Palmer Park within reasonable driving distance (and Preston Park if they can resolve the safety issues).

You've missed my point then. I'm talking about roads, not purpose built venues. It's almost impossible to find races on closed roads. Imagine this is one of the reasons Ride London is so popular. It's so rare to be able to ride closed roads so people jump at the chance and then unsurprisingly, many of them want to smash out a good time.