Ride London 2017

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Comments

  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,974
    d70ar9 wrote:

    I work for a charity, not prepared to disclose which one

    I can confirm the Ride London places are extortionate. We pay just under £300 a place

    You get better deals from Ride London the more places you purchase, hence why some charities can offer different fundraising goals..

    I feel very uncomfortable with that. I've got a low target and I picked it because I knew that i would be paying the majority of it myself, but I don't like the feeling that the charity will be subsidising my ride.

    I've started the process and will see it through, partly because I really want to have another crack at the ride. However, I think this will be the last time knowing the state of affairs.


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • slowbike
    slowbike Posts: 8,498
    d70ar9 wrote:
    I can confirm the Ride London places are extortionate. We pay just under £300 a place

    You get better deals from Ride London the more places you purchase, hence why some charities can offer different fundraising goals.

    As mentioned above Charity places are absolutely fundamental to the budgets of closed road sportives as the event organisers make huge margins on them compare to public entries.

    At £60 a pop, entry fees for 26000 riders would hit £1.5million
    It would be interesting to see how much it costs to put this ride on.... considering that the infrastructure has to be in place for the pro riders anyway.
  • d70ar9
    d70ar9 Posts: 139
    Capt Slog wrote:
    d70ar9 wrote:

    I work for a charity, not prepared to disclose which one

    I can confirm the Ride London places are extortionate. We pay just under £300 a place

    You get better deals from Ride London the more places you purchase, hence why some charities can offer different fundraising goals..

    I feel very uncomfortable with that. I've got a low target and I picked it because I knew that i would be paying the majority of it myself, but I don't like the feeling that the charity will be subsidising my ride.

    I've started the process and will see it through, partly because I really want to have another crack at the ride. However, I think this will be the last time knowing the state of affairs.

    We won't be purchasing any more Ride London spots anymore as it isn't cost effective for us.

    Whichever Charity you've gone with may have bought a load of places and got a good rate so you never know, however the standard is around the £300 mark
    'All that is solid melts into air' Marx and Engels
  • southdownswolf
    southdownswolf Posts: 1,525
    Slowbike wrote:
    d70ar9 wrote:
    I can confirm the Ride London places are extortionate. We pay just under £300 a place

    You get better deals from Ride London the more places you purchase, hence why some charities can offer different fundraising goals.

    As mentioned above Charity places are absolutely fundamental to the budgets of closed road sportives as the event organisers make huge margins on them compare to public entries.

    At £60 a pop, entry fees for 26000 riders would hit £1.5million
    It would be interesting to see how much it costs to put this ride on.... considering that the infrastructure has to be in place for the pro riders anyway.

    How do you think they fund the pro race...? :wink:
    Closing the centre of London for a day costs a pretty penny.
    http://www.stuartmole.co.uk/
  • homers_double
    homers_double Posts: 8,289
    We both got the rejection magazine...

    Onward to plan #2
    Advocate of disc brakes.
  • vpnikolov
    vpnikolov Posts: 568
    Received an email today confirming I have been denied a place.

    Second sentence: "Demand for places far exceeded supply so we were unable to accept your entry". Not really helpful when I applied for a place when they opened the ballot in August.

    Hmm... I wonder if they have ever considered adopting the "First come, first serve" approach.
  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,974
    vpnikolov wrote:
    Received an email today confirming I have been denied a place.

    Second sentence: "Demand for places far exceeded supply so we were unable to accept your entry". Not really helpful when I applied for a place when they opened the ballot in August.

    Hmm... I wonder if they have ever considered adopting the "First come, first serve" approach.

    I too got the email just now...

    2017 Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 UK Straight Rejected

    I don't recall telling them I was straight, I didn't think it mattered :lol:


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • kingstongraham
    kingstongraham Posts: 28,166
    vpnikolov wrote:
    Received an email today confirming I have been denied a place.

    Second sentence: "Demand for places far exceeded supply so we were unable to accept your entry". Not really helpful when I applied for a place when they opened the ballot in August.

    Hmm... I wonder if they have ever considered adopting the "First come, first serve" approach.

    Then they wouldn't get 100,000 email addresses (and would have a overloaded server and people moaning about that).
  • vpnikolov
    vpnikolov Posts: 568
    Capt Slog wrote:
    vpnikolov wrote:
    Received an email today confirming I have been denied a place.

    Second sentence: "Demand for places far exceeded supply so we were unable to accept your entry". Not really helpful when I applied for a place when they opened the ballot in August.

    Hmm... I wonder if they have ever considered adopting the "First come, first serve" approach.

    I too got the email just now...

    2017 Prudential RideLondon-Surrey 100 UK Straight Rejected

    I don't recall telling them I was straight, I didn't think it mattered :lol:
    Ah. I've missed this bit. :shock:
  • rich_e
    rich_e Posts: 389
    Slowbike wrote:
    d70ar9 wrote:
    I can confirm the Ride London places are extortionate. We pay just under £300 a place

    You get better deals from Ride London the more places you purchase, hence why some charities can offer different fundraising goals.

    As mentioned above Charity places are absolutely fundamental to the budgets of closed road sportives as the event organisers make huge margins on them compare to public entries.

    At £60 a pop, entry fees for 26000 riders would hit £1.5million
    It would be interesting to see how much it costs to put this ride on.... considering that the infrastructure has to be in place for the pro riders anyway.

    I guess it's not just the 100 pro and public either, there is also the festival in Green Park, the Excel Center Exhibition, closing roads around Buckingham Palace for the Grand Prix events (which now has the highest prize purse for a women's event in the world) and the FreeCycle.

    I'd imagine they do milk sponsors and exhibitors quite substantially while I'm sure Surrey and the London Mayor's office must also be contributing somewhat.

    I guess I was uneducated about charity places though, I'd always assumed that the ballot places were one of the main sources of funding for these kind of events; I didn't realize they were making so much money out of the charities as well, but I guess they are all businesses.

    This was the fourth rejection out of five for me, not sure I'll bother with a charity place though, as like others have said, it's an event I want to do for fun, not something I want to hassle people for money as it doesn't feel like it's a real challenge that I'm putting everything on the line for.
  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    Rich_E wrote:
    Slowbike wrote:
    d70ar9 wrote:
    I can confirm the Ride London places are extortionate. We pay just under £300 a place

    You get better deals from Ride London the more places you purchase, hence why some charities can offer different fundraising goals.

    As mentioned above Charity places are absolutely fundamental to the budgets of closed road sportives as the event organisers make huge margins on them compare to public entries.

    At £60 a pop, entry fees for 26000 riders would hit £1.5million
    It would be interesting to see how much it costs to put this ride on.... considering that the infrastructure has to be in place for the pro riders anyway.

    I guess it's not just the 100 pro and public either, there is also the festival in Green Park, the Excel Center Exhibition, closing roads around Buckingham Palace for the Grand Prix events (which now has the highest prize purse for a women's event in the world) and the FreeCycle.

    I'd imagine they do milk sponsors and exhibitors quite substantially while I'm sure Surrey and the London Mayor's office must also be contributing somewhat.

    I guess I was uneducated about charity places though, I'd always assumed that the ballot places were one of the main sources of funding for these kind of events; I didn't realize they were making so much money out of the charities as well, but I guess they are all businesses.

    This was the fourth rejection out of five for me, not sure I'll bother with a charity place though, as like others have said, it's an event I want to do for fun, not something I want to hassle people for money as it doesn't feel like it's a real challenge that I'm putting everything on the line for.


    I look at as an event I do for a laugh, it's easy for me to get to / take part in. I go for a ballot place, and in all previous years ( except for the one when the weather was crap ) I've got in on the ballot. This year I've had to go down the charity place route. I'm viewing it as a donation to a worthy cause, from my own pocket, which if broken down over a year, is less than 30 quid a month. I'll put it 'out there' on my soshal meeeja and the like, and if anyone of my contacts fancies donating anything, then my personal liability drops for every pound they feel like donating. I'm not pushing it, I'm just leaving it on the table, so to speak.
  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,974
    I've received my details from RL today, inviting me to log into the online console. Mine is a charity entry.

    I now have to try to remember what i told my son to put down as his time, and he can't remember now either :roll:

    Does it show up somewhere on "his" page?


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    Capt Slog wrote:
    I've received my details from RL today, inviting me to log into the online console. Mine is a charity entry.

    I now have to try to remember what i told my son to put down as his time, and he can't remember now either :roll:

    Does it show up somewhere on "his" page?

    I did buy the ( extortionate ) event photo, with my time stamped on it. It does however, make remembering what time I did it in easy.
  • LoveLoveLove
    LoveLoveLove Posts: 1
    I have two guaranteed places for my small charity. Need riders!! Hoping to raise £400 for each place.
  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,974
    Milemuncher1 wrote:
    Capt Slog wrote:

    I now have to try to remember what i told my son to put down as his time, and he can't remember now either :roll:

    Does it show up somewhere on "his" page?

    I did buy the ( extortionate ) event photo, with my time stamped on it. It does however, make remembering what time I did it in easy.

    I know the time we did it in last year, but this year i hope not be walking for an hour through Pyrford and others, so the time I expect to do it in is quite different. My son had to call them to ask what time he'd put down :)


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • -=Slacker=-
    -=Slacker=- Posts: 24
    Jibbed again for the 4th year in a row! I honestly don't know why I bother entering the ballot! *hahahaha* :D
  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    -=Slacker=- wrote:
    Jibbed again for the 4th year in a row! I honestly don't know why I bother entering the ballot! *hahahaha* :D

    There are other options, if you're with a cycle club Ride London offer places to teams of ( four I believe) from the club, if your club applies and gets a place. The other way is just stump up for a charity place, and wait to see how much you can raise. Every pound you raise reduces your liability by a pound, you only have to get to the minimum, and the cut off point is usually about 6 weeks before the ride.
  • -=Slacker=-
    -=Slacker=- Posts: 24
    Milemuncher1 wrote:
    -=Slacker=- wrote:
    Jibbed again for the 4th year in a row! I honestly don't know why I bother entering the ballot! *hahahaha* :D

    There are other options, if you're with a cycle club Ride London offer places to teams of ( four I believe) from the club, if your club applies and gets a place. The other way is just stump up for a charity place, and wait to see how much you can raise. Every pound you raise reduces your liability by a pound, you only have to get to the minimum, and the cut off point is usually about 6 weeks before the ride.

    Cheers Milemuncher

    I might go down the club route as I'm already doing the Rapha Manchester to London in September and will be calling in all my charitable donations for that :-)
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,661
    Any idea when you find your start time?
    _
  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    Rick Chasey wrote:
    Any idea when you find your start time?

    It's usually about 4-6 weeks before the event.
  • sherer
    sherer Posts: 2,460
    managed to win a team entry for the event. Luckily I did some training last week in Mallorca so should be ok.
  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    I'm concentrating my efforts on the hilly bits, I'm doing them again tomorrow. The rest of it is just dodging the old ladies with baskets on their shopping bikes, dressed as bumble bees, so getting the hilly bit right is most important,
  • RideOnTime
    RideOnTime Posts: 4,712
    :D We are bringing a trailer of bikes down to Ilford for this event just up the line from Stratford. This had been to help some US friends struggling to find a hire bike. Now they're cancelled and we're committed, hotel etc. The mods might want to ban me yet again for posting. However a lot of people may find this service very helpful so please don't cut off your nose etc... :D

    http://d2ride.co.uk/Bike-Trials-and-Events-2017.php
  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,974
    Milemuncher1 wrote:
    I'm concentrating my efforts on the hilly bits, I'm doing them again tomorrow. The rest of it is just dodging the old ladies with baskets on their shopping bikes, dressed as bumble bees, so getting the hilly bit right is most important,

    Can't say I saw any of those, but I'm sure they all add to the rich tapestry :D

    Hills...
    The one to Newlands was okay, as was Box Hill (that was actually fun), but I missed Leith due to time a time cutoff because of Pyrford. I consider that my nemesis.

    I'm not used to a lot of climbing so I'll just be happy if I get up the hills at all. If I can do so with just a little style, I'll be really pleased.


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    edited June 2017
    Capt Slog wrote:
    Milemuncher1 wrote:
    I'm concentrating my efforts on the hilly bits, I'm doing them again tomorrow. The rest of it is just dodging the old ladies with baskets on their shopping bikes, dressed as bumble bees, so getting the hilly bit right is most important,

    Can't say I saw any of those, but I'm sure they all add to the rich tapestry :D

    Hills...
    The one to Newlands was okay, as was Box Hill (that was actually fun), but I missed Leith due to time a time cutoff because of Pyrford. I consider that my nemesis.

    I'm not used to a lot of climbing so I'll just be happy if I get up the hills at all. If I can do so with just a little style, I'll be really pleased.

    IMG_4651_1.png

    Here's the route of the Ride London 100, with the relative elevation plot. Leith Hill is the big sharp spike at about 60 miles. It's the climb I like least of all of them, just because of the way it goes up. Relatively gentle as you turn left onto Etherly Hill road, from the B2126, followed by a sharp left turn onto Leith Hill Road, which suddenly becomes a tarmac wall, as you see Leith Hill place on your left, then another nasty step after the following left hand bend, then it levels out a bit as you reach the top. You've then got hardly any time to recover, before the descent past Abinger Common, and down to the right hand turn, that takes you to Westcott. You need your concentration on that descent, because the road surface isn't great, and there are always people 'stopping to wait for their mate' invariably in the shaded bits, or on the corners. Mind you, in previous years, there has been a little village fete at Westcott, with a barbecue, which is a nice place to check out the bike, before the climb up to Box Hill.
  • sherer
    sherer Posts: 2,460
    There's no real hill until Newlands, and not knowing the area that well you kind of get to the top of it before you realise you have done it, unless you have a fancier GPS than me. Leigh is the worst one as you think you are at the top but then it goes into the woods and kicks again.

    Wimbledon due to distance is harder than it should be. Box Hill is easy fairly constant gradient so just spin away.
  • milemuncher1
    milemuncher1 Posts: 1,472
    sherer wrote:
    There's no real hill until Newlands, and not knowing the area that well you kind of get to the top of it before you realise you have done it, unless you have a fancier GPS than me. Leigh is the worst one as you think you are at the top but then it goes into the woods and kicks again.

    Wimbledon due to distance is harder than it should be. Box Hill is easy fairly constant gradient so just spin away.

    And if you have to get off on the worst bit of Leith, stop on the Left, not in the middle of the road.
  • capt_slog
    capt_slog Posts: 3,974
    Box hill was a laugh (well, sort of) because it was SO busy!

    We were riding up 5 or even 6 abreast at times. I was on the far right, that just happened to be where I was when it started and there was nowhere to go except forwards. I know we're supposed to get to the left if we want to stop, not a chance of even getting there. Loads of people just shouting "Don't stop!" :lol:

    The one problem I had on Box, was having to take the edge at a hairpin because of the above. I couldn't get a 'normal' line, I had to take a really sharp tack and it was like climbing a wall for a few yards.


    The older I get, the better I was.

  • slowbike
    slowbike Posts: 8,498
    Well - overseas entrance have had their start times - at least one of them has anyway :)
  • pat_h
    pat_h Posts: 34
    Just got mine today. 6:56 start time, not sure where that is in the waves.

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