Dragon Ride 2018
Comments
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Just with regards to road surface, stretch from Trecastle to Pont-ar-Llechau before Black Mountain is fine, as is Black Mountain climb and descent, few speed bumps in Brynamman once your over the cattle grid but they're the traditional all across the road not the raised squares. Trecastle- Llandovery and Llandovery to Llangadog are good condition as well for anyone doing the Devil. Rode them a few weeks back and no dramas.
Havn't been from Neath-Pontrhydyfen this year, or Bwlch from that side but Bwlch descent and Rhigos were fine the other day. They are all grippy roads though, not smooth tarmac- probably why there are less potholes but still.
I think with Sportives its just a flooded market, there are 12 others in the UK on the same day and 3 the day before- at some point you either want to ride somewhere new, or once you know the route can do it anyday yourself or with a few mates any day of the year. As Ugo says the closed roads idea is a pull but then maybe they will be cancelled in a few years with the amount of complaints from residents/businesses.0 -
The 300km is the only one to sell out, so maybe "Higher and Longer" is the current draw. I'd certainly be interested in the Velo closed road events, but they don't look like exciting routes.ugo.santalucia wrote:Closed roads is popular, but it can't be applied everywhere and in fairness the Dragon Ride organisers have tried to diversify by offering a 300 km badass version of their ride, but it's never been particularly popular, for some reason. Maybe they are not marketing it correctly or to the right people, as clearly long distance cycling is booming... LEL which used to be a handful of old timers in the 90s is now a 1,500 riders event0 -
Thigh_burn wrote:
By stale do you mean unpopular? I take it from your comment re people looking for something different that you do, plus the LEL anecdote.
By stale I mean it's always the same offering... folks who have been doing sportives since the early noughties are probably fed up by now of doing 100 miles and gettind a medal... and the sector is not expanding at the rate it used to, so new customers are harder to come by.
As for sportives... it seems to me many are packing up and not many are coming out to replace them... there are 2-3 events which are more popular than ever, but only because of the closed road pullleft the forum March 20230 -
I've been looking at FaceBook groups in the area since the start of the year, and Bwlch was closed for resurfacing before Easter, so should be good. Reading around the internet, Devil's Elbow seems to the the one with a poor surface. I'm currently thinking that 25 mm slicks will be fine, unless the weather forecast is terrible on the weekend.andytee87 wrote:Havn't been from Neath-Pontrhydyfen this year, or Bwlch from that side but Bwlch descent and Rhigos were fine the other day. They are all grippy roads though, not smooth tarmac- probably why there are less potholes but still.0 -
Not doing the Dragon, but will be doing Rhigos, Heol Senni etc later. Only used these roads on the DR before, so used the feed stations. Anyone know of any good coffee shops etc around Treorchy and Penderyn to Hoel Senni etc?0
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florerider wrote:Not doing the Dragon, but will be doing Rhigos, Heol Senni etc later. Only used these roads on the DR before, so used the feed stations. Anyone know of any good coffee shops etc around Treorchy and Penderyn to Hoel Senni etc?
Treorchy has quite a few high street old Welsh Italian ones. All fine. Nowhere really to leave bikes.
Penderyn to Heol Senni, not a lot really. There's Storey Arms (I guess they must do a coffee), there's the Brecon Mountain Centre (that may be off the beaten path), if you go to Defynog there's a few pubs around there.My blog: http://www.roubaixcycling.cc (kit reviews and other musings)
https://twitter.com/roubaixcc
Facebook? No. Just say no.0 -
Are they strict with enforcing start times? Mine is late and I will have a long drive back after finish.0
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All done.
Brief summary.
"Huff puff, huff puff
Aaaaaargh"
More detail to follow.0 -
mrfpb wrote:All done.
Brief summary.
"Huff puff, huff puff
Aaaaaargh"
More detail to follow.
Was it warm? I was thinking of you guys as I did the Tour de Vale, I was due to do the Medio Fondo, but pulled out due to lack of training. A wise decision, I am sure.
It's just a hill. Get over it.0 -
I didn't do it, but some clubmates reported it being very hot, Wales was hotter than the rest of the UK.0
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Very hot all day with 60% of the time into the wind (according to MyWindSock). Black Mtn was (for me at least) a real challenge at 100 mile mark. I live nearby so know the area very well, but not suffered like that up that climb in years. Was easily 26-27c on parts of the route.
Early starters suffered from tacks on parts of the road from Port Talbot to the Bwlch, but to be fair to organisers they were out sweeping the road and had people helping change tyres/track pumps from what I saw.
Feed stations were excellent - an enormous amount of choice and lots of very enthusiastic helpers - by far the best I have seen in years. The signs were all very good with marshalls at key locations. Easy to get into event to park and easy to get out as well, which given the number of riders is to be applauded.
If I had one criticism it is that there is a better route from the bottom of Crai climb to the Trecastle road which is less busy and more scenic. For some reason they never choose to use it. Odd as its a good road, but a minor gripe.
All in all a very good event and, for me, well worth the money. Will do again in 2019.0 -
Marvinman wrote:Very hot all day with 60% of the time into the wind (according to MyWindSock). Black Mtn was (for me at least) a real challenge at 100 mile mark. I live nearby so know the area very well, but not suffered like that up that climb in years. Was easily 26-27c on parts of the route.
moaner...
left the forum March 20230 -
Learnings for benefit of glorious users of BR forum
There is no escaping Kingston Wheelers
Wales is hottest country in the GB, by far. As proof, I have superstrong tan lines from yesterday.
No steep hills on Dragon Gran Fondo, was spinning up everything with 30 sprocket, shamelessly. Quite long, though.
M4 toll bridge only charges one way, yay!
Apparently, salted potatoes and Doritos on their own good fuel for cycling do not make. After the fourth stop I could no longer look at the sugary stuffs, but just had to do it since after eating aforementioned legs felt completely empty. I would agree regarding staff at stops - very eager and friendly, also marshals and road marking were good. Fred Whitton had better food imo. The chilli wrap at finish was nice, though, so swings and roundabouts.
I was riding with guys who are quicker than me, so it was a long day. Still, was able to notice and, among bouts of struggle, enjoy the views - those valleys are quite something.
Wales taught me something about me: Araf!0 -
It was hot. I got my money back in kit dropped by other riders on Bwlch & Rhigos.0
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I knew there were upsides for going around slowly.
And, from talking to event staff, it was undersubscribed. They'd wanted to have 6k, and 4k+ took part. It looks like trickling in new riders are not balancing out number of people who have had enough of that one.0 -
mrfpb wrote:All done.
Brief summary.
"Huff puff, huff puff
Aaaaaargh"
More detail to follow.
It was hard. I was very slow and the last to finish the Gran Fondo. At about the halfway point I was sat on a hill with cramp in my right thigh thinking about switching to the Medio. If I'd sat ten more minutes I'd have missed he cut off time and been diverted anyway, so I "girded my loins" and carried on up the hill.
Fortunately a nice descent form Glasfynnyd Forest gave me enough recovery time to carry on, but very slowly. I stopped several times with small groups of Devil riders on the way up the Black Mountain and the discovery of an Ice Cream van at the top was like an oasis in a desert. The following descent was terrifying. I thought the mountains would be like hills but longer. No, they were so much steeper that I had to conciously force my legs to spin in order to stop them cramping up again.
I got to the finish just before 10:00pm. Me and a Devil rider escorted the last two miles by a motorbike marshall. The last rider of the day got in at 10:22. All the stalls were gone apart from the table full of tins of Erdinger. I hate lager but drank it anyway, just to get the overwhelming taste if artificial gel flavours out of my mouth.
My brother served me up a full Sunday dinner when I got back to his place at 11:00. Fantastic!0 -
Can I check stats with other Gran Fondo riders.
Strava says I did 12,160ft of climbing. That's more than I expected. I did go off course at one point, but that wouldn't have added more than 100ft to the official figure.0 -
It's good to see there is someone who treats these events as little adventures, rather than 8 hour races... well done for taking up something clearly a bit bigger than you're used to.
I find a lot of folks stick to what they know well and sounds comfortable, so they can go fast and brag about their amazing FTP...
left the forum March 20230 -
ugo.santalucia wrote:It's good to see there is someone who treats these events as little adventures, rather than 8 hour races... well done for taking up something clearly a bit bigger than you're used to.
I find a lot of folks stick to what they know well and sounds comfortable, so they can go fast and brag about their amazing FTP...
Yes. I don't understand why local clubs are paying to ride local roads that they must do all the time. I can see the attraction for club riders from Cambridge, London and Dublin to name a few I spotted. The thing that kept me going was that the Medio was shorter than my previous longest ride, and there would be no sense of acheivement collecting a medal for something less than I'd signed up for.0 -
i did the medio fondo with a mate, it was a well organised event, my sort of climbs i.e. not steep
Devils elbow was steepish but very short. we just drifted round in the sunshine and on good roads. all in all a good day out.
Just over 5 hours but we didn't have any issues and only needed to stop for a refill after the devils Elbow and a cheeky ice cream from a van.
I dont do many of this sort of thing because they're too corporate and other than a good route i don't need the support or feedstops so find them expensive for what they are. I don't know how many people are supposed to do it but there were thousands and thousands there it didnt seem undersubscribed at all to me.0 -
mrfpb wrote:mrfpb wrote:All done.
Brief summary.
"Huff puff, huff puff
Aaaaaargh"
More detail to follow.
It was hard. I was very slow and the last to finish the Gran Fondo. At about the halfway point I was sat on a hill with cramp in my right thigh thinking about switching to the Medio. If I'd sat ten more minutes I'd have missed he cut off time and been diverted anyway, so I "girded my loins" and carried on up the hill.
Fortunately a nice descent form Glasfynnyd Forest gave me enough recovery time to carry on, but very slowly. I stopped several times with small groups of Devil riders on the way up the Black Mountain and the discovery of an Ice Cream van at the top was like an oasis in a desert. The following descent was terrifying. I thought the mountains would be like hills but longer. No, they were so much steeper that I had to conciously force my legs to spin in order to stop them cramping up again.
I got to the finish just before 10:00pm. Me and a Devil rider escorted the last two miles by a motorbike marshall. The last rider of the day got in at 10:22. All the stalls were gone apart from the table full of tins of Erdinger. I hate lager but drank it anyway, just to get the overwhelming taste if artificial gel flavours out of my mouth.
My brother served me up a full Sunday dinner when I got back to his place at 11:00. Fantastic!
Ha Epic! well done. 0 -
Vino'sGhost wrote:
I dont do many of this sort of thing because they're too corporate and other than a good route i don't need the support or feedstops so find them expensive for what they are. I don't know how many people are supposed to do it but there were thousands and thousands there it didnt seem undersubscribed at all to me.
Surely this is the answer. For 10 pounds I got an incredible route, amazing weather, some company, some breakfast, some soup with home made bread and sandwiches at the last control, then crumble with custard at the finish and a full english breakfast the morning after. AND the start/finish was 2 minutes walk to the pub, AND camping in the grounds was 2 quid. Beat that for value!!
https://www.strava.com/activities/1628547523left the forum March 20230 -
I also have done several Audaxes, and I agree that they are great value for money and very friendly. However there is something about riding in a big event with lots of other riders around. On an Audax you will pass or be passed by the odd rider or small group, but on these big sportives you will be constantly be joining large groups until they split up, usually on the next big climb, though more so at the beginning of the ride as inevitably the groups get more spread out as you progress. Descending in large groups is also great fun (I found) if a little hairy at times if a rider in front of you is a bit nervous on cornering and isn't allowing room for a rider coming up fast behind him.
Is it worth £70? I think so, but I now I have done the Fred twice and this one I don't think I'll be rushing to do another, unless it is one of the big continental ones.0 -
davebradswmb wrote:I also have done several Audaxes, and I agree that they are great value for money and very friendly. However there is something about riding in a big event with lots of other riders around. On an Audax you will pass or be passed by the odd rider or small group, but on these big sportives you will be constantly be joining large groups until they split up, usually on the next big climb, though more so at the beginning of the ride as inevitably the groups get more spread out as you progress. Descending in large groups is also great fun (I found) if a little hairy at times if a rider in front of you is a bit nervous on cornering and isn't allowing room for a rider coming up fast behind him.
Is it worth £70? I think so, but I now I have done the Fred twice and this one I don't think I'll be rushing to do another, unless it is one of the big continental ones.
Horses for courses... I am not a big fan of "other people" and I find the almost totality of sportive riders complete t**ats that are best avoided off the bike, let alone on the bike, no offcence of course...
I like the scenery and as far as scenery goes, the Dragon Ride is by far the dullest event in Wales... mind you, I've never done Veloton... :roll:left the forum March 20230 -
ugo.santalucia wrote:Vino'sGhost wrote:
I dont do many of this sort of thing because they're too corporate and other than a good route i don't need the support or feedstops so find them expensive for what they are. I don't know how many people are supposed to do it but there were thousands and thousands there it didnt seem undersubscribed at all to me.
Surely this is the answer. For 10 pounds I got an incredible route, amazing weather, some company, some breakfast, some soup with home made bread and sandwiches at the last control, then crumble with custard at the finish and a full english breakfast the morning after. AND the start/finish was 2 minutes walk to the pub, AND camping in the grounds was 2 quid. Beat that for value!!
https://www.strava.com/activities/1628547523
Much more like it 0 -
davebradswmb wrote:I also have done several Audaxes, and I agree that they are great value for money and very friendly. However there is something about riding in a big event with lots of other riders around. On an Audax you will pass or be passed by the odd rider or small group, but on these big sportives you will be constantly be joining large groups until they split up, usually on the next big climb, though more so at the beginning of the ride as inevitably the groups get more spread out as you progress. Descending in large groups is also great fun (I found) if a little hairy at times if a rider in front of you is a bit nervous on cornering and isn't allowing room for a rider coming up fast behind him.
Is it worth £70? I think so, but I now I have done the Fred twice and this one I don't think I'll be rushing to do another, unless it is one of the big continental ones.
try some of the small continental events, cheap, good standard of riding (by comparison) great way to see regions youre unfamiliar with0 -
Well done for pushing through, mrfpb;
As for elevation, mine shows 11,249 ft corrected by mapping and 10,928 ft from Garmin. I am not sure how these things work since my friends i rode with showed more climbing. I do not recall going around the hills, they were what i was there for!0 -
Wow, I really must see more of Wales, I was blown away by some of the scenery.ugo.santalucia wrote:I like the scenery and as far as scenery goes, the Dragon Ride is by far the dullest event in Wales... mind you, I've never done Veloton... :roll:
Mind you I only know North Wales very well, Mid Wales moderately well, and only really the coast of South Wales, so that leaves a lot more to explore....0 -
mamil314 wrote:Well done for pushing through, mrfpb;
As for elevation, mine shows 11,249 ft corrected by mapping and 10,928 ft from Garmin. I am not sure how these things work since my friends i rode with showed more climbing. I do not recall going around the hills, they were what i was there for!
My figure is the Strava corrected elevation, which I corrected due to finishing after sunset. My uncorrected Garmin reading is 3,279m/10,758ft.
My previous best climbing was 1,470m so whatever the true figure, I'm pretty chuffed. (not to say chaffed)0 -
Did this at the weekend. Originally signed up for the Devil but got caught by the tacks on the Bwllch climb at start and suffered a little with heat and just missed the cut off. I had previously done the 230km route a couple of times but found this year a lot harder and assume this was related to the heat. Climb up Devils elbow and also Black Mountain was so hot with no shade.
Picking up on comments made earlier. Staff / volunteers at the feed stations were excellent and very helpful and not as mainc as previous years.
Always a Great ride and well organised.0
