Viewing 40 posts - 1 through 40 (of 95 total)
  • New respect for roadies…
  • rogerthecat
    Free Member

    …you’re all still mad as for wanting to ride on the road and mix it with the tin boxes but I am in awe of the winner of the Bradwell Hillbilly last weekend.

    Was away at the weekend so popped up the lane to see a mate who was one of the organisers and what he told me was bloody impressive.

    Seems the winner rode the 22 miles from Rotherham to Bradwell, rode the 78km course with 2334m of ascent taking in 7 challenging hill climbs, won the race and rode home.

    Big thanks to everyone who came and competed – raised £2000 for the preschool and may just save it from closure. 😀

    cynic-al
    Free Member

    Was it a race or Sportive?

    wanmankylung
    Free Member

    And roadies would probably think that ~100miles wasn’t really that far. Certainly my longest ride this year is around the 250mile mark and my longest one planned is 1300km.

    rogerthecat
    Free Member

    Good question, what’s the difference?

    big_n_daft
    Free Member

    one is a legal race on the highway with the appropriate licences the other one isn’t 😉

    rogerthecat
    Free Member

    Just checked the website – it’s a respectable and above board sportive 😀

    rogerthecat
    Free Member

    @wanmankylung – the hills are pretty steep – Winnats Pass was one.

    EDIT: they were The 7 hills were 1. Bole Hill, 2. Burbage, 3. Sir William Hill, 4. Stoney, 5.Cressbrook, 6. Smalldale Hill, 7. Winnatts Pass

    wanmankylung
    Free Member

    Assuming a circular route the average gradient is zero.

    muppetWrangler
    Free Member

    Good question, what’s the difference?

    in one of them everyone knows they are in a race whereas in the other some people think they are in a race.

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    A race is contested by racers.
    A sportive is a nice ride ruined by fantasists.

    jonba
    Free Member

    you can’t “win” a sportive.

    90 miles with a few thousand meters of climbing is fairly normal for a good road rider.

    rogerthecat
    Free Member

    There’s a faint whiff of snobbery and testosterone in the air!

    MrSmith
    Free Member

    Good question, what’s the difference?

    -2 inches on the waistline
    +2 cm on the stem
    -2 cm on the head tube

    dangerousbeans
    Free Member

    Littlegirlbunny off here has just done the Mille Cymru at the weekend – 1018 kilometres with 16000 metres of climbing.

    I, for one, am seriously impressed.

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    A faint whiff of snobbery?
    On here?

    Howverydareyou.

    I’ve never raced on the road btw.

    Edit – I was going to have another gentle pop at spurtivists, but my heart’s not in it tonight.

    aracer
    Free Member

    I was once the fastest rider in a sportive, but wouldn’t ever claim to have won it (a lot on here would take issue with me comparing my times with others).

    MrNice
    Free Member

    There’s a faint whiff of snobbery and testosterone in the air!

    I suspect there’s a whiff of something else too. The people on here who I know do impressive rides don’t go in for crass willy waving (take terrahawk as an example but there are others)

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    MrSmith, you missed out a few plus ones….

    Sportive =

    +1 top tube food box
    +1 littering
    +many Assos
    +1 badly fitting online ordered bike (but it is full crabon fribe with ‘epic spec’)
    +1 telling anyone who’ll listen, and many who’d rather not, that you’re a serious racer

    Etc.

    RustySpanner
    Full Member

    Oh come on Mr Nice, I don’t think anyone really means it.

    The whole Sportive concept is a bit odd though, isn’t it?

    rogerthecat
    Free Member

    Blimey, reading some of the replies, I think I will stick to offroad riding. 😯

    ads678
    Full Member

    Nice innit, guy comes on here with some praise and you all slate him.

    Can’t do right for doing wrong on here sometimes 🙄

    CaptainFlashheart
    Free Member

    Rusty, the concept is brilliant. Sadly it’s ruined by a small number of neo-roadies and the likes of Strava. It’s not a race, FFS! If you want to race, there’s loads of racing out there. Sportives aren’t races. Just wish people would remember that.

    MrSmith
    Free Member

    MrSmith, you missed out a few plus ones….

    Also missed off riding like a bunch of choppers.

    climbingkev
    Free Member

    What ads678 said. I’ve done sporives purly because they’re not races, just a little challenge. I’m consistently gobsmacked at the standard of the “hobby” rider, it’s phenominal and as a sport we should be a little bit smug about about that.

    Someones posted a little bit of a hi 5/kudos to somebody, thats all.

    However, hopefullt, when I grow up I’ll be as cool as wanmanwhatever. :0/

    whatnobeer
    Free Member

    It’s not a race, FFS! If you want to race, there’s loads of racing out there. Sportives aren’t races. Just wish people would remember that.

    Actual races are hard as **** and not a lot of fun if you’re not very very fit. Just look at the ‘how long to be credible’ thread. Sportives give people who want to ride in a big bunch, a chance to ride a course, be timed and if they want to go flat out and ‘race’ they can. Why people get so wound up about it, I have no idea.

    mtbmatt
    Free Member

    Sportives or Gran Fondos might not be races in the UK, but head to France, Italy and lots of other countries and they are full on races.

    The concept started in France and was a race from the very beginning.

    oldnick
    Full Member

    I rode up Winnats Pass a few times when younger and in my roady days, bloody horrible thing it was – constantly worried that my chain would snap (didn’t help that first gear was 42×18 mind).

    Credit to all those who did the event, I was out on my bouncy bike and they all seemed quite jolly – lots of trainers and hybrids too 😯

    aracer
    Free Member

    Very true – they’re accessible to those who wouldn’t stay with the pack in a real race, and give them a chance to ride in a group aiming for a fast time. However if you’re fast enough to race properly (in a 3/4 race) then I’d suggest a sportive is actually harder as the course/terrain tends to be a lot tougher than in most races – certainly the case for me where I’ve never been dropped by the pack in a road race, but rarely placed because I can’t sprint (my only points came in races hilly enough to split the field).

    bob_summers
    Full Member

    That’s an impressive amount of climbing to fit into 80km.

    All this “it’s not racing” bobbins… surely a race is just two or more people who both know they are engaged in a race. I have never done a UK sportive so don’t know if the stereotypes above are true or not, but I do know if you put a bunch of handy club racers in (eg) Quebrantahuesos, they would quickly agree that it was a race.

    Strangely, the only time I’ve done a UCI doping control was after a French sportive 😐

    piemonster
    Full Member

    you can’t “win” a sportive.

    I beg to differ 👿

    piemonster
    Full Member

    Anyway, road riding is ace. You just need to go fast.

    Cyclocross is also freaking cool, as is gravel riding, touring, you name it. If it’s on bikes it’s good.

    Shove any snootiness where the sun don’t shine, if it’s fun it’s fun.

    Apart from grown men who ride BMX, that’s a bit silly.

    carlos
    Free Member

    Well I rode the event and thought it was great. 😀

    Non of this ‘make a load of money for profit BS and oh here’s a little % for charity’, like most Sportive’s seem to be. Yeah I know they’re done to make money but this was for the community All the money raised went to the Bradwell Pre School and all those that organised the event are directly involved. The feed stops were laden with home Made cake, biscuits and flapjack, as was the finish, along with soup, rolls, tea and coffee. Lots of smiley chatty people genuinely pleased that you’ve taken part.

    Not one for riding a lot of road I thought I’d give it a bash for a change, set a personal target of 4 – 4.5 hrs. I finished the 78k route in 3hrs 36min, so was very pleased with myself for that, totally unexpected. Chatted with a few guys on the route and just rode at a comfortable pace. The worst hill for me was prob Stoney, it just seemed to go on and on, I was dreading Winnats but tbh it’s not that bad.

    Anyway like I said I thought it was a great event and well organised for their first one, I for sure would return next year or whenever they do another. A big thanks (again) to those that organised and took part in it.

    Carlos

    eskay
    Full Member

    piemonster – Member
    If it’s on bikes it’s good.

    Amen to that.

    Apart from grown men who ride BMX, that’s a bit silly.

    You were doing so well!!

    MoreCashThanDash
    Full Member

    It did look a cracking event, might look at it next year if it was run again.

    I prefer audax to sportives, just because they are cheaper and have proper cafe stops. I did beat Ben Swift in a sportive once. When I say “beat”, the weather was so foul that he and another British pro both bailed, so technically a DNF.

    Edit: Forgot the smilie before any of you take me seriously 😀

    Northwind
    Full Member

    jonba – Member

    you can’t “win” a sportive.

    Pff, next you’ll be telling me you can’t win practice.

    ransos
    Free Member

    Sportives or Gran Fondos might not be races in the UK, but head to France, Italy and lots of other countries and they are full on races.

    Quite. They had a prize giving ceremony for La Marmotte last year. Safe to say I didn’t get on the podium…

    ahwiles
    Free Member

    bob_summers – Member

    That’s an impressive amount of climbing to fit into 80km.

    The Peak District is a great place to *be* a roadie, but it’s an absolutely brutal place to become a roadie.

    even a simple ‘over the hill, caff, n’back’ may only rack up 40k, but it can cost you 800m of climbing – some alpine passes need less than that! (and at an easier gradient) (and you get to have your photo taken next to an ego-boosting sign at the top – confirming your greatness)

    i’ve got heaps of respect for the all the new roadies out there in the Peak District, you’re awesome!

    bob_summers
    Full Member

    Similar to where I live (Basque Country) ; On Sunday I climbed 4500m in 200km without going very much over 600m asa.

    D0NK
    Full Member

    There’s a faint whiff of snobbery and testosterone in the air!

    plenty of snobs in the sportives apparently.
    I can see the point of sportives (marked course, lots of other riders*, competition feel with the associated atmosphere, feed stations and possibly some level of support) I’ve never entered one** but they do get a lot of bad press here. Faster times than usual (lots of options for working in a group) are to be expected and pushing yourself hard to finish quick all seems reasonable to me, aslong as you’re not a cock about it – which should be a given for day to day life not just events.

    *pros and cons to this
    **Mainly coz I’m crap at organising myself but also I’m a fair weather roadie so if it was pissing it down on event day…

    scud
    Free Member

    As someone who considers themselves a cyclist, riding MTB’s, fat bikes, road etc, i think as we all know you get idiots at any type of event and I can see why some sportives come under critiscm.

    What I like about the sheer number of sportives at the moment, is that I will never be a racer, but I can gauge my own progression easily, i started at first only able to ride a bike on road, 40-50 miles, then lost weight and stretched myself to get up to 80-100 miles in East Anglia where I live, more training and then did a 250 mile ride and took on some of the tougher events like the Dragon Ride etc. I think they are a really good gauge of fitness, plus a great way (like many MTB events too) to see some cracking parts of the country.

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