There's one very local to me this Sunday, about three miles away. And I was toying with riding the course, but not using any facilities.
It's the 'Ride to the Horns' Mark Webbers little sportive.
I had a look at the details and it's meant to take in all the major local climbs, but a look at the map shows that in the case of the toughest climbs it takes little slightly easier detours.
Don't feel that keen to shell out £30 to ride round the block, should I just bugger off for the day?

Looks like they are raising money for The Royal National Institute for the Blind. Perhaps a small donation to the RNIB as I imagine they have arranged marshals etc that you would be using indirectly by being on the course?

Seems a bit cheap to take advantage of the organsied event but not pay for the entry IMO

If its a charity organised event then poor form IMO, if it was an Audax then why not….

Also bear in mind if you are not stopping at the feeds, checks, etc then you will be riding on your own anyway, might as well do it another day.

I once got a bollocking of a guy because i was riding with a few mates near ambleside last year on one of the evans "ride it" days without paying. I lived near by at the time and didn't feel i needed to pay for my local trails, (i didn't ride the whole route and had forgotten it was on)

I do feel its good manners to put a couple of quid in a bucket somewhere though if its for charity. Especially if you are tagging along with people who have paid.

But if you are only crossing paths and are getting on with your on agenda then don't pay.

I might set off early, say an hour beforehand. About 75% of the route is the ride I do anyway. It's basically a mish mash of all the well known climbs and reliability trials that have gone before.
We rode another local sportive last year and we didn't really need a map as you could predict where it was going to go.

tragically1969 – Member

If its a charity organised event then poor form IMO, if it was an Audax then why not….

I'd argue that the other way round. An audax is only going to cost about £6 to enter and will have been put on by volunteers from a local club and ay proceeds will go to hiring the village hall it starts from. A charity sportive will be about £30 to enter and a large portion of that will go to the events company that have organised it on the charities behalf. I was talking to a friend last night who has been involved in organising "charity" rides and he gave me an example of a sponsored ride from london to paris which had approx 2,000 riders enter. After all the costs were taken off the charity raised £10,000. It would have been far easier to just ask each person to give a fiver.

pjt201

You are probably right, its a debate that rages evertime the Fred Whitton comes around, i dont think there will ever be any agreement on what is right or wrong, morally or otherwise.

Actually I might pay up for this reason.
It starts from Mentmore which is a tiny village with a very wealthy population and home to Mentmore Towers, once a potential home to Tom Cruise.
Anyway there's a local rags to riches guy that lives there and is the self proclaimed lord of the manor. He also used to use the local pub as his 'court' Now this guy hates cycling with a passion and has been very vocal in expressing his anti cycling views. He tried to stop a local annual race because he claimed 'they all pee'd and s**t in his garden and all over the place?
Now Mark Webbers moved into town and bought the pub and introduced a cycle friendly atmosphere as well as showing support for the local pro outfit Phil Corley Cycles, the ex lord of the manor is a broken man who now not only continues to spout anti cycling clap trap but also now goes onto rant about Mr Webber and the harm he is doing to the village.
😆

I'm not planning on doing the event, but I might just pop of there in team kit to have a pee and shit in his garden though 🙂

I wouldn't dream of doing it elsewhere i.e somewhere I needed assistance and route marking etc. But with this one I can look at the map once and know where to go.
Sportives don't usuially do well here as we have the local Chiltern Classic series of five? reliability trials. These are a fiver and for that you get a well marked route with map and a food station and timing. A local Sportive used a similar course and charged £27 for that you got a poorly marked route no map and a rubbish food stop and no timing. When the orgainisers of this sportive tried to hold it again no one entered.

Public roads innit
But as mentioned a donation may clear your conscience

Why not just ride it on a different day and then there's no moral dilemma?

If you ride it on the day you're taking advantage of the atmosphere/camaraderie with other riders even if you avoid the feed stops.

If you're setting off early, riding on your own and not using the facilities, then why not just ride it on a different day and avoid all the moral dilemmas?

are the roads closed for the event? no?
you'll just be riding around your local roads that you don't have to pay for any other day of the year, surely?

although why you feel the need to go for a ride to deliberately have to weave round a bunch of sportivistas is beyond me

If you ride it on the day you're taking advantage of the atmosphere/camaraderie with other riders even if you avoid the feed stops

If ever there was a reason to do it another day that would be it. Pseudo competition and crashes aren't my cuppa tea 😉

Pay up or ride somewhere else.

JoB I have no mates…..seriously 😥 I only ever see other people at races.

Pay up or ride somewhere else

That is where I ride week in week out, it almost passes my front door. Even my evening road ride is 45% of that route.

JoB I have no mates…..seriously I only ever see other people at races.

Surely not? 😉

Carl, email me with your details (EIP) – we are doing the Army Enduro on Sunday, do you want to join us?

JoB I have no mates

Surprise surprise

cynic-al – Member

Pay up or ride somewhere else.

+1

How about, wait for it….not riding that day and let other people use the road, like you say you ride those roads on a regular basis, you're not missing much.

Are there no other roads for you to ride on?

I know Graham the organiser quite well, and know how much time and effort goes into organising these events, although it doesn't seem to be doing him too much harm. However, I can imagine nothing worse than choosing to join a sportif when you don't have to and will know better roads/routes for the good stuff.
I asume that you'll be going up Whiteleaf on your little ride oldgit?

b r I've already being considering it. I'll mail you if I am. But it's either another long road ride, the Russ Pinder loop in the Chilterns or the ACU event. What cat are you riding?

aP I think most of the races I did at Bledlow Ridge came down Whiteleaf Hill and went up Chinnor hill. That area is the 25% I don't usually ride.
Edit; is that Graham from the cross and Go-Ride?

BTW last week I chose to drive an hour to a Sportive on different roads rather than ride one which almost went past my front door. I reckoned I'd get bored by the local one, more than half of which was on my regular training roads.

i do it all the time with my brother mainly because they wont let him ride because hes too young.. if its all on public roads they cant stop you?

"I have no mates"

surely it's no so bad that you have to cruise sportives for talent?

🙂

Well where else do you suggest I cruise huh?

Anyway the Chilterns or the ACU are now looking favourite, as I haven't ridden my MTB for ages now.

oldgit – no, different Graham. The one you're thinking of has just come out of hospital after a bad crash 3 weeks ago.
If you want to try another place to ride, we'll be out on Sunday morning but in a more SSW direction…

Carl,
Assuming it’s the same route as last year it goes up Oving, Whiteleaf, a couple more that I don’t know the name of then the Crong. It avoids Toms Hill and Bison, going up the Beacon and up past the Whipsnade Golf club instead.

I have mixed views about doing an event on your local roads. It does seem a bit bizarre paying to ride your local roads but I like to think I am paying for the experience and the chance to test myself.

I’d imagine we’ll be riding some of those roads on Sunday and I’m not going to go the other way to avoid riders taking part if I see any.

Might stop off at Mentmore though as they hold a barbecue which is very tasty.

P.S. You are welcome to tag along with us (just me & Rich) on Sunday if you want – no charge 🙂

Cheers Jase. It looks like it avoids several well known hills which is silly as I assume the 'Horns' refers to the hills. I mean how can you miss out Bison Hill it's local, steep and was used on the Milk Race, but the ride shimmys round it.
Just checking to see if I can get down to Deep Cut for the Army Enduro, and I need to rebuild my MTB as it's a bit worn out.

They should route the sportif *down* bison hill.
The 2nd corner would be a great photo op 🙂

Where are you based Mr Munro?

About a month ago I climbed Bison Hill in the rain and there was a huge Diesel leak pouring down it. I had to ride in the rough stuff, it was so dodgy I couldn't take my hands off the bars to wave people to slow down.

Just outside Wheathampstead which is about 15 miles east of there. I used to live a bit closer and occasionally terrified myself by not scrubbing off enough speed before hitting that sequence of bends 🙂

There was one local to me on Sunday which was asking for £50 on the day for 100km, so ended up riding the route and not using the facilities.
Nobody stoned me…and having started quite early, I hardly saw anyone on the route after the first hour.

Ride it backwards?

That would be a neat trick – riding a bike backwards !

Is that Mark Webber the F1 racing driver ? Surely he lives somewhere more glamorous ! (mind you I suppose after Australia, Maryhill would be sophisticated)

Is that Mark Webber the F1 racing driver ? Surely he lives somewhere more glamorous ! (mind you I suppose after Australia, Maryhill would be sophisticated)

How vary dare you, it is and I am glamourous. Did you not read the bit about Tom Cruise looking to buy there.
No class some people 🙄

He lives in Aston Clinton, about 7 miles away from Mentmore.