I'm struggling with the whole Rate Race organisation £350 for a race where I have to camp and supply my own tent, best I can figure the food supplied in the venings has to be paid for and all they really offer to do is move my bag and tent to the camp sites each day, OK there's secure bike storage at night, but £350, really, it's not looking like value for money to me
If it's not worth it to you then maybe don't do it?
see my earlier thread and comments
[url= http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/rat-race-the-crossing-coast-to-coast ]Rat Race[/url]
It's £410 now!! I was looking at doing this, but the cost is too much.
If the organizers of the Rat Race want any more of my cash, they'll have to prise it from my cold dead hands...
Or you could just get a bunch of your mates together and contact Peter at [url= http://www.trailbrakes.co.uk/output/mtb_holidays.asp ]Trailbrakes[/url]
We did the Sustrans coast to coast with him last year and couldn't fault the service.
We stayed in comfy B&Bs (apart from the one in consett) rather than tents, and had a great trip.
Last weekend I did the Ratrace Dirty weekend. Organisation was a joke. Course not complete, 90 minute queues for toilets, 2 hour queues for a shower post race when wet and cold, ran out of food and water at feed stations, promised staged timing was not in place and to top it all off the bar ran out of beer!
Apart from the cost, if its wet and your not faster than the majority you could be riding through a bog created by the 200ppl in front of you... For 3 days...oh the fun..
One of the joys of doing the Coast to coast is taking timeout to take in the views helping out mates, we tried to do it in 3 days but failed due to eating ice creams drinking beer and having a bloody good laugh.
Cost around about £120 including train fare.
Rat race does to appeal in the slightest
http://www.flickr.com/photos/nzrich/sets/72157624943948623/
[url= http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4129/5037248066_3e7188a235.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nzrich/5037248066/ ]Are we nearly there yet![/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nzrich/ ]Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4126/5042189659_75ece07369.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nzrich/5042189659/ ]bogtrotting coast to coast![/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nzrich/ ]Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4090/5037823626_0ccf7c111c.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nzrich/5037823626/ ]Tan Inn help yourself![/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nzrich/ ]Richard Munro[/url], on Flickr
Last weekend I did the Ratrace Dirty weekend. Organisation was a joke. Course not complete, 90 minute queues for toilets, 2 hour queues for a shower post race when wet and cold, ran out of food and water at feed stations, promised staged timing was not in place and to top it all off the bar ran out of beer!
Interesting. The weekend before I did the Rat Race Road Trip (London - Edinburgh). I also found food at the pitstops inadequate. Food that was promised was not present, all there was was flapjacks and bananas from Huntingdon to York. That's a long way to pedal on flapjack. I had to stop at a pub and buy a cheese sandwich. (Didn't make it to Edinburgh).
At that price, I wouldn't bother. For the money, you could get yourself a whole bikepacking kit and still organise the trip yourself.
I've just done the Cairngorm Loop. With my return fare from London to Aviemore, food and wild camping along the way, I did the whole trip for less than £100.
I don't really understand how these companies can justify their pricing.
well - a lot of people will pay a lot to turn up and ride i guess, not having to think about route planning, booking accommodation, gear carried for you, getting back to the start to pick up car etc etc
Day up, 3 days riding, day back - bosh back to the office
But yes I think it is expensive - Black mountain 3 day was £175 I think for 2 nights, food (and beer!)and camping included, although none of the logostics of moving gear and people around
Having said that - £400 is about one Fox fork leg..........
thanks for all the comments, think i'm going to the pedles de Barcelona, 800 euros for 5 star accommodation looks pretty good vale to me and at least it'll be sunny!