So, the reliability runs (trials) are about to start.
Once, the traditional test of man and machine after a long winter rest.
The only requirements used to be a meeting place and time ,a stout heart, some warm kit, and a donation for some tray bake and a cup of tea at the end.
Now it appears that everything has to be registered ,insured, approved and risk assessed. They will be wanting signs next 😐

Sounds like they could turn into sportives ? perish the thought ! Audax is the way to go .

We also used to also call them ‘liability races’ where some riders try to get in an earlier leaving group so they can ‘win’ it because they are so awesome, and often don’t actually enter any other races the rest of the season. Witnessed loads of mental riding, as well as plenty of folks avoiding starting at the start to avoid paying their pound.

Avoided them for a few years now so things might have taken a turn for the worse

None of that nonsense round these parts – turn up on time, chuck em a couple of quid, then crack on. Just as it should be.

Whilst I appreciate that many people love racing, being involved with clubs and get an awful lot out of the whole “scene”. Personally, anything club related or organised gives me the horrors. My idea of fun is to just race my mates, informal, good laugh and no red tape..

London/ SE reliability rides are all turning into sportives with pre-entry and £20 entry fees.
Used to ride them but not now, too many painful nobbers.

Easy way to get the mamil, carbon ,nobbers away from your reliability ride is to throw a bit of green lane /rough stuff into it .

Chance to ride in a bigger field than I get on my club run, without it being a full on race and no horrendous sportive prices.

Looking forward to them B-)

Reading cc used to do a good one. I used to enjoy it. They also used to do one called the torture 40 which went up and down a load of hills near Hambledon which was ace. Didnt have to pay if a member. Not sure you did if you werent either! You can ride round or race your mates whats not to like?

Already started – one of our local ones was last week (having been postponed from the week before). Only £4 for our club one next weekend including tea and cakes, which doesn’t seem too bad!
https://www.facebook.com/events/426340474162825/?ref_newsfeed_story_type=regular
https://www.facebook.com/download/586480754768327/Reliability%20Map%20-%20Long%20Route.pdf – nice bit of elevation (though that probably won’t work for non club members, I thought I might as well try)

…found a link which should work for all
https://www.britishcycling.org.uk/events/details/101615/Malvern-Cycle-Sport-Reliability-Ride-2014

I’m tempted by the Stafford Road Club one of these, anyone done it? Will I get dropped badly if I only ride 23/24kph on the long ride.

Our club’s reliability rides are full on road races. Everyone sets off together to start and then they tear apart at unofficial pre-determined places where the racing starts…

You can ride round or race your mates whats not to like?

Fear of public humiliation..

London/ SE reliability rides are all turning into sportives with pre-entry and £20 entry fees.
Used to ride them but not now, too many painful nobbers.

Ditto.

Christ almighty, why enter a reliability trial and treat it as a race. Clues in the name ‘Reliability Trial’
bokonon. you shouldn’t get dropped as you start in your time group. Look at the map have a think about how long it’ll take you and join the correct time allotment group.

They seem a bit pants now. It used to be great to ride with the guys you’d been racing all year and chew the fat. You’d sit in the group and pretty well stay together all ride. You might get the odd local hero or Olympian join you as well.
They weren’t waymarked either, GPX God forbid.
Plus they were a Hundred miles not kilometres.
So to sum up, you entered a time group, you found your way around and you got back after a 100 miles and therefore were RELIABLE.

Now you just follow pink arrows over a short distance end of.

God I’m old 🙂

Oldgit, what might be confusing people here is that one mans race pace is another mans training ride. Most who think they are like races havent raced. Ime it was a fast club run with no cake shop and when you hit the hill 2/3rds way round it was every man for himself!

2/3rds way round

I was usually lost by then 😳 Ours were big interclub events, still are to a degree, but they don’t seem worth the effort now, all puffed chests Oakleys and no banter.

Some years ago attended my first reliability ride. Expected a lot of people dusting off bikes, stretching and stopping eating loads of cake.

Literally 10 mins into the ride, I was doing 30mph in the middle of the road in an echelon hanging onto a lot of whippet thin riders on full carbon bikes and deep section rims. This ride was eventually, ‘won’ by a twenty something ex-pro rider.

Make no mistake, it’s a race.

Used to do the Harp Hilly Hundred every February, good event. Remember one in driving rain, our group of 8 or so had about 20 punctures. Not fun!

Shame if they’re being lost to the ‘sportive’ moniker and all the crap that comes with it!

Literally 10 mins into the ride, I was doing 30mph in the middle of the road in an echelon hanging onto a lot of whippet thin riders on full carbon bikes and deep section rims. This ride was eventually, ‘won’ by a twenty something ex-pro rider.

Yep Zipp 404s are standard attire…..

Agree, Fareham Wheelers used to do them and I joined in on one ohhh about 6 years ago, me and my whippet mate.. I got dropped 50ks into it, lost a group of <25’s hacking the small cogs late into the distance, whippet mate continued. I felt old, out of it and couldn’t face joining in on the cake/tea brigade, I turned off and went home never to return. 😆
Turns out a small group of neop pros’ joined in as training and I didn’t know about that, neither did a lot of club riders, the group that set out (about 80 of us) ended up being 40 or so..

Mental and harsh it was.