Audax question

[Blonde]

'Come ride with us. It's cheaper than getting piss drunk

Like it! Though trading standards would have them for saying that - it's not as cheap after you've bought the bike and kit, and I think I spent about £40 on food during one 600... I am also liable to get drunk on about half a pint of cider (cheap date!)

 

[Blonde]

...those 2 rags don't think Audax is sexy enough to write about.

They need some tight (and possibly wet) jersey, audax girl, pin-up pictures then... I volunteer! (You think I'm joking! )

 

[andy_wrx]

Audax definitely has an image problem.

Some people who ride sportives most definitely wouldn't ride audaxes. They think they're slow, badly organised, full of beardies-in-sandals, etc.
Sportives however are sexy, for adventurous, hard-racing, fit characters.

(- I suspect someone who races properly would laugh at sportive riders as 'wannabe-racers' )

But certainly sportives are attracting large numbers of riders, who judging by their bikes have quite a bit of money - it's a bit yuppy.

 

[Gavin Gilbert]

But certainly sportives are attracting large numbers of riders, who judging by their bikes have quite a bit of money - it's a bit yuppy.

I did upset a couple of my former clubmates by suggesting that the Etape was for 'lifestyle' cyclists.

 

[bagpuss]

I never had a problem with riders entering on the day . I always had one person dealing with this . The prolbem has already been stated if someone does not sign out at the finish . This is unfair on the organizer . I did not and still do not believe any event under 200k in a true audax . I used them as support events for longer rides . Sportives and a 400 or 600 k audax are totally different types of events . Ps I no longer organize or am member of AUK .

PSS image problem? Gethin Butler rode one of my events for the last PBP {400k} how many sportive riders could follow his wheel?

 

[Blonde]

I did upset a couple of my former clubmates by suggesting that the Etape was for 'lifestyle' cyclists.

That was exactly my point - for some, the image of audax puts them off, for others the image of sportives puts them off. I always thought of sportives as being full of not very experineced posing racer-boys hurtling round on expensive machines and generally pissing people off with silly and dangerous manouveres, guaranteed to casue a big pile up. But apparently, they aren't, well, not in France anyway, and so I'm hoping to give one or two a try next year.

 

[asterix]

Just cycling long distances doesn't really appeal to me. I tried audax a few times and got bored with all the checkpoint stuff and points counting. The only audax ride I continued to enter - just for the ride - was the Moors 'illy Imperial because it's always a challenge (especially the wide open moor bit up to and over Rosedale Chimney Bank ). I quite like the idea of sportives and etapes but not the 'lifestyle image'. This year I did the 10 day Raid Pyrenean which was a great experience and a real eye-opener into the sort of climbs and descents the Tour riders cope with. Now I have to go back and explore a bit more of the area.

..and what Blonde says about French sportives and cyclists matches what I have seen.

 

[vorsprung]

'Tis the way they are marketed I think - well, AUK doesn't really market their rides enough, that's the problem! I notice hardly any are mentioned in C Plus or other mags in the 'what's on' bit, it's mostly sportives. They should advertise the shorter, more accessible distance events (eg. 50-150km) in more places IMO - they are the ones that attract more people so the number of entries should pay for any advertising costs. The image of audax according to the people I know who are not members of AUK, is not very attractive. I'm not sure why this is, exactly, but AUK needs to find out, do some research and do something about it.

The way I understand it is in terms of "value adding"

Both Sportifs and Audaxes are rides up the road. Now, if the Sporif can give you a timing chip, free stuff on the course (ie gels), massage at the end and a signposted course then that is "adding value" to the event.

Because they do this they attract more people. The cost is not entirely irrelevant but when you consider that most people value their weekends and have already spent 500 quid+ on a bike then 5 quid for an audax or 15 for a sportif it isn't going to be a major deciding point.

So more people are likely to choose sportifs as they see them as a more value packed way to spend their special weekend.

The higher costs incurred by the Sportif people mean they can advertise as a fractional part of their overheads, whereas for audax this is not an option: there is no budget for it.

Lest we just say "well that's the end of audax" remember that some of the Sportif organisers are commercial and are trying to make a profit. That's an additional cost that audaxes don't have. Like Gavin says, all the audax organisers have to do is budget a tiny amount for basic publicity.

 

[stevek]

Please, please, please don't encourage anyone not to register in advance!

I have helped out on many events and late entries are a flippin' nighmare to manage and very unfair on the organisers.