Etape Caledonia 2011
- Thread starter gmac190
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
It was scary stuff for me seeing it right in front of my eyes but it must of been even scarier for my brother, lets hope they are OK.
Stig-OT-Dump
Guru
- Location
- Glasgow's sunny southside
Heard the Air Ambulance was called out to a bloke in a neck brace & backboard but don't know if it was this incident or another.
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
I'm glad that was all, I fearded the worst !
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
It wouldnt surprise me if that was the same incident. According to my Garmin I was going 37.5mph somewhere near there, it looked a very bad crash at that speed.
I had a great day - never done anything like it before, and absolutely loved it. The weather was pretty kind, and I just went for it. I didn't stop at any of the feed stations.
I'm sorry to hear about that accident though I started a long way back, so it was probably cleared before I got there. There's a comment on the website saying one person is seriously ill in hospital, and the other had minor injuries and has been discharged.
I did find the traffic a bit frustrating, particularly on the descents. Some people were being relatively cautious, but at the same time they weren't prepared to let others through.
I'm sorry to hear about that accident though I started a long way back, so it was probably cleared before I got there. There's a comment on the website saying one person is seriously ill in hospital, and the other had minor injuries and has been discharged.
I did find the traffic a bit frustrating, particularly on the descents. Some people were being relatively cautious, but at the same time they weren't prepared to let others through.
aberal
Guru
- Location
- Midlothian
Me too. I passed by 5-10 minutes later and he was still motionless on the road. From the Etape website:
“Just a quick update on the two riders who sustained injuries at the bottom of the Schiehallion descent, as many of you have enquired: One sustained serious injuries and is currently stable and being cared for in hospital, the other cyclist suffered minor injuries and has been discharged.”
I did worry that I'd passed by a fatality, so it is a relief to find that he is stable in hospital. It happened 20ft in front of my mate Colin so he must have been with you guys at that point. Earlier I passed a group of girls who had gone down, one of whom was sitting on the road covered in blood. These things are upsetting to see, but with 4-5000 people taking part it's inevitable that there will be some mishaps. I hope this doesn't sound insensitive, but I find myself preferring to dwell on the positives. It was a great day, well organised, decent weather, though a tad chilly at the start, and some wonderful scenery to whizz through. I enjoyed it all, including the support of the people who had turned out at the bottom of their gardens to cheers us along. True, friendly locals, unlike the twat who sprinkled tacks.
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
I started in the second last group, if you seen a CycleChat jersey going by that was me. We never stopped at the feed stations either, the first 3 were too busy and we didn't feel like we needed it and when the 4th came we were still feeling good and didn't stop either. Did you get round before the rain started ? We missed it at 4h27 and my Brothers mate wheeled in about an hour and a half later just missed it.
I do hope its who I thought was the victim who has the minor injuries but best wishes to the the serious but stable patient too.
I can accept folk being cautious, the folk that I found frustrating were the ones determined to squeeze through only not to have the pace to complete the move and swerve in or across your path.
I do hope its who I thought was the victim who has the minor injuries but best wishes to the the serious but stable patient too.
I can accept folk being cautious, the folk that I found frustrating were the ones determined to squeeze through only not to have the pace to complete the move and swerve in or across your path.
I must have been pretty close to you then. I was supposed to start in T, but getting to the start line was very difficult. I queued up the main street for ages, but landed up in W. I spent pretty much the whole day threading through other cyclists - until I came to the last ten miles or so, when I hit a lot of faster people.
Yes people are right to be cautious, and I held back where there wasn't room, it isn't worth getting hurt for, but they didn't need to block the whole road when there were clearly other people trying to get by.
What colour are the cyclechat jerseys? Orange and blue like the logo?
I was on a red specialized allez, with a karrimor longsleeve blue and black jersey. I also had my number on my front, where almost everybody else had theres on their back. In my defence I'm sure the woman when I registered told me to put it on my front!
Yes people are right to be cautious, and I held back where there wasn't room, it isn't worth getting hurt for, but they didn't need to block the whole road when there were clearly other people trying to get by.
What colour are the cyclechat jerseys? Orange and blue like the logo?
I was on a red specialized allez, with a karrimor longsleeve blue and black jersey. I also had my number on my front, where almost everybody else had theres on their back. In my defence I'm sure the woman when I registered told me to put it on my front!
edindave
Über Member
- Location
- Auld Reeker
The weather was kind
Only swallowed one insect. (Thanks weather!)
Didn't have a mechanical or mishap.
I was one of those nervous descenders - two weeks into owning my first road bike - but my confidence grew mile by mile and I was overtaking cautiously and using the road.
I'm glad I started late (Y Group) - it took the pressure off slightly.
04:47 on my Garmin
- didn't get a txt of my chip time but SWMBO did!
New distance record for me
Hope those injured guys make a speedy recovery.
Only swallowed one insect. (Thanks weather!)
Didn't have a mechanical or mishap.
I was one of those nervous descenders - two weeks into owning my first road bike - but my confidence grew mile by mile and I was overtaking cautiously and using the road.
I'm glad I started late (Y Group) - it took the pressure off slightly.
04:47 on my Garmin
New distance record for me
Hope those injured guys make a speedy recovery.
Attachments
aberal
Guru
- Location
- Midlothian
I was supposed to start in P and actually started in T. Don't suppose it makes much difference in the end. What I really liked about this event was that you were with people all the way round. Previous events I have taken part in didn't have the same numbers involved so everyone tends to get strung out a bit and you end up on your own. My time of 5:19 was way ahead of my expectations. Actual rolling time was 5:08 as I had two pit stops, the first I spent ages waiting for the toilets. I had planned for two stops, but other than having to stop for a "comfort break" I'm fairly sure I could have done it without stopping. The second stop especially I didn't really feel the need to stop, and then it took me a while to get back into my stride.
Already thinking about next year....
Already thinking about next year....
edindave
Über Member
- Location
- Auld Reeker
Already thinking about next year....
I know what you mean. That's me for this year - not signed up for anything else yet, so I'm hoping they'll get it all in place again for next year.
What a lovely route.
I was pleased to see people pointing out hazards in the road - they tended to be loose bottles, pumps and other jetsam.
Bit of a contrast to riding in the Edinburgh/East Lothian area where it tends to be potholes!
