I have never ridden a Sportive after being put off long a go reading a write up on one with the opening paragraph described 3,000 riders setting off
, obviously one of the more popular offerings but seriously not my cup of tea so I ride Audax and even then I hang about for a couple of minutes to let everyone get away at the start ,
you could probably do the same at a Sportive I imagine but you will probably find the feed stations might not have a lot left .