Sportive

[derrick]

What does a sportive involve, am new to all this road cycling, have just found this,


Evans Cycles Ride It! Epping - Sportive Road Entry - Oct 2011
quite fancy having a go as it's nice and local, and it's an area i sort of know,
thinking about the short one about 30 miles, don't think this would be to difficult,
having never done anything like this what should i expect,
Cheers Del

 

[PpPete]

What does a sportive involve, am new to all this road cycling, have just found this,


Evans Cycles Ride It! Epping - Sportive Road Entry - Oct 2011
quite fancy having a go as it's nice and local, and it's an area i sort of know,
thinking about the short one about 30 miles, don't think this would be to difficult,
having never done anything like this what should i expect,
Cheers Del

Well sign-posted route, some free food & energy drinks from whoever is sponsoring the event, electronic timing - lots of people pretending to "race". The bike equivalent of a mass-particpation running event.

Sportives are often a bit expensive - although that one looks reasonably good value.

Never done one myself - but everytime I've come across the route of one, the "well-sign posted" means dozens of dayglo signs polluting the landscape. Just how many arrows do you need on each junction ? Three seems to be average and still you get numpties turning the wrong way.

If you fancy something with a bit more self-reliance (a basic route-sheet to follow - no arrows on the road) sandwiches, tea, cakes rather than gels & energy drinks; time to stop and enjoy them and chat with your fellow riders, learn from their experiences and get inspired to do daily distances that the United Nations Convention on Human Rights would describe as "Cruel & Unusual Punishment" and mostly for between £5 & £10..... have a look at audax rides.

Each to their own....

 

[zizou]

The two Evans ones i've riden have been well organised / signed and good value, would recommend it.

 

[Turning Worm]

As you are 'new to cycling', all this stuff can be confusing. It is also worth mentioning audaxes:

Sportives
- not set standards and each event can vary greatly depending upon the owner of the event and the competency of the organisers. Some are excellent and some are a terrible waste of money.
- Vary from £20 - £50 entry fee (a few are cheaper but these are rare)
- All tend to be waymarked.
- Some provide 'free' food en-route.
- Many provide the rider with an individual timing.
- Some provide emergency rescue
- They are NOT races.
- The bad examples charge a lot and provide little .
- The good example charge little but provide a lot.

Good examples of sportives include:
http://www.cyclospor...uk/epicHome.htm
http://www.etapedudales.co.uk/


Audaxes http://www.aukweb.net/home/
- Subject to national and international standards by a national governing body known as AUK. AUK sets standards for all events (distances, amount of climbing, entry to pre-qualifying events, etc).
- Distances are usually 100, 150, 200, 300, 400, 600 or 1000km+
- Completed rides are validated and can be used in all year round points competitions or for prequalification to international events such as the Paris - Brest - Paris.
- Audaxes are substantially cheaper than sportives ranging from £2 (very basic event) - £10 (gold plated audax)
- Riders undertake a 'private excursion' and are responsible for themselves (no rescue if you are lost or have a
mechanical).
- Riders do not receive individual finishing times but are acknowledged as finishing with a prescribed time period.
- Refreshments often provided at a HQ. Food en-route has to be purchased.
- Routes are not waymarked but route cards are provided. GPS routes often available too.
- Some audaxes can be ridden all year round (known as permanents).
- You can make your own audax up (known as a DIY)

Good examples of audaxes include:
http://audax.lvis.org.uk/
http://www.beaconrcc.org.uk/audax/
http://www.willesdencyclingclub.co.uk/calendar/audax/


And the other distinction:

Sportives pretend to race; audaxers pretend not to race.

 

[LosingFocus]

That sounds like an interesting ride Derrick, might be tempted to have a go at the 30 myself.

 

[VamP]

What does a sportive involve, am new to all this road cycling, have just found this,


Evans Cycles Ride It! Epping - Sportive Road Entry - Oct 2011
quite fancy having a go as it's nice and local, and it's an area i sort of know,
thinking about the short one about 30 miles, don't think this would be to difficult,
having never done anything like this what should i expect,
Cheers Del

Do it!

The Evans rides are cheap and well organized. You won't know if it's your thing until you've tried it. Doing the short version might leave you with a sense of anticlimax though, how about the 60 miler, to make it worthwhile?

 

[the_mikey]

+1 to 60 milers, I like 'em, get up, go ride in the morning, spend the afternoon relaxing and eating so you've got a chance of recovering before going back to work on monday!


Ps: I've just opened another bank account so I can have a cheque book, this allows me to enter AUDAX events, or at least it will when they print the chequebook and send it to me in the post...