Personally I think the Crater Cruise has lost its charm. The organisation was good, as usual, but the race has gotten extremely generic. It used to be that the water points had a lot more vibe and individuality since the locals had more input in the rest stops. Nowadays I can rely on only getting USN (which I cannot stomach) or water, and some bananas. I remember just a few years back being given small packets of gummi sweets, koeksisters and similar home made goods. Often families brought their kids, and were just so happy to be able to help in any way possible. The only water point that stood out in my mind was the one on the corrugated road. The people there were so helpful and friendly. Apparently the had to get special permission from the organisers to be able to serve Coke (which I think is a joke -not everyone drinks USN) and were very liberal with adding ice to the water I was carrying to help with the heat. Also badly organised was that the gap between the 25km and 80km starts was not long enough, causing the teenagers catching the slower of the marathon riders and forcing us off the single track whilst barrelling past without even a word of acknowledgement. Personally I think this race has suffered from being included in the Nissan series. Its become interchangable with any other event and I don't know whether I will be back.
