Click on my nick and you will see my details. I am not hiding behind a name. But in any case my name is Stieler van Eeden and PM me if you want my contact number as well. Jacques, I spoke to you after Stage 1 and gave you a few pointers to improve the event based on my experience from having participated in other tours. And I am also aware your main focus is on other type of events that are much bigger than this and that you are very good at what you do. But please see my criticism in a positive light. I did not criticize the race itself (we on the road cycling). If you read my post I gave you 10/10 for the marshalling, road safety, water points etc. In my mind you could not have done better there, everyone was at his post. The metro police, ambulance everything was very visible and well coordinated. In my books and you also pointed it out safety is the most important thing in a race and you made every effort to put the riders? safety first. So for what counted the most points you guys did an excellent job. What I mean by race organisation is the following. I guess after having done some other tours my expectations were too high with regards to the softer things that we often take for granted; * The communication to the riders were very poor. There was no proper race program to follow? Everything was ad-hoc. And I think the problem here is that people have done other tours and expect it to be done in the same way which is not always going to be the case. I for one am guilty of comparing this event to others. But if you are planning to have a tour in a particular way make sure you communicate it clearly to your audience so that they know what to expect. * People also made analogies with the "Tropical" tour which was organised and presented in its own particular fashion. That tour had some issues of its own and beforehand people were not interested because some probably thought it was the same guys organising it. I think it should be made clear that you guys have got nothing to do with the previous organisers. Personally, I can?t compare this tour with the Tropical tour because it was before I started cycling. * No proper introduction at the race briefing. Your first words were telling us where we are starting the prologue the next day. It seemed like you lost your train of thought after the MIC broke. How about doing a proper introduction and introducing your team of people.. give a bit of background about how the event came about...and also very important.. welcome the cyclists. People pay attention to those kinds of things. * What about the refund for the people that paid R1200, no clear communication regarding that either. Every time I inquired the lady (older lady) told me at prize giving they are going to tell us what to do. I only saw one prize giving at the end but no mention regarding the refund. Now R270 is not such a big deal but out of principle I want it settled because the written communication I received from the organizers said they would. * Your web site. Your web site did not read very well and a lot of the maps and profiles were enlarged to the extend that they were not very visible. People that do not know that area of the country very well want to be very clear on what they are letting themselves in. Pimp that web site. Put as much information as you can on there. * Sell it, I felt you guys could have done better and probably got more cyclists by selling it more actively to the community. Look at some of the other events, even minor ones they start planning and sending out communication to riders almost a year in advance. And this is not advertising you necessarily have to pay for. There are ways to do it. * It was also at the end of the month when Moria is at its peak and traffic back to JHB is not fun. I know my way around this one so it did not bother me. A lot of people from JHB probably don't even know what that star on their maids clothes are but make them aware beforehand of the big trek if the event is going to be held at the end of the month. The last thing you want to do is sit in cues to get home for 500km after having done a tough tour. * There was no clear communication regarding who is in what jersey, the jerseys were handed out informally by the race commissar's. Usually this is done in a more formal way. This is also the opportunity the sponsors use to get publicity. But in the greater scheme of things the fun I had far more outweighed the issues I noted above. I really enjoyed it and it is very very sad that it won?t be back next year as I love that part of the world and the roads are perfect for racing. I understand that you were tight on resources and after reading your post and giving it some thought you did the right thing by focusing what you had on the actual racing itself. A job well done, by faaaaaar safer than most races in jhb. In the end thanks for an awesome race, it would not have been possible without you and your team. It is one thing to bitch and it is another thing to make a difference. I want to see this race be even more successful next year so if you decide to do it again next year I will assist you for free with your web site to help document everything properly and get the word out how awesome this race is. All the best with the rock concert and lastly I apologise for not qualifying the comments I made in my first post. Stieler epoh2007-07-02 14:57:11
