Garfield2010 Posted March 1, 2012 Share It was quite funny how they showed the one pro get a drafting penalty minutes before showing Argus-like bunches with guys literally 15cm's from each others wheels speeding along with no refs in sight...... Wonder if the World IM body will have anything to say if they watch it? Its lekker to brag about 3,000 entrants and being the largest event ever and pocketing a few million..... just a pity the IM tradition of doing it on your own has been cheapened/diluted by this farce.......... They might just as well scrap the drafting rule altogether..................... Edited March 1, 2012 by Garfield2010 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benadeja Posted March 1, 2012 Share Yes I saw that and my fiance had exactly the same question , what's the rule regarding this if they penalize a pro but the normal Joe's get sway with it , are there different rules for the open and pro categories then ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garfield2010 Posted March 1, 2012 Share No, the same rules supposedly applies to everyone.......... Money however changes everything..................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker911 Posted March 1, 2012 Share The problem with the non drafting rules is it gets kinda lonely out there on the road. If I do 70.3 this means I am gonna be cycling for 3h20 at least. Full would take me 7h ... all that time checking out some oke's butt 10m in front of me. hmmm not much fun. These days you cant even wear an ipod anymore so the only thing you gonna hear is a ref passing you by, seagulls or the guy in front of you grunting. The one thing I really like about normal cycle races etc it gets really interesting in the bunch oke's passing comments telling jokes etc etc its really quite a different experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZaRuK Posted March 1, 2012 Share Personally got stuck in several of these bunches. As soon as I made a break away up a hill, I'd get swarmed on the downhill. So it was kind of a catch 22... GSNieP 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garfield2010 Posted March 1, 2012 Share Ja but what pissed me off was that I rode with a friend next to each other chatting (not front or behind) and one of the refs went bezerck. Meanwhile on the other side of the road it looked like the freakin TDF peleton was coming past.... (The Garf does not cheat) Edited March 1, 2012 by Garfield2010 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garfield2010 Posted March 1, 2012 Share The problem with the non drafting rules is it gets kinda lonely out there on the road. If I do 70.3 this means I am gonna be cycling for 3h20 at least. Full would take me 7h ... all that time checking out some oke's butt 10m in front of me. hmmm not much fun. These days you cant even wear an ipod anymore so the only thing you gonna hear is a ref passing you by, seagulls or the guy in front of you grunting. The one thing I really like about normal cycle races etc it gets really interesting in the bunch oke's passing comments telling jokes etc etc its really quite a different experience. The problem here is that there are 3,000 competitors and maybe 5 refs on the road of whom 3 are watching the pros. THe other problem is that they have these very strict rules that they only apply when it suits them. Why not allow guys to ride next to each other (like a 1m) rule or something. Hell if there are crosswinds predicted then dont... IM 70.3 and full IM in SA however very rarely have cross winds. In any case looking how it went they might just as well scrap all the drafting rules all together................ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gadget Posted March 1, 2012 Share Also got stuck in a Peleton of Wave 3's. Luckily a water stop sorted it out, but I was forced to ride in a bunch for about 5 minutes with a ref next to us trying to sort us out. I stuck to riding at 14h00 (front right on white line trying not to "block") as everyone was riding the Argus, but on TT bars...one big crash waiting to happen. My claim to fame for this race was that I lead the race for the first 15m. I have a terrific sprint so I'm the dude first in the water going like a bat out of hell. From there I only went backwards! Edited March 1, 2012 by gadget Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TexasRanger Posted March 1, 2012 Share The problem with the non drafting rules is it gets kinda lonely out there on the road. If I do 70.3 this means I am gonna be cycling for 3h20 at least. Full would take me 7h ... all that time checking out some oke's butt 10m in front of me. hmmm not much fun. These days you cant even wear an ipod anymore so the only thing you gonna hear is a ref passing you by, seagulls or the guy in front of you grunting. The one thing I really like about normal cycle races etc it gets really interesting in the bunch oke's passing comments telling jokes etc etc its really quite a different experience. Being out there on your own is part of the attraction and challenge of these longer distance races. They are not meant to be a tea party. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker911 Posted March 1, 2012 Share The problem here is that there are 3,000 competitors and maybe 5 refs on the road of whom 3 are watching the pros. THe other problem is that they have these very strict rules that they only apply when it suits them. Why not allow guys to ride next to each other (like a 1m) rule or something. Hell if there are crosswinds predicted then dont... IM 70.3 and full IM in SA however very rarely have cross winds. In any case looking how it went they might just as well scrap all the drafting rules all together................ I see no problem at all with 2 riders next to each other the only thing that will happen is you gonna have a general chit chat a chuckle at the dudes in the Peleton and worst case if you laugh enough you might just crash into each other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheelsuck Posted March 1, 2012 Share The refs were nowhere on 70.3 and when they were around they looked flabbergasted at the groups drafting. With almost half the field being new it is just sad that the sport which is an individual sport has now become a draft fest. Same happened at 11 Global where the guys were drafting. Only way to fix this is to get more refs that can pull off a whole bunch, U DQ a big bunch and soon people will learn. But it's tricky to manage drafting and there might be innocent victims so the best is to watch a bunch for a while and pull them off if they have been drafting for a while, so that the real culprits get punished. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zula Posted March 1, 2012 Share @Garfield I also got caught in these bunches at times. I tried to get out of them, but they would catch me on the downhills. When you have 3000 competitors all using 1 lane it is impossible not to draft at times. The answer is to use 2 lanes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garfield2010 Posted March 1, 2012 Share The refs were nowhere on 70.3 and when they were around they looked flabbergasted at the groups drafting. With almost half the field being new it is just sad that the sport which is an individual sport has now become a draft fest. Same happened at 11 Global where the guys were drafting. Only way to fix this is to get more refs that can pull off a whole bunch, U DQ a big bunch and soon people will learn. But it's tricky to manage drafting and there might be innocent victims so the best is to watch a bunch for a while and pull them off if they have been drafting for a while, so that the real culprits get punished. Ya or empower some of the guys racing (like me) to make what you would call a "citizens arrest". Empower the Garfield to hand out drafting penalties while racing. I will sort them out for sure!!! PS:- Nice name to comment about drafting WHHELSUCK!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker911 Posted March 1, 2012 Share Being out there on your own is part of the attraction and challenge of these longer distance races. They are not meant to be a tea party. At my age the podium is something for the youngsters so I prefer a bit of tea party. The best part of a triathlon is the swim and run section up close, personal and the run can be very sociable. As for the cycle leg YUCK. I cant think of anything worse than spending 6 hours on training cycle on a Sunday on your own ???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garfield2010 Posted March 1, 2012 Share @Garfield I also got caught in these bunches at times. I tried to get out of them, but they would catch me on the downhills. When you have 3000 competitors all using 1 lane it is impossible not to draft at times. The answer is to use 2 lanes. I agree. Why not have the motorcycles etc use the emergency lane? Good idea man!! Or cap the race at 1,700 as it was before........... (Garfield hears a song in the background "its all about the money do di do dum") The same happens with the Troisports Germiston race... Technically only 5km's of roads are closed one lane each way. 600 athletes on this bit of road gets a bit much.......... Edited March 1, 2012 by Garfield2010 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheelsuck Posted March 1, 2012 Share @Garfield ...Well Spotted....LOL The name thing is funny sortof, I suck at every sport I do and when I decided to choose a name I thought that... well it being a cycling forum then WHEEL would fit and "SUCK" is what I do well at sport. So wheelsuck. If this was a running site I would have chosen SHOESUCK i guess....or if it was a swimming site...well then it would just be straight DROWN. NOW With Tri I can suck at 3 Sports at Once. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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