[Event] Karoo To Coast

[Dexter-morgan]

Anyone from GP doing this one, getting my bike there via some courier - R1350 + 350 for the bus from Knysna to Uniondale, this is going to be an expensive exercise.

[The expat cyclist]

Anyone from GP doing this one, getting my bike there via some courier - R1350 + 350 for the bus from Knysna to Uniondale, this is going to be an expensive exercise.

Yip.

So previously my wife and I drove down. Stopped in Bfn, picked up our driver (my sister or her eldest daughter) and drove to Mosselbay where we stayed with my in-laws. Did the race and drove all the way back on Tuesday. Cost us almost nothing as we did not pay for fuel or accommodation

 

Last year we decided that the driving is worse than the cycling so this year the plan is to rent a trailer, organise a driver to take the bikes down while we fly down. The plan is to do a group of 10 friends and split accommodation and bike transport costs...

 

The biggest hassle at the moment is accommodation.

Biggest individual cost is going to be the airfare.

 

If it does not work out, we will do it the way we did it before. :-)

[Cadre]

Anyone from GP doing this one, getting my bike there via some courier - R1350 + 350 for the bus from Knysna to Uniondale, this is going to be an expensive exercise.

Count your blessings. Doing it from Durban to JHB to George flying adds up. I ditched Mango because they charge 300 per trip for the bike. 300 x 4 =1200 for the bike alone. 

Kulula is more forgiving. The bike is my 20 kg luggage and my clothes are in my wife's suitcase. Handluggage helps if there is extra weight. JHB to George is 660 per person. Car hire is 300 per day with 200km free per day. Accomodation should be 300 -350 per person per night. It is expensive for a bike race, but it saves 24 hours traveling in a car. (30 hours round trip from Durban). Add fuel, food, B&B along the way, time off work etc and it is much more.  

[Boerklong]

Count your blessings. Doing it from Durban to JHB to George flying adds up. I ditched Mango because they charge 300 per trip for the bike. 300 x 4 =1200 for the bike alone.

Kulula is more forgiving. The bike is my 20 kg luggage and my clothes are in my wife's suitcase. Handluggage helps if there is extra weight. JHB to George is 660 per person. Car hire is 300 per day with 200km free per day. Accomodation should be 300 -350 per person per night. It is expensive for a bike race, but it saves 24 hours traveling in a car. (30 hours round trip from Durban). Add fuel, food, B&B along the way, time off work etc and it is much more.

And I thought logistics was a nightmare for Capetonians doing race.

[Dexter-morgan]

The courier they suggest on the website Charges R1350 per bike - Kulula here we come, I am going to try the "Free" flights via Discovery and book 16 weeks in advance, I have friends in George.

[eddy]

I pack my bike in a cardboard bike box, add my clothing, bottles, nutrition etc in a bag I put in the box until it is just under 20 kg and check that as my 1 piece of luggage with Kulula.

 

Shoes, Helmet etc. goes in my hand luggage.

[GLuvsMtb]

_{Entry paid and accommodation booked.}

 

_{Training to commence in 3...2...}

 

_{training aborted!}

[HenryS]

If anyone is looking for accommodation in Uniondale on the Saturday, don't bother trying to book online at Bon Accord guest house. The website says there is place available, but there isn't. They apparently have to phone their web person who then has to block the date. This hasn't happened yet. 

[Boerklong]

_{Entry paid and accommodation booked.}

 

_{Training to commence in 3...2...}

 

_{training aborted!}

We all know training for this event only starts in August.

[Rouxenator]

I'm in. This will be #6 of 10

[Bernard Horn]

In and camping.Much nicer than driving through early morning.Great vibe.

[Rouxenator]

In and camping.Much nicer than driving through early morning.Great vibe.

It's cooler too. I like warming up my feet with the heater in the car as I drive the 60km from Willowmore to Uniondale while seeing the outside temperature is about 5'C.

[Ferro]

In and camping.Much nicer than driving through early morning.Great vibe.

How are the camping facilities?

Can/do you book place?

[Bernard Horn]

How are the camping facilities?

Can/do you book place?

Very basic.Show up early +/- lunch time on Sat to get nice shady spot.Was R50 per person 2 years ago.Get up early to beat the toilet queue.Take earplugs because there is a lot of farting after all that braaivleis

[lerouc]

I booked accommodation last week already. Through a online booking place. Got quotes and accepted and paid deposit. Thursday i get an email from the place asking whether we are sleeping the saturday or the sunday evening over. (saturday, night before the race)

 

I forward the original email the website generated for them for a quote, where they responded and which i accepted.

 

Didn't hear a thing. This morning i get a call saying they stuffed up my booking, after chatting for a while the lady gave the phone to someone else. There it became clear, they stuffed up, they didn't realize it was the K2C weekend. So i have an option or they refund me or i pay the new fee. I ask what is the new fee, it is more than 3 TIMES what i was quoted and accepted. (actually more like 3.5 times)

 

Again the phone get passed, this time to the owner of the place. He explains to me the lady made a mistake. I told him okay, the problem is i gave up other accommodation where i told the people to book someone else as i came right.

 

Then he tries to play on my conscious and says he is not sure how this work then because then the lady that stuffed up the quote needs to pay in the money. I then told him i work in customer service and lets say an example of a shop has one price on the item and when the cashier scans the item it says higher price on the till, which price does the customer pay?

 

I hear him then asking if they have some of their smaller units available and i hear the lady reply to say they are fully booked. His resolution is now, we are sleeping in his own house for the price quoted originally.

 

Wife is extremely Peed off, don't usually pay almost R500pp to sleep in another guys house while he is there.

[Rouxenator]

Some bookings are really managed quite poorly. We once had to share a small cottage with friends of ours in Knysna after K2C because the owner cancelled their booking half way through the year for someone else. Yes, that bad!

 

I book my place for the night before a year in advance, when I am there for the current event. Today I paid for a rather nice sea side unit in Stilbaai for Sunday after the ride, I'm a bit gatvol of Knysna after 5 years.