Tour D'urban - please enlighten!!

[big mama]

There were no officials in the open cats !!  I know because I organized them from Gauteng !! Did your 18 yr old friend ride the 50km or the 105km. What I saw happen was the recreational riders who rode the shorter distance started mixing with the racing 105km riders on the M4.

This is probably where the officials asked him to remove himself from the racing bunch doing the 105km.

<aybe he did the sub 3 for the 50km who knows only the rider himself.

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

no, he def did the 105, and as for his start bunch, he had no say in it at all. He started with grp A...

[big mama]

All the officials were with the racing cyclists and not the open batches, so I really cannot answer that one.  The norm is that he can drop back and ride with the next batch as long as he is not contesting the sprint for prize money or assisting the riders who are racing for the prize money.

[Pantani]

 

And as for the seeding on the day - Pantani' date=' get all the info before you spout, or read properly - he wasn't going to be able to mix it with th eA group - it's only his 2nd race if u don't count Sani 2 c, and he tried to get re-seeded. They wouldn't even let him START in a later group. Now where's the logic in that?

 

[/quote']

 

No, you get you facts straight son, nowhere in your initial post do you mention that he tried to get reseeded, or that it's only his second race...

 

 

Hey guys - i have a gripe...

 

Mate of mine (18 yr old rookie cyclist' date=' but sub 3 Argus rider) was

seeded in grp A for the Tour, and got dropped after 20 km, cos he's

just not fast enough to stay with them yet.

 

He tried to hook on to the following grp (Grp B, i assume) and was

given a tongue lashing by some official to the effect that if he didn't

get out of the grp, he would be dq'd. He didn't want to raise a fuss,

or face the poss of dq'ing, so he dropped off and joined grp C. Cue

tongue lashing number 2... He eventually had to ride by himself for the

most of the race, but caught someone else in the same situ as him,

facing "disqualification" if he joined a group other than his own due

to puncture, being dropped, etc.

 

Now, to me, it is perfectly legit to join the next grp if u can't stay with yours for whatever reason. Isn't it? Surely it is.

 

How can a race be run like this? Please, tell me how?

 

This guy still rode a sub 3, but had his vision of a perfect race ruined, and on his first outing to boot.

[/quote']

 

If he was unfortunate enough to be seeded at the bleeding edge of Open Seeded, however the hell that happens, so be it. The fact remains that he was dropped! You haven't mentioned where in the B bunch he was riding when he was asked to drop back? There is nothing wrong with getting dropped and latching onto another bunch, just don't interfere with their race, go and sit at the back and mind your own business, why? Because you got dropped... I don't care who what how, just fall in... What's so difficult with that? Why come and whinge on the internet because a race official said, "Your race is over son, fall in at the back or I'll DQ you!"

 

Come come, that's all that happened??? And if the boy is riding sub 3's in only his second outing, here's some free advice, don't waste his time in Open Seeded.

 

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

cool... so there was either an errant official, or they put him where he wasn't supposed to be. Which is sad, cos now his first Tour D'urban was ruined.

 

But just come back harder next time...

[Jean-Jay]

Yeah, this sounds really wierd to me, there is no rule stating that u have to stay out of seeded bunches if you are a seeded rider wanting to hook onto a passing bunch in the event of being dropped.

 

It is polite to, however, stay out of the action in the front of the bunch and ride at the back or at least out of the race line (pace line).

 

Are you sure he was not going toe to toe with the leaders in B bunch at the front, then its possible they mite have complained or an official mite have requested something, but still, legally no ground to stand on.

 

There aint nothing wrong with what he did in my books, sorry to hear about it.

 

[Captain Fastbastard Mayhem]

Pantani, all this is just based around my mate's experience, and my question on his behalf - no need to get into a shouting match about it.

 

However, if you're not sure about something, just ask... that was the whole point of the post in the first place.

 

Shot for the input tho guys...

[linnega]

I imagine the officials were asked to try keep the bunches separate to stop them from getting too large - a perennial problem with the Tour Durban given the fast nature of the route.

Frankly though, I don't see the harm in riders hooking onto the back of any group that comes past. In the racing categories, there should be no interference in the race that is happening (ie VA's should be able to hook onto a VB bunch provide they do not do any work on the front).  For the seeded bunches, there is no racing so there is no reason why groups can't just ride together however they are formed.

[jmaccelari]

 

He tried to hook on to the following grp (Grp B' date=' i assume) and was given a tongue lashing by some official to the effect that if he didn't get out of the grp, he would be dq'd. He didn't want to raise a fuss, or face the poss of dq'ing, so he dropped off and joined grp C. Cue tongue lashing number 2... He eventually had to ride by himself for the most of the race, but caught someone else in the same situ as him, facing "disqualification" if he joined a group other than his own due to puncture, being dropped, etc.

 

Now, to me, it is perfectly legit to join the next grp if u can't stay with yours for whatever reason. Isn't it? Surely it is.

[/quote']

This is wrong. In the licensed groups, it is not (officially) permitted, so we have to

drop back to the Open A's as our first group, and then we cannot win as we started

in a different race group and cannot interfere with their race, but this is the first time I

have ever heard of this in the Open Seeded groups. Sounds like a bunch of idiots to

me.

 

I had a similar experience in the Knysna Classic last year. I didn't feel well, so

instead of starting with the licensed, I started with the Open A's (As I am allowed

to). I ended up winning the group and the race "officials" were so confused it took

two hours and a call to the national racing commissioner to sort it out. The only

reason it got resolved was I stuck to my guns and refused to accept their cr@p.

 

I have very little confidence in the majority of local commissaires/referees/whatever...

(disclaimer: there are some good ones, though!)

 

There are no prizes for the B, C, ... groups, so what's the point of it?

 

[Baltazar]

Erm.... i was in the front of B group . Saw some cute arses but no officials . Sorry Baltazar2008-05-05 01:35:04

[Willehond]

cptmayhem, I think your mate is making some bogus excuse for getting dropped by B and C bunches and you fell for it!!! Bwahahaha!  Now he is going to have to explain to the whole Hub how he came to be the only rider in the racen who got talked to for mixing it in the alphabet soup!

 

Tall story if you ask me and the poor officials get it....

[Birdie]

hello all...

ok so here's what happened......

my brother went off to ride on sunday. he's new to the whole cycling thing. not worried abt getting in the best group. jst out there to enjoy the ride! anyhow, he some how landed in $ group (the 2nd set to go off that morning). he was feeling very nervous about keeping up with the bunch!!!! after 20km's of sprinting, he decided he needed to drop back (he had no problem with being dropped).

he thought he'd simply ride with the next group. when the nxt group came along.... he jumped in. some officials in a car told him to get out or he'll be disqualified. and apparently they didnt ask nicely either!!! so he fell to the back of the group. got shouted at yet again.

i can understand that some ppl feel that by sitting in the group they're pulling u along. but is it fair for him to have to ride alone???

 

trust me he was more shocked abt the whole thing than anyone. it wld jst b nice to know whats the deal for future.....

 

he took the whole event as an experience and something he could learn from. im not posting this to cause a scene, but merely to ask for answers.... what is the rules to riding..... he was taken unawares. so its jst nice to know for nxt time ;-)

 

 

 

[scotty]

Being unlicensed and starting with $ batch he would have encountered lic batches after him until the open seeded started, so yes they were correct telling him to get out, although how this was communicated sounds like it could have been handled better.

[Pantani]

So... He was in the licensed race.... Nuff said...

[Pantani]

 

hello all...

ok so here's what happened......

my brother went off to ride on sunday. he's new to the whole cycling thing. not worried abt getting in the best group. jst out there to enjoy the ride! anyhow' date=' he some how landed in $ group (the 2nd set to go off that morning). he was feeling very nervous about keeping up with the bunch!!!! after 20km's of sprinting, he decided he needed to drop back (he had no problem with being dropped).

he thought he'd simply ride with the next group. when the nxt group came along.... he jumped in. some officials in a car told him to get out or he'll be disqualified. and apparently they didnt ask nicely either!!! so he fell to the back of the group. got shouted at yet again.

i can understand that some ppl feel that by sitting in the group they're pulling u along. but is it fair for him to have to ride alone???

 

trust me he was more shocked abt the whole thing than anyone. it wld jst b nice to know whats the deal for future.....

 

he took the whole event as an experience and something he could learn from. im not posting this to cause a scene, but merely to ask for answers.... what is the rules to riding..... he was taken unawares. so its jst nice to know for nxt time ;-)

 

 

 

[/quote']

 

Listen... tell you brother he did good! Don't bother with going to ride open seeded! Anybody who rides a sub 3 after being repeatedly dropped has my respect!

 

[IanC]

I had a look at the winningtime results and this story seems not to be true.

The A-bunch time was 2:44

and he said he was dropped from there.

The B-bunch time was 3:04 and C-bunch 2:59.

So if he were caught by any of the B or C bunches there was no chance that he could do a sub 3 race.

Or are my calculations wrong here?

IanC2008-05-05 03:21:03