[Event] Cape Town Cycle Tour 2018

[Velouria]

Yes, and with the sloppy way they did it, you can now ride right over the cat-eyes without snakebiting your expensive tubbies

Good thing I don't ride tubbies then, although those cateyes do have an uncanny ability to lure you in

[Andreas_187]

Sure it's rideable but it was as smooth as a pool table before

[dev null]

Good thing I don't ride tubbies then, although those cateyes do have an uncanny ability to lure you in

 

 I am **** scared of cat eyes. I avoid them like the plague.

[Icycling]

This!!

 

And if it weren't for the 33 000 odd once-a-year-wonders there would be no chance of having this route closed for a bunch of 200 to race.

 

So rather than criticize, appreciate the numbers that make up the race's involvement in having the race.

 

I personally feel much more comfortable riding enduro / playful singletrack than sitting close to roadies. I'm a weekend warrior and only do it because I enjoy cycling.

 

I got on the bike 7 times this year (have an 18month old and I try to help out at home), and did a 04:25 which I'm quite proud of given my training and the fact that I made geometry changes to the bike I was on in the start chute.

Agree to disagreed - both those 200 odd cyclist and the 35000 go hand in hand. This year there was no live TV coverage. Many people have asked me about this - what all these people we wanting to watch was the "race"- top 200 cyclist.

 

Many people have said to me this years Cycle tour have no "Atmosphere"- referring to the event and the lack of spectator etc. All of these cyclist who were in the 4 hour range. They have also said to me this is the last cycle tour they will be doing.

 

This year cycle tour was about 7000 down on entry. All I will say is it is the holistic approach of not only satisfying then funrider but also the "pro" cyclist that will see this event continue in its masses in years to come, they go hand in hand!

[gogo@]

Many people have said to me this years Cycle tour have no "Atmosphere"- referring to the event and the lack of spectator etc. All of these cyclist who were in the 4 hour range. They have also said to me this is the last cycle tour they will be doing.

 

This year cycle tour was about 7000 down on entry. All I will say is it is the holistic approach of not only satisfying then funrider but also the "pro" cyclist that will see this event continue in its masses in years to come, they go hand in hand!

Agreed, on the last, but the first, no. From where I was, towards the back of the seeded groups, there was great support along the route. I’m always amazed people come out to cheer us on. I had a fast ride to Smits then went “tourist class” from there. Applause for the first half, cheers, chirps and encouragement for the second. Support on Suikerbossie was brilliant: no chance to stop off for a nap!

[gogo@]

[DJR]

...........Many people have said to me this years Cycle tour have no "Atmosphere"- referring to the event and the lack of spectator etc. All of these cyclist who were in the 4 hour range. ...........

They were simply talking rubbish or they rode a different race to me and my family. 

[DJR]

..........All I will say is it is the holistic approach of not only satisfying then funrider but also the "pro" cyclist that will see this event continue in its masses in years to come, they go hand in hand!

Agreed. I hope they continue to look equally after both ends of the spectrum.

[DJR]

...............This year there was no live TV coverage. Many people have asked me about this.............

Already last year there was no live coverage. I think that is a terrible shame but I'm unsure of who to blame. Firstly I would suspect the SABC as the culprit. But, I truly think it is important to get the wider exposure to grow the sport of cycling, and what better way to do it than a few hours of live coverage? I hope they manage to get the TV coverage back in future. 

[gogo@]

They were simply talking rubbish or they rode a different race to me and my family. 

I had the same thought.

[Slowbee]

I would like to touch on a very sensitive subject regarding the ride surviving, actually all cycle rides surviving in general.

 

But the tour also needs to focus on getting more, may more black folk involved as fun riders.

 

While there are many initiatives for development riders, we need more.And not just for younger riders. Adults need to be encouraged as well.

[Jase619]

SNIP

 

Many people have said to me this years Cycle tour have no "Atmosphere"- referring to the event and the lack of spectator etc. All of these cyclist who were in the 4 hour range. They have also said to me this is the last cycle tour they will be doing.

 

This year cycle tour was about 7000 down on entry. All I will say is it is the holistic approach of not only satisfying then funrider but also the "pro" cyclist that will see this event continue in its masses in years to come, they go hand in hand!

Not sure what race they were doing, but I presume the majority of people will agree that the support was awesome and well loved by everyone that rode on Sunday.

 

Not sure where you get that they were 7000 down on entries this year? If you taking the finishers on racetec, just remember that not everyone start; and not everyone finishes, this has a influence on that final figure, doesn't however mean that 7000 people didn't enter.

 

I think this year's amazing weather will have people flocking back next year in any case!

Edited March 14, 2018 by Jase619

[Jase619]

So when do we get to talk about the biggest non-event of the CTCT?

 

The tar on Chappies.

 

I was expecting nothing short of absolute carnage, but imagine my surprise when I discovered the tar was like the tar on practically EVERY OTHER road in the Western Cape.

 

Such an anticlimax...

Haha agreed, can't say I noticed a difference, although in all honesty riding it once a year doesn't gI've me much to go on!

[HdB]

I would like to touch on a very sensitive subject regarding the ride surviving, actually all cycle rides surviving in general.

 

But the tour also needs to focus on getting more, may more black folk involved as fun riders.

 

While there are many initiatives for development riders, we need more.And not just for younger riders. Adults need to be encouraged as well.

My question is, why aren't they? The middle-class, that can also afford nice bikes, cars, the entry fees and accommodation - technically nothing should be stopping them, so why aren't there thousands more riders?

[Skubarra]

Not sure where you get that they were 7000 down on entries this year? If you taking the finishers on racetec, just remember that not everyone start; and not everyone finishes, this has a influence on that final figure, doesn't however mean that 7000 people didn't enter.

 

 

Entries are definitely down, not sure about 7,000 but that figure might be ballpark. That is to be expected given the cancellation last year, only reasonable that many people will wait and see before committing their hard earned money to an event that might not happen.

 

Which is why it was extremely important for this year's event to be a success, another cancelled event would have been hard to recover from for the CTCT.

 

Not sure who these "many people" are that lcycling surrounds himself with, but their negative views on the CTCT are very different from what l see on the hub and cyclists I know.

Edited March 14, 2018 by Skubarra

[LeoKnight]

My question is, why aren't they? The middle-class, that can also afford nice bikes, cars, the entry fees and accommodation - technically nothing should be stopping them, so why aren't there thousands more riders?

 

When I asked around there are no consistent answers given, some joke about it, but I am also curious what the top reasons are.  (given that I accept that everyone has a choice to ride or not and can decide how to spend their weekends as they see fit, no pun intended)