[Event] Cape Town Cycle Tour 2018

[Shebeen]

More people should definitely read this. Cool, professional and impressive look at the road racing numbers! It is great to see someone with the ability to look at the numbers and make sense from it, rather than the rest of us who say things like "I think" or "in my opinion" or even worse "when I used to race" or just some dumb stuff sucked out of our thumbs!

How did this pass the proofread before going to press??

 

" Ericsion high 5 at 5 on 5 FM"

[Rouxenator]

If something does go wrong then the reputation of this funride is shot. 

[Mongoose!]

He is assuming last years protests continue into the future preventing it from taking place. An opinion.

 

By travelling more than 2000km (to event and back home again) also some kind of a concern for me. Sad but true.

Last year I was one on the riders being stopped on the Blue route after 20km.

Stopped due to the protest actions   wind.

[lechatnoir]

He is assuming last years protests continue into the future preventing it from taking place. An opinion.

 

the chance of protests is greater than curtailment owing to wind OR fire.

[Rouxenator]

I think that they have been negotiating with the respective communities to ensure that protests are not a problem this year. However, that does not mitigate environmental risks like fire or wind and at this stage the road surface of Chapmanspeak is uncertain. 

 

For Argus to survive this #take2 needs to go down flawlessly. 

 

Then again, this is just a Sunday funride for me. The real Argus is the week before, on dirt 

[Halfdoesyn]

I think that they have been negotiating with the respective communities to ensure that protests are not a problem this year. However, that does not mitigate environmental risks like fire or wind and at this stage the road surface of Chapmanspeak is uncertain. 

 

For Argus to survive this #take2 needs to go down flawlessly. 

 

Then again, this is just a Sunday funride for me. The real Argus is the week before, on dirt 

Don't know what the fuss is about regarding Chappies. Sure, it's not as smooth as it used to be, but it is far from bad.

[Pure Savage]

How did this pass the proofread before going to press??

 

" Ericsion high 5 at 5 on 5 FM"

You obviously have not read many Pure Savage blogs! Proof reading consists of high fives at coffee and some coconut bread!

[lechatnoir]

I think that they have been negotiating with the respective communities to ensure that protests are not a problem this year. However, that does not mitigate environmental risks like fire or wind and at this stage the road surface of Chapmanspeak is uncertain. 

 

For Argus to survive this #take2 needs to go down flawlessly. 

 

Then again, this is just a Sunday funride for me. The real Argus is the week before, on dirt 

 

Keeping in mind that the main instigators behind last year's Hout Bay protests were not local to the community (allegedly). Sorry. Don't mean to be p!ssing on anyone's braai

Edited January 10, 2018 by lechatnoir

[Dubber]

More people should definitely read this. Cool, professional and impressive look at the road racing numbers! It is great to see someone with the ability to look at the numbers and make sense from it, rather than the rest of us who say things like "I think" or "in my opinion" or even worse "when I used to race" or just some dumb stuff sucked out of our thumbs!

It's a good article and makes for interesting reading!  Clearly a lot of work and effort went into it.

 

A great addition to the article would be a year on year cost comparison for entries.  For example 10 years ago  (2007) the long route entry fee was R160.  This year it was R350 - around 110% price increase.  Is that too much?  

 

Are there more/less/same number of riders out there - but fewer entering events because of prices?  Is the drop off in events because of fewer entries or fewer riders actually entering.  

 

I agree that the number of junior numbers is a worry.  Could it partly be attributed to the competitive nature of youngsters who want to race by nature - but events are limited?   Conversely, it appears mtb jnr numbers are increasing and this could be attributed to the increase in number of school events (spur league etc).

 

Lots of questions, not a lot of answers... 

[DJR]

I would love for someone (a Savage perhaps?) to do the same analysis for the Cycle Tour. I have a feeling that the body of riders have also grown older over the last decade or so. 

 

About youngsters rather entering mtb as a sport as opposed to road, I have had a decade of working through exactly that with my own boys. When they started riding road with me, LOTS of other parents wanted to know why I risk their lives in a sport THAT dangerous. My answer was that it is safer than drugs and the mall, didn't convince many. Mtb felt a safer option, so we did that until they were about 12/13 years old and very comfortable on a bike. Then we did ONLY organized, marshaled road races for a few years before they started joining me training out on the road. We avoided the more congested and busier faster roads, even if it meant getting in the car and driving all the way down to Simonstown to ride from there. Perhaps I am trying to say that it takes a LOT of faith and commitment and that with our, and their, incredibly busy lives, it is not a sport that fits in effortlessly with school. If you want to race bicycles competitively, that has to be your only sport. There simply will not be enough time for anything else and school work. Mtb is an easier fit, because there are more safer places to ride. It also gets much more support from the schools, with the Spur races and many more events every weekend. 

[Pure Savage]

I would love for someone (a Savage perhaps?) to do the same analysis for the Cycle Tour. I have a feeling that the body of riders have also grown older over the last decade or so. 

 

About youngsters rather entering mtb as a sport as opposed to road, I have had a decade of working through exactly that with my own boys. When they started riding road with me, LOTS of other parents wanted to know why I risk their lives in a sport THAT dangerous. My answer was that it is safer than drugs and the mall, didn't convince many. Mtb felt a safer option, so we did that until they were about 12/13 years old and very comfortable on a bike. Then we did ONLY organized, marshaled road races for a few years before they started joining me training out on the road. We avoided the more congested and busier faster roads, even if it meant getting in the car and driving all the way down to Simonstown to ride from there. Perhaps I am trying to say that it takes a LOT of faith and commitment and that with our, and their, incredibly busy lives, it is not a sport that fits in effortlessly with school. If you want to race bicycles competitively, that has to be your only sport. There simply will not be enough time for anything else and school work. Mtb is an easier fit, because there are more safer places to ride. It also gets much more support from the schools, with the Spur races and many more events every weekend.

 

On it!,

[Duane_Bosch]

I have a feeling that the body of riders have also grown older over the last decade or so. 

 

 

I used to be quite an active surfer. IMO that sport has the same problem. The only youngsters entering the sport are sons & daughters of surfers. When I was a lightie none of our dads surfed. I think it's similar in cycling. Invariably if you meet a youngster out on his bike his dad rides.

 

I know I'm going to sound like a miserable old codger here but there are too many oportunities for youngsters to be lazy these days. malls, whatsapp, phones, gaming consols 3000 series to download & watch. Leaves little time for actual sport.

Edited January 11, 2018 by Duane_Bosch

[Eddy Gordo]

I used to be quite an active surfer. IMO that sport has the same problem. The only youngsters entering the sport are sons & daughters of surfers. When I was a lightie none of our dads surfed. I think it's similar in cycling. Invariably if you meet a youngster out on his bike his dad rides.

 

I know I'm going to sound like a miserable old codger here but there are too many oportunities for youngsters to be lazy these days. malls, whatsapp, phones, gaming consols 3000 series to download & watch. Leaves little time for actual sport.

I can relate there. No one in  my family surfed. Whenever we used to ride down muizenberg/kalk bay main road I would envision myself surfing. Could never own the equipment at 8yrs old. No one willing to buy it either. Then one day my Step dad came home with a bodyboard he got from someone.

We used to go to buffelsbay in cape point alot back then. I would as soon as i had a chance disappear to the beach for the day, while they braaid way over on the other side. I basically taught myself to catch waves. Now my son is very interested!

 

Almost any sport is like that now, basically inheritance. No one "new" entering sports any sports without some family history.

Edited January 11, 2018 by Eddy Gordo

[Shebeen]

I used to be quite an active surfer. IMO that sport has the same problem. The only youngsters entering the sport are sons & daughters of surfers. When I was a lightie none of our dads surfed. I think it's similar in cycling. Invariably if you meet a youngster out on his bike his dad rides.

 

I know I'm going to sound like a miserable old codger here but there are too many oportunities for youngsters to be lazy these days. malls, whatsapp, phones, gaming consols 3000 series to download & watch. Leaves little time for actual sport.

I live in muizenberg.

 

There is no shortage of surfers, young/old/rich/poor. Even when the south easter is pomping there are loads of people out there.

 

I'm not sure how that differs with competitive surfing, which is to all intents and purposes a totally different sport.

[Pure Savage]

I used to be quite an active surfer. IMO that sport has the same problem. The only youngsters entering the sport are sons & daughters of surfers. When I was a lightie none of our dads surfed. I think it's similar in cycling. Invariably if you meet a youngster out on his bike his dad rides.

 

I know I'm going to sound like a miserable old codger here but there are too many oportunities for youngsters to be lazy these days. malls, whatsapp, phones, gaming consols 3000 series to download & watch. Leaves little time for actual sport.

From the people I have chatted to and interviewed about this it is actually the opposite in some cases. The fat and lazy have always been fat and lazy. (Maybe e bikes will change that) it’s actually there is so much more available for the active kids to now do. Park runs, mtb, kite surf, sup, surf ski, trail run, cross fit there is so much more for youngsters and families to do now days than in the past.

[Skubarra]

 

A great addition to the article would be a year on year cost comparison for entries.  For example 10 years ago  (2007) the long route entry fee was R160.  This year it was R350 - around 110% price increase.  Is that too much?  

 

Lots of questions, not a lot of answers... 

 

That is an average of 8% per year which I would assume is more than inflation but not ridiculous?

 

In line with my response to lcycling I don't think entry fees are really the main issue, I agree with DJR, mtb'ing is just a far more attractive proposition for parents. That said, at least they are cycling when they are mtb'ing, think it is easy to cross over to road cycling when they are older and there is no reason you only have to do one or the other.