[Event] 2018 The Munga

[hubbernero]

http://mikewoolnough.blogspot.com/2018/12/the-munga-2018-race-thats-almost-great.html

 

It's sad to hear about these issues. Hopefully they are sorted out in future editions.

 

From what I heard there was one one rider who placed very high in the top 10 that was drafting for the majority of the race. Perhaps one can look at what penalties were handed out and put one and one together.

 

You cannot draft yourself to a top 10 (as an example) finish and expect people to accept it just because you take yourself out of the running for prize money.

 

Also, I cannot think of something more annoying than you riding/working your butt off while there is someone sitting in your slip getting a "free" ride.

[Shebeen]

If you're not going to enforce rules, then why have them in the first place.

 

It's very clear what needs to happen if you go off route.

 

 

RACE ROUTE:

1. All riders have to follow the designated Race route and may not deviate therefrom in any circumstances whatsoever.
2. If a rider inadvertently leaves the Race route, he has to return to the Race route at the same point at which he left it.

 

LOTS of people have made errors and then had to backtrack, when they could have just rejoined further down the line.

 

this was picked up

https://community.bikehub.co.za/topic/179549-munga-2018-race-news/page-23?do=findComment&comment=3422119

 

 

it happened again

 

He was given a 3 hour penalty from what i can see.

Which in his case cost him R5k as this slipped him off the 3rd spot on the dev podium.

I'm guessing this was an error on both occassions and the rider has been penalised.

I'm not highlighting the rider's actions here, he left it all out on the bike. more what the application of the rules are.

 

Two questions:

*was this only penalised because it affected prize money?

*what will the organisation now do about the precedent been set going forward. If you find yourself off route, should you bother going back or just continue, take a penalty time and collect your medal

 

I'm going to stress that the RD can do what he wants with his race. I think looking the other way here will not help the credibility of the event in the future.

Edited December 7, 2018 by juan pelota

[Free Wheel]

On a lighter note, I have 2 x XL 2018 Munga cycling tops that I ordered incorrectly, would like to swop for size medium, (even if your top has been worn but damage free). Any Maungarels interested?

[dave303e]

If you're not going to enforce rules, then why have them in the first place.

 

It's very clear what needs to happen if you go off route.

 

 

RACE ROUTE:

1. All riders have to follow the designated Race route and may not deviate therefrom in any circumstances whatsoever.
2. If a rider inadvertently leaves the Race route, he has to return to the Race route at the same point at which he left it.

 

LOTS of people have made errors and then had to backtrack, when they could have just rejoined further down the line.

 

this was picked up

https://community.bikehub.co.za/topic/179549-munga-2018-race-news/page-23?do=findComment&comment=3422119

 

 

it happened again

celetrax.png

 

He was given a 3 hour penalty from what i can see.

Which in his case cost him R5k as this slipped him off the 3rd spot on the dev podium.

I'm guessing this was an error on both occassions and the rider has been penalised.

I'm not highlighting the rider's actions here, he left it all out on the bike. more what the application of the rules are.

 

Two questions:

*was this only penalised because it affected prize money?

*what will the organisation now do about the precedent been set going forward. If you find yourself off route, should you bother going back or just continue, take a penalty time and collect your medal

 

I'm going to stress that the RD can do what he wants with his race. I think looking the other way here will not help the credibility of the event in the future.

 

And when the leader of the trail version left course and was taken back to where he left allowing him to still win, 

[GaryvdM]

Are you going to tell Mike Hall (founder of TCR) , Josh Kato,  Leal Wilcox and even Mr. Munga, Alex Harris,  that Tour Divide they did was not a race? 

No, these guys certainly race. Just that it's an unofficial race. Officially it's not a race.

 

 

The Munga is ultra distance for sure. 

But compared to TD and TCR and TransAM it is definitely not unsupported. 

"Race village" and "Water point" and "unsupported" does not go together.   

As soon as something is created for the race,  that is not there for everybody on all the other 365 days of the year, then it is no longer unsupported. 

 

Nothing against the Munga, I love it and watch the dots every year and dream of maybe one day . . . .

Sure - but if you were to compare it to RAAM, you would certainly say it's unsupported.

 

Yes, you don't have to worry about where you are going to sleep and where you are going to find food, and I know first hand this is no small deal. But you are not being babied, by having someone full your bottles, decide for you what you are going to eat, tell you when an where you are going to sleep and for how long, making sure you wake up. (I've failed to correctly set my alarm clock on an ultra unsupported. It's amazing how difficult it is to do this when you have just ridden for 18hrs.)

The other thing for me that makes Munga tend more towards unsupported that supported, is it's not a competition to see who can spend the most to get the best support crew. And I think this is a reason why Mike talking about the rules is very important. I don't think we want this race to go down this path, where a competitor who can afford to have someone else follow them in a car has an advantage over someone who can't.

 

My 1000th post . . . . finally I can get to those classifieds . . . .  

Nice!

[GaryvdM]

<Snip>

 

Two questions:

*was this only penalised because it affected prize money?

*what will the organisation now do about the precedent been set going forward. If you find yourself off route, should you bother going back or just continue, take a penalty time and collect your medal

 

I'm going to stress that the RD can do what he wants with his race. I think looking the other way here will not help the credibility of the event in the future.

 

The following people (other than Gerald Cele) also took the short cut between WP10 and RV5 and didn't get penalised, and are on the finishers list:

 

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Wayne_Mc_Duling

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Riaan_Van_Zyl

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Gerhard_Strydom

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Estelle_Gous

 

Wayne Mc Duling also went off route earlier in the race.

 

[coppi]

The following people (other than Gerald Cele) also took the short cut between WP10 and RV5 and didn't get penalised, and are on the finishers list:

 

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Wayne_Mc_Duling

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Riaan_Van_Zyl

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Gerhard_Strydom

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Estelle_Gous

 

Wayne Mc Duling also went off route earlier in the race.

 

It is not a race and they probably took a wrong turn somewhere...........why penalize them Mr Policeman............

[Shebeen]

The following people (other than Gerald Cele) also took the short cut between WP10 and RV5 and didn't get penalised, and are on the finishers list:

 

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Wayne_Mc_Duling

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Riaan_Van_Zyl

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Gerhard_Strydom

http://trackleaders.com/munga18i.php?name=Estelle_Gous

 

Wayne Mc Duling also went off route earlier in the race.

 

 

 

wow. why even have trackers?

 

I do adventure racing.

You could cheat quite easily if you want to.

Especially when it comes to nav and GPS

 

but no one wants to, that's why it's such a cool sport.

[Shebeen]

And when the leader of the trail version left course and was taken back to where he left allowing him to still win, 

wasn't aware of this, what year did this happen?

 

personally it's my opinion that if you're able to get a lift back to where you left the trail, lucky you. you've still got to do every inch of the course on your own steam and haven't gained an advantage by this mistake.

 

but in this circumstance the rules are BLACK and WHITE

 

once again, why even have rules if you're not going to follow them?

https://trail.themunga.com/how/rules

1. If a runner climbs into a vehicle at any time during the Race for whatever reason, he will be immediately disqualified.

[eddy]

From what I heard there was one one rider who placed very high in the top 10 that was drafting for the majority of the race. Perhaps one can look at what penalties were handed out and put one and one together.

 

You cannot draft yourself to a top 10 (as an example) finish and expect people to accept it just because you take yourself out of the running for prize money.

 

Also, I cannot think of something more annoying than you riding/working your butt off while there is someone sitting in your slip getting a "free" ride.

 

The question is who's red dot was just behind MW for 700km

[GaryvdM]

It is not a race and they probably took a wrong turn somewhere...........why penalize them Mr Policeman............

 

It is a race, and it is a rule that you have to follow the route. Gerald Cele was penalized for going off route, but not these guys. You need to follow the rules consistently.

 

The rules are very clear:

 

• All riders have to follow the designated Race route and may not deviate therefrom in any circumstances whatsoever.
• If a rider inadvertently leaves the Race route, he has to return to the Race route at the same point at which he left it.

I do realise that it might be the case that the RD was simply not aware of these infractions.

Edited December 7, 2018 by GaryvdM

[taito]

I sense that Mike sort of expected to be in the top 3 and that's the reasoning of his post. From my experience the podium contenders race unsupported and no-drafting at all after RV1.

 

To enforce that will be hard ,if you take ironman they have many refs on motorcycles checking drafting. In the Munga that's not possible. I would say that the Comm can see on the tracker if some riders going for podium are close together and then get a offroad bike to follow them.

What is not right is that riders are supported on route by family and friends. That should be disqualification. I would be pissed off on a hard leg to find some riders family standing on the road handing the rider fresh icy bottles and food.

 

Then the mere mortals like ourselves that go and try to finish this beast without dying, yes we hook up with some riders and basically make up a small group. But its not like a Transbaviaans where speed and drafting is everything. Here we share a common goal --get to the line.

We ride abreast for many kilos and chat ,its nice to have some company out there.

[Andrew Steer]

I must say I was incredibly surprised when Mike pulled out this year... I was as sure of him finishing as I am of the sun coming up most mornings. I know (well, I have at least a pretty damn good idea from several participants personal experiences) how ridiculously tough this event is, but there is nothing new it can really show Mr Woolnough, and now I'm actually pretty certain he left the race as much out of frustration and irritation than anything else... not that he would likely ever admit it being the gentlemen he is.

Top 10, heck even top 20 is a massive result for any mere mortal in an event this tough (not to mention just finishing), but we're clearly talking about the sharp end here... Mikes always been right up in the mix despite giving away near on two decades+ to most of his competitors. He's not exactly short of mental strength and his insights and advice from his blogs have done a huge amount for this form of competition.

Drafting into a head wind is not a small advantage, it's game changing and I can only imagine the incredible frustration for someone who has painstakingly etched out a small lead solo through bloody minded grit and determination, to then lose it all and several positions to a peloton of riders sharing the burden of taking on challenging conditions.

The drafting rule was always there for a reason...

Rules are rules, they should be applied to everyone and equally so.

This is an individual challenge, man against man (or women) on a savage course under extreme conditions. No interference from outside factors.
Everyone must earn that medal and that feeling of accomplishment equally.

If you're not up to it, don't enter the "Toughest race on earth"

 

Just like when Gunn Rita pointed out the problem with the fairness of the ladies race at the Cape Epic, I would like to think Mike should also be heard out. I've no doubt Alex will listen and next year the event will clear up any grey areas and ensure we have the toughest and fairest race on earth

[Moriarty]

"The other thing for me that makes Munga tend more towards unsupported that supported, is it's not a competition to see who can spend the most to get the best support crew. And I think this is a reason why Mike talking about the rules is very important. I don't think we want this race to go down this path, where a competitor who can afford to have someone else follow them in a car has an advantage over someone who can't."

 

Well stated.

[Pulse]

Like many of us, the Munga is one of those bucket list events. But for me, these ‘bending’ of the rules detract from the overall appeal of the event to such an extent that I would rather just give it a miss, as I would die of frustration in seeing some riders cheat while others take the challenge

[hubbernero]

The question is who's red dot was just behind MW for 700km

 

If you read Mike's post again you will see he specifically mentioned a top 10 finisher.

 

 I have sympathy for those not racing at the sharp end of the race but the upshot of the rule relaxation is that even top 10 riders took advantage of it much to the frustration of their competitors. This was from another rider:

"We had someone in our group while on the road to Britstown stating aloud to all of us that he was going to draft us for the rest of the event, knowing the only penalty would be no prize money (that's a 20 to 30% energy saving). He drafted my wheel for around 700km's (not exaggerating there!) all within the gambit of the rules, still receiving his finishers medal at the end. No transgression of the rules but I do feel sorry for the 11th placed finisher who missed out on a top 10. If it was me I wouldn't be happy."