947 Ride Joburg

[Bike Dewing]

28 minutes ago, Furbz said:

Really enjoyed my ride in C, had a bunch of riding buddies all in the group. really made it easier to hang on when the going got tough!

@Avo also noticed the guy on the E-bike. bizarre. he really should have kept out the way better. but either way not really an issue.

I incorrectly assumed C would be an easier ride. Smokes we hauled ass!

Timing issues a plenty on this race!

• 2h36 and some change for me. bizarrely my mate started maybe 15 meters behind me in the pen. we crossed the line together and according to official timing i was over a minute faster than him?
• another oddity was i was classified as 40+ (i'm 36) just odd.
• some of my mates got sms confirmations of there times. not for me. just odd.

we got dropped off, did the ride and then hopped on the route and road home to Fourways at a far more sedate pace. we had no intensions of sticking around the stadium. just get bad vibes there.

some people really do not train for this ride. we saw people on the side of the road lying down or sitting down taking a rest and they had not even made the first water point - long long day ahead of them if the finished. they looked absolutely shattered!

water points were great - ice water down the back and on the legs really got the juices flowing again when the temperature started to pick up!

i think they could have maybe had a little bit more food on offer.

 

 

 

The water points annoyed me until I needed one.!🤣🤣 filling up my bottles with ice cold water really got me up the last climb.and the lovely lady gave me a cup of coke, that was delicious.! without it I would have stopped laid down and waited for the roads to open so my wife could come fetch me..🤣🤣

[The Ouzo]

20 minutes ago, Dexter-morgan said:

I must add, the supporters next to the road needs more recognition, some dished out bananas, some were just cheering, while giving up their Sunday - You are noticed.

@Danger Dassie, I think I saw you guys; but I was busy pulling my wife along and could not stop.

Agreed. Not as many as previous years (when I went through douglasdale/bryanston the usual supporters were not there). But the ones that were out were appreciated.

I saw a bunch of cyclists at the top of Jan Smuts cheering people on, wasnt sure who they were, so could possibly have been DD.

 

As I ride in non branded kit i dont get much individual cheering as I used to when my kit was smeered with branding, but going up hyde park they were playing music and they happen to be playing the tune I use as my ring tone, so I sat up and did a little vibe thing with both hands that got me a shout out. For a brief moment it gives you a bit of extra energy.

[Ispeed_V]

1 hour ago, Danger Dassie said:

We were at our usual spot near the top of Jan Smuts. In general people seemed better prepared and the biggest factor was the heat. Quite amazing to see the houding among many people who otherwise wouldn't get a second glance from most regular riders. 

were you the ones handing out the Oranges? If so thanks a mill. Also got some ice for the shorts to keep the muscles cool.

[TheoG]

Although I suffered still enjoyed the total experience.  There was one little annoyance though, some of the riders had there own music blasting from their bikes.

Some very nice, others terrible taste in music .... 🤪🙈.

[Ispeed_V]

I also admit to not managing my fluid intake correctly.

Thought that I was drinking more than enough until the Hamstring cramps hit at the top of Jan Smuts.

Even trying to walk was bloody painful.

Thanks to marshal at the finish line who helped me un-stradle my bike as both legs just seized when I stopped.

No one to blame but myself.

 

 

[Furbz]

Need to add, those guys handing out the water packets to the faster groups saved me from a really thirsty end.

Managed to grab 2 along the way and finished both bottles on the bike before the end of the race.

i felt like one of the tour riders for a brief moment being looked after by a soigneur!

[Frosty]

1 hour ago, TheoG said:

Yup, the heat got to me good & proper.  I stood just beyond the finish line with full on cramps in both quads for it felt like eternity to me.

Weird thing is I took all the hydration precautions but it was still not enough .... 

Plan for next year:  Loose a lot of weight and train harder & longer.

Edit:  The heat also did a number on me the previous week at Steyn City ... 🙈

Lose the weight in winter, then maintain from there.
Don't train harder and longer at the same time/same day; keep it easier for longer, and only do the hard stuff when you feel recovered.

[TheoG]

12 minutes ago, Frosty said:

Lose the weight in winter, then maintain from there.
Don't train harder and longer at the same time/same day; keep it easier for longer, and only do the hard stuff when you feel recovered.

Thanks Gerald, thats very helpful solid advice.

[David Marshall]

I hope all you grandfathers appreciated the support. 

Apparently my little man was so worried about missing me that he shouted "Go Grandpa" to every passing group from elites down!

As it happened I was tailed off from VG at Kyalami and passed them all on my own.

[Frosty]

11 minutes ago, David Marshall said:

I hope all you grandfathers appreciated the support. 

Apparently my little man was so worried about missing me that he shouted "Go Grandpa" to every passing group from elites down!

As it happened I was tailed off from VG at Kyalami and passed them all on my own.

I waved at him, and he looked at me all confused; not that I’m a Grandpa., it just seemed the right thing to do.

[Schnavel]

On the subject of E-bikes, the winners of the ladies 50+ racing category and the men's 65+ racing category (2nd in VG), were both on E-bikes, despite the rules of the event specifically stating that E-bikes are not allowed in the racing categories.

The idiot in VG even took to the podium to receive his prize money, and didn't think he had done anything wrong. The lady at least didn't pitch for her podium presentation, but made the lady in 2nd place wait over two hours for the podium photo.

To have this level of entitlement completely boggles my mind. I'm looking for a new E-bike so that I can go and win the Elite race next year and claim the large amount of prize money...

[Paul Ruinaard]

5 hours ago, The Ouzo said:

Exactly.

On Sunday there would be ebikes coming past on the hills, hit the down hills or flats and we would  fly right by.

honestly in this race the only time they'd be quicker is in the lower end of the Alphabet.

Once on the M1 there would be no way a restricted e-bike could stand a chance, average speed along the M1 even half way down the Alphabet sits in the upper 40s, with some stretched seeing us sitting at over 60km/h. 

By the time we turn off the M1 they'd be so far behind i doubt they'd be able to make up the time on the climbs coming back. (which make me wonder why I was passing clearly unfit people on e-bikes on the return leg)

Hmm: A Specialized creo egravel bike is governed to about 42 kmh but they are very aero and so with a good rider aboard it you can pedal it on the flats or slight uphills like a road bike. I will saty with any high speed bunch even though i am above what the asisstance level is. Also remember that with the range extender batteries (which come with them) they are good for 135kms on lowest setting so 95 kms on high i.e. Turbo is a easy when you are using zero battery for a lot of the route. If you are going up hills on Turbo you will blow most groups to bits so it doesnt help - rather pull them up.

[Max Headroom]

I'm really enjoying reading feedback from hubbers on their experience, so I decided to give my story as well.

Entering the Race - Admin Balls up 1 :

I have done all the 94.7 events since the start in 1997  - and after the 2022 finish I received an email personally addressed to me (from organisers) offering me an early entry at the old price - so of course I entered 'early'  

Some time later this year 2023, I again received a directly addresses invite to 'remember to enter'. Because I am an idiot, I entered again (in my opinion a flaw in the entry system which should have shown I was already entered) - and I was surprised to see I now had two entries.

Substitution - Admin Balls up 2 :

So, decided to get rid of the second entry. Race Admin twice confirmed the entry had been transferred to the new rider - but he still had not received any confirmation -  so over 12 days of begging and 14 emails from me and a few from the new rider  - it turned out that the Race Admin still didn't/couldn't get it done by race day !! ?? and the entry was wasted  (aaargh !) So pathetic !   Please come back Tanya Harford ! (original 94.7 organiser who was excellent !)

Seeding - Admin Balls up 3 :

I received my seeding whatsapp advising I was in Group A  - I knew that was a mistake - and later received an apology and was told, I was in fact reseeded to Group M.

The first 'A' allocations was very optimistic / obviously wrong, but 'M' also didn't seem right either. I was eventually given seeding as Group H (which I was satisfied with)

Parking at start - Admin Balls up 4 :

Someone decided that without supervision - the attendants 'car guards' could/would control the directing of traffic and organising all by themselves. Like other hubbers mention, it was a mess - instead of standing at the corners and directing traffic, a traffic jam was created by  every guard selecting for himself a car in the queue, running alongside and then insisting that he found your spot and therefore had to be paid - and no matter what was said, they would not go away, and were joined by other guards insisting payment was due.  All in all, by the time I left after the race, I had given four different guys money - I just couldn't risk damage to the car (or myself) and couldn't take anymore fighting and screaming.

My Ride Jo'burg :

I agree with previous comments that the route was harder in the past - but I was younger then ! and I found this year's heat and hills tough going.  The mistakes in seeding were apparent when we passed so many riders with early seeding that obviously were not capable of those group standards - and why why why do these people have to ride slowly (often two/three abreast) in the middle of the road, specially on the outgoing highway when the bunches were flying into them. 

I always love the bunches and speed from the start out on the M1 up to kayalami - but suffer on the major climbs back.

Anyway, every year I get older and a few extra minutes added to my time - Last three years - 3.21 then 3.31 and now 3.35  (how I long for those days when I could do 2.42)  Old age is not for sissies.

Every ride without a major incident is a pleasure - so I will probably be back again in 2024. The supporters as always were fantastic, and its such a wonderful sight to see how the once white sport (in my early days) is enjoyed by so many fellow south africans and so many enthusiastic ladies. 

A Big thank-you to the  "Karen R"  (bib-number-name) that caught me again and again on the hills - and inspired me to go harder just to stay within sight of those absolutely Marvelous legs.

 

[Frosty]

2 hours ago, TheoG said:

Thanks Gerald, thats very helpful solid advice.

As simple it sounds, it’s not that simple, but also not that complicated. 

[TheoG]

6 minutes ago, Frosty said:

As simple it sounds, it’s not that simple, but also not that complicated. 

If you willing can I call on you for some advice if/when needed?  I am very familiar to train for running marathons/ultras, but feels like I'm making a lot of mistakes with the cycling .... 🙈

[eugenenyawo]

947 Ride Joburg (B) Race Footage

 

 

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Edited November 22, 2023 by eugenenyawo