Future of SA road cycling

[Jbr]

11 minutes ago, bleedToWin said:

How many corners do you have to brake for at Killarney? 🤔

Depends how brave you feel on the day 🤣 (And how windy it is)

Edited August 21, 2023 by Jbr

[bleedToWin]

3 minutes ago, Jbr said:

Depends how brave you feel on the day 🤣 (And how windy it is)

Thought for sure the answer is zero. Goes to show I haven't done Killarney since 2008...

[Jewbacca]

9 minutes ago, bleedToWin said:

They don't do any (real) marketing, it's just that the racers do the effort to go and find the events and participate.

Your comment about making less competitive riders feel welcome is on point, but the question is how?

I guess when I look at the race websites or event pages it always talks about the prizes, the racing, the winning times etc yet seldom has any info on the support (if any), cut off times, seeding requirements etc

So by just focusing more on the information shared to the back markers/enthusiastic casual cyclist it will already make it less intimidating.

I didn't even know a non competitive, but amped person could enter the Tour du Cap. It just focusses on racing and uses the word racing way too often.

I would have entered every year. 

Start there, it's a simple focus shift and immediately makes events more approachable and less intimidating to average people. Get the PPA fun rides out there to the non racers. Those seem to be held so close to everyones chests and info is scant at best.

From there, just starting to break those walls down, new/different people will get keen again.

[The Ouzo]

4 minutes ago, Jewbacca said:

I guess when I look at the race websites or event pages it always talks about the prizes, the racing, the winning times etc yet seldom has any info on the support (if any), cut off times, seeding requirements etc

So by just focusing more on the information shared to the back markers/enthusiastic casual cyclist it will already make it less intimidating.

I didn't even know a non competitive, but amped person could enter the Tour du Cap. It just focusses on racing and uses the word racing way too often.

I would have entered every year. 

Start there, it's a simple focus shift and immediately makes events more approachable and less intimidating to average people. Get the PPA fun rides out there to the non racers. Those seem to be held so close to everyones chests and info is scant at best.

From there, just starting to break those walls down, new/different people will get keen again.

yep, agreed. Info on rides is not easy to come by.

The first stumbling block is finding out what rides are on. Cyclelab used to have an events calendar that had just about everything listed. That was done away with many years back. Everything else that has taken its place is really half baked. Its almost like you need to be part of some secret cult to find out whats on the calendar. Sending someone to CSA website is giving the impression you need to be a pro to enter.

And then, even when you know which ride is on, and you go to the website for that ride, information is hard to find. Often you need to stop just short of hitting the pay button before you get to know everything you need to know.

 

I started investigating entering my youngest into the 947 kiddies ride. I gave up and restarted the process about 3 times before I was able to get info on distance for her age group and pricing. I still dont know what the route is like, only that is starts and end in Steyn $hitty.

[FaizelSalie_01]

1 hour ago, Mongoose! said:

Crit racing (crashing) will only take off once Coolheat  / Shimano has stock in Shimano parts again...

New disruptor : L-Twoo eRX groupset for R15K

[Skubarra]

1 hour ago, Jewbacca said:

Creating viable, sustainable, safe events that are marketed at the right people the next. Imagine how cool it would be doing a loop race in the West Coast reserve right now? You'd get to ride past the pretty flowers 5 or 6 times!

 

Just on a personal level, gutted that the Langebaan road race through the reserve (in flower time) was killed off after covid, very underrated event and another illustration of how hard it is to sustainably run a road event.

The way I see it, backmarker/casual type riders have figured out that if you want to ride in the flowers (or any other nice route) you don't have to pay R400+ to fill up a race, you take your mtb and some friends and go and ride it whenever it suits you. I have seen it with quite a few cyclists I know, many haven't stopped cycling, they have just (mostly) stopped doing events.

 

[Dazshell]

On 8/19/2023 at 1:05 PM, robbybzgo said:

Maybe it's time for every city/ town/ dorp to have a Cycling Safe committee where their main goal is to create safe cycling conditions in their local areas. Yes, I know that local municipalities are constrained financially (mainly through an erosion of funds due to corruption) but we need to soldier on to create a safe environment to do our sport.

Suggest that the committee through the participation of all the local clubs identify the most often used routes and the put pressure on the local government [LG](even with petitions) to re-tar, fix holes and trim roadside foliage so that safe cycling can continue. Even extending to fixing potholes themselves in a group effort. Getting reports in local newspapers about the unsafe conditions, getting letters written stating that should anyone cycling be injured from a reported hole or inferior road surface then the LG will be held responsible for all costs relating to damage/ injuries that follow.

Yes, people sometimes say that it's a lost cause. Well, it will be if we give up and don't do anything about it...

We have started that here in Dirtbin.  The Ethekweni Safe Cycling Forum. Most of the bigger clubs and bike shops represented, PPA, Metro Police and some of the EMS guys.  Works to a degree and the PPA do a great job getting some action out of the municipality.  However, it is an uphill battle.  Like climbing Suikerbossie at the end of CTCT!

[mikkelz]

57 minutes ago, Skubarra said:

Just on a personal level, gutted that the Langebaan road race through the reserve (in flower time) was killed off after covid, very underrated event and another illustration of how hard it is to sustainably run a road event.

The way I see it, backmarker/casual type riders have figured out that if you want to ride in the flowers (or any other nice route) you don't have to pay R400+ to fill up a race, you take your mtb and some friends and go and ride it whenever it suits you. I have seen it with quite a few cyclists I know, many haven't stopped cycling, they have just (mostly) stopped doing events.

 

Semi-related. One thing that definitely makes "events" more offputting now than before, considering the cost of fuel and general cost of living increases, is the number collection/registration aspect.

Some (not all) events did not have many registration points, which means an extra trip and time off work (often the day before a race) to collect a silly sticker.

Registering on the day of the event is often provided as an option, but that means an extra early start and unnecessary stress before your ride. And with logistics (thinking of Durbanville Racecourse), having to find parking, cycle (as far as you can) to the registration, and then back to the start is a real schlep IMHO.

It's not unique to cycling – I run a lot and experience the same frustration with running events.

Again, this isn't a new issue, but it irritates me enough that I need to vent. 😄

[reteid]

It is my opinion that the ave SA athlete is completely distance bedonnerd. If you start running the first question is are you going to do comrades. Now maybe I started to run a 5 km parkrun alt to run a very fast 5 km and then through progression will move up to say 10km,a 21km 42km and then maybe 2 oceans or comrades. The same with triathlon first question being are you doing IM when starting to do tri. The same with cycling. You buy a mtb and the first que your friends or the sales person asks is are you doing the epic. No maybe I just want to get fitter or race xc.

 

The general mentality I have encountered is that if you did not go long you are not a racer/athlete. I am all for the short sharp stuff as if you do it right it can burry you wrt effort. But it is not such a cool braaivleis story to say you ran a sub 15 min 5 km parkrun than to say it took you 4 hours to do a 21 km run.

 

Until such time as this mentality is changed, and I highly doubt it will, I think it will be an uphill battle to get the numbers to shorter races.

 

 

[The Ouzo]

12 minutes ago, reteid said:

It is my opinion that the ave SA athlete is completely distance bedonnerd. If you start running the first question is are you going to do comrades. Now maybe I started to run a 5 km parkrun alt to run a very fast 5 km and then through progression will move up to say 10km,a 21km 42km and then maybe 2 oceans or comrades. The same with triathlon first question being are you doing IM when starting to do tri. The same with cycling. You buy a mtb and the first que your friends or the sales person asks is are you doing the epic. No maybe I just want to get fitter or race xc.

 

The general mentality I have encountered is that if you did not go long you are not a racer/athlete. I am all for the short sharp stuff as if you do it right it can burry you wrt effort. But it is not such a cool braaivleis story to say you ran a sub 15 min 5 km parkrun than to say it took you 4 hours to do a 21 km run.

 

Until such time as this mentality is changed, and I highly doubt it will, I think it will be an uphill battle to get the numbers to shorter races.

 

 

part of the reason is the average non athlete has an idea how long 21km is, but has no idea that doing 5km in 15minutes is good or bad. 

[DieselnDust]

Well we celebrate the ultra distance events more because 

tougher 

manlier 

#untamed

<anynotherbuzzwordthatcomestomind>
 

Europe has a strong club race culture and not a strong ultra distance culture .

that club race culture sets the tone for the strong road race scene they have. 
 

when one gets to elite level there are many many riders participating in races with distances over 150km. But there’s over 1000 men and women participating. 
 

we are very different in many respects 

[ChrisF]

8 hours ago, buckstopper said:

Lap racing is the way to go for road racing but it needs local community buy-in, and this is not Belgium. But with, say, 16k laps costs would be lower than for the current routes I would think. There are routes in the South of Jhb and the Cradle in Jhb is not bad. Going anti clockwise on the Sterkfontein road, left into the kdp road, then left onto the R47, then left onto the Letamo road could be done for about a 15k lap, as an example. There are other lap possibilities in the area but they are longer, 28km for the main one, or more trafficy. 

 

And so the wheel turns ...

 

My very first road race that I entered was back in 1983, in Stellenbosch.  It was a couple of laps around the street blocks of the Stellenbosch University academic campus.

[Aurora]

Race organisers love to use social media marketing, which is great, if you understand how it works and how to get your marketing seen by potential entrants. 

Just posting a poster to your race page doesn't get you any views now days, the algorithms have all changed. You need to pay for this advertising which barely any of them want to do. 

I have personally been involved with quite a few events and the organisers hold their marketing very close to their chest and don't generally accept the advice of others. 

If you can reach your market and give them a quality product, they will come. 

Also, stop marketing to racing snakes. The top 10% on the results sheet are not the ones bringing in the money or buying power for sponsors. You need to be focussing on the 90%. Your event will survive without the racing snakes, it won't survive without the weekend warrior.  

[Shebeen]

Back in the day, road events was a charity thing, not a business.

I don't think anyone took money from it, apart from the organisations that were fundraising for. the event would have a name and a sponsor before it.

There would be a road race for 8 weeks leading up to the argus. sometimes there was calendar push and there would be one in the boland on a saturday and then the southern suburbs one on the sunday. the events owned their weekend, mess up and someone else would take your slot.

 

Sure they were "fun rides" but they were raced. and you would wait to the end for the lucky raffle along with a thousand other people.

A lot of things have changed since then, people even moan about how the argus is a moneymaking racket.

 

times move on, there is no way a kerkbazaar race happens in large numbers with events management act and traffic requirements. a gravel race i did earlier in the year (with half decent support) had delays in starting the smaller distances because they were an ambulance short. didn't deal with those hurdles in the 90s

[Frosty]

23 minutes ago, Aurora said:

Race organisers love to use social media marketing, which is great, if you understand how it works and how to get your marketing seen by potential entrants. 

Just posting a poster to your race page doesn't get you any views now days, the algorithms have all changed. You need to pay for this advertising which barely any of them want to do. 

I have personally been involved with quite a few events and the organisers hold their marketing very close to their chest and don't generally accept the advice of others. 

If you can reach your market and give them a quality product, they will come. 

Also, stop marketing to racing snakes. The top 10% on the results sheet are not the ones bringing in the money or buying power for sponsors. You need to be focussing on the 90%. Your event will survive without the racing snakes, it won't survive without the weekend warrior.  

Advertising costs money, and that comes directly from the participant’s entry fee. Without advertising you limit the number of entries. Limited number of entries means a limited advertising budget. 

702 offer a free slot if you’re a registered NPO, which is why some organisers team up with a Rotary Club. Other radio stations charge normal advertising rates. 

Together with social and print media, we’ve spent anywhere between R25-R50k on advertising. It can go up to R60k for just slot on the radio (once off). At R400/entry, that’s 150 entries needed just to cover the advertising costs.

[Frosty]

24 minutes ago, Shebeen said:

Back in the day, road events was a charity thing, not a business.

I don't think anyone took money from it, apart from the organisations that were fundraising for. the event would have a name and a sponsor before it.

times move on, there is no way a kerkbazaar race happens in large numbers with events management act and traffic requirements. a gravel race i did earlier in the year (with half decent support) had delays in starting the smaller distances because they were an ambulance short. didn't deal with those hurdles in the 90s

SASREA came into play in 2010, when safety at events changed things.