Future of SA road cycling

[bleedToWin]

20 hours ago, W@nted said:

(At least outside of WC province). Public roads are getting worse by the day.

I did the Herald for the first time this year. Was warned not to expect WC road surfaces. It was manageable but for sure not great outside of a few stretches here and there.

[Jewbacca]

Adding to this topic, I have no idea why lap racing in SA is so frowned upon

Crits and CX is the future. So easy to set up, so easy to spectate, easy to second, support. The same sponsor banners get seen multiple times, the noobs can choose to race 1 lap, 2 etc.... 

One can use existing school fields, parks, secure roads, tracks etc and it isn't a logistic nightmare.

For some reason if we aren't traversing huge distances along massive stretches of road, people here just don't seem interested.

If we want to keep racing alive, we will eventually need to embrace circuit racing a bit more. It really is super fun, super tough and easier to manage as everyone races close to the medics and in a controlled environment.

[Mamil]

16 minutes ago, Jewbacca said:

Adding to this topic, I have no idea why lap racing in SA is so frowned upon

Crits and CX is the future. So easy to set up, so easy to spectate, easy to second, support. The same sponsor banners get seen multiple times, the noobs can choose to race 1 lap, 2 etc.... 

One can use existing school fields, parks, secure roads, tracks etc and it isn't a logistic nightmare.

For some reason if we aren't traversing huge distances along massive stretches of road, people here just don't seem interested.

If we want to keep racing alive, we will eventually need to embrace circuit racing a bit more. It really is super fun, super tough and easier to manage as everyone races close to the medics and in a controlled environment.

A cape town CBD Crit ... I'm in

[Zebra]

 Back in 2008, I wrote a proposal to hold a Cape & JHB Cyclocross series, TOGETHER with a chap called Ivan Blumenthal (JHB), but as he had unexpected headwinds, we killed off the idea…

it was a WINTER series in the Cape (rain + mud), and SUMMER series in Jozi(rain+ mud)…

NOW, with the sheer number of Gravel bikes around, the time is right - to re-invigorate the idea, and start afresh. I shared my idea with Tim Brink 3 weeks back, and he in turn shared with me their (Bicycling) plans also to hold a CX series, but S Suburbs venue was logistically tricky.

Tim then sent me the DETAILED, 10-odd page manual onCX Course Design; someone must run with this, schools are about to permit the sale/consumption of alcohol for approved events(Brandy sponsor!),so this could come to pass, with the right organiser…

Edited August 20, 2023 by Zebra
Spelling…

[Jewbacca]

2 minutes ago, Zebra said:

Back in 2008, I wrote a proposal to hold a Cap e& JHB Cyclocross series, TOGETHER with a chap called Ivan Blumenthal (JHB), but as he had unexpected headwinds, we killed off the idea…

it was a WINTER series in the Cape (rain + mud), and SUMMER series in Jozi(rain+ mud)…

NOW, with the sheer number of Gravel bikes around, the time is right tore-invigorate the idea, and start afresh. I shared my idea with Tim Brink 3 weeks back, and he in turn shared with me their (Bicycling) plans also to hold a CX series, but S Suburbs venue was logistically tricky.

Tim then sent me the DETAILED, 10-odd page manual onCX Course Design; someone must run with this, schools are about to permit the sale/consumption of alcohol for approved events(Brandy sponsor!),so this could come to pass, with the right organiser…

The thing is, it's been tried but people just don't buy into it.

SA bike riders are obsessed with owning top spec bikes, so  buying a cheap alu frame CX bike with disposable drive train doesn't appeal to many.

Laps seem to be a swear word. Look at how poorly the XCO scene is supported. There are 500 back of the pack MAMILS on big budget bikes lining up for Darling Brew or some random Grabouw marathon, but 7 vets at a brilliant XCO event.

Just look at how much flack the lap circuit at Glasgow worlds got on this site prior to actually watching it.

It was amazing racing

The mentality needs to change from the ground up. Schools are a brilliant place to start

Get the kids racing XCO/CX/Crits and they can then take that forward with them.

One thing I won't get behind is a school event sponsored by a booze company. Parents boozing at kids sport is so weird. Then hopping into the SUV/Urban 4x4/Bakkie drunk with the kids and driving home 

4 ton death machine piloted by free brandy with kids in the back..... met EISH

[Zebra]

On 8/20/2023 at 5:53 PM, Jewbacca said:

The thing is, it's been tried but people just don't buy into it.

SA bike riders are obsessed with owning top spec bikes, so  buying a cheap alu frame CX bike with disposable drive train doesn't appeal to many.

Laps seem to be a swear word. Look at how poorly the XCO scene is supported. There are 500 back of the pack MAMILS on big budget bikes lining up for Darling Brew or some random Grabouw marathon, but 7 vets at a brilliant XCO event.

Just look at how much flack the lap circuit at Glasgow worlds got on this site prior to actually watching it.

It was amazing racing

The mentality needs to change from the ground up. Schools are a brilliant place to start

Get the kids racing XCO/CX/Crits and they can then take that forward with them.

One thing I won't get behind is a school event sponsored by a booze company. Parents boozing at kids sport is so weird. Then hopping into the SUV/Urban 4x4/Bakkie drunk with the kids and driving home 

4 ton death machine piloted by free brandy with kids in the back..... met EISH

Whew, that de-generated QUICKLY! It was meant to be ONE coffee with Brandy, under a Gazebo/Marquee, whilst braving the elements for 60 mins -only.
 

Many parent have compact cars  and NOT 4-ton death-machines; hysteria much?!!!

I see where you are going, and will agree to differ, since I am an (unashamed) fan-boy of your 99.9% well-thought-through posts!

Tim, too, thinks an alcohol sponsor brings a ‘dynamic’ to a Winter series, ok, let’s TEMPORARILY ‘park’ the booze sponsor, and focus on who/what/where/when…?!

I actually hesitated posting here, given EXACTLY naysayers, but I feel you are NOT one, so onwards/upwards!

NO NEED for a-n-y-o-n-E with a Gravel bike to spend a red cent; sling the bike over that shoulder, and run up that grassy bank, why-don’t-ya! You get my drift; show up, ride for 45 to 60 minutes, then go home with a warm glow!
 

Cheers, Chris

Edited August 21, 2023 by Zebra
Spelling

[TVS Cycles]

Check out the Crit racing series by Bikecraftperformace. Second race was today and it’s a vibe 🚴‍♂️🚴‍♂️

Here is a link to their Insta profile:

https://instagram.com/bikecraftperformance?igshid=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==

We also had a lot of fun at Buffelstrap on Saterday

Have a good week out there 

🚴‍♂️🚴‍♂️🚴‍♂️🚴‍♂️🚴‍♂️🫡

[Jewbacca]

14 minutes ago, Zebra said:

Whew, that de-generated QUICKLY! It was meant to be ONE coffee with Brandy, under a Gazebo/Marquee, whilst braving the elements for 60 mins -only.
 

Many parent have compact cars  and NOT 4-to death-machines; hysteria much?!!!

I see where you are going, and will agree to differ, since I am an (unashamed) fan-boy of your 99.9% well-thought-through posts!

Tim, too, thinks an alcohol sponsor brings a ‘dynamic’ to a Winter series, ok, let’s TEMPORARILY ‘park’ the booze sponsor, and focus on who/what/where/when…?!

I actually hesitated posting here, given EXACTLY naysayers, but I feel you are NOT one, so onwards/upwards!

NO NEED for a-n-y-o-n-E with a Gravel bike to spend a red cent; sling the bike over that shoulder, and run up that grassy bank, why-don’t-ya! You get my drift; show up, ride for 45 x 60 minutes, then go home with a warm glow!
 

Cheers, Chris

hahahaha I am fully not into the Beer/Booze association with sport, especially kids sport. I'm wasn't meaning to sound dramatic or alarming

It probably makes sense financially, but the fact that it is seldom 'one' under the gazebo and generally involves cars and driving afterwards puts me off.

I am fully into trying to get a CX and Crit series going. It also helps massively with race smarts, handling skills and making sure you're in the right wheels, so the kids will benefit hugely.

I cut my teeth in the rain, mud, sleet, cold and slop of winter racing up north and I LOVE it.

 

[ChrisF]

10 hours ago, Mamil said:

Cape town roads are mostly in good condition. Plenty of road, gravel and MTB options as we all know. Rode from southern subs to stellnbosch and back from breakfast with my daughter yesterday. Good roads with shoulders most of the way. Only one really dangerous spot where bicycles shouldn't be.

 

Would love to see your route.

 

Bellville is so close to Cape Town .... but struggling to find a safe route

[Mamil]

6 minutes ago, ChrisF said:

 

Would love to see your route.

 

Bellville is so close to Cape Town .... but struggling to find a safe route

https://www.strava.com/routes/2803286519588860134 — to Stellies

[ChrisF]

44 minutes ago, Jewbacca said:

The thing is, it's been tried but people just don't buy into it.

SA bike riders are obsessed with owning top spec bikes, so  buying a cheap alu frame CX bike with disposable drive train doesn't appeal to many.

Laps seem to be a swear word. Look at how poorly the XCO scene is supported. There are 500 back of the pack MAMILS on big budget bikes lining up for Darling Brew or some random Grabouw marathon, but 7 vets at a brilliant XCO event.

Just look at how much flack the lap circuit at Glasgow worlds got on this site prior to actually watching it.

It was amazing racing

The mentality needs to change from the ground up. Schools are a brilliant place to start

Get the kids racing XCO/CX/Crits and they can then take that forward with them.

One thing I won't get behind is a school event sponsored by a booze company. Parents boozing at kids sport is so weird. Then hopping into the SUV/Urban 4x4/Bakkie drunk with the kids and driving home 

4 ton death machine piloted by free brandy with kids in the back..... met EISH

 

Cycling as a school sport in 2023, Western Cape, is in a very intetesting spot ...

 

4 old school SPUR races, now the CSA Schools series.

 

More and more schools also putting together other events.  Next weekend Montagu hosts a nice event.

 

 

These vary from laps to relay events.

[DieselnDust]

Lap events just make more sense logistically. The old Gunnars Circle race was a favourite suffer fest.

red hill road race is another successful application of a lap format that’s not a crit.

I completely agree with Jewy on this topic

[mecheng89]

21 hours ago, NickGM said:

Despite the good surfaces, one thing I have noticed about the "utopian" western cape is how much busier the roads have gotten. I've been here for 10 years now and there were stretches of road where it was very easy to get a gap in the traffic (both oncoming and in my lane) if I needed to turn right. Not so anymore. Combine that with a declining appetite for risk and I actually do very little road biking on a genuine road bike anymore. I use a gravel bike just because it's that must easier to ride a stretch of road safely if it has no hard shoulder, it's easier to make a hasty jump up onto a kerb, etc. Plus I'm not too concerned about trying to be fast or aero' anymore, just comfortable and safe.

Side note: I'm sure I remember some thread on the hub about a kzn race being cancelled due to poor road quality. I thought it was the amashova but a quick google tells me I'm wrong.

Probably the semi-gration that's been happening gradually over the last few years. 

[buckstopper]

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. 

[W Smith]

14 hours ago, Jewbacca said:

Adding to this topic, I have no idea why lap racing in SA is so frowned upon

Crits and CX is the future. So easy to set up, so easy to spectate, easy to second, support. The same sponsor banners get seen multiple times, the noobs can choose to race 1 lap, 2 etc.... 

One can use existing school fields, parks, secure roads, tracks etc and it isn't a logistic nightmare.

For some reason if we aren't traversing huge distances along massive stretches of road, people here just don't seem interested.

If we want to keep racing alive, we will eventually need to embrace circuit racing a bit more. It really is super fun, super tough and easier to manage as everyone races close to the medics and in a controlled environment.

I fully agree.I did a couple of races held at Gunner's Circle in Epping which was quite nice. The race was anti clockwise and fast.You quickly learned where to ride in the bunch  to avoid getting dropped as the wind direction changed.Very few marshalls were required and you never crossed an intersection as far as I can recall.And then there was the  popular SANLAM kermesse series for the pros and top amateurs which was very enjoyable to watch. 

[Aurora]

I have a few things to point out here:

Sponsors are pulling away because of a few factors (my personal experience):

1. They are not getting any ROI for their spend. My company put R350k towards being the title sponsor of a big road event last year and was promised the world by the organiser, to which we received absolutely zero in return. The entries were also extremely poor. Because of this, we we didn't do a 2023 sponsorship.
2. POPI - I know this may seem silly, but the main aim of an event sponsorship for a business is ROI - companies no longer have money to waste on "brand building" ventures. The main source of the ROI in the past was through the entrants and emailer database that the event has. Companies used to be able to direct market for their sponsorship spend. Now, you cannot do that. The landscape is changing and event organisers need to adapt and find new ways for sponsors to reach the market. 
3. Events are no longer attracting the crowds of the past. The general local road events used to get between 2000 and 4000 riders pre-covid each weekend. Now, you are lucky to see 1000 riders take to the start line. 

The price to enter an event is a lot higher now than before. People are becoming picky about which events they are focussing on for the year. I looked at the cost to enter the Amashova classic this year and once you have factored in the transport and entry fee, you could be close to R1500 to ride 100km on rubbish roads.