The Emperors Palace Classic Worries

[Orbeadc]

How was everyones race, I was a bit concerned about the safety and marshalling?

 

We rode in the Tandem group and started first. Going through Boksburg various of the intersection had no marshalling.  We had to stop at the robots.

When we met the shorter races at a very busy intersection it was absolute mayhem.

What were they thinking????

But the route was fast and quite a nice race except for the above..

[TNT1]

 

How did you find the cone placement? Enough warning before you hit them? Riding with eyes closed or open, and brain engaged or idling in neutral?

TNT12009-02-09 08:23:29

[intern]

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/images/smilies/moon.gif hey TNT1 get a look at this!

[TNT1]

 

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/images/smilies/moon.gif hey TNT1 get a look at this!

 

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/images/smilies/banana.gif

 

[Racing Hart]

My biggest worry was that it was pan flat!! as every other race in SA these days seems to be. Where is the challenge in riding a 100km pan flat race? Looks like organizers are organizing races for sissies. Races also always use to have a distance now shorter than 120km.

 

I am quite dissapointed with the attitude of race organizers these days.

[HammerHed]

 

My biggest worry was that it was pan flat!! as every other race in SA these days seems to be. Where is the challenge in riding a 100km pan flat race? Looks like organizers are organizing races for sissies. Races also always use to have a distance now shorter than 120km.

 

I am quite dissapointed with the attitude of race organizers these days.

 

I agree with you, I felt this route was too flat and fast, a few climbs would sort that out, and help to break up those huge bunches.

 

I mean 94.7 this year was really easy compared to the old route.

 

[Joe Low]

Bums on saddles is an important consideration - these events rely on no.s.

 

Berg n Dale was only last week and that was a big challenge - 850 timed finishers against 1,150 yesterday.

 

[intern]

 

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/images/smilies/moon.gif hey TNT1 get a look at this!

 

http://www.thumpertalk.com/forum/images/smilies/banana.gif

 

You nana you.

 

Yep it is about bums on seats, flat means more people give it a try. Check the numbers dwindling for great races like Jock Tour...

 

[Nialls101]

The marshalling was 

fantastic, this traffic cop was just sitting in his car watching us while a truck went straight through the intersection.

 

I'm a climber so I have to agree Racing Hart, I was really enjoying the Berge n

Dale Classic last week until we hit the boring highway. Emperor's Classic turned out be a fast paced training ride where the goal was not to hit the potholes and watching out for bad marshalling. There were 4 punctures in the elite group with me having a slow puncture.

[turtlek]

The marshalling was?

 

fantastic' date=' this traffic cop was just sitting in his car watching us while a truck went straight through the intersection. I'm a climber so I have to agree Racing Hart, I was really enjoying the Berge n

 

Dale Classic last week until we hit the boring highway. Emperor's Classic turned out be a fast paced training ride where the goal was not to hit the potholes and watching out for bad marshalling. There were 4 punctures in the elite group with me having a slow puncture. [/quote']

 

 

 

Dude at least you didnt crash into a so called pro rider who cant hold his line!!!

 

 

 

and i think there were a lot more than four seeing as though my buddy richard got two flats a cycle lab guy punctured his bora's right in front of me and i ended up full of cytomax (not good seeing as i run on FiT nutrition ) also i heard about 7 other blowouts and most of them were tubbies and then there was this guy i was riding with in the convoy who all of a sudden decided to do a front flip because he didnt beloieve me that his tire was going flat

 

 

 

all in all i was K@kede out by another guy for airing my views on how bad the marshalling was so i am gonna shut up now

[slowpoke]

turtlek, yep, there seems to be a growing attitude here that you may not disagree with certain people. strange how when marshalling and organisation is bad and certain people complain, then everyone may do so. but if certain people decide that complaints arent allowed about a given event then any problems are the cyclists. from what i've heard and judging by nanosec's face this morning you had every reason to voice valid complaints - without knowing what went wrong how can things be improved next year?

[turtlek]

turtlek' date=' yep, there seems to be a growing attitude here that you may not disagree with certain people. strange how when marshalling and organisation is bad and certain people complain, then everyone may do so. but if certain people decide that complaints arent allowed about a given event then any problems are the cyclists. from what i've heard and judging by nanosec's face this morning you had every reason to voice valid complaints - without knowing what went wrong how can things be improved next year?

 

[/quote']

 

 

 

yup and the way i put it was a bit blunt but in all honesty why should we put cherries on top when you have to call a spade a spade if there was K@K out on the route then from my experience we might as well talk about it

 

 

 

also why do people get offended when they did nothing wrong i stated in my previous posting on that thread that is now 12 pages that the marshalls were idiots ok yes harsh but if a metro cop is at the intersection with a marshall and both of them do nothing because the cop is on his/her phone then i think i had every right to say that seeing as being a marshall you are also inclined to make people stop at robots and or make sure that it is safe for a cyclist to come through the robot

 

 

 

P.S. i went through very early on the route and can only imagine the carnage after me

[CycleJunkie]

Never mind the marshalling, the traffic access and egress was horrendous. The main route to and from the parking crossed the race route. Not the greatest planning! I do not know the area very well, but I am sure a few sign posts to the back entrance for the parking, and an alternative route to avoid the finishing cyclists would have been relatively simple to do.

 

Perhaps the location does not allow for this?

 

[turtlek]

Never mind the marshalling' date=' the traffic access and egress was horrendous. The main route to and from the parking crossed the race route. Not the greatest planning! I do not know the area very well, but I am sure a few sign posts to the back entrance for the parking, and an alternative route to avoid the finishing cyclists would have been relatively simple to do. Perhaps the location does not allow for this?

 

[/quote']

 

 

 

I ride these roads every day and there are more than enough ways to get to the back of the casino in fact even though it is a two lane road it is still good enough to get everyone into the parking and also there was not enough awareness about it because if there was the traffic would have been halved!!!

[CycleJunkie]

Thanks TK, I think a bit of a briefing note with the registration would have alleviated a lot of stress

 

 

[Trubie]

I had a chat to someone very close to the race, and he was on the route himself. They are very aware of these gripes and have taken note, it will be addressed for next year.

Its a new route, etc, etc, etc - lets hope.

 

About the route - guys please remember, not everyone rides Elite/Racing bunches or A group.

Some of us do find courses like that HARD, I agree that the pro's should be racing longer etc, but all of this has a bearing on seeding, costs and what not more.

 

Out of the 1400 finishers, how many actually raced?, that might have found the race too easy/short?

I would gestimate not more than say 400, which would constitute a max of 30%, think about the other 70% who still enjoy the challenge, and might not necessarily want to ride the 55k. These are the people that actually pay, not like the priveliged few whose entry gets paid, a lot of money to race. They do not have sponsors for kit, equipment etc, etc

 

I agree that some of the marshalls were absolutely useless. At one of the intersections the marshall actually had his back turned towards us, we did not know whether we were about to turn or carry on straight. Coming through Springs and back through Boksburg was a stuff up of note, and I also started rather early in DL. Can imagine what it was like later on.