Tshwane Classic - Cancelled!

[Speed Devil]

I got an sms from my club this evening to say that the race won't be going past the Union buildings this year.

 

I see on CycleLab's website the race will be going straight up Church street.

 

I guess we have our wonderful SANDF to thank for this f*ckup? Because of them the Union building has security fears and now we get chased away. Do the tjops in the Union Building think we all going to pitch up with a 9mm in the back of our cycling shorts?

[Racing Hart]

WTF!! this is sooo dissapointing..I want my money back!!

[Speed Devil]

Ja me too. I was so looking forward to the climb up to the Union Buildings. It would really have seperated the boys from the men.

 

Now we are just going to keep going round and round and round in 1 huge bunch for the entire race I can see plenty of sprints going to take place along Church street to try and break up the packs. It's about the only place that we have a nice long drag to make the legs burn in a highspeed chase.

[Racing Hart]

yeah ironically the only race in SA,besides jock that is not specially suited for a sprinter has been changed to suit a sprinter...Farce if you ask me. Been training for this the better half of the year only to have them tell you

"sorry the route has been changed, better luck next time", 3days before hand. Will think twice next year.

[Speed Devil]

What cat you in Racing Heart? I'm in VA

[Aquatic]

Thats terrible,that hill made that race unique,now it will be faster but not the same challenge..after the 5th lap,that hill looked steeper!

[Christie]

This sucks. The race had a scenic route, nice spot for the family to stand etc.

Who wants to go do a flat race amongst a lot of buildings & traffic?

[Ysterkas]

So what is the new route?

[Racing Hart]

same as last year. except we keep going straight up church street and do not turn off onto union buildings.

[Spinnekop]

Een muurse crit.

 

Very stupid. 

[IanJ]

I agree, it won't be the same race any more. I wonder who made the call that it was a security concern?

 

 

[Joe Low]

That's sad news even from a non-hill-lover, it's gonna be one massive bunch gaining more members as it goes round - bit like Wesbank Raceway when we it was open to cyclists.

Might not be worth gettin out of bed in Jhb for a 6:30 start up there.

 

 

[Jason]

 

So we'll be following the red line and not the blue line? Feels like I'm in the Matrix, so 80km's, averaging over 50kph... Hoping there's no bad accidents!

 

 

 

 

[Jules]

This is very sad news

 

 

 

 

[nochain]

Wanted to go and enter today....now I am not so sure!!

[Canaris]

two points to make:

 

I was not the "SANDF" that went on strike, that would have been a coup de etat and the president would be a general now. 

 

It was a small dissatisified element within the SANDF who took leave, and on their own time made their complaints public, against the oders and court orders that instructed them not to.  THat is why the word munity has been used in the media.

 

Considering the SANDF is at the moment the poorest paid of the security forces, ask yourself, are you not getting what you pay for?

 

Secondly, although the sharp climb has been removed from the race, there still is a rather nasty false flat that starts at the Academic Hospital and only ends almost 4km later at the Presidents Golf course in Colbyn.  If there are sufficient attacks in hamilton and Church there should be enough road for a break to get away.  Teams will have to use their climbers to attack in these areas to weaken the sprinters.  Complaining only highlights that the new conditions have not been studied and new race strategies worked out.