Tour of South Africa Shocking

[Wolweseun]

Jo'burg is the wild west, any idiot knows you need to publicise your event and get a proper presence out there to enforce road closure. If you can do it for the 94.7 why can CSA not pull it off in front of international press coverage?

 

94.7 is not organised by CSA

It is organised by people that actually know what they are doing

[Lucky Luke.]

I hear, understand and agree with the comments about poor organisation...to some extent (with regards to publicity, notifictions and advertising), however people this is not Australia, this is Africa.

 

Its a bit like organising a game of cricket in Baghdad. Everyone knew and had the feeling in thier gut that this was going to be disastrous, or at the very least that it would have some major "embarrasing" moments . Anyone still even riding a road bike in Africa, is bit like that cricketer in Baghdad. Intentions are good and sounds nice, but its an event and an organisiation project that has some mighty odds stacked up against it. The roads are not condusive to road riding in SA, the larger public and road users DONT WANT YOU on the roads, let alone be held up by you.

 

MTB events like Epic are world class and will remain the world class premier event it is because it is OFF THE ROADS and away from the "people".

 

 

Sorry, total crap. If PPA, Argus organisers and El Shaddai freaking Christian School in Durbanville can do it why can we not get it together in front of the international press. This cockup is 100% inexcusable.

 

And I rode around London for 8 years - it was 1000% more dangerous than riding on the roads here.

[Lucky Luke.]

94.7 is not organised by CSA

It is organised by people that actually know what they are doing

 

Absolutely

[MooToo]

A staff member told me that there was no advertising regarding the tour on Thursday, a minute later, behold, on 94.7 an ad regarding the Tour of SA. Please check Fridays Star, page 3 regarding the Tour including a map. If you have entered any races this year via Cyclelab, you would have noticed a Cell C Tour of South Africa link. ATTENTION TO DETAIL! What else do you want?

[Puncture Girl]

A staff member told me that there was no advertising regarding the tour on Thursday, a minute later, behold, on 94.7 an ad regarding the Tour of SA. Please check Fridays Star, page 3 regarding the Tour including a map. If you have entered any races this year via Cyclelab, you would have noticed a Cell C Tour of South Africa link. ATTENTION TO DETAIL! What else do you want?

 

The best advisory would have been Advisory Boards along the route. When I see Advisory Boards along roads informing of partial road closures or full road closures, I tend to plan my day around it and avoid the area at all costs. Advertising purely in the papers and various radio stations is NOT good enough!!

[Kranswurm]

kranswurm, i thought you looked familiar *blush* just why oh why did we have so much food left over??? we were offering to EVEYONE who chatted to us and there were still bagloads left over!

 

Well you did not offer any to us

I was not very mobile or would have come over.Only 2 weeks into a new hip

Just so dissapointed with the race we just buggered off.

[gummibear]

The best advisory would have been Advisory Boards along the route. When I see Advisory Boards along roads informing of partial road closures or full road closures, I tend to plan my day around it and avoid the area at all costs. Advertising purely in the papers and various radio stations is NOT good enough!!

 

+1 on that.Ironman do it a week before the PE event.

[Gerhardc]

I wonder what Charles Dickens (greg till) will say next on SuperCycling....most probable a saying from Walt Disney next...what a joke!!! We just bliksemmed our name in the cycling world...

[GrumpyOldGuy]

Hmm, I dont know but I just think you cant expect to bring a huge city like Johannesburg to a halt for even 10 minutes if you dont have the support of the greater population, especially in the heart of the business, shopping and entertainment section of the city like Sandton, Hyde Park etc.

 

If you get the people on board like at the 94.7 you will have no issues, but most people are not cyclists, they dont watch cycling shows and they dont pay attention one day before when they hear a news flash or see a news article - this should have stated in January with news broadcasts, posters on poles, radio alerts brochures at street corners etc.

 

You cannot expect people to just change their life overnight on the balance of one news article or advert. In my opinion that was the problem. People were not sufficiently informed.

 

I played golf Saturday and Sunday at Dainfern and driving in and out both days I saw no signs or any indications that there was an event on.

 

I chatted to my golf pals and not one of them knew anything about it, and these folk live in the area.

 

...But come to think of it how many cities anywhere in the world will accept been closed down or severely incovenienced for an almost unknown event without issues, this is not the TDF, THE GIRO or FORMULA ONE events which are world known, its an unknown small cycling event, its no wonder there were issues.

[wynandvdmerwe]

Argus or 94.7 organisers please help these guys,today was a complete disaster. Cycling SA what were you thinking?

[Santa C]

Very sad for csa

[Joe Low]

I gather you dont read that well, or listen because it was all over the wireless and TV, on Supercycling etc. No wonder you're an EX chairman of a cycling club. You interests were not with cycling and your members or else you would have know.

Not referring to me thank goodness. This seems rude and defensive. I may have missed what connection you have to the event but it was very badly publicised and organised.

 

I'm a club secretary & a call for help went out 10 days ago about organising spectator points and contributing whatever other assistance we could. There is no way that a club can do much given such short notice. However, I e-mailed all our members and we were there at Monte today - we were there, but the event wasnt.

 

I heard about the tour maybe three weeks ago and 1st thought it must be a heads-up for July or September or somesuch. I was gobsmacked to read more carefully on the next missive that it was 2-3wks away.

 

Absolutely impossible to put an international event on in such a short timeframe & quite rightly CSA is a laughing stock.

 

Poor, poor, poorer than poor from the organizers, no-one else and certainly not the clubs.

 

& rolling closure on a 20-25km circuit the riders were going to do 3 times - how on earth did anyone think that could work? One or two splits in the bunch and you're stuffed.

Edited February 20, 2011 by Joe Low

[Kranswurm]

My daughter stays behind Cycle Lab and we drove to Monte Casino to see where to watch the final loops.We had to drive around and find out for ourselves.No signs to start finish.No parking directions.Nothing!No leaflets,in fact if I did not know it was there somewhere we would have buggered off.

We have more in Gaborone for our Kalahari Challenge in the way of signs etc.

Very poor indeed

[jmaccelari]

I gather you dont read that well, or listen because it was all over the wireless and TV, on Supercycling etc. No wonder you're an EX chairman of a cycling club. You interests were not with cycling and your members or else you would have know.

MooToo - you speak cr@p - to put it bluntly. Are you a CSA troll?

[jmaccelari]

94.7 is not organised by CSA

It is organised by people that actually know what they are doing

So why don't CSA get the people who organise races in the various areas to do the organising?

 

They all know their areas, have contacts with the local police and know how to run a race!

 

CSA is blatantly incompetent, but the guys organising the road races (Ride For Sight* excepted) know what they are doing and do a good job. Subcontract it to them...

 

*Sorry - I just realised there are no tandems in the ToSA, so the R4S guys could probably handle it...

Edited February 20, 2011 by jmaccelari

[Joe Low]

My daughter stays behind Cycle Lab and we drove to Monte Casino to see where to watch the final loops.We had to drive around and find out for ourselves.No signs to start finish.No parking directions.Nothing!No leaflets,in fact if I did not know it was there somewhere we would have buggered off.

We have more in Gaborone for our Kalahari Challenge in the way of signs etc.

Very poor indeed

 

+1 very little evidence at the scene of the crime.

 

I drove the route from Soweto Highway to the finish - nada, absolutely nothing.

 

Except one arm warmer, from the guy dropped 4mins by the peloton who took on the township traffic without any escort, shredded and blood-stained