Sportive Etiquette - don’t laugh........?

[MadDad]

Shocking admission to make - but I have never ridden a sportive, I have taken part in a few longer ‘charidy’ rides, raced a bit in my younger years, and on regular basis ride Sportive distances solo, but have not taken part in one! This year I have decided to try and get as many as I can in (work and family commitments permitting).

I ride the Chilterns quite a bit and as a result found myself in the middle of a couple of Sportives last year without knowing it!, including some event organised by Rapha out of Henley - which was nice. I got in trouble with the Rapha lot by overtaking the Rapha team car until I explained I was not part of the event! (they were trundling along at about 16.5mph - so I was not being a hero)...

Question is, what is the riding etiquette on these events and how do they work? Do you set off in bunches and ride as a group (as I remember doing when racing in my yoof), or do you set off as groups and then fairly much do your own thing? Is there any etiquette to the style of riding? I would assume same rules apply that a Sunday club ride would employ? How do the timing chips work? How do the fuel stops work (not that I expect to need one for less than 80-ish miles). What sort of pace do they move at? Does it tend to be fairly much experienced riders taking part or is it like a charidy ride where you have to expect everyone in front of you to stop suddenly or swerve from one side of the road to the other?

Might sound like numpty questions but forewarned is forearmed......

[Jimbo.]

It really is as simple as pay entry fee, turn up, ride (IT'S NOT A RACE, despite the claims from some of "competing" in sportives...there is no competition), follow the signs, ride some more, finish.

Like a club ride, only with more strangers, less faff over the route and feed stops.

[IroningMan]

If it's a big event, and you want to press on, then start as close to the front as you can - and be patient with slower riders who drift into your path.

[itsnotarace]

MadDad said:

Do you set off in bunches and ride as a group (as I remember doing when racing in my yoof), or do you set off as groups and then fairly much do your own thing?

Generally speaking groups of 20 or 30 riders will be set off at 2 or 3 minute intervals, you don't really tend to get more than 3 mates riding together so small groups will naturally form a few miles down the road and certainly after the first hill. If I want to join a particular group I will normally say good morning and then be chatty and take turns on the front if you can. I find there is nothing worse than silent wheelsuckers

MadDad said:

Is there any etiquette to the style of riding? I would assume same rules apply that a Sunday club ride would employ?

Pretty much. Calls to warn of holes, road furniture, cars and clear/ busy junctions are usual. Some riders will have little or no experience of group riding and you will find them weaving across the road so overtake with care and shout a friendly "on your left" or "on your right" warning if they look that unpredictable

MadDad said:

How do the timing chips work?

Depends on the type of timing system employed. Some use disposable chips that can be stuck to your helmet and then discarded afterwards and some chips will need to be zip tied to your bike and returned afterwards. A zip tie would be provided with the chip itself if that is the case. The chip works when you roll over a timing matt at the start which triggers an RFID electronic logging thingy, the clock counts until you roll over the timing matt at the finish.

MadDad said:

How do the fuel stops work (not that I expect to need one for less than 80-ish miles)

Table at the side of the road type of thing, usually with a banner or two to announce. Fruit, water, sports drinks, cake are the normal fare. Some of the posher events have pasta / sarnies etc. Not many have hot food at the finish, some will have hot drinks but it depends on the time of year. Take your own food and drink to last the ride and use the food stops as supplement and not rely on them solely to get you round.

MadDad said:

What sort of pace do they move at?

There will be a huge disparity between the first and last rider over a set distance, with the slowest usually taking around double the time of the fastest but it depends on the length of ride.

MadDad said:

Does it tend to be fairly much experienced riders taking part or is it like a charidy ride where you have to expect everyone in front of you to stop suddenly or swerve from one side of the road to the other?

Mostly the former, but there will be people that do the latter

[Rouleur]

Out of interest what's the appeal of doing a sportive in an area where you ride all the time? I can see why a person would do it in an unfamiliar area as it would be somewhere new to explore but I've never understood the point of paying £30 or so to ride in your normal stomping ground.

[MadDad]

Excellent, that really is useful and exactly the sort of info I was looking for. I guess the quality of organisation etc would be down to the 'sponsor', generally speaking are they well signed and do the organisers tend to offer GPS files of the routes?

As for riding a local Sportive, put simply I would not bother! I had planned on the Burgess Hill ride a couple of weeks ago but spent the weekend in bed with the flu, I was planning on turning up at one in the South Downs tomorrow but looking at the weather and the fact I have had Norovirus this week I am going to give it a miss.

Planning a solo ride out from Reding along the Kennet and Avon the up the Ridgeway and back on my CX bike next week, weather permitting. I will try to hunt out a sportive a month as long as I can get away with it!

[itsnotarace]

As for local sportives, I've only done one but you'll find yourself riding with a bunch of people you don't know which can be fun, there is a lot of camaraderie. If you ride the whole thing solo and don't talk to anyone else the whole way round you may as well not bother imho

[BalhamBadger]

One thing worth mentioning is that some of the larger rides will have mobile mechanics on motorbikes whizzing around for anyone in need. Clearly you shouldn't totally rely on them (always carry two tubes, pump, tool etc), but one time my tyre blew out after fixing a puncture so I was stranded. I called it in to the 'command centre' and they dispatched a rider who sorted me out with a new (second hand) tyre and tube for £15 and off I went, very grateful!

[Jimbo.]

Local sportives can be good for the social reasons outlined above. Additionally, someone else has taken care of the route, the grub etc, so it's one less thing to think about.

[MadDad]

I am going to have a go at the 'Red Kite Sportive' this year, but looking at last years route it was more or less what I would ride solo on a Sat/Sun in the summer anyway - planning on riding it with a few mates this year though.

I am looking forward to having a go soon, just not sure what one will be my first but I am sure there will be a P/H-er or two there to offer hints'n'tips on the day!

[Jimbo.]

Look here for events

http://www.cyclosport.org

[Rich_W]

No drafting.

[anonymous-user]

Which red kite event are you planning? a few of us a making a plan to do the Usk Sportive on the 22nd Sep...

For anyone who wasnt aware, the Evans and Wiggle events usually have the gpx files on the website shortly before the event so you can download it and ride them at a later date....

eg http://www.ukcyclingevents.co.uk/events/wiggle-wye...

[TKF]

pablo said:

Which red kite event are you planning?

I'm guessing MD means the Marlow Red Kite

http://marlowredkiteride.co.uk/

I rode it last year and it was a great (if cold and damp) day out. Well organised and I'll definitely be giving it another go this year, even though it's a localish route. A sportive isn't just about the roads. At the Red Kite I turned up solo and ended up chatting to a few blokes and we rode it together.

MadDad said:

Does it tend to be fairly much experienced riders taking part or is it like a charidy ride where you have to expect everyone in front of you to stop suddenly or swerve from one side of the road to the other?

In my experience a typical sportive sits between a club ride and a charity ride in terms of rider quality and experience. Last year I rode the London to Brighton ride which was chaos but also rode the Vattenfall Cyclassics which was a slick operation run in typical Germanic fashion.

Sportives tend to be mainly racing bikes and rarely any BSO's that you see elsewhere. The pace is varied by ability and you can normally find a group running at a similar pace. That said one I did last year I got stuck with a group that was even slower up hills than I am (saying something!) and mid way through I got fed up waiting at the summits so headed off on my own and didn't see another rider for around 20 miles. That was a pretty pointless "sportive" and I wish I'd hung back now.