Author Topic: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018  (Read 8760 times)

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #25 on: 14 August, 2018, 05:59:12 pm »
I'm in I hope, the audax site suggesting I had both entered and cancelled. God alone knows what I did.....
Definitely planning on camping as Wiltshire to Kent is a bit of a hike and the beer sounds excellent!

Yep, I've just sent you an email to confirm you're in. And yes, the beer is excellent. See you there!

Brilliant! Thank you very much.
Reine de la Fauche


citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #26 on: 21 August, 2018, 11:26:54 am »
Note for anyone still thinking about it: entries close on 27th August - unfortunately, I don't have a legion of helpers so I won't have the capacity to process entries on the line, hence I need to be quite strict about that.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #27 on: 21 August, 2018, 12:32:29 pm »
The opportunity is opening up for me to ride, about time I came to support the Thanet lot after they have sent representations to ACME events  ;D
I will likely drive the ACME team van with bike and air bed in the back so I can sleep over  :thumbsup:

Which distance are you riding?

Eddington: 133 miles    Max square: 43x43

huggy

  • ACME GCFO
    • ACME
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #28 on: 21 August, 2018, 01:00:37 pm »
The opportunity is opening up for me to ride, about time I came to support the Thanet lot after they have sent representations to ACME events  ;D
I will likely drive the ACME team van with bike and air bed in the back so I can sleep over  :thumbsup:

Which distance are you riding?
I'm in for the 200.
Camping Saturday night in my tent rather than the van on account of just having sold it.
Never knowingly underfed on an Audax

rob

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #29 on: 21 August, 2018, 01:13:39 pm »
Entered, but I have a 10 day holiday in Italy between now and then.

I expect I'll be a bit heavier by the time of the ride.

God I feel unhealthy.  Flight home tomorrow and hopefully back on the bike on Thursday.


citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #30 on: 21 August, 2018, 01:16:24 pm »
The opportunity is opening up for me to ride, about time I came to support the Thanet lot after they have sent representations to ACME events  ;D

Martin is our main ambassador, as you probably know - he has even bought an ACME jersey. Unfortunately, I don't make it up to as many Essex events as I'd like, though I am down for the Fenland Friends 600 the following weekend.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

huggy

  • ACME GCFO
    • ACME
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #31 on: 21 August, 2018, 01:33:55 pm »
Martin is our main ambassador, as you probably know - he has even bought an ACME jersey. Unfortunately, I don't make it up to as many Essex events as I'd like, though I am down for the Fenland Friends 600 the following weekend.
:thumbsup:
Bon chance with the Fenlands Friends! Personally, I preferred the reverse route of the Flatlands so hope you enjoy it. 
I won't be riding it as it's at least 217km further than I like to ride these days  ::-)
Never knowingly underfed on an Audax

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #32 on: 21 August, 2018, 01:52:11 pm »
The opportunity is opening up for me to ride, about time I came to support the Thanet lot after they have sent representations to ACME events  ;D
I will likely drive the ACME team van with bike and air bed in the back so I can sleep over  :thumbsup:

Which distance are you riding?
I'm in for the 200.
Camping Saturday night in my tent rather than the van on account of just having sold it.

I would have thought 110 would be better ... more time available afterwards. I’m thinking of ECEing again, but don’t fancy it if none of the usual faces will be on for that distance.

Eddington: 133 miles    Max square: 43x43

the straggler

  • ACME Award Recipient & ROTY 2021
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #33 on: 21 August, 2018, 06:48:57 pm »
I've entered the 110km and will be  taking full value ride; and have been informed from 2 reliable Thanax 'Acme' sources that is it quite lumpy. Camping Friday and Saturday night. You will be better off ece'ing the 200km - you will benefit from the extra training for the Flatlands.   ;)
CCS - Setting the Standards

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #34 on: 21 August, 2018, 09:30:57 pm »
I've entered the 110km and will be  taking full value ride; and have been informed from 2 reliable Thanax 'Acme' sources that is it quite lumpy. Camping Friday and Saturday night. You will be better off ece'ing the 200km - you will benefit from the extra training for the Flatlands.   ;)

It’s not really lumpy, I did it on singlespeed last year.

Needs to be the 110km for me as the ferry to Gravesend doesn’t start until 5:50, so it’s the only variant I can reasonably cycle down for the event start. Think I’ll be entering shortly.

Eddington: 133 miles    Max square: 43x43

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #35 on: 21 August, 2018, 11:21:49 pm »
I've entered the 110km and will be  taking full value ride; and have been informed from 2 reliable Thanax 'Acme' sources that is it quite lumpy.

It’s not really lumpy, I did it on singlespeed last year.

The route for the 110 has changed a bit this year - the flat middle section is now a rolling middle section. Still nothing too AAArduous but a wee bit lumpier than last time.

I think it's an improvement. Guess I'll soon find out if the riders agree...
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #36 on: 22 August, 2018, 10:51:57 am »
I would have thought 110 would be better ... more time available afterwards.

If the weather is good, like it was last year, riding the 110 and spending the afternoon relaxing over a beer or two would definitely appeal to me as a rider. I've been pondering the idea of an overnight 300, starting at 11pm or midnight like the Green & Yellow Fields, so most riders would finish early afternoon. Will have to talk to Karen at the brewery to see if that would work for them.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

huggy

  • ACME GCFO
    • ACME
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #37 on: 22 August, 2018, 11:06:22 am »
I would have thought 110 would be better ... more time available afterwards.
tho but, no points and no RRtY tick, and ECEing from Witham then getting the train home is far too much faff.  Keeping it simple and quite like the look of the 200 route in a part of the country I haven't ridden before.  I hope to get back with sufficient time to enjoy the rehydration so will probably not be employing my usual full value strategy of seeing how many café stops I can get in.
Never knowingly underfed on an Audax

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #38 on: 31 August, 2018, 01:11:55 pm »
Weather is looking very nice for a mid-afternoon finish and sampling the on-site beverages in the afternoon sun. Very pleased I’ve opted for the 110km ride again, despite a 3am start for the ECE.

Eddington: 133 miles    Max square: 43x43

rob

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #39 on: 31 August, 2018, 01:27:05 pm »
Ah, a thread about going for a bike ride.   What a breath of fresh air.

Looking forward to a decent day out on the bike.

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #40 on: 01 September, 2018, 10:22:07 am »
111 riders are now en route. Not a bad turnout from 122 entrants. Beautiful day for a ride, which no doubt helps.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

telstarbox

  • Loving the lanes
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #41 on: 01 September, 2018, 10:31:34 am »
"See the coast in green and blue, see Chartham right in front of you"
2019 🏅 R1000 and B1000

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #42 on: 02 September, 2018, 09:42:39 am »
What a great formula ; host a 200k taking in the best of the Kent countryside , add in the option of camping at the start at a brewery , and arrange for the brewery to host the finish party serving beer & BBQ .

I brilliant 24hrs mini adventure - Thanks for organising Dave - same time next year ?!

whosatthewheel

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #43 on: 02 September, 2018, 10:02:32 am »
111 riders are now en route. Not a bad turnout from 122 entrants. Beautiful day for a ride, which no doubt helps.

That is excellent and testament to your organising skills!
My impression is that turnout is as much down to communication than it is down to weather forecast. If you do a good job of keeping in touch with the riders, they will show up. Some organisers don't even send an email to acknowledge an entry, no wonder folks don't show up...

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #44 on: 02 September, 2018, 12:44:11 pm »
What a great formula ; host a 200k taking in the best of the Kent countryside , add in the option of camping at the start at a brewery , and arrange for the brewery to host the finish party serving beer & BBQ .

I brilliant 24hrs mini adventure - Thanks for organising Dave - same time next year ?!

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it! It's pencilled in for Saturday 7th September next year and will probably be open for entries early in the new year. Won't be a BRM next time - gives me time to think about planning enhancements without the rush to get it in the calendar.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #45 on: 02 September, 2018, 12:46:57 pm »
111 riders are now en route. Not a bad turnout from 122 entrants. Beautiful day for a ride, which no doubt helps.

That is excellent and testament to your organising skills!
My impression is that turnout is as much down to communication than it is down to weather forecast. If you do a good job of keeping in touch with the riders, they will show up. Some organisers don't even send an email to acknowledge an entry, no wonder folks don't show up...

Thanks. It's a lot of work but hugely rewarding. Very low DNF rate as well, which I'm pleased about. Again, the weather was a contributory factor in this. And the beer.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

whosatthewheel

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #46 on: 02 September, 2018, 12:57:19 pm »
Very low DNF rate as well, which I'm pleased about. Again, the weather was a contributory factor in this. And the beer.

Not sure... DNF doesn't necessarily mean that someone packs up. If the infos are too cryptic and the controls too much of a hassle, I might decide it's not worth the hassle for a shorter brevet.
Again, it's up to the organiser to come up with infos that are "unmissable"... the name of a pub rather than the name of a cottage surrounded by a sea of named cottages or so hidden from the road that anyone going over 5 mph would miss it.
Of infos that can only be obtained reading the route sheet... so that anyone using a GPS would miss it... or info which on the brevet card is 5 km after where it actually is...

Clearly you did a good job on that front too

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #47 on: 02 September, 2018, 01:21:02 pm »
Very low DNF rate as well, which I'm pleased about. Again, the weather was a contributory factor in this. And the beer.

Not sure... DNF doesn't necessarily mean that someone packs up. If the infos are too cryptic and the controls too much of a hassle, I might decide it's not worth the hassle for a shorter brevet.

I had six "DNV" (did not validate) who were only interested in having a nice ride with food and beer at the end. It would be good to be able to enter DNV as a category on the results sheet for this purpose.

Quote
Of infos that can only be obtained reading the route sheet... so that anyone using a GPS would miss it... or info which on the brevet card is 5 km after where it actually is...

Embedding info controls as waypoints in the supplied GPX file is the solution to this. Although I agree that info controls should be made as easy as possible to locate - eg by placing them at junctions rather than at random locations along lanes.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

whosatthewheel

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #48 on: 02 September, 2018, 01:24:53 pm »

Embedding info controls as waypoints in the supplied GPX file is the solution to this. Although I agree that info controls should be made as easy as possible to locate - eg by placing them at junctions rather than at random locations along lanes.

Let's not stretch it, next thing we'll ask for infos to be in actual villages rather than in the middle of nowhere...  ;D TBH I would be happy with a GPX file that actually follows the intended route and with a route card that is reasonably realistic about intermediate distances.

rob

Re: Thanet Platinum Audax, Saturday 1st September 2018
« Reply #49 on: 02 September, 2018, 01:37:19 pm »
There was a big old group that sailed right past the first control while I was getting a stamp.

I had a great day out.  I has stuck a bigger gear on last week ready for the Flatlands, forgetting that ther would be some lumps.   I got up everything apart from the steepest bit out of Hastings.   There was a great mixture of technical lanes and fast and flat bits along the south coast and the route is really well thought out.   I can feel it today, though.

I’ll admit to a bit of audax snobbery when 2 lads on stripped down bikes and no luggage sailed past me.   I caught then on a flatter stretch but my route turned off left.   They caught me 5 minutes later.   I genuinely thought it was 2 mates out for a ride and didn’t realise they were on the same event.  I did say that I wouldn’t normally let another rider miss a turn.

I had to placate a driver in the lanes about 10-15k from the finish as whoever was in front of me had sworn at him.   I apologised on the riders behalf and wished him a nice afternoon.   He went off seemingly happy, but I’m not sure why they always assume another rider on the same piece of road is ‘your mate’.

Thanks to Citoyen and all the helpers.


Rob