Author Topic: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018  (Read 2861 times)

Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« on: 21 August, 2018, 09:38:57 pm »
Join us for the last Kingston Wheelers event of the year, the Rowlands RAAAmble.  This is my favourite ride in the Kingston Wheelers series, you quiet lanes, scenic vistas and great cafes.  I've eliminated the muddy section that caused most of the punctures last year and this is potentially the last time the ride will qualify for AAA points.

http://www.aukweb.net/events/detail/18-368/

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #1 on: 22 August, 2018, 08:14:43 pm »
Next year! I am just about staying afloat in my new job.

j_a_m_e_s_

  • Prisoner 17091
    • AUK results
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #2 on: 23 August, 2018, 12:11:10 pm »
The muddy section was entertaining to say the least. Short and sharp. Like the shower I got caught in towards the end.

Looking forward to this again. Nice day out. Despite living a stone's throw away, its the only KW ride I've done.

Hopefully the legs aren't too tight from part one of the London double header the day before.
Rule 77

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #3 on: 08 September, 2018, 08:44:19 pm »
Still plenty of room if you're wanting to join us.  We're doing the route check tomorrow and any updates will go to the riders early next week.

Wycombewheeler

  • PBP-2019 LEL-2022
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #4 on: 10 September, 2018, 04:58:55 pm »
Love this ride, but couldn't ride to the shops today if I needed to. I wonder if a week is enough time to recover.

Eddington  127miles, 170km

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #5 on: 11 September, 2018, 12:29:04 am »
Love this ride, but couldn't ride to the shops today if I needed to. I wonder if a week is enough time to recover.

We haven't quite hit capacity yet so I've extended the closing date, you have a couple more days to decide. :)

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #6 on: 11 September, 2018, 12:32:12 am »
The final route check was done on Sunday and the updated route information was just sent via email to all the riders.  Long range weather forecast is looking good, should be a great day out!

Martin

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #7 on: 16 September, 2018, 09:37:19 pm »
Excellent ride as always, thanks Chris Gavin Sarah etc;

really struggled having not ridden for 3 weeks, but excellent views and the lanes to Fittleworth were a lot less (as in not at all) skoggy compared to last year; hope the riders who went down on the oil were OK, the response services had it covered by the time I arrived.

Very sad to hear the ride is slated to lose its AAA next year, another sad loss for the GdS

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #8 on: 17 September, 2018, 12:15:25 pm »
Thanks to all the volunteers for another great ride on a well crafted route. The weather behaved and the darkness stayed away long enough for me to get home.

I love the section after South Harting with the ridge of the South Downs to the right and distant views on the North Downs to the left.

I'll be back next year for more.

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #9 on: 18 September, 2018, 02:24:36 pm »
Seems the new owners of the Bumblebee cafe report some riders as behaving with less than excellence on Facebook.  :(  :'(

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #10 on: 18 September, 2018, 05:48:03 pm »
Was in there this very morning, dropping off the post and it seems they had no idea that the event was visting, very bad form!!  Sadly many of the locals would like to see the village free of cyclists.

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #11 on: 18 September, 2018, 05:58:17 pm »
They had only *just* reopened and were closed when the route check was done so forewarning would have been difficult...

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #12 on: 18 September, 2018, 06:25:19 pm »
Telephone,  e.mail, etc.......

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #13 on: 19 September, 2018, 11:29:40 am »
I didn't put the whole story on Facebook because I didn't want to get into comment battles with the general public but since this is a more specific forum, here goes:

I actually did talk to the owner/operator during the route check but I didn't know it at the time.  The door to the cafe was open but it was clearly under refurbishment.  I could see people inside so I went in to ask if they were going to be open the following week.  They weren't sure.  I explained that we were running an event and that loads of cyclists would be visiting Rowlands Castle.  I said that the riders had the choice of where they visited and that not all would come into the cafe.  I don't know if they were startled by a lycra clad person walking into their construction site but having talked to her yesterday she admitted she didn't understand the ramifications of what I was talking about. I've apologised for the rider's behaviour and agreed a plan for next year should we run this again.

I had no idea that they were new owners and it wasn't the existing owner sprucing the place up.  How you can say you don't know you'll be open a week further on and then open two days later is beyond me.

I counted up the receipts from the Brevet cards, 54 out of the 70 finishers went to the Londis.  The Londis were warned that we were coming and had extra sandwiches ready.  I didn't talk to the Castle pub or the Robin Hood Inn, should I have warned them as well?  Only 1 rider went to to The Castle and 0 went to the Robin Hood Inn so that would have been setting some unrealistic expectations and I would have felt bad if they had brought in extra staff.

One of the major complaints from the cafe was that riders left a lot of rubbish behind that was clearly not bought at the cafe.  I suspect that the riders thought they were being good by not littering and leaving their rubbish at the cafe. The bin outside the Rowlands Castle Londis is always overflowing on a Sunday, even if there isn't an audax on.  How many of you have emptied your jersey pockets of waste wrappers at a cafe control and thought nothing of it?

very bad form!!

I can take the hits from the general public who have no idea what goes into putting on an audax but to get it from a fellow organiser and my assigned audax mentor is upsetting. 

I did what I thought was enough for my first event.  Clearly it wasn't.

telstarbox

  • Loving the lanes
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #14 on: 19 September, 2018, 11:35:06 am »
As Rowlands was a "free" control then personally I wouldn't have asked the cafe for a signature without buying something and would have opted for the Londis instead. Perhaps a few riders got the wrong end of the stick and thought the cafe was compulsory/ someone was going to stamp them there?
2019 🏅 R1000 and B1000

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #15 on: 19 September, 2018, 12:32:18 pm »
The people who paid by card at the cafe received a proper receipt that had the name of the cafe and time/date, everything needed for validation.  Those who paid with cash received a receipt that had the time but not the location or the date so they asked to have the name of the cafe written on it which obviously took more time for busy and stressed cafe workers.  A number of people bought stuff at the Londis and then consumed it at the cafe's tables which the cafe also weren't happy with.  Rightly so, in my opinion.

The exact words from the routesheet:

105.2   CONTROL - ROWLANDS CASTLE.  Free control - collect receipt   "Tea on the Green" café on R or Londis on L

From the rider notes:

"The Ride This is a hilly ride with three main controls at Hindhead, Rowlands Castle and Wisborough Green. The controls at the National Trust Devil’s Punchbowl Cafe (Hindhead) and The Old Mill Cafe (Wisborough Green) will be staffed by friendly Controllers from the Kingston Wheelers CC. They will happily stamp your brevet card and provide words of encouragement!   The control at Rowlands Castle is free, so just need to get a till or ATM receipt with date and time as proof of passage. There are also two information controls at 81km and 146km, so don’t forget to bring a pen. "

I don't know how much more spoon-feeding we could have done.  When the riders were signing on, we asked each rider if they had done an audax before. If not then we stepped them through the brevet card and what each control meant.  Admittedly, that would have probably been information overload but at least we tried.

telstarbox

  • Loving the lanes
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #16 on: 19 September, 2018, 12:44:37 pm »
I think there's only so much you can do as an organiser and there'll always be someone who gets it wrong. It looks like a great event anyway so well done!
2019 🏅 R1000 and B1000

Wycombewheeler

  • PBP-2019 LEL-2022
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #17 on: 19 September, 2018, 12:44:59 pm »
It should not be required to tell adults to treat human beings with respect and not to eat own food at a cafe.

I agree with comments upthread about the bin. Last year I was first to rowlands as all the faster riders struggled with punctures and the bin was already full.

Anyone arriving at a busy cafe and in a hurry should consider the shop.

Eddington  127miles, 170km

mattc

  • n.b. have grown beard since photo taken
    • Didcot Audaxes
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #18 on: 19 September, 2018, 07:33:37 pm »
I've already commented on the main issue here over on the FB thread. (IMO the organiser acted perfectly reasonably and was just unlucky with the cafe and a small imnorty of his riders)

Completely off the topic, but:
(click to show/hide)
Has never ridden RAAM
---------
No.11  Because of the great host of those who dislike the least appearance of "swank " when they travel the roads and lanes. - From Kuklos' 39 Articles

Martin

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #19 on: 19 September, 2018, 08:38:35 pm »
I bought a sandwich in the shop eating it on a bench up the road while chatting to a local who used to be in the Royal Navy cycling team and leaving the wrapper in a public bin; have never used the café on this event; is that a problem? (I tend to avoid cafes as they take up too much time as I'm always up against it)

what exactly did they say? sorry I don't do FB. If anyone used the cafe facilities without buying something and leaving crap there you should be ashamed, simple as that.


As I said upthread I think there's some anti cyclist feeling growing round those parts cos of Velo South....

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #20 on: 19 September, 2018, 08:56:16 pm »
...while on Facebook, a poster painted Velo South as paragons...

Martin

Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #21 on: 19 September, 2018, 08:59:30 pm »
...while on Facebook, a poster painted Velo South as paragons...

sadly I feel the repercussions of VS (which will provide nothing of benefit to those living or going about their business on the route at the cost of inconvenience to some) will be felt for a long time


Manotea

  • Where there is doubt...
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #22 on: 19 September, 2018, 10:19:21 pm »
When using named/unmanned cafes on events I generally provide a sheet of stickers to be left on the counter. Procedure is phone the cafe so they know whats occurring, then pop a sheet of stickers in the post in a plastic sleeve with a couple of AUK control signs.

So cafe owners are engaged and no faffing with receipts (riders help themselves to stickers). Works a treat.


telstarbox

  • Loving the lanes
Re: Rowlands RAAAmble - 16th September 2018
« Reply #23 on: 19 September, 2018, 10:45:36 pm »
Same procedure on the Oasts and Coasts and it worked fine ☑️
2019 🏅 R1000 and B1000