Mobile coffee vans

[whosatthewheel]

One of the many ideas fboab and I have, were we to ever organise a ride - Ice Cream van at the top of a climb, instead of yet another wretched info.

More of this sort of thing

But again, if I had an ice cream van, I wouldn't bother with hill tops, where it's likely to be colder, cloudier and less busy than the local park on a saturday afternoon. You have to look at it from his perspective. Might have to travel 20 miles to sell 20 ice creams if it's sunny, none if it rains... waste of his time

[LiamFitz]

I actually looked into this for London Wales London last year - I can't say I tried too hard but it was certainly unattractive to the mobile coffee bods to set up at 0430 on a sat AM.

If I could find someone who'd do it I'd offer it - perhaps give the coffee bod a retainer to rock up and let riders pay for themselves.

I like the Ice Cream idea as well - possibly it's about routing rides past places where Ice Cream bods hang out.  At the top of Ivinghoe Beacon there's a great van but I always forget to bring any  money!

[vorsprung]

One of the many ideas fboab and I have, were we to ever organise a ride - Ice Cream van at the top of a climb, instead of yet another wretched info.

yes to coffee and yes to ice cream!

[hellymedic]

Is it possible to hire such a van?

A mobile pop-up hot & cold food control appeals to me!

[andrew531]

Not an audax but this years Dunwich Dynamo had a proper coffee van on one of the ad hoc stops after about 80/90 miles.
Also sold cans of San Pellegrino, Italian wafer biscuits, fudge brownies etc. Delicious!

[mattc]

I put on a ride last year (The Penshaw Punisher, widely regarded as the best 100km audax in Sunderland that isn't the Seaham Sircular).

I asked a coffee shop that I used to work at (Fausto Coffee - https://www.facebook.com/faustoltd/) if they'd fancy coming to the start and providing coffee. It didn't work out in the end due to logistics, but the deal was they'd do it* for free (i.e. serving 100+ cyclists with coffee was decent marketing for them).

*It being filter coffee, not fancy espresso.

In the end, I bought beers for everyone at the finish. I think that went down better than coffee at the start. But if you can find a decent cycling cafe in the vicinity, it might work?

Cool! So if they rated it worthwhile for the marketing, someone is quite likely to do it for cost too.

Just a question of finding the right vendor - obviously not every town will have someone so flexible/opportunistic.

[whosatthewheel]

Not an audax but this years Dunwich Dynamo had a proper coffee van on one of the ad hoc stops after about 80/90 miles.
Also sold cans of San Pellegrino, Italian wafer biscuits, fudge brownies etc. Delicious!

Most Italian wafer biscuits are actually Austrian... I certainly grew up in Italy with Loacker... although Balocco made a slightly crappier version.

The ability to sell carbonated water abroad defies belief... I am occasionally looking for that elusive can of compressed air from the Dolomites at Waitrose... maybe not yet

[vorsprung]

I did do filter coffee for 30 out of the back of the Berlingo one year on the 400

The usual stop in Minehead wasn't available that year

I saw them off at the start then went back home by car, made several litres of coffee, put it in large vacuum flasks then drove up to Minehead, somehow getting there minutes before Toby.  Baggy had made a load of rather nice biscuits to go with it.

If I had more vacuum flasks ( I bought 2 or 3 large ones from Wilco ) I could have done 100 people easily.  After 50km, even though it was an easy 50km, the pack had split up nicely.  As they came in in 2s and 3s it wasn't difficult to keep them all supplied with coffee and the cards stamped

[alwyn]

if the event is large enough, the coffee vans will pay you for the pitch.

[Chamford Sideplate]

if the event is large enough, the coffee vans will pay you for the pitch.

The annual LEPRA Edinburgh St Andrews ride features an ice-cream van at the top of Cleish Hill. That event gets about a thousand riders which might indicate the numbers needed to make it worthwhile for the van owner.

[whosatthewheel]

if the event is large enough, the coffee vans will pay you for the pitch.

The annual LEPRA Edinburgh St Andrews ride features an ice-cream van at the top of Cleish Hill. That event gets about a thousand riders which might indicate the numbers needed to make it worthwhile for the van owner.

Sounds about right

[mattc]

if the event is large enough, the coffee vans will pay you for the pitch.

The annual LEPRA Edinburgh St Andrews ride features an ice-cream van at the top of Cleish Hill. That event gets about a thousand riders which might indicate the numbers needed to make it worthwhile for the van owner.

So somewhere between 1 and 1000.

[whosatthewheel]

if the event is large enough, the coffee vans will pay you for the pitch.

The annual LEPRA Edinburgh St Andrews ride features an ice-cream van at the top of Cleish Hill. That event gets about a thousand riders which might indicate the numbers needed to make it worthwhile for the van owner.

So somewhere between 1 and 1000.

you can force people to buy an ice cream as a control point, but I am not overly keen on commercial controls with zero choice. Personally I think there is nothing wrong with an info control on top of a hill and I can buy my food where I prefer to buy it in a town or village.

On the other hand, if you don't force riders to use the ice cream van, then it's not worth his time to be there

[guidon]

Put your control next to an established ice cream van site - nothing new in this, way back in my early audax efforts there was a van next to the control somewhere in the Welsh valleys ( I am sorry to say I forget where....) Got a feeling it was win - win....an effort with the food and drink is a bonus and adds kudos to the event....