How did you
go? What went well? What didn't go so
well?
Were the route changes okay?
On a scale of 1 to 5, average rating was 4.5
I went well. I believe I have done the
Century ride about 8 times now. The start was better this year with the
Police escort. The route changes were fine. The weather turned out to be
excellent temperature wise with no rain.
The route
changes were great - really
enjoyed the ride. Seemed a very logical trip - loved starting at Rosny - much nicer than doing the bridge, and a
lovely downhill finish rather than that slog from the Bowen bridge, along the
bike track etc. I haven't
done the Century for a few years now, so new route a
very pleasant change. Last road crossing to the finish a bit tricky. The usual
impatient drivers but nothing awful. Perfect weather! Thanks for much-appreciated fruitcake before tackling Grasstree.
Signs were clear and well-placed - with possible exception of that final
traffic light section (however, if I'd read the map notes I would have known
what to do!)
Great ride - see you next year!
Ride went really well. I think the only thing
I'd suggest would be to line people up to leave in their expected average speed
groups. E.g 30kph +, 27 - 30, 23 - 27 and 23 or less. Would make the first few
k's easier with less overtaking. Would also mean that people could form bunches
faster. New route was good. The
climbs at the end were a good test of how well you paced over the century.
Great ride/great course. Really nice to have
a stop at about 40+ k and have a piece of cake....kept me going. Thank you
I really enjoy the route for the Half Century
Ride. The roads were smooth and the course was scenic as well as challenging in
some places ( Grass Tree hill ) You guys
have done a great job in organizing the event. It was a bit of a shame only
a hand full of people did the Half Century ride. Great Event!
I liked
the route changes that use left turns at awkward intersections or
roundabouts (we do the same for lunchtime ride planning).
My personal preference is to avoid the road
between Cambridge and Richmond as much as possible as it has little shoulder
and considerable traffic, so maybe some Police presence may be worthwhile. (Not
that there were any problems though). For that reason Malcolms Hut Rd was OK,
but I suspect it was avoided to get nearer 100km ride distance??
Cannot comment on rest stops as I was
self-sufficient.
Checking out post-ride was a good idea.
Any chance of asking Council to sweep the
road shoulders in the days beforehand to clear away glass gravel and debris?
Riders may be more inclined to use the side of the road with less risk of
puncture, which helps drivers leave more separation. Especially as Clarence
City Council is a supporter!
Having Grasstree Hill later in the ride is
good because it allows the challenge of the ride to 'build'. The anticipation
and achievement make the ride enjoyable. (I enjoy the challenge of a climb
rather than the pace of a peloton!)"
All went well and the route changes were good.
It was a great ride for me and as it is the
first one l have done l cannot comment on the route changes. It was great to
get out and meet some fantastic people.
The route was fine and well sign posted. I got my start time muddled up but the
organisers helped me plot an alternate route that worked out in the end. I had heaps of fun and look forward to next
year!
Good. The course changes were better.I thought it was really good. I haven't done
the Century Ride before (I did the half Century) last year so I can't really
comment on the route changes as I don't know what it was like last year, but I
thought it was a great course. The finish up Gordon's Hill Road was definitely
better than last year's finish along the foreshore. Appreciated the catering at the rest stop
along the way but would have been nice to have have had some fruit cake at the
finish as well!
Great day out. Well organised and supported.Route better this year , safer start to
the ride with different route and Police car escort. Thanks for your efforts.
"I went fine.Friendly atmosphere at the
registration and an impressive police escort. Lots of traffic on the
Cambridge/Richmond Rd which wasn't much fun, it's such a narrow road. Also a
pity that the half century was a bit
short.
I was also thinking how to make it feel like
a bit more of an event. Have both groups start together so there's more of a
pack? Or have a bbq at the end or something to make people want to congregate
at the finish? Not sure, but once on the road I felt like I was just on a
normal Sunday ride except with more traffic!"
great - good signage - good support - good
weather - good fun
I went well. All the staff were very friendly
and helpful. The route changes were ok but it would be better to be a tiny bit
over 100/50 than a bit under for the 100 and significantly under for the fifty.
I think this would feel more like an acheivement. Also there would be more of
an incentive to do this ride if it contained the ride over the bridge as it
used to because I could do the current route any day of the week for free.
On that aspect, I don't see anything stopping
people from just turning up on the day and participating without paying for it.
I'm sure that happened yesterday.
I seem to remember one of these century rides
where we rode over the bridge and then everybody gathered at Cornelian bay for
a salad roll at the end. This seemed to be much more of an event than yesterday
where riders wandered into the finish and dispersed without any sort of
gathering or communal achievement. Something more along the lines of the
channel ride setup would be more enticing I feel, where finishers are given a
voucher for the local kiosk.
The route seemed to be clearly marked but I
found the cards a little small to read until I was very close. If they could be
upsized a touch, That would help a lot.
The police
escort at the beginning was very helpful and raised the cycling profile to locals I think. I did observe
some agressive driving at the end of the ride through the town centre, so maybe
finishing more around the water front roads would lessen the traffic aspect of
the finish a bit better.
Thanks for organising the event again. I
always try to support these cycling awareness events but am fearful that they
are becoming less enticing to part time cyclists and new cycling
enthusiasts."
"I went 'a bit poorly', although this
has very little to do with the event or organisation of the ride. I rode with
friends who supported me to the finish. An off day won't keep me from
patronising future rides.
I found the route changes made the ride more
challenging, especially Gordon's Hill Rd right at the end. By that time, I was
knackered!!
Good, friendly staff at the feed station, well
organised sign on/off. A good day!"
Route change was good. Lots
of traffic on Richmond road. Good
that half century went closer to Richmond so that you can stop off and have a
coffee if you want to without adding too much to distance.
This was my first ride in this tour. I enjoyed it and the route was good. The course was easy to follow via the signs
and the staff at the rest stop were friendly.
A brilliant day!
Really liked coming into the Mornington
roundabout from that side. Only a 90 deg left turn instead of going through.
Much safer. Drink stop location was also good. Away from the intersection.
A bit vague on how to get back to the Finish.
Used the pedestrian crossing at the traffic lights. Only a guess as no signs.
Maybe should have taken a route map.
Overall it is an enjoyable day out. Couple of
challenges and plenty of flat stuff."
Thanks to Bicycle Tasmania for organising the
events of Bike Week and specifically the rides on Sunday. The main concern was
the volume of traffic, and behavior
of some drivers, along the road from Cambridge to Richmond. I appreciate that
the volume was due to the Richmond Fair being on and sometimes this is just the
way things happen where events clash.
The route changes, especially to the end of
the route through Gordons Hill Road/Bligh Street, were much clearer and a lot easier to follow compared to last
year. Also, the rest stop along Grasstree Hill Road was much better located
than 2012, easier to get into and out of."
Lliked the route- challenging but not too much. Clearwritten directions, signs maybe A3 sized as they can be difficult to spot when you are
on the move in a bunch
Maybe some form of cloaking for people to
leave coats, etc once they have arrived and it has warmed up a bit next year
make it warmer! :)"
Route changes good organisation
great as usual what didnt work my legs the wind oh thats right you cant do anything about
that !! thank you for organising it .
I had a two puncture day but really enjoyed
the route aim was 100k did the seven mile beach section but was delayed with rear wheel puncture. Coped a second puncture close to Richmond so
had to alter plans did aprox 70 K
Route was well sign posted easy to follow. I enjoyed the challenge of the
hills at the end. Road from Cambridge to Richmond narrow was a bit concerned
with delaying vehicles. Thank you, thanks to the volunteer helpers.
"It was a good day with a welcome drink
and nutrition at the refreshment station. Road from Richmond to Cambridge had lot of traffic on a Sunday and some
fast utes on road to tea tree got quite close. It would be great if there was a certificate or some sort of
recognition of the achievement. Thanks for an enjoyable day."
"It was a good day with a welcome drink
and nutrition at the refreshment station. Road from Richmond to Cambridge had lot of traffic on a Sunday and some
fast utes on road to tea tree got quite close. It would be great if there was a
certificate or some sort of recognition of the achievement. Thanks for an enjoyable day.
Went alright, found my way around OK, no
issues to speak of
Route was an
improvement, especially
avoiding the derwent Ave / Rosny bike track sections
"Getting the distance back to 100 was a
good move, I personally went well, I climbed well so the training for my
cycling trip to the TDF 2013 is paying off.
i didn't do last year's ride, but i liked the
route for this year. the only problem
was lots of traffic on the Richmond
Road due to the richmond fair.
I love the fruit cake!
thank you, all went well avg speed 25kph not for
a oldy. the route changes were great
maybe alook at cambridge, richmond road
some cars or the drivers are r.s.
and maybe a coffee stand at the finish . well done too all thanks again.
"Enjoyable, nice route, good weather. One
of the friends I was cycling with got a flat tyre; that was the only bad thing.
Yummy fruit cake."
"Personal performance: best result yet. Negatives:
cramping a bit. how about a massage tent....hehehe.
I miss
the lunch at end of ride. I realise it's probably a pain.
Route changes: good improvement.
Overall: well organised, well supported.
Great job !!!!!"
"I rode the 100 this year, having
previously done the 50. I went ok for a 75 y/o. Av 29kph. Happy with that, but
I was a bit second hand later in the day. Weren't we lucky with the weather?
It's a good route, and starting at Rosny is good. If you have enough helpers,
another pit stop would be appreciated by many riders; although I tend to be
self-sufficient. I rode the Opperman Gran Fondo last November. They had several
pit stops. They also had transponders
for every rider, so we all got official times including separate hill climb
times. I know it's not a race, and neither was the Gran Fondo, but it's good to
have the times and be able to compare with others. I guess it comes down to
cost and man/woman power.
I've just registered for the Mt. Wellington
Challenge and note that we will all be issued with transponders that have to be
returned after the event. I wonder if
next year you may be able to borrow the system. The transponders for the
Gran Fondo were a stick on, throw away type. You may be able to do a deal with
either of those parties.
I was expecting
a BBQ or at least coffee etc at the finish. Something like that to keep
riders around to socialize would be good. It felt a bit anti-climactic. We just
kind of drifted off at the end."
Ride was great. The route change via
flagstaff gully was excellent to avoid tricky round a bout crossing at
mornington. Traffic on road from Cambridge to Richmond was a little busy, but
no real problems from vehicles.
Loved it, first time, look fwd to next
"Hi. Everything went well except for 2
punctures. Thank you for a great event. I liked the new course, except that
there was a lot of traffic on Richmond road because of the fair. "
"Map, directions and briefing were all
good. Route changes were fine except that going through Lindisfarne at the end
was much tougher that going across the Bowen Bridge and returning to the Domain
via the cycle path!!
It's good that it's not a race, but a certificate or a medallion for finishers
would have been appreciated. Maybe find a sponsor to cover this?
Good!
Got up all the hills without getting off! Even if slow. Friendly people.
Enjoyed it. Hard work. Not put off!
I didn't do the ride last year, but I have
done it when it was from Cornelian Bay.
I think Bellerive is a better
venue as it avoids having to cross the Tasman bridge which is a serious
hazard for cyclists. The rest of the
route is good although Richmond Rd was quite busy which is an issue because it
is also fairly narrow.