Fondos/RTCC = Great Wildebeest Migration?

CBC site says it was a solo rider that went down by himself just past Alice Lake. In his 60's. first thing that came to mind for me was heart attack not poor riding.

as far as water cooler comments how many people look at the bike park on their holidays and say they'd like to give it a shot. judging by how busy the clinic is I'd say quite a few

There is a half Fondo that starts at Squamish, and seemed to be marketed towards people just getting into cycling. Plus all the corporate teams. Do you not get a number plate?

I think you get a WGF jersey and a participation medal so people can bask in your awesomeness for eternity, or until another trendy event is created, whether it is Tough Mudders, TOM, GFs, CFO, BCBR, Sun Run. But yeah, fuck those people who decided to join an event and spend a day/week/month/year preparing to do something they otherwise wouldn't have done. Losers should have stayed at home sitting on the couch eating chips and guzzling beers in front of the TV, chanting go local sports team!

Eff it, Im doing it next year:couple:

You think people sign up for this WGF unprepared…

http://www.vatternrundan.se/Default.aspx?module=4[HTML_REMOVED]content=12[HTML_REMOVED]lang=SV[HTML_REMOVED]fwsite=2

You'd be surprised at how many people 'show up' to this thing… or maybe not surprised…

I figure a lot of riders sign up but don't train enough but go anyway, but never again. They just have ridden long distances and have no clue how difficult it can be. I didn't sign up this year due to a treatment I was undergoing and severe lack of sleep. That and I figured after three years of good weather it would rain. I think it did. And I do think of the sketchy riding you see at the beginning of the ride. The pace is well controlled to Taylor way. There are riders in green helmets at the front that you cannot pass. Then Taylor way and the continued climb up the high spreads things out quite well. But you do see strong riders that are on the brakes downhill unlike yours truly who is pedalling hard in a tuck. Last year the pack I was in descending into Britania split around some goof sitting bolt upright on the brakes. That is a bit scary. After that it was smooth sailing all the way to Whistler.

Quite a few. He went by our street at a pace that would be just around four and a half hours I think. Guy on his wheel had a face that said…fuck this, I might as well take up knitting. For those who don't know. Phil Chew is well past 60 and lost a leg a long time ago. Was it cancer enduramil? One tough soab

He rolled by me just before Squamish and I tried to jump on his wheel. I was having a moral conundrum about whether I should be drafting off a dude with one leg, until I realized that I couldn't even hang with his pace. My time was 4:20, so I would put him closer to the 4 hour mark. That guy is a monster.

Did not think I would do it again but next year they will have a 152 km option. I wonder if they are throwing in a climb of Cypress?

whoa , rider numbers way down this year .

the organizer said on year one he wanted to see it grow to 12,000 . this year they had just over 4,000 , declining numbers every year .

reviewing the results there were a lot of names i didn't see . whistler locals , and people i knew from the cycling sports community from back in the day not entered . i think many saw it as a " i gotta do this " thing , and now that they have done it , realized they don't have to spend 275$ to have a good long day on the bike . if even half the participants ever discovered randonneuring , this event would be dead in five years .

i think if they want to see it become an established , mass participation event they are going to have to bring the price down , like way down to around a hundred bucks .

right now it is an event for the privileged who can afford it , rather than an event for any cyclist who wants to participate . no surprise but riding in from the back i saw many , many overweight gentlemen on very expensive bikes .

i know it probably costs a lot to stage , but if the organizers are trying to fund it on entry fees , the thing is doomed to fail .

and a note to road maintenance , the same shit that was on the side of the road back in june , is still there . if sea to sky wants to establish itself as a road bike friendly destination , then the contractors need to get their crews off their asses and clean up that shoulder . any roadie i know will ride as far away from traffic as possible , but if the riding line next to the barriers is littered with gravel , glass and other shit , then you will see riders closer and closer to the white line . it is not that bad ( yet ), but you can tell no one is doing regular maintenance , which is unfortunate because the surface itself is great , but it needs to be cleaned .

one other note : huge props to the BACON station in brackendale . although i didn't partake , it sure smelled good and it was great to see a random community group get out there and contribute to the event .