Genovese Kinglake Challenge - No More

[marty_one]

Well it's official. The Genovese Kinglake ride run by SuperSprint is no longer being run. Here is the response I got enquiring about it:

Thanks for emailing through, unfortunately our email from last year hasn’t come true.

We have been contracted to manage Amy’s Gran Fondo Sep 13th so this will take the position of our pre-Christmas bike ride.

This is unfortunate as I was really looking forwards to doing the 115km route this year. As far as i know this only leaves Cycling Victoria Whittlesea Challenge as the cycling event to do in country vic in the east of the state. I would love to do this one, but it kinda clashes with my daughters birthday.

[dalai47]

Well it's official. The Genovese Kinglake ride run by SuperSprint is no longer being run.

This is unfortunate as I was really looking forwards to doing the 115km route this year.

Nothing stopping you riding the 115km loop???

[marty_one]

Probably going to start doing rides out to kinglake with my cousin soon instead. Shame, I did enjoy doing that event with thousands of other cyclists. There was never any part of the road that didn't have someone to sit behind, ride with, etc....

[mtb1011]

certainly won't miss their compulsory jersey policy, imagine paying for an event and having organizers tell you what to wear.

as super sprint seem pretty money hungry I'd say the KL event just didn't' get the numbers so they've decided not to continue.

you can't beat the Alpine Classic for value and its run by cyclists.

[jules21]

i've done the Genovese KL Challenge a few years back, but I have to say it's one ride you can easily do without it being organised. the roads are pretty quiet.

[djw47]

There are heaps of organised rides out there if you look for them, here's a few that are in the central/east of the state over the next few months.

http://www.theslog.com.au/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
https://eventdesq.imgstg.com/index.cfm? ... rgID=10226" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
https://www.alpineclassic.com.au/public/index.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.7peaks.com.au/domestique-7-peaks-series/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://amysgranfondo.org.au/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

And as others have said, if you like the Kinglake ride, drive up to Whittlesea one weekend and just do it, it's all on public roads.

[danny the boy]

There is a few rec rides within an hours drive. Off the top of my head,
Mt Macedon Challenge
Lake Mountain Challenge
GreenEdge ride at Nagambie
Ride the Ranges at Euroa

Done all of these and the Kinglake ride and I would rank the Kinglake event last, the weather was terrible but it wasn't a well run event. GreenEdge ride is easily the best.

[jules21]

i must confess I don't do any of these organised rides anymore. the notion of paying $100+ for a ride I can't justify it. join a club and you can go on organised rides for free or loose change. you're more likely to make friends rather than ride in a sea of strangers too.

[danny the boy]

i must confess I don't do any of these organised rides anymore. the notion of paying $100+ for a ride I can't justify it. join a club and you can go on organised rides for free or loose change. you're more likely to make friends rather than ride in a sea of strangers too.

Similar. I did Alpine Classic this year but apart from that GreenEdge Winery ride was the only one I've done in the past year. I found they were good fun when I first got into road bikes but tend to want to find my own routes now.

[tonydallea]

The Bass Coast Challenge is a reasonably good ride..Road are quiet around there and it ends in the main street of Inverloch so there are at least a few food\drink options at the end.

[marty_one]

Cycling Tips website have launched a new event out at Warburton. Which I duefully signed up for. 107km in length. including 2.7km total ascending. a tad expensive though at $170. I think that might be because their field limit might be a bit low in comparison to other cycling events.

The Bass Coast Challenge is on my bucklist of events, as well as the otway ride and amy's grand fondo.

[kb]

Cycling Tips website have launched a new event out at Warburton. Which I duefully signed up for. 107km in length. including 2.7km total ascending. a tad expensive though at $170. I think that might be because their field limit might be a bit low in comparison to other cycling events.

And/or possibly the rumours of wine and cheese at the feed zones.

[diventare]

Cycling Tips website have launched a new event out at Warburton. Which I duefully signed up for. 107km in length. including 2.7km total ascending. a tad expensive though at $170. I think that might be because their field limit might be a bit low in comparison to other cycling events.

The Bass Coast Challenge is on my bucklist of events, as well as the otway ride and amy's grand fondo.

There is no way that I would ever pay $170 to ride my bike in an event. Simple.
I have had some great rec ride experiences but in general they have become ridiculously priced over the last 3 years.

[kb]

There is no way that I would ever pay $170 to ride my bike in an event. Simple.
I have had some great rec ride experiences but in general they have become ridiculously priced over the last 3 years.

$15 for the Dirty Dozen including lunch seemed pretty good though. Shame I couldn't make it this year.

[BenGr]

There is no way that I would ever pay $170 to ride my bike in an event. Simple.
I have had some great rec ride experiences but in general they have become ridiculously priced over the last 3 years.

$15 for the Dirty Dozen including lunch seemed pretty good though. Shame I couldn't make it this year.

Whilst I find $170 to be expensive, you can't compare a not for profit ride with a fully supported ride. I think part of the problem people have with the price is they're used to races and events such as The Dirty Dozen which are very grass roots. Start looking at running events and triathlons and the price will seem much more reasonable. I'd be very surprised if cycling tips made any profit at all this year.

[kb]

There is no way that I would ever pay $170 to ride my bike in an event. Simple.
I have had some great rec ride experiences but in general they have become ridiculously priced over the last 3 years.

$15 for the Dirty Dozen including lunch seemed pretty good though. Shame I couldn't make it this year.

Whilst I find $170 to be expensive, you can't compare a not for profit ride with a fully supported ride. I think part of the problem people have with the price is they're used to races and events such as The Dirty Dozen which are very grass roots. Start looking at running events and triathlons and the price will seem much more reasonable. I'd be very surprised if cycling tips made any profit at all this year.

I agree, and in fact am doing the Giro della Donna. Just pointing out there are alternatives which can be a good introduction to new areas or riding styles. I really enjoyed the MAD ride Il Padrone was publicising a couple of years ago too.

[marty_one]

I balked at the price a little myself. The reason I decided to pay the price and do it, was getting to see parts of Victoria that I have never seen before, and doing it on a bike in a slightly controlled environment really appealed to me. At the moment I'm not sure if I will continue doing this ride if it stays on every year. But it is one of the few rides relatively close to me where I am not gone all day.

[Uncle Just]

[quote] I balked at the price a little myself. The reason I decided to pay the price and do it, was getting to see parts of Victoria that I have never seen before, and doing it on a bike in a slightly controlled environment really appealed to me./quote]

Interesting take on this ride. Actually if you do it mid week outside of holidays it has very low traffic volumes. You often have the road to yourself with only the occasional motorbike or car. The Acheron Way may have one or two vehicles with maybe a logging truck along its length. So it's a free option there beckoning. Many however like these organised rides and there is a demograhic that can readily pay to do them, getting security in numbers, a "race feel" and having the organisation to provide support and feed zones etc. Closed roads are nice too. This ride in particular is fantastic offering scenery, climbing, descending and some gravel and it will open the eyes of many newer and perhaps the less adventurous cyclist to what is essentially a semi remote area on Melbourne's doorstep. Having ridden and visited the area for most of my life I still marvel at how relatively underdeveloped it is and it seems ideally suited for well planned touristic, recreational activities. I wish it well.

[djw47]

Interesting take on this ride. Actually if you do it mid week outside of holidays it has very low traffic volumes. You often have the road to yourself with only the occasional motorbike or car. The Acheron Way may have one or two vehicles with maybe a logging truck along its length. So it's a free option there beckoning. Many however like these organised rides and there is a demograhic that can readily pay to do them, getting security in numbers, a "race feel" and having the organisation to provide support and feed zones etc. Closed roads are nice too. This ride in particular is fantastic offering scenery, climbing, descending and some gravel and it will open the eyes of many newer and perhaps the less adventurous cyclist to what is essentially a semi remote area on Melbourne's doorstep. Having ridden and visited the area for most of my life I still marvel at how relatively underdeveloped it is and it seems ideally suited for well planned touristic, recreational activities. I wish it well.

I did Warby/Donna/Reefton Spur up to Lake Mountain and back earlier this year and outside of Warburton town, I probably encountered less than 10 cars the whole day, and that was in the middle of the holiday season in summer. I'm doing the Cycling Tips ride this year because I reckon it'll be a good day out and there's always a good camaraderie on these sorts of rides but I do think it's expensive for what it is. I'm amazed that more people don't ride out that way. Warburton is easily accessible from the city - train or ride to Lilydale then there's a fantastic rail trail all the way to Warburton that more than adequate for road bikes or even just drive out to Warburton. Any cyclist living in the eastern suburbs who hasn't gone out that way is missing a trick.

[djw47]

There is no way that I would ever pay $170 to ride my bike in an event. Simple.
I have had some great rec ride experiences but in general they have become ridiculously priced over the last 3 years.

$15 for the Dirty Dozen including lunch seemed pretty good though. Shame I couldn't make it this year.

It is a bargain, however there must be a large amount of effort goes on behind the scenes to get it running. The difference is that the guys that organise DD and other "smaller" events do it voluntarily whereas the larger rides are generally run by professional organisations with overheads. If Matt de Neef factored in the cost of his time and administration and that of the volunteers for DD, the cost would inevitably rise - imagine how much catering would cost to provide a barbecue lunch for 250 riders if provided by a catering company?

[BenGr]

There is no way that I would ever pay $170 to ride my bike in an event. Simple.
I have had some great rec ride experiences but in general they have become ridiculously priced over the last 3 years.

$15 for the Dirty Dozen including lunch seemed pretty good though. Shame I couldn't make it this year.

It is a bargain, however there must be a large amount of effort goes on behind the scenes to get it running. The difference is that the guys that organise DD and other "smaller" events do it voluntarily whereas the larger rides are generally run by professional organisations with overheads. If Matt de Neef factored in the cost of his time and administration and that of the volunteers for DD, the cost would inevitably rise - imagine how much catering would cost to provide a barbecue lunch for 250 riders if provided by a catering company?

Ol Dirty managed to have a food van for $40. I can't be sure as I haven't been involved in sourcing suppliers etc for events but I imagine the fact Ol Dirty/ DD are not for profit/run purely to advance cycling would help to keep costs way down. As soon as you want to make proper money off something everyone involved will as well.

Volunteer staff (also minimal staff as there's very little expectation) would also be a huge saving.