Deloitte Ride Across Britain ( 2011 - ongoing )

Specific board for this popular undertaking.
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ericonabike
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Deloitte Ride Across Britain ( 2011 - ongoing )

Post by ericonabike »

Just thought I'd mention that this event now comes in at £1800 for nine nights. Camping. With transport to and from LE/JOG not included. Just doing one of the stages would set you back £118.

Just for comparison, I've now enetered the 2011 Trans Wales: seven nights, camping, £510.

To add insult to injury, the RAB requires you to have/get BCF membership [effectively a racing licence] as a condition of entry. Why? It's not a race? They talk about public liability insurance, but that's not required on sportives? In any event, memebrship of CTC/Audax UK would give that insurance.

Also in the rules is this gem:

'No drugs, illegal substances, performance enhancing substances or intoxicants of any kind are permitted to be used by any Participant either before or during participation in the Deloitte Ride Across Britain.' So, no goodnight beer then...

Has anyone done this event so that they can vouch for its value? To me it seems an insane amount of money for what is being provided.

EDIT: if you have been on it, best not say anything other than praise: see rule 3.8 below:

The Participant confirms that they will not publish or post to any website or other media operated by Threshold or related to the Deloitte Ride Across Britain any text, statement, photograph, image or other material which is obscene, blasphemous, defamatory, infringes the intellectual property or other legal rights of any third party or is otherwise unlawful, offensive or inappropriate. Threshold will have the right to remove any material at its discretion and take appropriate legal action against any person found to be or alleged to be in breach of this clause 3.8.
Last edited by Graham on 9 Aug 2016, 10:55am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Title modified
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robgul
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by robgul »

I did not do the ride last year BUT rode past them - we were riding LEJOG - near Lanark.

The ride was obviously very well organised with signage, motor-cycle riders etc, but at a price ... we didn't tally the cost of our LEJOG ride (12.5 days on the bike, unsupported, carrying our own kit, B&B accommodation) but I would guess that it was rather a lot less than the price quoted for the RAB, including the to and from the start/finish trains etc.

A friend did the ride last year, or at least started it ... he was struck down with the illness that swept through the riders and retired after 3 or 4 days - he didn't go into graphic detail but it doesn't sound far short of dysentery ... scenes of people in tents with drips, a bit like a ward in MASH!

The "charity partner" is the paralympic team - it's not clear whether the entry cost makes any contribution to the cause ?

I don't want to belittle the achievements of the riders and the challenge ... but blasting along at furious pace doesn't seem to me the best way to experience what is a fantastic ride (having done it both ways now) ... it needs to be savoured and enjoyed.

Rob
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patpalloon
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by patpalloon »

This was one of the first sites I came across when researching LEJOG. If people are willingly paying that sort of money for a camping trip then they want their heads examining. What a rip off!
I feel sure that the genius that did this, didn't even feel a thud as he drove by.
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horizon
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by horizon »

I think there is a post on here from someone who either did it or was planning to do it and whichever it was, was fully up for it. Although to me it is the perfect description of hell on earth (I would pay £1800 not to go on it), there are many folk who relish it and I take my hat off to them. The problem I do have is that it nudges cycling (and in this case a classic touring route) further and further towards being only a trial of speed and stamina. I won't labour this point as it is obvious that (a) there are plenty of cyclists who cycle for enjoyment (of a different sort from RAB) and (b) there are plenty of cyclists (myself included) who enjoy a challenge as well as looking at the scenery.

However I will be controversial (it's late at night now and I may regret this in the morning) and say that cyclists who require back up teams, ready made camps, a large group to cycle with, the same tee-shirt as everyone else, their luggage carried for them, motorcycle cycle outriders, the route laid out, scheduled refreshments, stupidly expensive bikes and helmets are missing the point. I would also say (careful now, horizon Ed.) that, believe it or not, cycling still has an intrinsic value to humanity without being sponsored.
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
ericonabike
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by ericonabike »

I've got no particu;lar obection to either fast touring [solo JOGLE in 7 days] or mass participation sportives [Gran Fondo Nove Colli with 15,000 others]. Cycling is and will hopefully ever be a broad church! No. it's just the cost and the chillingly regimented feel of the rules and regs here that astound me. But at the end of the day their pedals don't turm themselves, and that's the main thing.
Motorists' mantra: Cyclists must obey the law and the Highway Code AT ALL TIMES. Unless their doing so would HOLD ME UP.
stewartpratt
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by stewartpratt »

robgul wrote:blasting along at furious pace doesn't seem to me the best way to experience what is a fantastic ride (having done it both ways now) ... it needs to be savoured and enjoyed.


But charity fundraising is not the same as a holiday. If someone comes asking for my money as sponsorship, I'm more likely to stump up more cash if I know they're really stretching themselves. Sponsoring a cyclist to have a nice pootle through some country lanes stopping for ice creams and lashings of ginger beer is like sponsoring an average family to have a holiday at the seaside.

And although it's expensive, at least it isn't (from a cursory glance anyway) one of those events that diverts some of the sponsorship funds to paying for the participants' jollies.
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robgul
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by robgul »

stewartpratt wrote:
robgul wrote:blasting along at furious pace doesn't seem to me the best way to experience what is a fantastic ride (having done it both ways now) ... it needs to be savoured and enjoyed.


But charity fundraising is not the same as a holiday. If someone comes asking for my money as sponsorship, I'm more likely to stump up more cash if I know they're really stretching themselves. Sponsoring a cyclist to have a nice pootle through some country lanes stopping for ice creams and lashings of ginger beer is like sponsoring an average family to have a holiday at the seaside.

And although it's expensive, at least it isn't (from a cursory glance anyway) one of those events that diverts some of the sponsorship funds to paying for the participants' jollies.


I wasn't comparing it with asking for sponsorship for a "holiday" . .. rather the experience being savoured which is the tenor of the original post.

- taking your second paragraph, the event website implies that the visible cost of entry IS the cost of entry - with fundraising expectations over and above that.

That's how it ought to be - the entrant should meet all the costs of the event ... and then fundraise, rather than the "fundraising target minimum" being consumed in part by costs - although that then gets us back to the OP with the apparent high cost.

Rob
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stewartpratt
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by stewartpratt »

Yes, sorry, I laid out that post badly: my second paragraph wasn't really in response to your point. We agree on the funding-vs-cost aspect. I was just trying to express my opinion that, whilst any long distance ride is arguably more enjoyable when done at a relaxed pace, a fundraising ride shouldn't be relaxed :)
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robgul
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by robgul »

stewartpratt wrote:Yes, sorry, I laid out that post badly: my second paragraph wasn't really in response to your point. We agree on the funding-vs-cost aspect. I was just trying to express my opinion that, whilst any long distance ride is arguably more enjoyable when done at a relaxed pace, a fundraising ride shouldn't be relaxed :)


No problem ... don't get me started on these charity rides - like the plethora of "London - Paris" where it's "raise a minimum of £x" ... but about 75% of x is swallowed up in costs.

It MUST be : Rider enters and pays ALL COSTS - fundraising amounts ALL go to the cause. Simples.

Rob
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horizon
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by horizon »

I just wanted to add to my post above that I don't object in principle to sponsored cycling (how could I - it raises money for charity and adds another dimension to a trip). I was just trying to express some concern that when taken to extreme and with national prominence, it might give the impression that cycling is primarily about extreme exertion and fund raising - and that if you aren't doing either then it isn't real cycling. And with Deloitte there is yet another uncomfortable feeling: should everything we do in life be about attaining challenging targets? That may be their philosophy (and the bankers' incomes show that it works in one way) and they are welcome to it. But if it began to dominate public perception, I would want to reclaim cycling for those who think it has more to offer than an ego boost. My suspicion is that the fund raising aspect is merely a (well intentioned) cover for that. That makes me sound mean but not as mean as our present day culture of which Deloitte, despite its good intentions, is very much part.

(Just to give some more context to this, yoga is now being promoted as a potential Olympic sport. Although cycling has always had a very strong sporting element, it has retained its quiet moments - perhaps I feel that the competitive values of Deloitte are encroaching upon a precious space that once gave us respite from their world. Perhaps now nowhere and nothing is sacred.)
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
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smitton
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by smitton »

I think some of you need to step back and just listen to yourselves. This is bordering on an acute case of “Don’t confuse me with the facts, I have already made my mind up”. I post as someone who has signed-up to this ride. I have read the small print, I agree to their terms, and what is more, I am more than happy to do so.

In actual fact I think the true cost of entrance is more like £2500 not the lower figures quoted. And do you know what? I would probably still enter if it was £5000. That is my choice; I have the money, I think this is a great cause, it is welcome publicity for the Paralympics, I get to do a sporting E2E in only 9 days with like-minded people, I don’t have to worry about a thing and just concentrate on riding my bike in the way I want.

I can spend the other 50 weeks of the year bumbling along, looking at the scenery and stopping at village pubs (and I do). Contrary to what was posted, you are not required to raise additional sponsorship, that is a personal choice. I am happy to be a moving advertising hoarding for the Paralympics and the money Deloitte has already, and will continue to contribute.

This forum sometimes really depresses me with negative and whining attitudes. I know for sure that if Mick F was to turn around and say he had entered (rather unlikely!) everyone would be slapping him on the back and telling us all what a great idea it is. Just enjoy the fact that yet another version of our pastime (or sport for some) is happening under our noses. Don’t worry about the value for money, it’s not important, you would be missing the point. Again.

Sorry I have to go, on an all night audax tonight. I paid £3 for a sheet of paper with directions printed on it. Now I ask you, where is the value in that?
cycloret
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by cycloret »

I met up with them at JOG at the end of my Lejog in June 2010. I was amazed how many of them there were, so many tents. Good luck to them but it's not for me. I prefer my creature comforts and don't like being organised, like going on package holidays. Planning my Lejog and staying in B&Bs was all part of the experience. I wondered what it was like for motorists encountering all those cyclists on the road?

I was a bit miffed when I arrived at JOG that the place was swarming with so many. I had to wait ages for my time with the photographer at the sign post. The next day they'd left and it was much more peaceful and the weather heaps better.

Is it effectively, no phone use during the day, no cameras, no food of your own, no alcohol plus the organisers have copyright to everything? It might explain why I've read so little from the participants.
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horizon
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by horizon »

smitton: you are right to respond. I found it very difficult to raise the points I did without sounding churlish and from my own point of view I want to say that I wish you, and the ride, all the very best. For the reasons you give, it is beyond reproach and you have, naturally, my complete respect for taking part.

All the posts on this thread are slightly different: what I was trying to express was just a feeling and I was trying to get to the bottom of it. While cycling takes in all sorts of different modes, it is also true to say that, together, they form a picture of what cycling is and where it is going. I feel that it now reflects a more competitive society and one where sponsorship has a high profile. There is, as you say, plenty of space for other types of cycling (though perhaps less room in the media and in people's perception of it). This thread was a rare opportunity for me at least to get something off my chest; I was relieved when it submerged but surprised no-one had responded and you have now done that. I think the feelings I have about this issue are best left for quiet moments off-forum as any expression of them would appear critical of what are, actually, fantastic endeavours.
Last edited by horizon on 9 Feb 2011, 11:51pm, edited 1 time in total.
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
patpalloon
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by patpalloon »

cycloret wrote:I was a bit miffed when I arrived at JOG that the place was swarming with so many. I had to wait ages for my time with the photographer at the sign post. The next day they'd left and it was much more peaceful and the weather heaps better.


Good point! I'm going in June so I need to make sure I avoid this lot. Mind you, you could take some pleasure knowing how much they had all paid for their whistle-stop camping tour!
I feel sure that the genius that did this, didn't even feel a thud as he drove by.
ericonabike
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Re: Deloitte Ride Across Britain 2011

Post by ericonabike »

Sorry Smitton, didn't intend to offend anyone who was taking part - as you say it's your choice and I'm sure you'll have a great time. I was just taken aback by the cost, which is way above anything else I've seen for similar supported events, and the 'chillingly regimented' feel of the rules and regs. I reserve my right to whinge about those aspects of the ride - unless you can tell me that Deloitte and the other organisers are making no profit from this and that the money in excess of costs goes to charity? In which case I will cease whingeing forthwith.
Motorists' mantra: Cyclists must obey the law and the Highway Code AT ALL TIMES. Unless their doing so would HOLD ME UP.
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