Long distance event safety

[Maha]

''Where are the best burgers found on this ride and when is the first coffee stop''...are two questions that need a quick answer to avoid having things thrown in your general direction by the masses.

[Gremlin]

There won't be much you can do to limit speeds. Except advise caution, advise don't do it, because the success of the event relies on people making it back home.

Fatigue needs to be addressed with food, liquids, and if needed sleep. A lot of riders ride in groups so that sorts some stuff as well.

Endurance events by their nature are going to push the limits of rider and machine.

Many automatically assume speed is a given for such long distances. They clearly haven't tried long distance then. The faster you go, there is an exponential-like increase in the amount of energy consumed to do so. Seen it plenty of times in long distance riding that those without experience that bolt out the gate end up either pulling out or exhausted.

You need to find the sweet spot, sometimes just under the limit (depends from rider to rider), that you can easily maintain, using very little energy, just nudging the bike around. Just a 5-10kph increase can see you go from nudging the bike to pushing it around... big difference in energy used.

[Shadowjack]

To turn the tables around a bit. Should there be a info sheet avaliable for the riders? Especially the first timers who never done it before but who want to try? And what info would you recommend goes into such brochure

Also maybe information evening / video night for the less experienced / first timers who want to do it but haven before. Make sure the info evening is few weeks / manths ahead of the event so people can prepare them selves

A South Island event I have participated in twice now has a couple of information sheets attached to it's website. As a first timer, I found these very helpful.

Personally, the less constraints, the better. I find the format of events I have participated in so far to be fine.

[Kickaha]

Crazy, but no where as crazy as swingers on sidecars.

Maybe, I've done both and they're both hard work but in a different way

I'm not sure I'd bother entering any "endurance event" that had compulsory stops for set periods and or breakfast/tea, I think I'd find it to hard to get moving again, gas and go is my normal method of travel

I dont think I'd done a rider bigger than 400km in one day when I did my first 1600km run and it wasn't as hard as I thought it'd be

[caspernz]

Many automatically assume speed is a given for such long distances. They clearly haven't tried long distance then. The faster you go, there is an exponential-like increase in the amount of energy consumed to do so. Seen it plenty of times in long distance riding that those without experience that bolt out the gate end up either pulling out or exhausted.

You need to find the sweet spot, sometimes just under the limit (depends from rider to rider), that you can easily maintain, using very little energy, just nudging the bike around. Just a 5-10kph increase can see you go from nudging the bike to pushing it around... big difference in energy used.

Ain't that the truth! Crank up the pace and the energy required increases exponentially, regardless of the vehicle you're in/on. At a chilled out pace I can easily top 1000 kms in about 12 hours, including at least two fuel stops, a lunch break, a few toilet stops etc.

[FJRider]

I dont think I'd done a rider bigger than 400km in one day when I did my first 1600km run and it wasn't as hard as I thought it'd be

My first 1600 km ride didn't start untill midday ... it was a long day and night.

My previous longest ride was a 600 km ride.

I believe the long rides are just as much a mental thing ... as a physicall thing. If your headspace isn't into it ... it just becomes a chore.

[rastuscat]

Meeting went well, really positive.

Many points of view discussed.

The event will be going ahead with every rider encased in no less than 225 kg of cotton wool.

Seriously though, it was interesting to talk about the shambles after the media blitz on last years event. I recall that the Popos were credited with taking the website down after it became politically hot. Learned today that it was taken down by the organiser, due to the massive media blitz attracting too much heat. Made sense.

Hoping the event goes ahead, might even do it myself.

[Oakie]

Hoping the event goes ahead, might even do it myself.

Do it on your work bike!

[Subike]

Do it on your work bike!

agree and then some chch riders can go as support behind you

[nzspokes]

Do it on your work bike!

Well to be fair thats not a bad idea. And say youve got your ticket book. Then riders know they can be caught.

And best of all you get overtime!!

[rastuscat]

It,d be easy to do it on the work bike but I'd lose my job for vehicle conversion.

Still, a nice thought. If I got behind schedule it'd just be on with the bells and whistles, and prob solved

[Jantar]

...Still, a nice thought. If I got behind schedule it'd just be on with the bells and whistles, and prob solved

Or you could sit behind Gremlin and pretend to be chasing him. Then I could sit behind you and pretend you were giving me a high speed escort.

[Oakie]

Just call it creative rostering ...

Or if you were rostered for the start of the event you could say you were in pursuit of some naughty bikers who wouldn't stop.

[nzspokes]

Or you could sit behind Gremlin and pretend to be chasing him. Then I could sit behind you and pretend you were giving me a high speed escort.

Have you ever sat behind Gremlin? It sounds like air force one taking off.

[Subike]

Or we could contact Toy Collector and borrow an old MOT Honda that still has all the gear on it.
Im sure Rasta would have fun being a keystone cop for a day or so