Leisure cycles & entry fees

LeoD

With the growing popularity of cycling there seems to be a leisure cycle of some sort every weekend of the summer which is great. Unfortunately I think greed has already started to creep in with a growing number of events trying to cash in on the popularity of such events. Take the An Post series and the Tour of Sligo for example - €30 if you pre-register, €40 if you register late. Most clubs around the country are able to organise leisure cycles with food and water stops, marshals, support vehicles and changing facilities for €10/€15. The Tour of Sligo with the backing of An Post, SuperValu, Connacht Gold, Sligo Institute of Technology, Sligo Sport and Recreation Partnership, Sligo County Council, Sligo Borough Council and Fáilte Ireland need you to pay and additional €30/€40. What exactly do these sponsors and partners provide? Of course the An Post series is now setting the precedent as a recent stage of the Munster League held by Kilmallock CC was €35 to enter I think (open to correction on that one). I'm doing the Stephen Roche Tour de Cure this weekend myself which I suspect is another joke as I don't think too much of my €40 entry is going to charity but feck it, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt this time. Should Cycling Ireland do anything to prevent/discourage event organisers fleecing people or should we just take the view of 'if they can get away with then fair play to them'?

blorg

I agree with you LeoD, a lot of these events are well overpriced. As you say many clubs manage to produce a sportive for a far lower entry fee and often without any sponsorship either. Audaxes are a fiver and while many are completely unsupported many of the ones run by Paul O'Donoghue from Sorrento include as much food as you can eat for this price.

Apart from these leisure events you could consider that most races cost €10 and there is a fair bit more going on with marshalling, video finish, even the prizes to come out of that (!) etc.

penexpers

I think you just have to trust that a large portion of the entry fee is going to charity.

The Stephen Roche Tour de Cure website lists the charities that benefitted last year.

DirkVoodoo

The Ardattin 200 put the likes of the Wicklow 200 to shame.

Cape Clear

I think the question of where is the money actually going is something not unique to cycle events but right accross the board. In my view corporate sponsorship should cover the running cost of the event where possible and all or a high proportion of entry fee/money collected by entrants should go to the charity in question. How can some charities afford plush offices and spend a small fortune on PR I sometimes wonder! The question needs to be asked as it should have been asked in th ecase of FAS a long time ago.

corkandproud

I think we need to see some final accounts before we pass judgement. I know of two events where every single penny goes to charity - every expense is either sponsored or paid for personally by the organisers.

That said it's a fair question to ask, and publishing accounts (not just recipient names) will answer the question.

Slightly off topic... I have no problem paying €30-40 for a well run charity event. The Tour de Cure seems to be very well organised, as do many others. Once the minimum entry is kept reasonable it should not be a deterrent. Remember there's not that many events for non-race cyclists.

ednwireland

corkandproud wrote: »

Slightly off topic... I have no problem paying €30-40 for a well run charity event. The Tour de Cure seems to be very well organised, as do many others. Once the minimum entry is kept reasonable it should not be a deterrent. Remember there's not that many events for non-race cyclists.

to your second point
if you look here in the leisure tab at the bottomhttp://www.cyclingireland.ie/getattachment/d7c47a33-e9b1-4372-81b5-21b552245fa0/Master_Calendar_Final_2010.aspx

there is 113 events listed from 3 jan to 26th dec i think thats quite a lot, a lot of the club events are 10 euro if yiou have cycling ireland membership so not bad value, the big events like the wicklow 200 and the etape hibernia charge that cos they can.
thought the an post tour of sligo was v. well marshalled last year, food stops good so cant complain

RoubX

Agree on the high cost at some events.
Something like Billy Shanahans' Tripp to Tipp with Blazing Saddles is a nice event, and you don't mind paying the entry because you really feel it must be going to the NCBI.

However, an event with the involvement of the Sky corporation...... Mind you the rolling road closures must cost a bit. I've entered the Etape Hibernia anyway, just to see and make up my own mind, but jaw nearly hit the floor when they were looking for an extra €19 for an event T-Shirt :eek:

midlands1

Charity cycles gone way too expensive.€25/€35 now for most of them. An post cycle in sligo this year there was a collection inside the door for a local charity towards the food etc. What was the entry for?

mel.b

I don't mind paying E25/35 for a charity cycle. The ones I don't like are like the getbackchallenge where it is E50 to enter and then you have to fundraise another minimum E150. If you are only doing one charity cycle for the year then that is fine, but if you want to do a few it's not fair IMO to be constantly asking people to sponser you.