Ring of Kerry Cycle 2017

nostro

Sat July 1st

Maybe the organisers will see sense after the disaster of last year which saw numbers participating and money raised falling dramatically and the reputation of the event tarnished by the actions of the committee.


Registration for the 2017 Ring of Kerry Charity Cycle will open in early February.

"There will be no lottery system, just a basic entry fee with an option offered to raise additional funds for the Charity you choose from the ten selected Charities. Full details will be posted in advance."


So fairly dramatic changes. Registration opening early, no "lottery" with non refundable entry fee and no two tier pricing with "premium" €180 places.

dahat

Basic entry fee.....Nothing basic about €80.

I will still consider this as I've never done one.

nostro

"Basic entry fee.....Nothing basic about €80."

One entry fee for all would be far fairer than what was done last year. A non refundable fee to enter a lottery to have a chance to pay the basic fee and those that were unsuccessful told that they had to pay a substantial premium for "charity" place if they wanted to join those that were allowed to pay the basic which was €85. Despite substantial advertising spend committee were left with large number of unsold places.

dahat

nostro wrote: »

"Basic entry fee.....Nothing basic about €80."

One entry fee for all would be far fairer than what was done last year. A non refundable fee to enter a lottery to have a chance to pay the basic fee and those that were unsuccessful told that they had to pay a substantial premium for "charity" place if they wanted to join those that were allowed to pay the basic which was €85. Despite substantial advertising spend committee were left with large number of unsold places.

You are correct, the old fashioned entry system is what works best and likely returns the event to being a sell out.

JKerova1

Having never done this before I'm just wondering what it is like, as in would it be worth attempting for a novice cyclist?

nostro

"Having never done this before I'm just wondering what it is like, as in would it be worth attempting for a novice cyclist?"

Definitely. Well doable with a bit of training. Fairly flat through most of the route.

nostro

Registration from this years cycle should open around Feb 20th.

ruffmut

I see the commitee have decided a entry of €100 plus service charge for this year's ring with the option of additional contribution

http://www.radiokerry.ie/ring-kerry-charity-cycle-announces-10-main-beneficiary-charities-2017/

easygoing39

€100!!!!! Thats mad money to be asking people.

Boscoirl

That's me out,

Was hoping to do it this year to knock it off the list. But not at that price

urbanshirl

JKerova1 wrote: »

Having never done this before I'm just wondering what it is like, as in would it be worth attempting for a novice cyclist?

I did it as a novice cyclist for the first time 3 years ago, its very doable, nice easy pace, very few challenging hills, I did the 3 Climbs cycle, the 80k a few months beforehand, it takes in Molls Gap, so gave me a good indication of where I was at training wise prior to the ROK

vicwatson

easygoing39 wrote: »

€100!!!!! Thats mad money to be asking people.

€103.50 total:eek:

easygoing39

vicwatson wrote: »

€103.50 total:eek:

Thats me out!!!

guym

Ring of Beara is the new Ring of Kerry.
Unfortunately the ROK organisers seem to think they can charge what they want and people will turn up none the less. There are much, much better sportives available at a fraction of the cost. I understand the ROK makes a lot of money for charities but I also get the feeling it's not just the charities doing well out of the event. I for one would not consider doing it ever again.

CrowdedHouse

Janey I'd expect one of them yellow Mavic service cars with spare wheels and bottles following me for that price.

urbanshirl

I agree guym we have registered for ROB this year instead

shaka

The ROK fleecing continues

ADW1

Completed the ROK back in 2012 as I was new to cycling at the time and really enjoyed the day out. The price in recent years is just too much for 1 event in my mind as i complete charity events throughout the year. This year alone have 15 penciled in the calender. Most people enter these events for the challenge more so than the charity. There are plenty of great charity cycling events that are more challenging in West Cork and Kerry throughout the year that i'll be attending instead.

ciaeim

easygoing39 wrote: »

Thats me out!!!

I agree. They have taken the spirit of what was an inspirational event raising much needed charity funds and goodwill and turned it into an event that reeks of pure greed which the town of Killarney has latched on to with its exorbitant accommodation rates which i for one will never again support. Their are imo plenty other worthy events countrywide to support with their feet firmly on the ground.

monkeysnapper

Although what I'm about to say may be considered unpopular, I've done ROK 7 times and always paid my way and more . I live on ROK and I'll be leaving from my house this year and not paying subscription at all.

I won't be eating there food or drink . as I've done in past I'll leave early from my house and fund my own food.

I'll donate 50 euro to local charity or I'll chuck my 50 onto someone ells sponcer form who is officially doing it.

Like others I do a few charity cycles every year and this one is over priced .

jamesd

monkeysnapper wrote: »

Although what I'm about to say may be considered unpopular, I've done ROK 7 times and always paid my way and more . I live on ROK and I'll be leaving from my house this year and not paying subscription at all.

I won't be eating there food or drink . as I've done in past I'll leave early from my house and fund my own food.

I'll donate 50 euro to local charity or I'll chuck my 50 onto someone ells sponcer form who is officially doing it.

Like others I do a few charity cycles every year and this one is over priced .

Why not just do it on another day of the year then instead ?

monkeysnapper

jamesd wrote: »

Why not just do it on another day of the year then instead ?

I just find its safer with buses and trucks normally doing that route .

There is another cycle of ring in Aug , "hard way round" I'll be doing that but as name sujests its a harder route, doing ROK is good training for it .

Doc07

My two cents.
Charity or not, if you want to charge the big bucks it's time to get professional and that means rolling road closures. If they secured that then €100 is no longer a rip off compared to international sportives.
ROK at 10,000 people is a massive event. Aside from Ride London 25,000 and the one in South Africa 30,000, ROK is in the next category of biggest sportives in the world ie similar numbers to L'Etape.
Big sportives are generally pricey. Ride London is minimum 90£, Grand Fondo in USA >100$ and Etape and Marmotte are secured by many people using agents /sport travel company and cost 150-200.

So if ROK got professional and closed the roads €100 would suddenly be good value.

D13exile

First point
The ring of Kerry is there 365 days a year (366 in a leap year) so you can pretty much do it anytime you want bar the first Saturday in each July. So let them charge what they want for those willing to pay that exorbitant fee (not me btw) and go do the ring yourself or with a few mates some other time.

Second point
The Skoda series of cylcles is just as well organised and at a fraction of the cost of the ROK. I'm doing the Tour de Connemara in May and that's just €40. Plus I get a nice gillet as part of the entry fee.

No brainer if you ask me but then again, no one did!

Right I'm off out for a nice 100km spin. Safe cycling ya'll

Uberbeamerman

Few points.
1. The minimum charge was brought in when the ROK got really popular a few years ago, before then the funds raised came from people going around with sponsorship cards and collecting money. When the interest in cycling exploded a few years ago more and more people started doing the ROK. Some people then started taking advantage doing the ROK and handing in whatever loose change they had, so person A would have raised €120 and the next person would have given €7.26 in change, hence the introduction of a minimum charge.

2. The lottery system was brought in to try and alleviate pressure on the website. With thousands of people trying to register at once the website crashed. If the website doesn't crash, you're still left with a very narrow window to actually register. Other events such as the New York and London marathons, and quite a number of the cycling events on the continent now go by a lottery system. Don't forget that entry was capped at 10,000!

3. Prices in the town. This is not unique to Killarney, just take a look at any sporting event in Ireland and abroad and look at prices of hotels and food around the time of concerts and sporting events (ie concerts/GAA in croker). Its supply v demand, its everywhere.

4. Road closures have been part of the ROK for the past number of years. From memory there was one from outside Killarney (where people were stopped for having tags on incorrectly or for having no tag at all), and Molls Gap. Unless people are saying they want it done Ras style where cars are pulled over while the peloton passes (but then who would set the pace and would that mean the enforcement of a wave system for 50-100 people at a time)? I think from a repair point of view that the ROK does an alright job? They seem to have a lot of bikes/vans around and dedicated repair centres in each of the food stops.

5. Finally, all of the committee are volunteers. The ROK is something that takes up a lot (if not all) their spare time. We all know how difficult it is to organise an event like a 21st or a 50th birthday bash, but can you imagine the hours and the amount of paperwork that goes into looking after 10,000 people and all the support crew. Their decisions won't suit everyone but then again there's a load of other cycling events out there.

PeadarCo

Uberbeamerman wrote:

5. Finally, all of the committee are volunteers. The ROK is something that takes up a lot (if not all) their spare time. We all know how difficult it is to organise an event like a 21st or a 50th birthday bash, but can you imagine the hours and the amount of paperwork that goes into looking after 10,000 people and all the support crew. Their decisions won't suit everyone but then again there's a load of other cycling events out there.

I can understand the rest of the points but from a cycling point of view cycling as a sport is nearly completely reliant on volunteers. Both from a racing and leisure perspective. Only a very small number of events both leisure and racing have anything near a full time organising team. Most events are completely reliant on volunteers for every part of their running, not to speak of all the countless hours put in my club members. Cycling at an organizational level isn't a rich sport. It's nearly completely reliant on volunteers.

The Ring of Kerry is not unique in terms of being run by volunteers and most events would love to be able to attract a fraction of the commercial donations that come its way.

py

It's really disappointing to see this level of price gouging going on in the leisure scene. Even the WW200 this year being €50 made me second guess whether or not I'd participate. Plenty of other events are able to support charities without hammering the participants from the get go. Unlikely I'll ever get to partake unless they review their pricing structure.

harringtonp

Stephen Roche Atlantic Challenge organizers made it free this year with an optional charity donation. 2736 registered and while they won't all of course do it I heard through the grapevine that more money has come in than in the years when they charged.

PukkaStukka

I've done the ROK several times before and this year, I was looking at doing it with two buddies who've never done it. When doing an out of town event, we usually bring our families in tow and make the weekend out of it. The costs of accommodation locally are banditry for the ROK weekend, therefore taking three families with us really is great expense in itself. With collective entry fees north of €300, I reckon we're going to give this a miss and do something else instead.

I'm into supporting charities every but as much as the next person, but the cynic in me is saying that these entry charges are a step too much. The local economy along the ROK and around Killarney in particular benefit greatly from this day, but given the aforementioned costs before we even spin a wheel, I'm not minded to pay €100 for the privilege nor will I be asking others to sponsor me.

To me this seems like a cynical attempt to maximise return and reduce numbers taking part. Good luck to them if they succeed and don't price themselves out of the game.

Beasty

I entered a few years ago but in the end could not make it (don't think they closed entries that year). I was surprised when I received a request for sponsorship money several weeks later

It seems clear to me this is a fundraising event first and foremost. Yes people get something out of completing but the organisers are simply looking at maximising charitable contributions. Now there's nothing wrong with that in my view, but I think anyone looking to participate should look at this more as a charity fundraiser rather than a serious cycling event

liam7831

Accommodation is expensive because it's Killarney, the hotels would do fine without this event, I think ppl think the whole town waits for this weekend every year, killarney is busy every weekend during the summer ROK or not

BailMeOut

2017 would have been my 8th ROK in a row but have a family wedding attend that same weekend so will be missing it. I have no problem with the entry fee as there is no other cycling event like this in terms of numbers and atmosphere. If you are reading and have never done a ROK then please ignore all the naysayers and just do it as there will as always be 10,000 happy cyclists on the day enjoying every minute of it.

ballyharpat

Coming from Killarney, I can tell you that Killarney is booked for May, June July August and September, we would be busy that weekend, even without the ring, what I actually find is that an awful lot of people, -cyclists, including me- leave town for the weekend, Ive done the Ring of Kerry this year by bike already, I do it 3/4 times a year by pleasure car, and will probably do it one or two more times by bike.
A lot of the time, we have a munster final on the same weekend, and the regatta, it would be great to spread it out, but there is something every weekend here, there's a reason we are one of the best tourist towns in the world.

I last did the ROK with the crowds in 2014, I realised it was not fun for me, too many people, before I would leave at 6 and be back by 11ish, but that year, there were slower people already on the roads at 4 or 5, which meant you could still meet them, maybe walking their bike down a hill in the middle of the road, and not being aware that other cyclists were actually cycling there, too many close calls and no matter what notice I gave to these people about approaching, they would still say-it's not a race- I got very turned off it. But I also need to take into consideration, that these people may train just for this cycle, they may not look at the bike again until March-so it's about them, and there are more of these 'leisure' cyclists, than competitive cyclists, so I stay away, for their sanity, but mostly my own.

I would recommend to anyone that has not done it, to do it though, the atmosphere is great here and I know a lot of people have made great friends on that weekend, either by meeting them on the ROK or else in the pubs/restaurants after.

liam7831 wrote: »

Accommodation is expensive because it's Killarney, the hotels would do fine without this event, I think ppl think the whole town waits for this weekend every year, killarney is busy every weekend during the summer ROK or not

nostro

Uberbeamerman wrote: »

Few points.

2. The lottery system was brought in to try and alleviate pressure on the website. With thousands of people trying to register at once the website crashed. If the website doesn't crash, you're still left with a very narrow window to actually register.

.

Felt that the website crashing due to the enormous interest in doing the Ring in 2015 was very contrived. Keeping registration closed till very late, heavily publicising the exact time registration would open and convincing people that they had to try to register as soon as registration opened. Then giving responsibility for handling registration to a mickey mouse company that was unable to cope. Up until that year it had taken months for places to be filled. The lottery last year was the most cynical and nasty scam i've seen in a while. A lot of people do such events with groups of friends so giving places to some but telling others that they were unsuccessful so had to pay significantly more if they wanted to join their friends. It backfired because lots of people were not prepared to pay the ridiculous prices they were charging for the premium places.

PukkaStukka

liam7831 wrote: »

Accommodation is expensive because it's Killarney, the hotels would do fine without this event, I think ppl think the whole town waits for this weekend every year, killarney is busy every weekend during the summer ROK or not

Couldn't agree more, but when one looks at the cost of the weekend in its totality, it is excessive and hard to justify. This is something that's clearly lost on the organisers.

youtheman

I've done the ROK cycle several times, so the novelty is wearing off a bit now (and I don't mean that as a criticism).  The route itself is quite boring, and as a club we've a 'Modified ROK' which is a much more interesting route, plus we can do it anytime.
For those who are worried about accommodation costs I would just stay in Tralee, or any other town nearby.
All in all, it's still worth doing (at least once).  The atmosphere is great (you just have to be patient and allow the massive variation in cycling abilities and safety nous).

Roger Hassenforder

youtheman wrote: »

I've done the ROK cycle several times, so the novelty is wearing off a bit now (and I don't mean that as a criticism).  The route itself is quite boring, and as a club we've a 'Modified ROK' which is a much more interesting route, plus we can do it anytime.
For those who are worried about accommodation costs I would just stay in Tralee, or any other town nearby.
All in all, it's still worth doing (at least once).  The atmosphere is great (you just have to be patient and allow the massive variation in cycling abilities and safety nous).

For anyone from well up the country, consider staying in Cork. Less than an hour from Killarney.
Not the greatest sportif, nor the most beautiful sportif (that's anything in Cork) but it's worth doing at least once in your life.

liam7831

Roger Hassenforder wrote: »

For anyone from well up the country, consider staying in Cork. Less than an hour from Killarney.
Not the greatest sportif, nor the most beautiful sportif (that's anything in Cork) but it's worth doing at least once in your life.

It's takes longer than 1 hour and it would mean getting up at a crazy hour and driving back afterwards, wouldn't work imo

BailMeOut

liam7831 wrote: »

It's takes longer than 1 hour and it would mean getting up at a crazy hour and driving back afterwards, wouldn't work imo

works for me and have done exactly this every year since 2010. We leave around 6am and that gets us on our bikes well before 8am including picking up bike tags and home again before 7pm.

Roger Hassenforder

liam7831 wrote: »

It's takes longer than 1 hour and it would mean getting up at a crazy hour and driving back afterwards, wouldn't work imo

Jasis
Is Ms Daisey in the car with you?

Leave the house at 6.30 every year (city centre), I'm cycling by 7.30/7.45.

DanDublin1982

I'd definitely recommend the ROK as an experience and there's really little differnece between the 65/70 or whatever it was I paid in 2014 and the hundred they are looking for now so if this was my first time to do it I doubt it would put me off.

But having experienced it and adding in the accommodation costs I think it's enough to put me off doing it again.

liam7831

Roger Hassenforder wrote: »

Jasis
Is Ms Daisey in the car with you?

Leave the house at 6.30 every year (city centre), I'm cycling by 7.30/7.45.

Tightness is a terrible affliction

yessam

I have heard that the registration fee has increased to €100 this year.

Looks like they want to kill off this event.

BailMeOut

yessam wrote: »

I have heard that the registration fee has increased to €100 this year.

Looks like they want to kill off this event.

the event will be sold out and the price will keep increasing as it is over subscribed every year. This is a financial juggernaut for Kerry and it will got on for many more years.

mossym

BailMeOut wrote: »

the event will be sold out and the price will keep increasing as it is over subscribed every year.

did last years report not state that numbers were down? if i remember it was discussed in last years thread

BailMeOut

mossym wrote: »

did last years report not state that numbers were down? if i remember it was discussed in last years thread

last year was well sold out and a lot of people paid EUR10 for a lottery place and still did not get in.

Would be interesting to compare how many pay to do it and do not turn up on the day.

mossym

there is a huge difference between a sell out and not getting into the lottery. the lottery is the cheapest way of getting in, or was last year. the lottery was oversubscribed, loads of people did pay their entry and not get in. yet it was reported the overall take was down. mainly due to charities been left with spots as people weren't prepared to pay the extra they were looking for .most of the charities were looking for more, wasn't it over 200 last year?. there were a couple of charities that low balled on the price and did sell out their allocation.

i guess it depends what you call a sell out.

Masala

I wonder did they change the agency handling the booking system....and can they handle a possible 10,000 hits in an hour this time!!!

yessam

I have participated in this event the last four years and I have no doubt the numbers were at there lowest last year.
It was easy to see the the numbers of cyclists on the road, the numbers at the food stops and the amount of people around Killarney on the Friday and Saturday evenings were well down on the previous years.
I think the aim is to make the event smaller.

nostro

Last year's was definitely not a sell out. Despite an extensive advertising campaign many charities were left with places they couldn't get rid of. Overall numbers were down by about 2000 and funds collected were well down.

Many of those who paid a non refundable fee to enter lottery were unsuccessful but as another poster pointed out this had nothing to do with a shortage of overall places.

dvntie

dahat wrote: »

Basic entry fee.....Nothing basic about €80.

I will still consider this as I've never done one.

Don't bother head down when there's nothing on and actually enjoy the roads without fear of getting blown into oncoming traffic by clowns who don't know how to ride their bikes