The Reservoir Dog Sportive 2019 - September15th.

Corker1

If you like climbing, descending and the undisputed charms of the Wicklow hills and valleys, well some good news for you; the Reservoir Dog Sportive is back for the fifth edition on September 15th. Online registration is now live. The 65km route is the same as the last couple of years but we have updated the 125km route to keep things fresh and interesting. Bear with us while we update the club website with details of the new route etc. In the meantime event details are here;


https://www.facebook.com/events/1091540664376754/


And the Registration link is at;


https://eventmaster.ie/event/BdRH23c8j


We would love to see you all again for anyone who has ' Done the Dog' before. And if you haven't been with us before. now is the time to sign up and get training for those hills.

Daroxtar

I've done them all to date and loved them. My hands down favourite sportive.
Thought I'd be out of the country this year but I'll actually be back in time so hope to see there again

Corker1

What rotten luck you had last year Weepsie. How long were you off the bike for? Better luck this year. I'm sure we can do something for you. Leave it with me and I will come back to you.

magicbastarder

are there links to the routes?

Corker1

Weepsie wrote: »

Ha, I'm joking, but I'm in just can't register for a few weeks. Hold a place maybe.

I've been told by the OH I can do it if I get a lift to the start.

I was back on after 2-3 weeks. Nothing broken just a lot of skin missing.

Well it was good that nothing was broken but roadrash is a bugger. We will save you a spot. If you have a problem when you are ready to book just let me know. Yes get a lift this time

Corker1

magicbastarder wrote: »

are there links to the routes?

Not yet, but suffice to say that the start is a wee bit easier and there is a new climb towards the tail end. A few of us in the club did a test ride of the new route last week and really enjoyed it. Still a tough day but on class roads. We think it is even better than the original.

Corker1

magicbastarder wrote: »

are there links to the routes?

Here is a Ride with GPS link to the 125km Route. https://ridewithgps.com/routes/30243387



There are a few changes to the 125km Dog route this year. The 65km Pup route is the same as previous years;

1. We have taken the Dowry climb out. It was a shock to the system for many riders so early on and the road linking the top of the Dowry to the Army Camp is now in a very poor state.
2. We have now made the first climb Scurlocksleap' / Athdown. A lovely climb to wake up the legs before the heavy climbing begins. This climb is left off the Sally Gap road about 10km out of Kilbride. Turn is opposite Kippure House.
3. We have changed the route into Roundwood after the drop off Lugalla. Now you turn right at Annacarter Xroads. We felt that Safety /visibility was better for the right turn junction onto the R755 closer to Roundwood that the original right turn at the T junction.
4. The food stop has changed to the Brockagh Centre, Laragh. No stop at Annamoe anymore.
5. There is a new Climb after Ballysmutton Bridge. Instead of climbing to the top of Ballysmutton and down to Oldcourt and Lake Drive, the route now swings left after the switchbacks to go over the Ballynultagh Gap and down to Lacken. It is a testing wee climb so late on the route but it is on a very scenic and quiet road. Plus it cuts out half of Lake Drive that people found such tough going every year.

The route changes have added less than 100m of climbing to the total route and will be a nice change/challenge for those that have completed the Reservoir Dog Sportive before. Water stops will be located at Kippure gates and close to Ballysmutton Bridge.


We think that riders will enjoy the revised route! Anyway, there is only one way to find out


https://ridewithgps.com/routes/30243387

Great event!, the bottle of beer and burger after the event goes down well

Mercian Pro

If you only do one sportif this year, this is the one to do. If you do lots, this will be the best. Great route, marshalling, food, drink and a friendly welcome. What more could you want?

The Noble Nudge

Mercian Pro wrote: »

If you only do one sportif this year, this is the one to do. If you do lots, this will be the best. Great route, marshalling, food, drink and a friendly welcome. What more could you want?

Two or three bottles of a beer :P

dahat

Definitely considering this as end of season craic and suffering.

9am start means two nights accommodation though.

Is it pre registration only?

gmacww

That horrible first real climb as your turn left after coming out of kilbride is gone which is great however I'm not sure everyone will be thankful of the left turn climbing out of Ballysmutten when the legs are hanging off you On the plus side. You will have a decent descent to get back some energy before finishing off the lakes.

Corker1

gmacww wrote: »

That horrible first real climb as your turn left after coming out of kilbride is gone which is great however I'm not sure everyone will be thankful of the left turn climbing out of Ballysmutten when the legs are hanging off you On the plus side. You will have a decent descent to get back some energy before finishing off the lakes.

Well it is The Reservoir Dog! We couldn't go taking one climb out without replacing it further on. Folk are expecting a challenge afterall . Chopping off the top of Ballysmutton climb and taking out half of Lake Drive balances things out nicely we think. Having ridden the new route recently I think it is superior to the previous editions.....And I'm a clapped out ould fart!:D

Corker1

dahat wrote: »

Definitely considering this as end of season craic and suffering.

9am start means two nights accommodation though.

Is it pre registration only?

Yes. It is pre - registration only. And booking fast!

smacl

Hmmm, totally out of shape and have done very few long spins in the last couple of years but thoroughly enjoyed this a few years back so what the hell. 125k booked so need to lose some serious poundage and get some hills in by legs if I'm going to haul my fat ass up Cunard and over the gap a couple of times.

silverharp

that looks savage, i'd be in shape for the mileage but the amount of climbing looks harsh

ofthelord

I just signed up to do this again, I did it last year and thought it was a very good day out - it was very well organised and had a few nice hills!

It'll be a good incentive to get out more on the hills over the next couple of months so I can hope to fly around on the day...

Macy0161

Less Lake Drive - I'm in!

Corker1

Macy0161 wrote: »

Less Lake Drive - I'm in!

We were acting on your feedback Macy :D

LennoxR

Hmm, I think overall, it's harder, that climb at the end, over Sorrell Hill is significantly tougher than the whole lake drive! And you've still got most of the lake drive. But yeah I still think I'll do it. Enjoyed it last year so...

Wishbone Ash

In!

Corker1

Just a quick heads up for anyone planning to take part in the Reservoir Dog Sportive on September 15th. We are Three weeks out from the event and we have filled most of the available places. We only have about 45 spots remaining as of midnight. We are not trying to do the hard sell on this but I would not like any Boardsies to miss out on taking part if you have been holding back on pulling the trigger on entering. Especially as we are online entry only this year and it will not be possible to just rock up on the day. I hope every Boards rider who wants to take part manages to bag a place. Cheers

Borderfox

I have a good load from Dunshaughlin signed up for the 65km, doing the Peter mc Verry the day before so will be a good weekends biking!!

jamesd

Where is the nearest camp site to the starting location ?

dastardly00

Just signed up for the 125 km


*gulp* :pac:

Corker1

jamesd wrote: »

Where is the nearest camp site to the starting location ?

Hi James's. The nearest official camp ground to the event is Moat Farm Caravan and Camp site in Donard village. This is located about 15km South of the start / finish. I spoke to Nuala who runs it and they have spaces available for 14th & 15th Sept.. they officially close after the 14th but will accommodate on 15th if required. Checkout link: https://www.camping-ireland.ie/parks/wicklow/moat-farm-caravan-camping-park

Contact Nuala on 045 404727.

The next nearest site is Camac Valley in Dublin 22. Which is 23km north of us.

jamesd

Corker1 wrote: »

Hi James's. The nearest official camp ground to the event is Moat Farm Caravan and Camp site in Donard village. This is located about 15km South of the start / finish. I spoke to Nuala who runs it and they have spaces available for 14th & 15th Sept.. they officially close after the 14th but will accommodate on 15th if required. Checkout link: https://www.camping-ireland.ie/parks/wicklow/moat-farm-caravan-camping-park

Contact Nuala on 045 404727.

The next nearest site is Camac Valley in Dublin 22. Which is 23km north of us.

Thanks very much for checking that, no to convince the wife and kids for a weekend away in the campervan .

jamesd

Signed up, will cycle in that morning.

magicbastarder

Weepsie wrote: »

Is anyone driving to this from Glasnevin direction with space for another plus bike?

couple of things make me wary about tackling something like this.
one, i've only ever done one other sportive.
two; what's it like to drive a car after having banjaxed yourself for hours on end up mountains?

triggermortis

I’ve done the last 3 and hoping to do it again this year.

AxleAddict

magicbastarder wrote: »

couple of things make me wary about tackling something like this.
one, i've only ever done one other sportive.
two; what's it like to drive a car after having banjaxed yourself for hours on end up mountains?

I can only vouch for the 125km route and, in my opinion, its certainly well up there with some of the tough (but rewarding) routes over that distance. Irrespective of how many sportives you've done it'll be your overall fitness level
and how regularly you ride hilly routes which will ultimately dictate what sort of a day you have in the saddle. This'll be my fourth time taking part and it's become a firm fixture in my annual sportive calendar - it's well organised and numbers seem to have increased year-on-year, which is a good sign. I'm no speed demon on the hills (being ~95kg doesn't help!) - but I get out on the bike once, or maybe twice a week - it is tough but do-able for me. In previous years, the climbing started fairly early into the route - bit of a shock to the system if you hadn't studied the route before setting off - I think with the tweaks which have been made to this years route, the first climb might be a little later and more gentle - I'm looking forward to the updated route - for a bit of variety and a new challenge. Bring it on!

As for driving after an event such as this - well, when I had just started out cycling (2016) and taking part in events like these I did feel a bit of pain on my right knee just keeping the pressure on the accelerator for long periods of time - as time progressed and I got stronger, this lessened - cruise-control and mostly motorway driving helped too :P

The Noble Nudge

magicbastarder wrote: »

couple of things make me wary about tackling something like this.
one, i've only ever done one other sportive.
two; what's it like to drive a car after having banjaxed yourself for hours on end up mountains?

How does one become a cycling mod with only 1 sportive under the belt?:eek:

magicbastarder

sheer sex appeal is what they told me.

Macy0161

magicbastarder wrote: »

two; what's it like to drive a car after having banjaxed yourself for hours on end up mountains?

It's not a race, so don't completely banjax yourself! Also, plenty of time to recover with a burger and a brew, even if you can't partake in the Mont beer on site!

The Noble Nudge

magicbastarder wrote: »

sheer sex appeal is what they told me.

:pac::pac:

You now have to do it Magic... Corker look after that man with a good discount keeping all us safe on here

Just signed up. June was my first time out on the bike in a year, and I've only done about 300km in total so far this summer.

I look forward to struggling massively in a couple of weeks time.

Corker1

Borderfox wrote: »

I have a good load from Dunshaughlin signed up for the 65km, doing the Peter mc Verry the day before so will be a good weekends biking!!

Excellent. I took a look at the online entries and see you guys have nearly 20 riders signed up. Fair play. You have a great weekend of biking lined up alright. I hope the Pup rounds it off nicely.

Corker1

Dónal wrote: »

Just signed up. June was my first time out on the bike in a year, and I've only done about 300km in total so far this summer.

I look forward to struggling massively in a couple of weeks time.

Well Donal you still have time to double your 2019 mileage BEFORE the Dog. Put in a few hard sessions on the bike over the next 10-12 days and it will stand to you on the day. Just give yourself a few days easy recovery before the 15th.
Pace yourself on the Day. The Pup is also an option for sure. It's a tough fecker of a 65km circuit. And there are always bail out options on the 125km route if you are on a bad day. But hey, just make sure you enjoy the day and don't burst yourself.

The Noble Nudge

Weepsie wrote: »

We could go around with yellow cards and wave them at people

At every corner...
:)

Cant post the image..darn it

lochdara

signed up for the 65km again this year. its enough for me. the first big hill was a killer for me last year. This year i am fitter ( a bit) and lighter ( a bit) so i am looking forward to taking that one on. I have been looking forward to it as it was so well organised last year.

koutoubia

I believe a good crew from VCB are going down including myself and most of the RAI animals riders.

Epitaph

How long typically would the Pup take, for a reasonably fit weekend rider? Am on the clock that day!

Epitaph

Epitaph wrote: »

How long typically would the Pup take, for a reasonably fit weekend rider? Am on the clock that day!

3 hours cycling time would be grand @ 22 kph. I did the first 40km of the Pup this morning in about 1 hour 45 mins - had never been up the Dowery before, great route up that way.

Corker1

Epitaph wrote: »

How long typically would the Pup take, for a reasonably fit weekend rider? Am on the clock that day!

Donal's estimate of about 3 hours riding time sounds about right to me. It might only be 65km but there is well over 800 metres of climbing along the way. Also allow a few minutes for the food stop at Lacken. Thanks for signing up and enjoy your day on the 15th.

Corker1

]

koutoubia wrote: »

I believe a good crew from VCB are going down including myself and most of the RAI animals riders.

Looking forward to seeing you on the 15th. Always a great turnout from the VCB crew at the Dog . And big Kudos all round on the RAI.

Corker1

lochdara wrote: »

signed up for the 65km again this year. its enough for me. the first big hill was a killer for me last year. This year i am fitter ( a bit) and lighter ( a bit) so i am looking forward to taking that one on. I have been looking forward to it as it was so well organised last year.

Thanks Lochdara. Yes that first hill the Dowry is a rude awakening for the legs (and lungs) but it sounds like you should have it licked this year. Pace yourself and above all enjoy the Pup on the 15th.

Corker1

Online entry has now closed for The Reservoir Dog 2019. Thanks to all of you who have signed up and we look forward to hosting you on September 15th. Cheers.

magicbastarder

pity it wasn't on sept 14th, you might have had a few people looking to sell their entries.

triggermortis

Dammit. I’m away on holiday and forgot about registering.. I did the last 3 and was looking forward to this. Ah well, next year then ☹️

LennoxR

Any lifts going out on the morning from Dublin? Will pay for petrol money!

Mercian Pro

Setting new standards for sportif signage - details of climbs, opt-out points, etc. Well done Corker & Co.