The Reservoir Dog Sportive 2018

gmacww · 05-09-2018 11:13am

One thing about the Dog/Pup that I'd like to highlight as I think it deserves a mention. Many who did the event this year may have noticed the sustainable drive behind it. Encouragement of car pooling or cycling to the start. I cycled to the start myself but then again I live in Blessington so not that far

but it goes beyond that.

Corker1 of this parish is the main organiser of this event so any praise should be directed his way but let me just post this up which was put up on the Blessington tidy towns forum. As an environmentalist I love this approach and I think all sportives should share this vision (maybe they do already) of how an event should be done.

"...And the event was run in a sustainable manner. Compostable Cups were used for tea/coffees, Glasses made from plant extracts instead of plastic for the cold drinks at the food stops, some of the food wrappers/packaging were biodegradable, and plastic usage for water stops was cut down by about 80%. And the paper and cardboard packaging all taken away for recycling today. Great job!"

Add to this the litter swap stand where by I was given a goodie bag because I held onto my rubbish and binned it at the end.

rollingscone · 05-09-2018 11:53am

gmacww wrote: »

One thing about the Dog/Pup that I'd like to highlight as I think it deserves a mention. Many who did the event this year may have noticed the sustainable drive behind it. Encouragement of car pooling or cycling to the start. I cycled to the start myself but then again I live in Blessington so not that far but it goes beyond that.

Corker1 of this parish is the main organiser of this event so any praise should be directed his way but let me just post this up which was put up on the Blessington tidy towns forum. As an environmentalist I love this approach and I think all sportives should share this vision (maybe they do already) of how an event should be done.

"...And the event was run in a sustainable manner. Compostable Cups were used for tea/coffees, Glasses made from plant extracts instead of plastic for the cold drinks at the food stops, some of the food wrappers/packaging were biodegradable, and plastic usage for water stops was cut down by about 80%. And the paper and cardboard packaging all taken away for recycling today. Great job!"

Add to this the litter swap stand where by I was given a goodie bag because I held onto my rubbish and binned it at the end.

I'm from Blessington but had a 30km spin to the start...

;-p

Weepsie · 05-09-2018 12:32pm

I think I'll be taking a car pool next year!

mgbgt0_0 · 06-09-2018 3:45pm

AxleAddict wrote: »

Top notch photos as per usual - especially those taken at Glenmacnass waterfall, looking out over the valley. Whilst I was sifting through them I spotted one or two photos of what looked like some sort of Viking longship - where was this located - don't recall seeing it on my way around the 125km route (and mind you I did spend a fair amount of time looking around me as I cycled along!)

Glad you liked my pictures.

That was Lough Tay where they are filming Vikings.

Daroxtar · 06-09-2018 3:49pm

terrydel wrote: »

Haha, keep plugging away and you might!
Feel free to follow me. What time did you manage?

51.13, nearly 2 minutes off my best. I'm holding out for a southerly gale

Borderfox · 06-09-2018 3:52pm

mgbgt0_0 wrote: »

AxleAddict wrote: »

Top notch photos as per usual - especially those taken at Glenmacnass waterfall, looking out over the valley. Whilst I was sifting through them I spotted one or two photos of what looked like some sort of Viking longship - where was this located - don't recall seeing it on my way around the 125km route (and mind you I did spend a fair amount of time looking around me as I cycled along!)

Glad you liked my pictures.

That was Lough Tay where they are filming Vikings.

Superb pictures Derek, many thanks. Nice to meet you in person too

Corker1 · 07-09-2018 12:17am

The dust is now settling on our fourth edition of the Reservoir Dog Sportive last Sunday 2nd September. This was the biggest turnout on this Sportive and numbers were up 30% compared to previous years. Thank you for supporting our event. We were fortunate to have fantastic weather conditions on the day. We hope you enjoyed your participation in the Reservoir Dog and had the best possible experience. We certainly enjoyed hosting you all. And it was great to meet so many Reservoir Dog 'regulars' on the day. Our ethos is to look after riders to the best of our ability.

We have been selected by Cycling Ireland to participate in an online survey that they are conducting to gauge Sportive rider satisfaction and experiences. If you wish to give your feedback on the Reservoir Dog Sportive please see the attached link.

Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LYBL687

We are already working on next year's event and hope that you can join us again in September 2019.

Kind Regards - Yours in Cycling,

Reservoir Cogs Cycling Club.

terrydel · 07-09-2018 2:13pm

Daroxtar wrote: »

51.13, nearly 2 minutes off my best. I'm holding out for a southerly gale

I'll pace you up it some day!
Its a soul destroying slog with the wrong wind.

Mercian Pro · 08-09-2018 8:25pm

Corker1 wrote: »

We have been selected by Cycling Ireland to participate in an online survey that they are conducting to gauge Sportive rider satisfaction and experiences. If you wish to give your feedback on the Reservoir Dog Sportive please see the attached link.

Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LYBL687

Didn't make the Dog this year as I was away but, from reading the comments, it looks like it continues to improve. Bizarrely it didn't feature in Cycling Ireland's awards last year but, with lots of positive responses to the survey, that should be rectified this year.

Muahahaha · 09-09-2018 7:38pm

Can I ask why many are not fans of Lake Drive? Is the surface gone really bad or something?

rollingscone · 09-09-2018 8:03pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Can I ask why many are not fans of Lake Drive? Is the surface gone really bad or something?

Hitting it after a 100km and just under 2000m of elevation transforms the experience.

LennoxR · 09-09-2018 9:55pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Can I ask why many are not fans of Lake Drive? Is the surface gone really bad or something?

It's just tough. All up and down. It's a decent spin to do the loop on its own, or with a roll out from Dublin up and back. Scenic and challenging.

But doing it after 100 odd km and 1500 m of climbing beforehand can hurt.

Paul_Mc1988 · 09-09-2018 10:02pm

Lads in all honesty the roads around the lake are in ****e after the snow this year. Pot holes everywhere. The main point that was made repeatedly at the tour de foothills was to watch around the lake.

Got three punctures around it on one day this year. Which is bad as iv only ever had one apart from that day. Reservoir does less around the lake than the tour which is probably why yous thought it in decent shape.

Borderfox · 10-09-2018 5:46am

Combination of bad surface and a lot of short sharp kick ups make Lake Drive a pita

secman · 10-09-2018 7:57am

Lake drive spin is good for the soul

Borderfox · 10-09-2018 8:00am

secman wrote: »

Lake drive spin is good for the soul :)

In a car!!

terrydel · 10-09-2018 11:43am

Borderfox wrote: »

In a car!!

It has a reputation that far outweighs the reality!

Borderfox · 10-09-2018 12:00pm

In the tour of the foothill,s lake drive claimed three punctures one broken rear Zonda and a split vredestein tyre all in one sitting

Muahahaha · 10-09-2018 12:11pm

Thanks for the info, had been planning on doing a lap of the lake soon so was wondering about what it is like. Ive driven it a bit but never cycled it. Does anyone know the approx distance of a full lap and approx how long it takes? And which direction to do it in or does it matter?

marvin42 · 10-09-2018 12:21pm

I seriously thought the lake drive that it might be just a relaxed and flat rolling home, just as you would expect from 99% of other lake roads....Anyway, I removed the 11-36 cassette and changed back to the road cassette. The cassette gets a rest till the 2019 dog, but might need another bike :-) Steel frame seems NOT to be the best choice for the dog....

Borderfox · 10-09-2018 12:28pm

marvin42 wrote: »

The 11-36 is gonna have a rest till the 2019 dog

Mine was whipped off pronto along with the 46-30

terrydel · 10-09-2018 2:04pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Thanks for the info, had been planning on doing a lap of the lake soon so was wondering about what it is like. Ive driven it a bit but never cycled it. Does anyone know the approx distance of a full lap and approx how long it takes? And which direction to do it in or does it matter?

My house is kinda on it and I can do a lap that is 25-26kms, so its about that.

Muahahaha · 10-09-2018 3:26pm

Thanks terry. Do you have a preference in which direction to go around it at all?

terrydel · 10-09-2018 10:33pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Thanks terry. Do you have a preference in which direction to go around it at all?

Personally find it harder going from valleymount to Lacken direction as opposed to the opposite way if that makes sense.

Muahahaha · 10-09-2018 11:06pm

yeah that makes sense, anti-clockwise the easier direction.

secman · 10-09-2018 11:14pm

Muahahaha wrote: »

Thanks terry. Do you have a preference in which direction to go around it at all?

My preference is valleymount to Lacken, not that I think it's harder or easier, just prefer it. Did Lacken to Valleymount about 6 weeks ago just for a change, I'll be sticking to the other way. I seem to be in the minority , always liked the lake drive bar the very first one i ever did about July 1990 .

terrydel · 11-09-2018 9:27am

secman wrote: »

My preference is valleymount to Lacken, not that I think it's harder or easier, just prefer it. Did Lacken to Valleymount about 6 weeks ago just for a change, I'll be sticking to the other way. I seem to be in the minority , always liked the lake drive bar the very first one i ever did about July 1990 .

I'm the first white house on the left just after the turn after the valleymount bridge , I'll keep an eye out for ya!

Corker1 · 11-09-2018 5:53pm

secman wrote: »

My preference is valleymount to Lacken, not that I think it's harder or easier, just prefer it. Did Lacken to Valleymount about 6 weeks ago just for a change, I'll be sticking to the other way. I seem to be in the minority , always liked the lake drive bar the very first one i ever did about July 1990 .

You are not alone Secman. I prefer the anti-clockwise loop from Valleymount to Lacken too. Seeing as I start in Blessington it gives me a chance to warm up the legs before hitting the hills before Ballyknocken. Despite a lot of folks not loving Lake Drive I find it a nice scenic road with some good training intervals along the way. Being only a 25km circuit means if you just have a spare hour you can be out and back and still feel like you have had a workout. Though I appreciate that at the end of the Dog it must seem to go on for ever.

gmacww · 12-09-2018 8:48am

Corker1 wrote: »

Despite a lot of folks not loving Lake Drive I find it a nice scenic road with some good training intervals along the way. Being only a 25km circuit means if you just have a spare hour you can be out and back and still feel like you have had a workout. Though I appreciate that at the end of the Dog it must seem to go on for ever.

Corker1 you know me so you know I love the lake spin. It's a beautiful cycle and a really good/hard training route if you've limited time. Tagged onto the end of the dog however it's a completely different experience. Even for people like us who know it like the back of our hand. At that stage it's a battle with your mind and body. Widows peak feels like everest and Ballyknockan feels like it's twice as steep as cunard. Once you turn right at the T and head for Valleymount the wave of relief that washes over you is quite something.

Corker1 · 05-01-2019 1:38am

Happy New year All. Just an early heads up that the 2019 Reservoir Dog Sportive has been confirmed for Sunday 15th September. We had originally intended to run it on 1st September but venue / foodstop availabilty and other sporting event clashes made us settle on mid September. Keep an eye out over the next few weeks for relaunched website, eventpage and online entry link etc. Thanks Folks.

The Reservoir Dog Sportive 2018

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