going by our successful overnighters, it seems the best thing to do is get a small group of mates to commit then anyone else that comes along is a bonus.
this has meant some of our trips have just been 3-4 of us, but we got decent numbers on the Port Albert and the Point Lonsdale one.
lyndon’s brewery rides are a good example, he puts them on regardless of numbers it seems.
Having no wife and no kids, I would’ve been in for this had I been in Melbs or it be in Sydney.
$50 is cheaper than all the shit I’d need to haul my own gear, and I wouldn’t use it often enough to make the money worthwhile.
Sad to hear it didnt go ahead.
For me its because its a long weekend. I took Friday off and am going on a Grampians climbing trip thursday to saturday, followed by an earlier commitment this saturday night.
Have all the camping gear etcetera and would have been super keen but just wrong timing.
On a regular weekend i would have skipped climbing for this but i took a day of leave so i could go out for three days straight.
Lack of camping gear plus I kind of had plans made it a no go for me. If there was to be another one organised with a little more notice (and didn’t clash with any weekend races I want to do) I’d be in for sure.
ok, this is all good stuff and i appreciate the responses, so thanks for that.
the main points i’ve got are:
1 - not enough notice/long weekend
this idea has been kicking around for a while now, and i was actually surprised when i looked back at the actual date this thread was started, i think i genuinely felt like it’d been in the public sphere a lot longer than it had. obviously there was a fair bit of pre-planning behind the scenes before it was made public.
that said, to some extent i didn’t want to put it too far into the future as people forget about it or it creeps up on them. plus the weather isn’t getting any better.
but i accept the short notice was a factor.
i’m kinda surprised the long weekend was a negative, but maybe that is due to the above time factor. personally i love the fact that i can do all the boring domestic duties this thursday/friday and still get a rad weekend.
2 - No gear/too hard basket
again, this is an issue due to the lack of notice.
3 - Family commitments/other events
this will also be a factor, family is the most important thing to pretty much everyone, and with young parents on here i totally understand that. i can’t really foresee that, but that’s life.
other events can be navigated to an extent though. i knew tour of south west was on but, perhaps incorrectly, assumed racer types may not be particularly interested anyway. this was dumb. but melbourne being the way it is, there’s always going to be clashes. the show n shine/fyxo event are good examples of when this can work, but perhaps not when it’s solely one or the other.
4 - Outline of cost/value for money
i suppose the lack of info on this was that the actual physical things you would’ve received for this event is pretty minimal. someone to carry your bags, a pretty sketchy map, a campsite and a BBQ. the majority of the cost was for the time taken to organise the entire event, from creating the ticketing process right down to estimating the fuel costs for markee’s van and taking the time out of my weekend to buy the bbq supplies etc. i suppose this comes down to what people feel my time is worth (and i imagine this will vary greatly), but i do get a small wage from FOA/NSP/nickj to try and make these things a success, and i assure you it’s less than what i feel my time is worth in the week leading up to these events.
5 - Weekend with strangers/not #campvibes
well, yeah, this is one of those things that will be extremely personal for those attending. i’m a pretty extroverted guy in a situation like this, so i’m cool with it, but i completely understand many others wouldn’t be. hell, we all know each other through an online bike forum…
but we’re trying to make this a fun way for people to get into cycling as well as maybe meet some new people for a regular ride, so it’s gotta be open to the public, otherwise it becomes (to quote someone on rotorburn when hearing of the show n shine) “one big hipster circle jerk”
aaaaaaaaaaaanyway, i hope that didn’t come across as one big whine or defensive post about why it didn’t work, i just thought people may appreciate the insight from this side of the fence.
this post is also for me to review when we do look at doing this again.
cheers everyone, please continue to contribute if there is more that needs to be added.
Not wanting to sound like a tight arse, but do this items add up to $50?
More than you get for your $50 from andyfyxo atmo.
i honestly hate long weekends, esp those that are a public holiday on a tues/thurs and ppl make it a 4 day weekend.
every long weekend throughout the year i have 2 or 3 annual events on that i need to choose which one i commit myself to, normally 8-12 months prior. i will then always get an invite to another couple of events…
fuck having a social life!
delete this if you want mods, just long weekends really do irk me!
I wouldn’t want to risk the high opinions I have of your internet personas being shattered by what you might be like in real life.
They add up to $50 if you don’t have a suitable bike, rack and panniers.
I am pretty dissappointed this fell short (for now).
Helping Rolly organise this and seeding the idea/route (albeit fully self supported but open invitation) I envisaged a bit more take up, but I think I am little biased being a keen tourer.
Lots of people I know talk about bike touring/camping but never quite suss it.
Also being someone who has always had tent/mat/bag I guess I underestimated the number of people on here who would be prepared if even with basic ‘festival/car camping’ gear.
The responses are interesting and valid and hopefully we’ll suss it better for next time.
The whole “I’ll go if I know other people going” is a tricky one and I don’t really know a way around it - I have noticed Melbourne being a bit chronic for this, people waiting till the last minute to commit just in case something better comes up…
are you kidding, we’re all heaps cooler in real life.
except for maybe Blakey. he’s a dick.
FOMOOABO
(fear of missing out… on a better offer)
This,
and a lot funnier. i know its hard to top mckenny’s posts but mckenny in real life wins.
And Fomooabo to you Blakey…
It is ironic as often they end up missing on cool stuff out due to this. (that’s irony right?)
did you read my post H?
I acknowledge those items may not add up to $50, but the value lies in having someone organise your entire weekend for you. whether you see the value in that is entirely personal and impossible to predict.
to give you perspective, I went to the Beaufort last Saturday with over $100 in my back pocket. woke up with $5 and a hangover. was a fucking great night, but a very easy way to blow twice what this event is costing each participant.
are you a fan or ms morrisette?
Maybe start small? ie those who have the gear and actually want to/will go/have been
Take heaps of pics/video rapha style
Post pics/vid in the next event you organise so people can see how cool/fun/awesome it can be?
heh
IT’S LIKE RAAAAAAAAAIN
ON YOUR SHIRTLESS TORSO
(i can do this all day)
its like ten thousand pants when all you need is a shirt