Dragon Ride Pirate Party

So is anyone else interested in this, its a bit of a read but persist to the end.

http://forums.cyclingweekly.co.uk/showthread.php?13119-Dragon-ballot

Regards
Tony

Hi Tony.
To be honest I have been thinking that these sportives are becoming a bit of a rip off for a couple of years. If you look back to where they started, ie on the continent, it was because they didn`t really have road races for people at our level. The sportives WERE their road races with definite winners, times published and even prizes. They really only started here after people rode some of the European ones including the Etape. I find that the majority of riders are not usually in organised clubs and that these events give them a chance to ride with others and "race". Some of my colleages at work refer to them as races, until I encourage them to join a club, get a licence, and have a proper go. One of the attractions of sportives is the "Lovely Route" which the organiser has marked out and the "Refreshments" provided. I can`t help feeling that most clubs can work out "Fantastic Routes" and what`s wrong with stopping at village stores to stock up. What I`m trying to say is why not just work out a route, car share to wherever it starts and just ride it as a clubrun?
If you should go the "Pirate Route" I think it is really important NOT to join in at the feed stations as this would amount to stealing. I rode the Hampshire Hilly Hundred last year (but not officially), I just used small shops to buy food and I had the added bonus of starting at the point nearest to home. I must admit that I did follow some nice arrows stuck on telegraph poles but they would have been there whether I was or not. I had a good day out and could still compare my "time" with the official ones.