Virgin Money Cyclone

Rated Event: 66.667%

chattaway14 wrote:

the start is chaotic and poorly organised
the marshalling at the first major road junction less than 400m from the start was non existant
the feed stations were good but require a one way system
the timings chips are the most annoying i have ever used. a lot of sportives are using "ride through" systems with micro chipped single use stickers/numbers
the course is outstanding the hills are a challenge
the goody bag is ok and it is good to receive a t-shirt for your entry fee
when is there going to be a cycling jersey designed to purchase?

Rated Event: 86.667%

StevieClark wrote:

Great day out with fellow cyclists, most marshalls were excellent, very good route with enough challenging climbs.
My only gripe would be the need for a secure left baggage area.

Rated Event: 66.667%

norm wrote:

well organised and scenic ride, nice goodybag, no problem registering on the morning and got away quite quickly considering the amount of riders.feedstops had water, gio bars,banannas and bottles of powerade. parts of the ride are quite remote but there were no marshalls or any sort of help other than at the start/finish. also.. and i know this has nothing to do with the organisation or anything but i have never seen so many riders on the side of the road with flats.... and the ryals are overated !!

Rated Event: 81.111%

AlasdairScott wrote:

Brill event, as a novice i found it easy to follow the route, feed stations well stocked,
route a challenge but gives a goal to improve time next year.

Rated Event: 72.222%

wrote:

nice route, feedstations well spaced out, but you should,nt have to stop at every one, i didnt missed out last one, no need to stop only 12 mile to go. Local country roads were bad in places large pot holes and lots of gravel, no marshals on really bad stretches which was poor imo only. will i be back maybe do the 63 miler so as not to ride on so many bad roads (and before anybody comments i know we had flash floods 2 days before).

Rated Event: 65.556%

funkymrmagic wrote:

I was originally signed up for the 104 mile ride, but given limited time on the day, I opted for the 63 mile ride instead. The ride itself was enjoyable, but I felt that there were a number of small niggles that made the event less successful than it could have been.

Firstly, the timing system required you to be manually registered at each stop. A marshal/helper had to swipe your chip in order for this to occur. It was a bit of a pain, and also made for some interesting scrum-like situations at the earlier feed station.

Signage was small and ambiguous. In fairness, I should probably have read the rider manual more thoroughly before riding, but it's the kind of thing that it would be prudent to re-emphasise on the line. Having nothing but a black, blue or green arrow (and at times, all three) makes it difficult. I had to ask another rider at Forestburngate to clarify which was which. There were no signs to warn traffic that an event was going on, and there were no marshals anywhere other than at the feed stops.

I got the impression that a lot of the staff/marshals/helpers were not really that bothered about cycling. That obviously isn't a criticism, but you can always tell when people are more involved in promoting an event. I saw people texting/talking on mobile phones and at the end of the ride the marshal looked right at us, before looking down at the ground, leaving me and a companion to right to the wrong entrance.

Beyond that, the ride was very enjoyable. The weather was kind aside from a block headwind over the middle 20 miles when I was largely riding solo. The roads were quiet and I think whomever put the route together should be applauded for putting together a number of well thought-out options.

Rated Event: 92.222%

LindyEdwards wrote:

Definitely my favourite sportive. Good variety of climbs, from the long and hard to the short, sharp and hard! Beautiful countryside and great organisation.

Rated Event: 88.889%

eamon wrote:

Well organised. Challenging route especially from Billsmoor to Wark

Rated Event: 100.000%

martin anderson wrote:

Yet again Peter and his team pulled off a fantastic sportive this year, but also put on one of the best weekends of British cycling from the Friday night Crits in the city centre to the finale on Sunday with Wiggins on the podium at Stamfordham.

Rated Event: 97.778%

mcgarr wrote:

Fantastic weekend for cycling. Not only the excellent Sportive on Saturday but watching the professionals on the Friday at Leazes Park and then again on Sunday at Stanfordham. The Cyclone weekend is very well organised and friendly beyond compare.

Rated Event: 98.889%

wrote:

A fantastic event that I always look forward to riding. Highly-professional organisation, great support and a beautiful route. The only recommendation for improvement that I can think of would be if they introduced timing chips that you attach to the bike rather than ones on a lanyard. Already looking forward to 2012!

Rated Event: 95.556%

brianthesnail wrote:

One of the best run mass participation sportive events in the country. Perhaps though, now too many riders at the the start and early part of the course. Not helped by riders for the shorter rides starting before their allotted time. Organisers seriously need to look at the time set for the Gold standard. 5 hours 40 minutes is way too hard a target to set. I managed last year but not this year, not helped by the fact that indicated mileage on GPS was 107.4 and not 104 miles. The fact that only 8 riders out of 1260 made the standard speaks volumes. And, only other real criticism would be to the lack of shower facilities at the end. I had access to showers last year but not this year.

Rated Event: 86.667%

wrote:

I didn't like the fact you had to stop at every feed station and swipe your timing card!!

Rated Event: 100.000%

wrote:

In my opinion this is the UK's premier cyclosportive. Event staff are professional, organization of the event is second to none and the routes are beautiful and challenging. This really sets the standard for other events and organizers in the UK.

Rated Event: 94.350%

norrie wrote:

Rated Event: 86.580%

wrote:

good event beautiful countryside and v friendy staff, bit odd havin feed station on a decent but hey ho!!. will b back next year

Rated Event: 82.140%

wrote:

Other than the above exceptions, I really enjoyed taking part in this, my first ever sportive. It was without doubt the most physically challenging thing I've ever done (I did the 63 mike event), but with lots more training I'm hoping to do next years 100 mile event.

Rated Event: 91.020%

wrote:

This was my first Cyclone (and only my second sportive, after riding the Dragon Ride the previous weekend). I thoroughly enjoyed it, and found the organization of Peter Harrison and his team to be excellent throughout. The 104 mile route traversed varied and beautiful scenery (wish I had more time to enjoy it), and included a good mix of climbs that were testing without being gratuitous. The ride had just about as many participants as the Dragon Ride, but the atmosphere felt rather different. The Cyclone seems to sample from a broader spectrum of the riding community, and has a more fun-and-friendly feel. Car parking at Kingston Park was no problem at all (I arrived just before 7am, and was among the first to arrive), and most ride services at the start/finish were very good. Big exception: woefully inadequate toilet facilities for an event of this size. Big pluses: showers in players' changing rooms; £5 massages to relieve tired muscles. Route-marking was excellent throughout, and there were almost no traffic lights or dodgy street crossings. The wrist-band timing system was a bit annoying - if you registered the previous evening then you had to sleep with it on, and at every feed stop you had to have somebody insert the timing device into a little box. The instant results at the end was a nice feature. Most feedstops had good supplies of basics, though the first stop at 24 miles was oddly positioned half-way down a sweeping descent. Towards the end riders from the long ride were rejoining those from the shorter rides, and everybody seemed to be having a good day out. An excellent event, and a good choice for a newcomer.

Rated Event: 72.150%

wrote:

Overall I liked the Cyclone. I did the 63 mile route. The parking was a bit nightmarish, so I went to the park and ride one and a half miles away and used the distance as a warm up and warm down. I believe many who parked on the verges got parking tickets despite an email warning them to be careful where to park.

The first 2 miles was on a busy road section which I didn't like, after that it was Northumberland countryside almost all the way. First feeding station was packed with riders, I was dismayed to find no bananas, so eat a geobar which I didn't like as nuts and oats stick to my dry throat easily. The energy drink was good.

The route was good and fairly hard, however the Ryals were a bit overrated and even I managed to climb it (with a bit of a struggle).

Second feed station was again packed and everything was in available. Overall there wasn't that much choice in the feedstation compared to other sportives, but I tend to bring most of my own sweets and energy drinks.

The finishing goodies were decent and will be used: a bag, t-shirt and a bottle.

Cyclists discipline was bad in many places (to be expected on a popular ride) and the rules of the road were ridiculously flouted. Many riders seemed to think the roads were closed and many car drivers seemed to get a bit frustrated.

I'll be there next year doing the longer route.

Rated Event: 87.690%

17brigham wrote:

Parking good, but I arrived early. Feed stations well spaced but could have had a bit more variety than bananas and orange energy bars. Route was excellent with good opportunities to hook on to groups for extra speed