olympics ,box hill not for the fans ,now we have to pay

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sawyer
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by sawyer

bikewithnoname wrote:
ave wrote:I hope real fans will not pay. It's just not right.

Leave the tickets for non-cyclist Cav fans.


If you want to watch Cav you'll be at the Mall, he isn't going to be anywhere but in the bunch on the Box Hill section. I guess you're not a fan...

You seem to insinuate that "real cyclists" don't pay to watch their sport? If you're a "real cyclist" in the UK you HAVE to pay to watch your sport. the Classics, Giro, Tour of California etc are only on pay TV (unless you use an illegal streaming site of course, but that's your moral dilema), or you need to travel to the continent, which wasn't free the last time I tried.

artray, you don't mind paying to fly to see races abroad but won't pay 15 quid to watch it in your backyard? really?

I'd pay £15 to see the worlds best (sort of) go past 9 times, its less than a pie and a pint in my local.

And yes I live in London, which means I pay toward the games through my council tax, and I happen to think the Olympics are a good thing, stop bitching about the cost and enjoy it.

The Road race IS FREE just not on Box Hill or the Mall, the Olympics is a business and it has been since LA, get used to it


In fairness there is a material difference between paying say £15 a month to Virgin because you need to do so to get all the "free"view channels, including Eurosport, and paying at the gate for a sport that is almost always otherwise free.

Also, the Olympics is a business of course, but the organisers ever so slightly downplay that, no?
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bikewithnoname
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by bikewithnoname

I take your point re how the olympics are being portrayed sawyer, the pre games PR has certainly not lived up to the reality and the opacity of the locog ticketing system was a huge own goal. It is clearly a profit first, people second situation, but did we honestly expect it to be any different? I mean we're dealing with politicians here!

Artray once again your diatribe is wonderfully entertaining
"We live in an age when unnecessary things are our only necessities." Oscar Wilde

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artray
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by artray

There are loads of hills in Surrey and it would have been easy as pie to alter the route and in effect not have to charge anyone. when I turned up at the mall for the test race there was no where to put our bikes . A few of my friends had wristbands for the finishing line but could not watch as they could not lock there bikes up . We ended up a bit further down at the Queens pad and watched from there . But the feedback from box hill was just as bad. If you do get a ticket and want to go on your bike where are you going to leave it ?
All Seb and his mates had to do was change the route making it easy and accessible for all to see like in France,Belgium, etc. There are some great routes in Surrey with some fantastic climbs and no need to go up and down box hill 9 times so only the same few people get to see what could be the most telling part of the race. A lot of us true fans will now miss out.

bikewithnoname
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by bikewithnoname

Now on this point I do agree with you
"We live in an age when unnecessary things are our only necessities." Oscar Wilde

Dalai
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Location: Melbourne, Australia

by Dalai

Given you can see some of the course for free is a good thing. Spectators for most of the other sports don't have that luxury. I went to the Sydney Olympics and had to pay for all the events I went to except the Triathlon, where I was able to find a spot on the barriers and watch for free.

As for your child not getting anything from the Olympics - you have additional venues. England has a limited number of velodromes, so even just adding one more is a valuable increase!

artray
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by artray

What I mean by my son not getting anything from the olympics. The olympic elite have neglected schools and the chance to get more Kids involved in sports. There has been no attempt at all to get schools in my area involved in some way .We have issues with child obesity in the uk and what an opportunity missed .Having said that with Mc Donalds one of the main sponsors maybe there happy to keep it that way.

Dalai
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Location: Melbourne, Australia

by Dalai

I wasn't aware who was sponsoring the Olympics - agreed it is ironic a fast food company being a main sponsor of a sporting event...

mrfish
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by mrfish

Dalai wrote:England has a limited number of velodromes, so even just adding one more is a valuable increase!


Not so sure this will happen - Hearne Hill velodrome in South London has been gradually starved of investment while the owner of the land, The Dulwich Estate fails to grand a decent long-term lease. No doubt Dulwich Estate's long term plan is to build houses in Hearne Hill once they can demonstrate that a new facility is available.

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53x12
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by 53x12

djconnel wrote:Is be glad they're charging because it makes it easier to get a good viewing spot. If the race is important to you the one time expense should be worth it. If not, you can still watch somewhere else, and the memory of having seen the race will be almost as valuable.



So now an event (cycling) that takes place on open public roads, with a tradition of being open to the public to view for free, we should now expect to pay? That makes absolutely no sense. So now those with money are given preferential treatment vs those who can't afford to pay to view?

It is being held on open and public roads. It should be open to all the public for free since the public pays to maintain those roads. It would be different if the even was being held in a closed stadium (which the public also pays for but at least you are paying for a seat) or on a closed race track. But this is not. It would be the same thing as trying to close down a triathlon or marathon so you had to pay to watch it. Stupid.
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artray
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by artray

+ 1

Flasher
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by Flasher

Except that Box Hill is not public it is private and owned by the National Trust, they are building stands for spectators so as not to damage the parkland. 99% of the route is free, the junction of Box Hill Rd and Headley common would be good.

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/box-hill/

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53x12
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by 53x12

^ I didn't realize Box Hill was privately owned (obviously don't live in the UK). That changes things then if that is the case. I thought that it was public property that was being closed off.
"Marginal gains are the only gains when all that's left to gain is in the margins."

artray
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by artray

The Trust own the land around Box Hill , they do not own the road . Seb and his mates would have known this and realised that there was money to be made. Like I said before, there are some fantastic roads and hills in Surrey ,They could have changed the route no problem but obviously they have done a deal with the National Trust . Both make money ,we lose out. Lets be Honest Box Hill is not Alp d' huez just a small climb that weekend warriors use. There are far more telling hills around and it would have been much more exciting than going up the same little climb 9 times .

Flasher
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by Flasher

artray wrote:The Trust own the land around Box Hill , they do not own the road . Seb and his mates would have known this and realised that there was money to be made. Like I said before, there are some fantastic roads and hills in Surrey ,They could have changed the route no problem but obviously they have done a deal with the National Trust . Both make money ,we lose out. Lets be Honest Box Hill is not Alp d' huez just a small climb that weekend warriors use. There are far more telling hills around and it would have been much more exciting than going up the same little climb 9 times .


Image

My personal opinion was that the route was announced before getting permission from the Trust, if you remember when Box Hill was first announced the trust said that there would be no viewing areas at all, obviously an agreement has been made, but I don't think it's about money, more about getting spectators to view and limiting the damage to the natural environment.

You are 100% correct when you say that there are better hills in the area, frankly Box Hill is very ordinary..................and 9 times!

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prendrefeu
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by prendrefeu

artray wrote:Lets be Honest Box Hill is not Alp d' huez just a small climb that weekend warriors use. There are far more telling hills around and it would have been much more exciting than going up the same little climb 9 times .


While I can see that you are very passionate about your stance on this, let's take a moment and analyze the course and why it was chosen.
It will take less than 5 seconds - in total - to do this.
Ready?

1. Cavendish is a rep for England (technically he's Manx, but he's considered English, rides for England, etc:.)
2. Cavendish can't climb.
3. The Olympics are in London (England)
4. Design course so Cavendish can win.

The London Olympics Road Race explained in 5 seconds.

Now, can we move on? The hill is private. The route was announced before hand, catering to hopes for a UK win in the Road Race, permission was requested to the owners of said land. Historically, 'prime viewing spots' have always been for paying VIPs (ticket or not), regardless of the race. There are plenty of other places to watch the race, and probably more than a number of places that will be far more enjoyable than a packed crowd of sweaty persons attempting to peer over each other whilst some people hunched over on bikes pass by rather quickly, all on an August day in London. Sounds like fun - if you're in your favourite pub drinking a pint at the time. Besides, declaring one particular event 'entirely free, 100% of it' would be unfair to the other events in the Olympics. Cycling is not the only sport, no matter how slanted our perspectives may be here on this forum. We are more than privileged to be able to enjoy our sport of passion for free year round: this is unique to cycling. The Olympics are not just cycling, it is one of many sports and events taking place over several weeks in and around London, let's all celebrate sport and athleticism, perhaps some national pride as well, and get over our personal gripes.
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