Anyone here ride sportives?

Different strokes and all that. I have found the Sportives I have done to be great fun, whether riding with some mates or getting out on the road and finding a group of a similar pace.

Yep, I could ride 100miles on a Sunday and not pay anything, but I don't unless it is arranged for me. It is too easy to cancel (or have Mrs SB cancel for me) something I have not paid for!

Met a chap lying on the floor by the side of the road once - his shoe/pedal interface had gone all wrong and he couldn't unclip. Spent a few minutes unbolting his cleat and then fixed it and rode back together although he was a far quicker cyclist than me. Took us about 20 miles to question why he had not just taken his foot out of his shoe...

See all sorts of bikes, mainly serious roadie types, but not necessarily. I got a lot less precious about it after watching a fully knobbly MTB'er overtake our roadie chaingang on a Majorca training camp. He was a fit boy!

Doing my first sportive The Hell Of The Ashdown, riding it Retro.

I have done a few Audaxs in the past, did a 400 and a 600 BITD they get to a point where it is simple a matter of who can keep peddaling, and theres nothing quite like watching some one drop back then ride into a hedge as they fall asleep, or even pick up the pace then ride into a hedge.

I've done a couple though not retro. And yes, they are expensive - the Autumn Epic was good in terms of information, food and back up on the day. I hope to do it again next year.

Are any of these things as good as they seem to be in your mind when you decide to enter on a Saturday night after 1 too many merlots and a night spent surfing the forums?

If you want to do a decent sportive then save your money and head across to France. If you pick one of the national (BRS) events you will have a fantastic day, they are without doubt the best organised events that I have ever done, police and civilian motorcycle outriders, closed roads, electronic transponders for accurate timing, a decent meal with wine(this is France) afterwards, a diploma, prizes, goody bags etc.Fantastic.