Открытое письмо организаторам Альпенбревета
Dear Alpenbrevet Team,
I recently finished Goldstrecke (starting number 2037), and want to thank you for the wonderful event -- by far my greatest day on the bicycle. I'm from Moscow and we don't have anything comparable, not only for lack of mountains but also for far less interest in road cycling. I've been preparing for Alpenbrevet for almost a year and I'm very satisfied with my effort, but wanted to pass along some comments and suggestions. Please keep in mind that these stem from my utmost desire to see Alpenbrevet organized as well as possible.
1. Finish zone
I crossed the finish line head down at 50 km/h, and looking up, I saw other finishers standing at the barriers just in front of me. I barely managed to stopped my bike, in total shock. Had I been a sprinter, I could have been going at 70 km/h, which is almost 20 meters per second. There was barely 30 meters from the finish line to the barriers.
You should provide a cool-down kilometer and prohibit participants from braking and stopping right after crossing the line.
I'm guessing that your reasons for this arrangement were something like this: Alpenbrevet isn't a race so there's no need to sprint; and we'd have liked to give more space but the local government did not allow to block the crossroad.
But many signs indicate that Alpenbrevet is indeed a race. Timing is kept to the accuracy of seconds, as in pro cycling, and there is a podium for winners. And most importantly, if there are just two guys in the whole field who race each other, then it's a race, and it could have ended in the final sprint to the finish.
2. Closing roads for the car traffic
My only other international experience is the Berlin Velothon, which I completed twice. They have a 114km course to the south of the city and the roads, including a part of the autobahn, are completely closed for cars.
Of course I understand that numerous secondary roads allow Berlin organizers to re-channel car traffic, plus their race is flat so it doesn't take the whole day. I'm not asking for 100% closed roads, since that would impact a very big region. But I'm sure that you should close traffic completely from the start/finish line to the Innertkirchen.
When I climbed the little hill in between I observed the following scene -- twice on a 1.7km hill: a bus struggled to pass a slow cyclist and three cars crawled behind it. And then there is the approach to the finish, where the twisting road is split by cones -- not good at all.
My guess is that you approached the local council for permission to close more roads, but weren't successful? If so, that's a shame.
3. No-timing zone between Andermatt and Wassen
I understand the need for it: lots of traffic, dangerous tunnels, construction zones. But consider the unintended side effect: I was 23rd a little while after finishing and was certain this was my final spot (of which I was proud). I checked the results again two hours later and found out that I was now 25th (still very proud). Obviously there's no rule on how much time participants can spend in the no-timing zone, which starts with a camp where you can get refreshments and relax. But it's quite clear that those two guys relaxed there for some hours and stormed the Susten as fresh as possible after 3 climbs.
I'd call such conduct unsportsmanlike. The absence of a limit on how long a participant can spend in the no-timing zone essentially splits the Alpenbrevet in two parts. The solution I think is simple: set the time limit for these 10km at 1 hour. That's still enough time to get a refreshment and ride safely, but not enough to take a nap after a big lunch.
--
Once again, I'm sending you these thoughts bearing in mind that Albenbrevet was a great event, in which it was an honor to participate. Thank you once more for organizing it, and here's hoping that each future one will be better than the last!
With Best Regards,
Fedor Bakulov
Edited by Anna Kordunsky
Впечатления на русском последуют.
I recently finished Goldstrecke (starting number 2037), and want to thank you for the wonderful event -- by far my greatest day on the bicycle. I'm from Moscow and we don't have anything comparable, not only for lack of mountains but also for far less interest in road cycling. I've been preparing for Alpenbrevet for almost a year and I'm very satisfied with my effort, but wanted to pass along some comments and suggestions. Please keep in mind that these stem from my utmost desire to see Alpenbrevet organized as well as possible.
1. Finish zone
I crossed the finish line head down at 50 km/h, and looking up, I saw other finishers standing at the barriers just in front of me. I barely managed to stopped my bike, in total shock. Had I been a sprinter, I could have been going at 70 km/h, which is almost 20 meters per second. There was barely 30 meters from the finish line to the barriers.
You should provide a cool-down kilometer and prohibit participants from braking and stopping right after crossing the line.
I'm guessing that your reasons for this arrangement were something like this: Alpenbrevet isn't a race so there's no need to sprint; and we'd have liked to give more space but the local government did not allow to block the crossroad.
But many signs indicate that Alpenbrevet is indeed a race. Timing is kept to the accuracy of seconds, as in pro cycling, and there is a podium for winners. And most importantly, if there are just two guys in the whole field who race each other, then it's a race, and it could have ended in the final sprint to the finish.
2. Closing roads for the car traffic
My only other international experience is the Berlin Velothon, which I completed twice. They have a 114km course to the south of the city and the roads, including a part of the autobahn, are completely closed for cars.
Of course I understand that numerous secondary roads allow Berlin organizers to re-channel car traffic, plus their race is flat so it doesn't take the whole day. I'm not asking for 100% closed roads, since that would impact a very big region. But I'm sure that you should close traffic completely from the start/finish line to the Innertkirchen.
When I climbed the little hill in between I observed the following scene -- twice on a 1.7km hill: a bus struggled to pass a slow cyclist and three cars crawled behind it. And then there is the approach to the finish, where the twisting road is split by cones -- not good at all.
My guess is that you approached the local council for permission to close more roads, but weren't successful? If so, that's a shame.
3. No-timing zone between Andermatt and Wassen
I understand the need for it: lots of traffic, dangerous tunnels, construction zones. But consider the unintended side effect: I was 23rd a little while after finishing and was certain this was my final spot (of which I was proud). I checked the results again two hours later and found out that I was now 25th (still very proud). Obviously there's no rule on how much time participants can spend in the no-timing zone, which starts with a camp where you can get refreshments and relax. But it's quite clear that those two guys relaxed there for some hours and stormed the Susten as fresh as possible after 3 climbs.
I'd call such conduct unsportsmanlike. The absence of a limit on how long a participant can spend in the no-timing zone essentially splits the Alpenbrevet in two parts. The solution I think is simple: set the time limit for these 10km at 1 hour. That's still enough time to get a refreshment and ride safely, but not enough to take a nap after a big lunch.
--
Once again, I'm sending you these thoughts bearing in mind that Albenbrevet was a great event, in which it was an honor to participate. Thank you once more for organizing it, and here's hoping that each future one will be better than the last!
With Best Regards,
Fedor Bakulov
Edited by Anna Kordunsky
Впечатления на русском последуют.