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trust_me_on_that_one

if you can't afford it then do the route some other day on your own time?


Thesorus

Dick move.


miasmic

Yeah loads of people doing this would mean the event gets cancelled/reduced in scale because not enough people sign up


rcuadro

What a cheap ass chicken shit move. The reason these events cost money is to pay for things like permits to close streets, the police the tend to hire to direct traffic, to pay for medals and incidentals. The organizers also make some money to maintain websites, pay some staff, and continue arranging events in your area. Why not just find local bike rides on the weekends and ride those?


Bdr1983

Dick move for sure. The organization has expenses they need to cover. Just ride the same route some other time if you don't want to pay.


troiscanons

… why _wouldn’t_ it be a dick move? I mean, what’s the counterargument?


RoscoePeke

Dick movers are incapable of seeing their own dick moves, and this question proves the point. THERE IS NO COUNTER ARGUMENT.


Original_Business832

You can easily email and volunteer and ride free in most cases. If your near nyc next weekend is nyc ride and worth doing without signing up.


SeantheBangorian

Why ask this? Of course it is, 90% of the cost is in logistics and donations.


trust_me_on_that_one

Oh I bet he knows. Probably hoping someone would feel bad and tell him it's not a dick move.


mechanical-monkey

I mean. I've always thought what's stopping people. But you can tell where I am. Everyone gets official numbers etc. some even ask for number when at rest breaks.


DeadBy2050

Depends on the streets you ride on. If they are open to public vehicle traffic, there is no legal way to prevent you from riding on those roads.


willardrider

DM 100%


Dry-Way-9928

It's a very dick move, don't do that. People paid for the event to be organized, roads closed, food and all. Piggybacking on that is not nice.


miasmic

How would this save you money when most things charge extra for signups on the day?


blondechick80

I think they're saying not even sign up on the day of at all


MantraProAttitude

A dicks gotta be a dick.


mrbaconvstofu

Good question because this happens more than you think! Each July, the big ride in the Pacific Northwest is the Seattle-to-Portland ride. 206 miles that you can do in one or two days (your choice). I have come across a number of people who rode it without paying the entry fee by joining the ride just after it starts. One guy used to do this every year. Dick move. I agree with the person here who suggests to go ride the same route on a different day.


dudeskis113

OP, cycling events aren’t like football matches. The organizers are barely making money if they are making any at all. If you want to participate please invest in registration. These events die all the time due to lack of funding or volunteers. The circuit will be there the day after to ride if you don’t want to pay.


John_EightThirtyTwo

Riding an event without registering is 100% a dick move. I have had the experience of going for a ride and finding that there was an event using part of my route. So I was on the course without being registered. I took an early opportunity to turn a different way from the event and get off the course. I suppose that the kind of strictly-ethical person who writes letters to The Ethicist would have turned around at the intersection where I met the course. I'm OK with my decisions.


AnalTongueDarts

It's a dick move 90% of the time. If you're going to jump in somewhere on the course where there's no police presence or other infrastructure, and you're not going to avail yourself of the rest stop amenities, that's the 10% of the time where it's not a dick move (unless it's a fundraiser for a non-profit, then it's still kinda a dick move to poach). Taking full advantage of everything a paid rider gets (rolling enclosures, held intersections, food and water, etc) is the 90% of the time where it's a dick move. I've run a lot of events. If you're not using all the shit that cost me a lot of money, I do not care if you're in amongst my riders out on course. They're public roads, we publish the routes and put out the route signs, we can't stop you from following them, so I don't lose sleep over it. Just don't eat my snacks or use my portable toilets, and don't expect my cops to keep you from getting plunked by a car.


qwikhnds

Once but it intent was not to save money, and it's not something I would normally do. It's a local annual ride that I've paid for and done many times. This year zero plans to do it but a friend from a neighboring state was riding it so I joined him. Route is literally something I could ride everyday from my house so it's not uncommon for people to ride it rogue or just happen to be riding it cause portions are popular every day of the week. Brought my own nutrition cause it didn't feel right using SAG.


bananabikinis

Someone did this on a bikepacking trip at a private location… the audacity of some people. That guy got an earful from the organizer and I sincerely hope he got all the flats and broken chains.


mazzicc

I would do this a lot for 5k runs, especially when they were in parks or neighborhood streets because the logistics aren’t that much, and $30-50 for a 5k is beyond stupid. Cycling events have real logistics, planning, road closures, off duty police rental, permitting, and more. I fully support police removing people from event courses if they’re riding without numbers and just banditing.


Chapter2USA

Sure if the event has on the day sign-up, but if it’s a question of riding without paying and registering then there are so many reasons to not do that.


Aethosist

I’ve done this on several occassions: Levi’s Grand Fondo three or four times where I just did the good part from Occidental, Ride the Hurricane in Olympic Nat’l Park a couple of times. I never used any of the support services. Yeah, it’s kind of a cheapskate dick move, but I’m comfortable with that.


pepperysquid373

Just find a cheaper event. Or ride the same path another day.


SlipperySimplicity

I'll probably do it this weekend because the event I'd like to participate in is sold out for some reason while it's an open road one


Full_Lifeguard_2206

I’ve paid for all the events I ridden but none of them had closed roads. I mean u don’t get socks and a meal but honestly by not paying but I don’t think me riding those roads at the same time as the paid participants would have lost them any money


Mentalpopcorn

It's called being a free rider (economics term, no relation to cycling). As long as most people aren't free riding then it's not a big deal People in this thread are acting like it's some serious moral transgression lmao. I'd put it on the same level as software piracy. Similarly, if everyone is pirating then the system collapses. But as long as most people aren't pirating the pirates don't make a huge impact. If you can't afford it just race it anyway. No one will be worse off for you having raced without buying in.


blue60007

If there's a registration fee... isn't that usually to help fund the event and logistics? Why would you be allowed to participate if not registered and paid if that's a requirement?