It was a little after 5am on Sunday morning when the riders of the Bowral Classic got the bad news. The gran fondo they had been due to start just an hour later had been cancelled.
“Police have advised due to traffic management not arriving on site today, we are unable to proceed with the event safely,” event organisers posted on social media at 5:17am.
Riders had come from far and wide to the town of Bowral in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, to ride 85 km, 120 km, or 150 km in the rolling hills nearby. Some even drove the more than 1,000 km from Brisbane to take part. Of the thousands due to take part, many had spent a significant amount for the privilege, paying for event entry (of up to $315), accommodation, travel costs, and more. Some were driving to the start when the news came through.
As riders tried to decide what to do, they found themselves wondering: how does traffic management simply not turn up to manage one of the state’s biggest gran fondos? Eventually, the answer came to light with the traffic management company responsible, Altus Traffic, taking full responsibility.
“The Bowral Classic event was cancelled today due to the Altus Group having planned for the event to occur the following weekend,” the company said in a refreshingly contrite statement. “This was an indefensible error that has negatively impacted a large number of people and for which we are profoundly sorry.
“While this is the first time in over 20 years and among 1000s of supported events that we have made such an error, it is nevertheless unacceptable.
“Over the coming days we will be undertaking a detailed review of the steps that led to the date of the event being miscommunicated to our field teams to ensure that it can never happen again.”
That last line is key. Someone in Altus Traffic did have the right date for the event – the traffic management plan for the event clearly shows the right date for the event. It would appear that information didn’t flow through to those due to staff the event on the ground.
The weekend’s mishap comes at a challenging time for the Australian gran fondo scene more broadly. Various events have been cancelled in recent years, due in large part to the rising traffic management costs. Organising cycling events in New South Wales – and keeping them running – has proven particularly tricky, with the Newcrest Orange Challenge among the latest events to be cancelled this year.
Meanwhile, event organisers The Cycling Classics have spent the past day and a bit trying to update – and placate – those affected by the Bowral Classic cancellation. All riders will be refunded their entry fee, and organisers also covered the cost of food at the event village on Sunday for those who decided to remain in Bowral.
Social media comments about the cancellation reflect a range of perspectives. Many remain bewildered about how a mix-up of dates was allowed to occur, and why event organisers didn’t confirm everything was in place as planned (especially when traffic management infrastructure hadn’t been rolled out in the days ahead of the event, as it normally would). Many are angry or disappointed that the ride they spent months training for – and travelling a large distance to – was called off so late, and for such a seemingly avoidable reason. Like Escape Collective member “Mrglwgs” who posted in the Escape Discord about how the Bowral Classic was due to be their first gran fondo.
“Trained for it, injured off the bike, trained back again, probably 60% of where I wanted to be,” they wrote. “Took the family up lunchtime Friday, spent 2 nights hanging out in Bowral, woke up at 5am Sunday to get ready and 12 minutes later got the text.
“Sat there thinking about what to do for 30 minutes and decided to pull the plug and not risk it – no group of friends, just me on unfamiliar roads. Probably would have been fine, saw lots of people riding around town with the stickers throughout the morning but ‘Hey what’s going on? Can I ride with you? See you whenever, wife and kids’ is not really what I signed up for. 62 minutes notice.
“Fuming is not the word; I feel pissed for so many reasons. I see online all these people saying they had a great day out anyway, thanks for the free food, so on top of not getting to complete the ride I feel crappy for not just doing it anyway? Unlucky, but it’s like being truly an outsider’s outsider.”
As “Mrglwgs” notes, plenty of those posting on social media seem rather philosophical about how things turned out, especially those who decided to do the ride anyway, albeit without the planned traffic management measures.
“I still had a great ride – just went to the start and set off with the first big bunch,” wrote Escape member Elliot Buchanan in Discord. “We had good support from the police throughout and while probably a little bit messier than it would have otherwise been, gradually whittled down to a good group. I wasn’t there with friends (though had the option to find some club mates to ride with if I wanted).
“Appreciate I probably got lucky by making the right choices on the morning rather than packing it in (which was a reasonable thing to do really with all the uncertainty).”
Like Buchanan, many posting on social media highlighted the presence of NSW police officers out on course throughout the day, despite the event’s official cancellation. While a lack of traffic management and route signage made it harder for some riders to find their way around the course as easily as they might have, the presence of police was appreciated by those who did decide to ride.
“Kodus [sic] to the NSW police!,” wrote rider James Hannigan on Facebook. “Legendary! Great ride, escorted most of ride, well looked after, back next year!”
The Cycling Classics have confirmed that they plan to run the Bowral Classic next year. More immediately, the organisation is trying to work out exactly how things fell apart on Sunday, and what recourse the organisation might have from here.
“As many people know we have been successfully running the Bowral Classic for 7 years,” the organisation wrote in a post on its website on Sunday afternoon. “We did everything the same this year as we have done in the past. We have worked all year to deliver the Bowral Classic and all the events around it. The logistics and organisation to ensure we have a fun and safe event are extraordinary.
“So, the fair question is – what happened this year? Well to put it simply – mind-boggling human error from what we have been told. As we shared with you earlier today, our traffic management partner, an important partner we have worked with for several years, simply didn’t show up.
“The traffic management for the Bowral Classic is a huge operation, with over 100 traffic marshals coming from across the Southern Highlands, Wollongong and Sydney. Without them on course, the event could not proceed safely.
“Our traffic management contractor has told us there was a date stuff up. Given the reams of communications and approvals necessary, we are shaking our heads in disbelief. Suffice it to say we are not letting the matter rest there.”
Based on that closing line, it seems likely there will be some robust discussions between The Cycling Classics and Altus Traffic in the days and weeks ahead.
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