The wonderful MRI hospitality...(not!)

[Andy Zarse]

Club Arnage posing pouches? Now there's a thought. Leopard skin I hope. Smokie you'll have to ask Dave Davies.

The likes of MRI and Airtrack seem to have screwed up big style this year. Airtrack were hilariously relocated to Beausejour just days before the race. I think they had to offer people their money back. To say that Page and Moy are sub-human scum is maybe putting it a bit strongly, but they aint far away from it.

If you have to have hostpality the only half reasonable group are maybe, just maybe, Club Racing Lines. They come in at £150 for a free bar, six meals and somewhere to pitch your tent. I think CLR was started as a result of people being pissed off with MRI etc and it seems to be run by enthusiasts. Fine if this is your bag. Its not for me though.

In another post, BigH mentions the CLR secret agent who put up a post on CA forum a few months ago entitled something like "Club Racing Lines, the Hospitality Guys for Me!!" and we all soon rumbled him. This put me off them, but hell anyone can screw up once i suppose. But I did speak to a couple of blokes who were at the CLR pitch this year and they seemd moderately satisfied with the deal.

Each to their own and some people are just lazy in the planning and execution stakes. I always reckon you only get out what you put in.

[Dark Warrior]

Would like to say hello to a number of guys who I met this year... particularly, Big H, Albert and the rest of the guys (again) Kyps, Canada Phil, Gilles and The Liverpool Boys... Great to meet you...

Am normally an avid reader/viewer of the forum but felt it was about time I made a contribution...

My group travelled with MRI this year and I have to say that our overall experience with them was very good. They had a couple of problems with beer etc however, as we basically cater for ourselves and we weren't using the MRI facility as a base this didn't cause a problem. I certiainly don't recall seeing anyone up in arms about it...

We booked in the full knowledge that we were going to pay a premium. The simple reason for it is that several years previous experience of trading and attempting to get tickets for a group was a real headache... in 2002 for instance we were still struggling with camping passes 48hrs before departure... not great.

They got us the tickets we oredered, when they said they would... and if like me, first thing in the morning, you have to release the pigeons with a minimum of delay, the facilities are a godsend..!!

Sorry, if this was a bit of a long one... but felt that I had to speak up for what I thought was an OK deal that did what it said on the tin.


Best wishes

The Dark Warrior

[Andy Zarse]

Dear Mr Warrior (or may I call you Dark?)

You are most welcome on to the forum. Your views are entirely valid and bring an interesting perspective. Afterall, this is a forum for sharing experiences and not just sycophancy.

Do post again, don't be shy.

Andy Z

PS LOL "release the pigeons". Very funny!

[Dark Warrior]

Andy

DW is how I'd normally be refered to... although I've been called many things over the years...!!!

DW

[Russ]

DW,

If you were satisfied with MRI then they must be getting something right. But for me, they simply didn't get enough right for my money. (the part of my money that was spent on getting a bar in hospitality anyway)

We didn't mind that the beer (before they ran out) was getting served in thin plastic half pint cups so we had to get two each, we didn't mind queing for 10 mins to get it, we didn't mind the c*nt on the door who said "What's this? f*cking Halfords!" as we took our bikes in to lock them safely by the loos and we didn't mind that had we not arrived in good time, there would have been seating inside only. We did mind that at about 5ish, we couldn't get any beer.

I have to say, the 'tin' I read when looking into their hospitality said...

"Twenty-four hours is a long time to survive on a diet of sausage and frites. For this reason we will be employing our own team of caterers to preside over a well stocked bar and an appetising choice of menu."

This is directly quoted from their web site.

Hopefully you can see why I was not expecting them to run out of beer. And of course why this would constitute as false advertising, and hence more a case of "didn't even come close to what it said on the tin".... for me anyway.

[hgb]

I have to agree with Russ on that one. "An appetising choice of menu" does include beer.  

[Dark Warrior]

Russ

Fair points and well made, and am dissapointed that they took the attitude that they did re your bikes... I'd say you have every reason to be pi33ed at them... however, the primary driver for our using them was to take the worry out of getting tickets etc... In previous years we've only got what we needed by the skin of our teeth... and the help of some damn fine people on the CA site.

We did find the facility useful for 'early morning pigeon racing' etc and I also have to say that listening to Andy Wallace was excellent... One of our group also managed to get to hear Perry Macarthy and he's still going on about what a great speaker he was...

Personally, and in the full knowledge that we pay a little more than we would if we sourced everything separately, I'd use them again.

DW

[Russ]

I must confess, the main reason I used MRI was down to the fact that I was unable to secure camping passes at the time and MRI were able to deliver. So on that part of the deal, yes, they came up with the goods. Not denying that.

It's just a shame they then abuse their position of having camping passes by forcing you to pay an additional £50 each for what turned out to be a tent with loos outside... which of course ironically we already had, through the use of the camping pass.

It does make me wonder who was in charge of beer supplies! Perhaps they would be more suitable for looking after a pen or a pencil.

In hind sight, to the guy who said "What's this?? F*cking Halfords??" I should have replied... "It's as much F*cking Halfords as it is well organised value for money hospitality!"...

[IanB]

Good to hear from you DW, You have now found out that its not to painful to post on CA. seriously though keep reading and posting it makes the time go quicker til next June.   How many sleeps is it til we go now Bri?
   Regards

          Ian

[Brian(Liverpool boys)]

Only 312 days to go and counting to when we set off in 2004, would have been only 311, but it's a rastard leap year. That's an idea what about a count down timer, Stu.

[Chrisgr31]

It is of course a vicious circle.  If the ticket agencies didn't buy so many camping tickets in the first place, the ounters would find it easier to get tickets without going to them!