I think the site was great, and having the marquee made a big difference. I think the proof of this is in the fact we didn't go to the pub all weekend. Wouldn't change anything about that and was happy with the cost. Also liked not having to book and pay for the site directly, because it was much less hassle to paypal you some money, and I'm lazy.
Only possible improvement -
I know the idea was for Friday to be a "do whatever you like" day, and I also know you don't want to be leading a column of thirty bikes around.
However I think it would be good to make some attempt to plan in advance some "people who are happy to lead and/or tail-end small groups on trail or road rides" and link them up with "people who would like to be taken on a planned ride". That way we can:
- get a bit more riding in, because we're not dithering around trying to decide what to do on the day.
- avoid people who want to go on particular rides missing out because they aren't in the right place at the right time.
- try and send groups to different areas, so they don't bump into each other on particular trails.
- try and make sure people get what they want/expect in terms of difficulty levels.
In the interests of being 'part of the solution', (assuming I can make it next year) I'm perfectly happy to lead either a full day, or a couple of half day trail rides at whatever difficulty level people want. I just don't really have the local knowledge to plan it on the day.
As far as I know, everyone who came out with Bernard and I this year had fun (even though Scott almost called it quits after the first trail - because I had no idea what it would be like and it wasn't really suitable for his tyres), but I also think I could have done it better with a bit of advance planning.