Thetownend.com

So, you may or may not have heard but the olympics is here.....am finally getting round to thinking, "you know what, maybe I should go and see something", however, with a new born and 5 year old, I am not sure the preliminary rounds of the womens archery is quite the thing...so am thinking, perhaps a family trip to Weymouth, to soak up some atmosphere, see a bit of sailing, get into the spirit etc etc...

Naturally we dont have tickets and all official sites say viewing is only restricted to ticketd areas etc etc...however, there is 20 bloody miles of coastline around weymouth bay from which you could probably see some of the events...so my question is this...

In the coastline between weymouth and lulworth, I am assuming you can just turn up, roll out the picnic blanket, and have a day on the cliff face there, and still be able to see some of the action...

Anyone in the know, want to shed some light on the logistics of all this?
Cheers...

I was in Weymouth yesterday, its only about 25 miles or so from me and they have put lots of large fences up so that the casual viewer is not able to watch for free, this has upset a lot of locals hoping for a free view.

All the roads that will offer a good free view have been closed as well such as the A349 to A31 link road.

what, they've cordened off all that coastline from weymouth, eastwards?
How tight is that?

I'm guessing the events are to the east of Portland and therefore not viewable from Chesil Beach?

Pretty disgraceful tbh

http://www.rya.org.uk/london2012/about/Pages/ScheduleandCourseInformation.aspx

does this help?

Thanks for the heads up on this. I love going to Weymouth and was thinking of a day out to see the sailing...I have a mate who has local knowledge but it doesn`t sound good....I am looking forward to the Olympics in general and I really hope I dont end up being cynical about the whole thing...

I noticed on the TV that there are about 20 odd HD channels being devoted to the Games so it sounds like everything will be well and truely covered...

Got to be excited about this really - haven`t you?

Why is it disgraceful? No one would buy a ticket if you could watch for free.

We are not talking about being at the finish line or anything like that, just being able to spectate from a distance like you can with the marathon, cycling road road race etc

Yep. Just as I thought, all to the east of Portland so you won't see anything from Chesil Beach.

Just guessing here but wouldn't areas they have fenced off normally be public land?

But it's not a fucking public event is it? Grow up.

a little harsh...

My humble apologies for putting forward an opinion oh wise one

Well it fucks me off when people moan about something they have unrealistic expectations of. Every cunt seems to want everything for free nowadays. Well you can't have it, and it isn't a 'disgrace' to stop cheapskate cunts enjoying stuff that costs millions to provide.

or put another way...I would like to indulge myself and family a little in the olmypics, since its probably the only time it will be here in my lifetime, and possibly theirs...however, having a young family who can only sit still for about 30 mins, would rather be able to see one of the public events, so we can dip in and out as we see fit....was just enquiring whether the sailing fitted into this category...

Aren't we as taxpayers paying part of the cost for it then jay? I have no intentions of going to watch any of it, freeloading or otherwise so I'm quite happy for someone to use the bit I've paid for

We are part funding the Monarchy too, but they won't let me book the last two week of August in Buck Pal.

Don't think the public normally have unrestricted access to Buck Pal so that I can understand

Funny seeing as we the taxpayer are paying for it....we are expected to pay again. :hmmm:

Yeah a few bob pumped in from sponsors etc but in the main the government...with our money is paying for it already....so a few freebies would have been nice for Joe Public....and not just the fucking dignitaries who even miss the jams...at our expense. :D

Surely to close off a part of free country to view a free sea that has some boats on is a bit tight. It's hardly free entry into the olympic stadium. It is cuntish.

I don't really care I was just in a bad mood :)

You've cheered up now then

It's not really in the Olympic spirit is it? Which is supposed to have nothing to do with money and profit.

I was under the impression the public had forked out £9.5 billion for these olympics?

I'm down in Weymouth for 8 days from Friday, I am led to believe that with a decent enough pair of binoculars you can get a view from Bowleaze Cove

keep us posted Rosso please...I am still keen to go down and will also investigate trying to get some tickets to sit on that mound...

According to this morning's Guardian, the rumours that vantage points would be blocked off, are entirely false.

Well I can cofirm 100% that between Weymouth and Northe and towards Portland there are temporary fences because I saw it for myself with my own eyes 3 days ago.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2008012/Olympic-officials-block-sea-view-stop-residents-watching-2012-sailing-free.html

Fair enough, here's the bit from this morning's Guardian fwiw.

You need a blanket, or ideally a couple of them, at the Nothe in Weymouth. One to sit on – no folding chairs or tables allowed here – and one to huddle under when the wind whips in. An umbrella is also an essential. There's no cover so if it rains, you get wet. The first brollies went up at around 1pm on Sunday.

It is easy to get the venue. Despite dire warnings about possible traffic problems, driving into Weymouth and Portland was pain-free.

Though it was a Sunday so few people were trying to get to work. One nice way to arrive at the Nothe is via the harbour ferry – a rowing boat called Janice, priced £1 for adults, 50p for children under 12.

Those using the ticketed spectator area on day 1 of the sailing competitions seemed happy enough to perch on the hillside and watch Ben Ainslie et al do their stuff. They could keep an eye on the action via big screens with commentary explaining the intricacies to those not in the know. Beer was £4 a pint, Coca-Cola £2, burger £6, fish and chips £8, tea £1.50, coffee £2.

Rumours that Locog would try to block views of the sailing courses to non-paying customers proved to be untrue. There is no way such a huge open area could be hidden away. And there are many, many places around the coast where it is possible to get a great view of the sailing without paying.

Will do, planning to go to Bowleaze Saturday afternoon for some Freeview!

They fucking would if they could Reg...you bet your Arse on that.

I am enjoying the sport but all this empty seats and no tickets has got on my tits!

Im going to see the mens 1/4 finals....could be GB with a bit of luck....going because its history for the kids...

The games needs corperate sponsors but as Leefer has said...we..the taxpayers are the fucking sponsors.....we sponsored it when it was built, whilst its being run and long after Coca Cola and McDonalds have fucked off into the sunset.

Its all grab grab grab!

And...by Lord Coe claiming that the seats are all jammed packed is a joke!  Freebies to teachers, kids and the Services do not count....especially when people who tried to pay for tickets have been given the knock back.

Thomas Cook piss me off. How the fuck have they got sold out events available as hotel/ticket deals at £300+ a pop. Are they sponsors? Ticket tout cunts.

Also how the fuck do teachers get their hands on free tickets? Or is it only certain special London teachers? The Mrs is a teacher - she has to be useful for something :)

I'm pretty pissed off I could only get football tickets when they are giving the seats away, or worse empty seats. As is most of Britain doubtlessly.

Teachers get em for nowt.

down on weymouth beach now, they have 2 massive screens here, i would guess there must be 5000 people down here. 1 screen is showing sailing and every now and then they show other stuff with brits in on the other screen. Best of all it is free entry. Impossible to get your car anywhere  near, seafront is closed to cars, with a bit of luck you can get parking a bit further away like we have. The atmosphere is fantastic, fish and chips nearby, well worth not paying £200 to sit on a grass mound. Anyone coming down here please bring sunshine with you.