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hippy
cycleclinic
The ability for organisers to make mudguards required came in because some controls were unhappy with the state of chairs/benches/etc after being used as a control. The cafes threatened to withdraw their use as a control, which meant the ride was unlikely to go ahead (as suitable alternatives near an existing route are often hard to come by).
If too many people ignore the rule (especially if there is poor weather) then the organiser may have no choice but to cancel future instances of the ride.
So, ask the organiser (Tom's a sensible and pleasant chap), he may say "I'd rather you fitted them but if the weather is fine I guess it's ok", or "ok but please be careful at controls X and Y", or "no, please have them fitted regardless".
Don't just be selfish and possibly fuck it up for everyone else by possibly contributing to getting future instances of an event cancelled.
Of course, as with all rules there are unintended consequences, and in this case it is old school organisers who think that everyone should ride Audaxes with mudguards. (Tom isn't one of these organisers, just to be clear.)
#srsbzns