The Race | FAQ
Format
Are you going to have a complex route book?
Its not our intention for the Swift maps will be sent during the week before (Wednesday before the race). This is still to be decided for the Stirling event. Certainly we will post a schematic of the event e.g. Run 20km, MTB 80km etc (13/5)
Will there be any way to access weather forecasts, to see if any major storms predicted?
Yes we will post these at each transition(13/5)
Can we nominate who will receive the map?
Yes, we will contact you for these details.(13/5)
The catering van, will it be available for all, particularly the slower teams?
Yes although we only have this on the Stirling event, it is our ambition is to get as many teams across the finish line. We want to help them get around.(13/5)
Being new to adventure racing, newsletters on nutrition etc are good and very useful. Is there any way of tapping into the knowledge out there, for example kit etc?
Yes, we recommend the UK Adventure Racing Forum.(13/5)
Is this up to date?
Yes, most forum questions are replied to and I will step in and answer where necessary.(13/5)
Will the race be the same format as 2010?
Yes almost.. there will be mandatory controls. Those which are not mandatory will have a time penalty.(13/5)
Will there be trackers available for the teams?
Yes.(13/5)
I am confused about the route, if the aim is to get as many teams as possible over the finish line.
In each event there is significant route choices, in Scotland it will be do you go down this glen or another one the difference for a fast team could be 9 hrs of cycling. If a team completes the full course, they will be ranked the higher than a team that has missed controls.(13/5)
Will teams taking the short cuts, be ranked within their little group?
We are trying to accommodate 40 teams, so having different course lengths is not possible and just doesn’t make sense to the viewing public, hence one leader board with full course teams above any team that misses a control(13/5)
In the last event there was not a leader-board. I did not think this was good.
Yes we realise that – its not a situation we wanted to have – we hope the trackers will provide the information to create a leaderboard if not we will be downloading the Sportident cards more often to get this data.(13/5)
If I took a short cut on the first day, I would be disappointed if I couldn’t do the full course on the 2nd day.
The choice will be yours to do the short or long course. You may favour running, so want to do the long course here and the shorter course for the bike for instance. You will have the option to do the long and short course, as needed. But you should be aware that there will be cut offs at transitions – if we didn’t the swift would take 5 days and the Stirling event 10 days.(13/5)
Logistics
Is there any way to negotiate extra weight in the boxes, in the case of bad weather (for tents etc.)?
We want to be practical, both between the volunteers moving 100’s bags multiple times against the teams having enough space to pack the right kit. Let us know if you think the regulations are unreasonable.(13/5)
What are the team bags for?
In the Swift race, they are for any kit needed for the paddle.(13/5)
Is it one bag per individual?
Yes.(13/5)
Why not make it, that everyone has to carry a tent?
I don’t want teams to have to carry a tent on all stages, especially where not needed.(13/5)
Does the tent need to be a 4 man tent?
It is up to you. There will be village halls at certain stages. You will not be able to sleep in the hall, but can sort kit out assuming there is space and there will be camping space outside. On the Stirling event there will be a catering van which will follow us around, the plan is that you will be able to set up a tab and pay at the end.(13/5)
Regarding sleeping, do we need to bring tents or will any form of shelter be provided??
If you want to sleep - and we think most people will :-) then you need a tent. No shelter will be provided for sleeping - you should have some sheltered space for sorting out kit but this can not be used for sleeping.(21/5)
What about bike boxes?
An example of the cardboard bike boxes was shown. There is enough room for bike and other kit, such as shoes, helmets etc. The boxes ensure that bikes can be transported and looked after better. These boxes were used successfully in Tasmania. Suggest it may be worth laminating them to prolong their life or if making yourself try using ‘Correx’. The boxes will be kept dry, as they will be stored under a marquee. Suggest competitors practice getting bike in and out before the event to save time in transition.(13/5)
Can we use a soft sided bike bag instead of one of the cardboard boxes for transporting bikes. Dimensions are Within the limits you set?
The bike boxes need to be the dimensions set on the website. They are going to be stacked up to 3 high vertically within vans.. various size bike boxes prevent that and hence increase the cost of transportation. Note - the sizes are not a maximum they are the size of the bike box. (13/5)
Mountain Biking
Running / Trekking
Canoeing
Do I need a portage trolley?
There is a short portage on the Stirling event (like 300-400m). A trolley would be ideal but not essential - unlike the Swift, where if you didn’t have a trolley it would be a world of pain.(13/5)
Will there be access to the canoes before the start of the race?
No, unfortunately logistics prevent this. On the subject of canoes, as we are working with providers of the canoes, any damage to them, must be paid for (normal wear & tear is ok), but a photo will be taken of canoe before the start and it must be returned in same condition. The biggest concern providers have is teams dragging boats or trying to paddle through too shallow water.(13/5)
Will there be numbers on canoes?
Yes.(13/5)
If we are bringing our own canoes, how do we get them to the different locations?
We will move all the canoes to each location.(13/5)
Do we drop the canoes somewhere locally to the race start?
There will be a location near to registration on both events to drop the boats.(13/5)
The canoe list specs two first aid kits?
Yep you need to carry two kits throughout the whole event (15/5)
will the portage trolleys be transported with the canoes or do they need to go in team kit bag??
They do need to go in the team kit bag. Can be a large bag but not over the 20kg limit(16/5)
Technical Stages
What type of karabiners do we need?
Two of the 4 must be screwgate karabiners. (15/5) kit list updated
