mendips
- Last Updated: Wednesday 3 July 2024
We look forward to seeing you on Saturday for the fourth instalment of our 2024 Summer Adventure Race Series!
The course is in a superb area, be prepared for lovely hills, fantastic views and the odd goat to contend with.
For those who have not raced with us before (or not raced with us for a while), we have put together this short video to give you a bit more information on what to expect (if viewing on a mobile device it works best when opened to full screen mode).
At the moment, the weather is looking like perfect adventure racing conditions – reasonably cool with a chance of rain. There is plenty of chance for that to change and, if the last few months are anything to go by, it is always good to be prepared for rain! It is also worth a final check of the forecast on the morning of the event.
With the England game kicking off at 17:00 on Saturday we have looked to move things forward as much as practically possible and teams can start as early as 9am.
We look forward to seeing you at the Mendips Raceway on Saturday for a day of adventure!
mendips RACE DAY INFORMATION
All the information you need for a successful race can be found here:
regular race information
All our regular race information can be found here:
race numbers
You will need to know your race number in order to collect your race pack.
Each team has been given a start time window. This is based on which course you are doing, when your kayak time slot is, how long it’ll take most people to get to/from the kayaking and the fact the course closes at 16:30 (i.e. you must finish before this).
You can start any time within your start time window. But remember if you are kayaking early on, you will need to allow enough time to get to the kayak transition. You can get to/from the kayak transition on either foot or bike.
kayak time slot
The maximum time allowed for the kayaking is 60 minutes for everyone.
NOTE: The kayak time slots are 75 minutes to give you flexibility but you must not exceed the 60 minute kayak time limit on the water.
Exceed the maximum permitted kayak time (60 minutes) – even by 1 second – and you will incur a 50 point penalty.
If, for example, your kayak time slot is 10:00-11:15 and you get on the water at 10:05, then you must off the water and finish kayaking before 11:05 (i.e. 60 minutes after you began kayaking) to avoid the penalty.
Your kayak time begins when you punch the kayak transition control to get on the water and your kayak time ends when you punch the kayak transition control again (i.e. a second time) to get off the water. Not punching the kayak transition control both when you get on and off the water incurs penalties, whether done intentionally or not, so please don’t forget!
You can only kayak within your kayak time slot. You must have finished kayaking (i.e. be off the water having dibbed the kayak transition control) before the end of your kayak time slot, otherwise you will incur a 50 point penalty.
So if, for example, you are in the 10:00-11:15 kayak slot, and you get on the water at 10:45, you’ll only have up to a maximum of 30 minutes in which to kayak as you must have finished kayaking no later than 11:15.
event base & timings
The event base is: Mendips Raceway, Warrens Hill Road, Cheddar, BS40 7XU and this opens at 07:30 (see below for full timings).
Your start time is based on which course you are doing, see below. You can start at any time within your start window, just make your way to the big blue start arch when you’re ready to start. Your race time (2/5/6 hour time limit) begins when you dib the start control and receive your checkpoint descriptions.
course notes
The layout of the course is such that…
- the transition point for the run and bike is located at the event base
- you can run and bike as many times as you like
- you can either run or bike to and from the kayak transition
- if biking to the kayak transition, you will need to do this at the end of your window as it is not possible to bike directly to the kayak transition from the start
How long you spend running, biking and kayaking is up to you. But, if you’ve never done a Questars Adventure Race, it can be difficult to know how long to spend on each discipline. Attached below is a course planner’s guide which gives suggestions for how to structure your day depending on your kayak window. This is only a guide, the great thing about Questars races is that what you do is up to you! If you like running, you can spend more time running and less time biking (and vice-versa).
Equally, you do not need to use all of your time limit. If you have had your fill of adventure after a couple of hours then you can join us back at HQ for food, drink and to share stories of your navigation successes and failures!
