Video: RIDE24 cycle challenge opens for business

Video: RIDE24 cycle challenge opens for business

Daylong endurance event returning to Goodwood Motor Circuit

Published: January 31, 2012 at 9:00 am

The UK’s only 24-hour cycling endurance track event RIDE24, set for Goodwood Motor Circuit on 23-24 June, has opened for registration.

Open to relay teams of four as well as solo riders, the event is organised by children’s charity Action Medical Research and operated under the technical regulations of British Cycling. The rules are simple; the winners will be the quartet that rides the furthest total distance around the 2.4 mile circuit in 24 hours.

The winning team will also secure themselves a free place in the French 24 Heures Velo event at Circuit Bugatti in Le Mans, with rewards going to the runners-up and the top mixed/female/veteran teams. Some solo riders will have sights on a different target, as RIDE24 doubles up as an official qualifying event for the Race Across America.

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The four staffers from the BikeRadar office who took part in 2011 assured us that RIDE24 is one tough cookie. They finished in a creditable fifth place, having covered a strength-sapping 508 miles in the allotted time, though still 44 miles shy of the eventual winners and new record holders from the University of Birmingham. They will be returning in 2012 to defend their crown and plan on being even stronger.

Event manager Sarah Stevenson, from Action Medical Research, says: “This is the ultimate in biking challenges and the only event of its kind in the UK, with teams racing day and night around the famous Goodwood circuit. It’s your chance to push yourself to the limit in an exciting, well-supported and unforgettable experience, and all for a good cause. We want this year’s event to be bigger, better and more competitive than ever so do join us.”

Several entry options are available; if you are part of a fundraising team, you can enter for £240 per squad and commit to raising £1,300 in sponsorship. Without fundraising, your team can enter for £1,000 with no further sponsorship due. Solo riders can enter for £60 (£325 sponsorship) or £250 (without sponsorship). All competitors can take advantage of the RIDE24 village, which includes camping facilities, hot and cold food snacks, a massage area, first aid and mechanical support.

For more information, visit the RIDE24 event website.