North Downs Way 100 2013

Entries

Entries for 2013 will open at 10am on Saturday 27th October. There will be 200 places for the event on open registration and places are available on a first come, first served basis. Entrants must meet the minimum qualification standard below in order to apply. Places are only confirmed once your qualification race has been verified. There will be a wait list in operation once the initial places are taken.

Exceptions to the above are: Those who volunteered over 8 hours of service to the race in 2012 and are therefore guaranteed 2013 entry.

Qualification Standard

In order to enter you must have completed a minimum of on official 30 mile distance race within the cut off time of that event, between 1st January 2010 and the 2013 race date. As organisers, we reserve the right to refuse anybody entry who does not meet this standard.

Cut Offs

100 mile runners must finish within the 30 hour time limit. There are additional cut offs on route which will be announced with the aid station plans.

Start/ Finish Location

Race HQ is at St. Polycarps Primary School in Farnham a short walk from Farnham station. The race itself starts at the trail head of the North Downs Way. Farnham Station is directly between race HQ and the start point, around 200 metres from both. Runners will walk down to the race start following the race briefing.

The 2013 finish is once again in the village of Wye in Kent. We have however moved from the 2012 finish - Churchfield Green, to Wye Village Hall and Recreation Ground. The new finish is just off of Bridge Street, Wye, TN25 5EA.

Awards

Finishers Buckle & Race Shirt to all finishers.

Finishers in under 24 hours will receive a much coveted '100 miles - One Day' buckle signifying their achievement. Finishers between 24 and 30 hours will receive '100 mile Finisher' buckles. 

Aid Stations

There will be a minimum of 14 fully stocked aid stations along the length of the 100 mile course. All aid stations will have a full selection of the usual aid station fayre and a whole lot more. At a minimum you will be able to pick up Water, Coke, Gels, Chocolate, Crips, Nuts, Lots of Fruit, Sandwiches/ Wraps and other sweet and savoury snacks. All aid stations from Knockholt onwards will have hot drinks including tea and coffee. There will be hot food available at Knockholt, Detling and the finish line.

Drop Bags

Drop Bags must be deposited at Race HQ pre-race. Drop bags must NOT exceed 30cm x 20cm x 20cm in size ie. the size of a shoe box for any one aid station. They must be labelled with your name, aid station it is to go to and race number. With the exception of the finish line bags, drop bags will be disposed of. Runners need to leave a different drop bag for each aid station, each bag will be transported to the aid station listed and then disposed of. Finish line bags will be taken directly to the finish only. DO NOT leave anything in your drop bags that you wish to keep - these will not be returned to you.

Drop Bag locations are:

Mile 50: Knockholt Pound
Mile 82: Detling
Mile 100: Wye

Course Markings

The 2013 course is identical to that of 2012, with the exception of the final 200 metres with the new finish at the Village Hall rather than on Churchfield Green. This will be clearly marked.

The course is marked by permanent national trail marker posts which come in different forms but most commonly display the acorn which is the key symbol and guide on the North Downs Way.

In addition to the fixed markers as above, the course will also be marked with red, white and silver reflective barrier tape and marker arrows. It is always possible that course markers may be removed or vandalised, in which case you will need to use the National Trail marker posts and your maps as the guide. There are a number of road crossings to negotiate, some of them are extremely busy. The road crossings will be signed but NOT marshalled so please be extremely careful when you are crossing roads of any nature.

It is ultimately the runners responsibility to navigate the course successfully, with or without course markings. If you are in any doubt we strongly recommend that you take the time to recce the route before race day.

Pacers

100 mile runners are permitted pacers from the 50 mile point. Pacers must travel on foot only. Runners are permitted multiple pacers throughout the last 50 miles but only one may travel with the runner at any one time.

Crew

Runners are allowed and encouraged to have a crew. Some of the aid station points are remote and will be off limits to crew. These will be identified on the crew instruction sheets prior to race day. Crews are permitted to assist runners of all distances at any point APART from the aid stations listed on the crew instruction sheets. Crews must not assist their runner in front of any aid station ie. crew can meet runners at aid stations but should not impede the progress of other runners moving through the area.

Medical

There will be a team of race medics available throughout the duration of the weekend including race ambulances and static medical aid stations at major aid stations and the finishing line. Many of the other aid stations will also have additional medics on hand. If you suffer an injury or accident that warrants direct medical attention and you are not able to get to an aid station, there will be a number for the medical director provided before race day. Due to the nature of the course ie. off road, the medics may take some time to reach you, or potentially be out of contact for some time tending to other runners. In an emergency please call both our medics AND 999. A list of local hospitals can be found below. If you are injured but able to walk, please make your way to the nearest aid station where there will either be a medic, or the aid station captain will immediately get in touch with medical care. If you suffer a severe injury, encounter someone in serious difficulty or are in any doubt at all please call 999 for emergency ambulance services. If you come across a fallen runner please remain with them until help arrives.

• East Surrey Hospital, Canada Avenue, Redhill, RH1 5RH. 01737768511.
• Royal Surrey County Hospital, Egerton Rd, Guildford, Surrey GU2 7XX. 01483571122.

Kit

80% of the course is on trail. Trail shoes are advised but you will be able to complete the course perfectly adequately in road shoes in dry conditions. There are sections of trail where the chalk has become exposed which can make it slippery and technical in the wet in which case trail shoes are a much more suitable option. Please use due care and attention on steep downhill sections.

There will be kit checks prior during and after the race. With the exception of lights which must only be carried from the 50 mile point onwards, runners must carry the following mandatory equipment at all times. A time penalty of one hour will be imposed for any item found to be missing at any point on course. Please refer to this page for explanations on the inclusion of the below items. 

• Fully Charged Mobile Phone including the numbers for the Race Medic and Race Director (on the number you have given at registration)
• Water Bottles/Bladder capable of carrying a minimum of 1 litre. 
• Survival Blanket: 1.4m x 2m minimum
• Waterproof Jacket: Gore-tex or similar (must have sealed seams).
• Route Map (store recommendation)
• Compass
• Whistle
• Required from mile 50 onwards: Headtorch (store recommendation)
• Required from mile 50 onwards: Back Up Light source (store recommendation)