In partnership with Bryton GPS, TORQ have put together an endurance challenge for Mountain Bikers that we hope will inspire many.
Pictured above is legendary TORQ Performance rider Lydia Gould, who set off from TORQ HQ this morning for the maiden voyage of the ‘TORQ Enduro Challenge in association with Bryton GPS’. Over the coming days, you’ll be able to track Lydia’s progress via these web pages and you’ll even be able to follow her by clicking on this link (it won’t be active until tomorrow though):
http://share.findmespot.com/shared/faces/viewspots.jsp?glId=0AfQ0u6NkqnJ9Ndv2qJYiLuHRaB7rPHBW
The idea behind the challenge is for an individual, pair or group of riders to cycle from TORQ HQ on the Shropshire/Powys border to the Bryton distributor’s HQ in Thirsk, East Yorkshire (Zyro) using only minor roads and bridleways. The route is completely unique (in fact, during the maiden voyage this week, there will be a number of tweaks to the rules/route I’m sure), but it passes through some truly breathtaking areas. For a start after a spin through the country roads of Powys and Shropshire, it starts to climb over the Stiperstones and Long Mynd, dropping into National Trust owned Cardingmill Valley. After riding along Wenlock Edge, you’ll pass through Cannock Chase and then venture across to the Peak District National Park. The course then winds up over the Pennines and traverses the Yorkshire Dales before arriving in Thirsk.
How long will it take? We’re not quite sure yet, but there are a whole set of rules preventing an entrant from riding for more than 10 hours per day (because we want the challenge to be reasonably sociable) and we’re anticipating our maiden voyage this week to take about 5 days to complete. The journey is approximately 350 miles.
Why would we set such a challenge? Well, we wanted to create a challenge that epitomised the need for performance nutrition and GPS navigation, hence why we’ve partnered with Bryton. As soon as exercise becomes endurance in nature, the new TORQ Fuelling System really starts to become very relevant indeed. For more information, please visit:
www.torqfitness.co.uk/torq-fuelling-system
Also, modern GPS devices that work with OS mapping are simply incredible. Bryton is a fine example of this technology and the software has allowed us to map every step of the way before even riding a trail. The LCD screen is full colour and the detail level is just as you’d see on an OS map. The big advantage of course is that the route is clearly indicated and an arrow pin points exactly where you are, so it’s impossible to get lost. For more information, please visit:
http://www.brytonsport.com/help/landing
The rules surrounding the ‘TORQ Enduro Challenge in association with Bryton GPS’ are as follows:
- You will need to register with TORQ directly before completing the challenge and when you turn up at TORQ HQ, we’ll give you a few TORQ goodies to help you on your way.
- The challenge can be completed solo, in pairs or as a group. Each category has its own leader-board.
- You will be issued with a Spot satellite navigation tracker at TORQ HQ which will track your progress and you’ll be able to provide a URL for friends and family so that they can see exactly where you are at any point in time. This also allows us to verify your result.
- You cannot ride for any more than 10 hours in any 24 hour period. This keeps the challenge sociable and esures a good night’s sleep.
- This is not a mass-start challenge, it is individual and you can complete it in your own time. As mentioned earlier though, you will have to book it in advance, because we only have one Spot satellite tracker. This makes it kind of exclusive.
- You are allowed mechanical support, but the clock keeps running. If the mechanical issue involves you being taken to a bike shop, again the clock keeps running and you must be returned to the point where you left the course before you are allowed to carry on.
- For sleeping arrangements, you can take a tent, but you can also be supported by a friend with a camper van/caravan. Or you can book B&B accommodation along the way, but this is much less flexible and won’t be the most ‘competitive’ way of completing the challenge we don’t think.
- Once you’ve arrived at your destination, we’ll publish your result on the ‘TORQ Enduro Challenge in association with Bryton GPS’ leader-board, never to be removed!
We’ll be furnishing you with more information as the challenge develops this week, so please follow Lydia on the TORQ Team (Mountain Bike) pages. The first instalment is published tomorrow (today’s stage). We’ll be tweeting away all day too.
Subsequent to writing this article, the following reports have been published:
https://www.torqfitness.co.uk/news/day-1-torq-ec
https://www.torqfitness.co.uk/news/day-2-torq-ec
https://www.torqfitness.co.uk/news/day-3-torq-ec
