Welcome
New for 2012 is the Boudicca Sportive in Norfolk, to be held on the 10th June 2012. Named after Queen Boudicca – famous for her red hair, fighting spirit and for owning a pretty tasty set of chariot wheels – the event will support two local charities and provide a cycling development fund to encourage and support the local clubs that organise cycling events. All the money raised from entry fees will be divided between these three causes.
Norfolk is ideal cycling country – low traffic volumes, few main roads and a vast network of minor roads and lanes makes for relaxing riding. The sportive routes have been chosen to show you some of the best of Norfolk’s scenery and quiet roads. Don’t be fooled by the lack of big hills, Norfolk’s rolling countryside and ‘grippy’ roads will make these routes a real challenge!
Our aim is to give you the best sportive experience possible – including all the ‘must haves’ but avoiding the gimmicks – and to put Norfolk firmly on the sportive map.
The charities the event is supporting are the East Anglian Air Ambulance and World Horse Welfare. Both these organisations have worked with us to help get the event off the ground and their involvement has been invaluable. The contributions to these organisations will come from within your entry fee – there is no additional requirement to raise sponsorship or make donations to them.
Competitive cycling in Norfolk and Suffolk is thriving, with an active club network and a wide range of events on offer. However, without any purpose built facilities in Norfolk or Suffolk, clubs face an uphill battle to find suitable locations to hold events to encourage young and first time riders into the sport. More often than not it is the need to pay commercial hire rates for facilities that prevents events from going ahead.
By setting up a cycling development fund we will be able to offer financial support to local clubs and increase and improve the opportunities for racing in the region.
Routes
There are three routes on offer: 100 miles, 70 miles and 30 miles.
All routes will have:
- GPS downloads
- Hard copy route plans
- Waymarking arrows
- Marshalls on key junctions
100 mile route in pictures
100 & 70 miles
These circuits share the same roads, with the 70 mile route using a short linking section to cut off the coastal loop and join the return leg of the 100 mile route.
From the HQ in the heart of The Brecks the routes head north through the market town of Swaffham before heading out across typical West Norfolk farmland via a section of Peddars Way Roman Road and on to the first feed station in the pretty village of Gt Massingham. There’s a disused airfield here so you can be sure of a climb into the village!
The 70 mile route will cut off to the right a few miles out of Gt Massingham and will re-join the 100 mile route just south of the second feed station.
The 100 mile route continues north, keeping the Sandringham Estate on the left as it heads onwards to the coast via Docking. Just as you hit the 51 mile mark you will be rewarded with a classic view of the Norfolk coastline from the top of Beacon Hill before dropping down onto the coast road at Thornham. Your return journey will start with a long steady climb from the coast road and a short section of ‘pave’ (or concrete road as we call it in Norfolk) before you reach the second feed station in East Rudham. From here you dive into the heart of Norfolk returning via Litcham, skirting the edge of another WW2 airbase near Beeston before dropping down into the mass of lanes that characterise central Norfolk and back to the HQ for a well deserved plate of pasta!
30 miles
The 30 mile circuit takes a circular route running anti clockwise from the HQ skirting Attleborough and Wymondham to the refreshment stop at Morley before returning over High Oak and through Shropham to HQ. Crossings of the A11 are done via bridges and the route stays on the quietest lanes as much as possible.
30 mile route in pictures
Who can enter?
There is no lower (or upper!) age limit for any of the rides, however for riders born in 1994 or later the following conditions must be met:
- Riders must present a completed and signed Parental Consent Form at registration on the day of the sportive
In addition:
- Riders born in 1996 or later must be accompanied on the ride by a parent or guardian
The parental consent forms will be sent via e mail to riders once they have entered.
It is the responsibility of the parent/guardian who signs the parental consent form to be satisfied that the ride entered is within the physical capability of the young rider.
How do I enter?
All entries are being taken via the British Cycling website Boudicca Sportive on BC
If you are not a BC member you will be asked to register with BC as part of the entry process. There is no cost associated with the registration process and it will only take a couple of minutes.
Free places for riders born 1996 or later – 30 mile sportive only.
- Parents/guardians wishing to claim a free place for a rider born on 1996 or later should enter themselves in the event and then, when their paid entry has been accepted, e mail the organisers (boudiccasportive@gmail.com) with details of the young rider – name, address and date of birth
- The free rider will then be added manually to the start sheet but will receive all the benefits of a paid entry
- This offer is based on a ‘buy one get one free’ basis
Costs are:
£22.00 for the 100 and 70 mile sportives
£15.00 for the 30 mile sportive.
This is what your entry fee covers:
- Electronic timing and full results service by Mucky Races
- GPS mapping and download
- Fully way marked route
- Free food / drink at rest stops – fruit, bars, energy drinks.
- Free hot food and hot drink at the end of ride
- First Aid cover – provided by St John Ambulance
- Mechanical support – spare parts (tubes, cables etc) will be charged for
- Recovery minibus
What happens next?
In order to keep costs down we will not be issuing rider numbers or sending out info by post so be sure to give us an e mail address that you have regular access to.
Before the event we will contact you by e mail and:
- tell you what your rider number is
- attach the GPS file
- attach the hard copy route maps
On the day you will collect your timing chip from registration – to do this you will need to know what your rider number is – there will be a list of names/numbers at HQ but please do not rely on this, registration will run much more smoothly if you know your number in advance!
As well as your timing chip you will be given a Boudicca Business Card listing emergency and contact numbers for the day. This card will also be your ‘free meal ticket’ at the end of the ride.
Sponsors and supporters:
Without the support and help of a number of businesses and organisations, it would not be possible to run this event. Please take a few minutes to understand who has helped us out and be sure to return the favour to them whenever possible!
www.worldhorsewelfare.org
Securing World Horse Welfare as our event HQ was a massive bonus. It’s in an ideal location with easy access from the A11 and there is plenty of space for parking. World Horse Welfare are not charging us to use their land and are happy to take the turnover from the café as their financial benefit from the event. Please make sure you support them by using the café for pre and post ride refreshments!
www.eaaa.org.uk
LCCRL have a long history of supporting the EAAA and wanted to continue this association via the sportive. EAAA have helped with marketing and PR and we have benefitted from their contacts during the planning phases.
www.duffmorgannorwich.citroen.co.uk
The vans and cars used to take supplies to the feed stations, to deliver the route signs and do all the other running about involved in the event have been supplied free of charge by Duff Morgan Citroen of Norwich.
www.barfordhire.co.uk
Hopefully, not many riders will get to use the mini bus supplied by Barford Hire as it will be the Broom Wagon – ‘sweeping up’ any riders (and their bikes) who are unable to complete their ride.
www.monarchsigns.com
The banners at the start and finish have been supplied free by Monarch Signs and they have provided the route marking arrows at a very competitive rate!
Torq are one of the premier sports nutrition specialists in the UK, this is what they say about themselves …
TORQ is a Fitness Consultancy. It always has been and always will be. Our roots are firmly entrenched in Fitness Consultancy, Coaching and Mountain Biking and this we believe provides us with our unique edge and integrity. We have developed our range of performance nutrition products, including our prominent range of Energy Bars and Drinks, through a need to offer the highest standard of support to the athletes we work with.
You don’t have to be a Mountain Biker to benefit from TORQ. Our products are used extensively in Triathlon and Road Racing. They have been up Everest and to the North Pole. They have been used by British Firefighters and also at the highest level of Football and Motorsport in the UK.
The principles of sports nutrition hold true for any branch of endurance sport – if you have an endurance goal, TORQ is there to help you achieve it.
We have uncompromising standards, yet we also have a conscience. We absolutely refuse to use ingredients that are not derived from a NATURAL source, or don’t naturally occur within the human body. We are firmly of the opinion that artificial ingredients like sweeteners offer no performance advantage can cause stomach discomfort and could potentially harm your health long term. We see no point in including them. Advanced compounds like D-Ribose, HMB and L-Glutamine naturally occur within the human body and represent some of the most potent supplements available on the market today, so why would we want to use anything artificial? Every ingredient we use is included to the levels recommended by available research. We do not cut corners and do not accept compromise.
Torq are supplying a range of energy products to the event – gels, bars and energy drink – each rider will receive some free products as part of their entry fee and there will be the opportunity to buy additional products on the day.
Torq have also supplied us with an excellent document containing nutrition advice covering the pre, during and post event phases – this will be e mailed out to riders shortly after their entry is received.
If you want to learn more about Torq – their range of products, the riders and events they support and pick up some great nutrition advice – visit their website www.torqfitness.co.uk
Contact us
The sportive organising team can be contacted at:
boudiccasportive@gmail.com
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