§1. Every rider has the responsibility to read and learn the Rules of the race. As well as reading and becoming familiar with the entirety of the latest version of the Athlete's Guide.
§2. Finish time cutoff: Sunday the 27th of July 2025 at 12:00. If you decide to ride for longer, it is outside the scope of this competition and will not be timed.
§3. No complaining about the rules. No exception. They are as close, to the bikepacking ultra-racing ethos, as possible.
§4. No complaining about the routes. No exception. Each rider has the sole responsibility to be adequately trained, in bicycle handling, to be able to ride other road surfaces than asphalt - hence gravel, cobblestone and sand. Each rider is solely responsible for choosing adequate bike and cycling gear according to own abilities. It is not in the scope, of race organizers, to recommend any specific bike or gear, since this is very individual and has unlimited possibilities.
§5. Breaking any part of the signed Personal conduct declaration, pre, during and post race, will result in immediate disqualification and removal from the years final results.
§6. Aim: To cycle, self-supported and as fast as possible, along the predetermined route as linked to in this guide/on the website.
§7. Who can participate: Anyone, over the age of 18 as solo riders, and 15 years of age as part of a pair, where the other is a parent of the child. The gravel race will only accept adults over the age of 18 years old.
§8. Racing: Attempts are intended to be as solo or pairs. All racing is self-supported as one long time trail. The clock runs non-stop from the moment of GO. The challenge is complete upon arrival at the end of the predetermined route. There are no required checkpoints or designated restperiods on the course.
§9. To complete the route, a rider/riders may resupply food, equipment, rent a room, rent a hut, sleep at caravan parks, launder clothing and get their bike serviced at commercial shops along the way. The intent is to ride unsupported between towns, and function self-supported when in towns. Any services utilized must always be commercially available to all challengers and not pre-arranged. No private resupply and no private lodging - including no Airbnb. This includes accepting food, drinks etc. from complete strangers and family. Whatever racedirectors might hand you of small treats and water etc., during the race, is permitted in the spirit of friendly Danish ”hygge” (cosiness).
§10. Outside assistance with navigation, lodging or resupply (especially receipt of supplies from non-commercial shipper) are prohibited.
§11. Family and friends may visit riders, on route, but can in no way provide food, drink, material support or shelter. Support car is prohibited. Riders are allowed to stay beside racedirector's campervan, on a commercial campsite, if reacedirector happens to be staying at the same place - still in the spirit of Danish hygge.
§12. In the event of a serious mechanical problem, that renders a bike unrideable, a rider may be assisted by motor vehicle in moving backwards, forwards, or directly off the route. A rider may also receive assistance returning back to the location where they left the route. The moment they rejoin the route, any forward assistance is prohibited, even if a rider has already ridden that stretch prior to leaving the route. The intent of this rule is to encourage riders to exhaust self-rescue options first, and ensure any rider, who must hitchhike, will still ride the entire course (+ a few ”penalty” miles/km).
§13. Shipping/receiving supplies (to the course): In the name of equal opportunity for international riders and to minimize the ‘footprint’, challengers are encouraged to race as reliant as possible on commercial services along the route. However, in advance of a start, competitors may cache food or equipment resupply at Postnord services only, care of general delivery. Typical practice is to ship a replacement chain and fresh bike shorts to the halfway point on route.
§14. Once the race clock begins, riders may be assisted by a third party in receiving emergency repair/replacement items only. Food resupply is not considered an emergency. Emergency items must be shipped using a commercial shipper such as USPS, UPS, Fed-Ex, DHL, GLS etc. Items may not be delivered privately by family, friends or even anonymous persons. Items may only be shipped to a commercial address (P.O., hotel, bike shop, restaurant etc.), provided that address is equally available to all racers. Use of a private address (residence) along the route is forbidden. Utilizing any form of social media for help (ie. conjure ‘trail magic’) is also forbidden.
§15. GPS navigators are essential. The GPX ROUTE IS THE GOSPEL!. A SPOT GPS tracker is required for racing. Final rankings will be based on GPS tracking data. Mobile phones are permitted. Social media is actively encouraged, but within the spirit of the race. Best applied as a way to send messages out, not so much back in.
§16. The Round Denmark Bike Race is a web-administered, do-it-yourself challenge based on the purest of wagers: the gentleperson’s bet or agreement. Nothing to win or lose but honor.
§17. Any bike is allowed. Even those that aren’t allowed in traditional grand tours (HPV etc..) - as long as it is not powered by some kind of fuled engine and can run without pushing the pedals.
§18. Riders will compete in the following classes according to type of bike used during the race:
§19. Raceresults will be according to the eight classes and race.
§20. There are no checkpoints or officials on course – though racedirectors will be driving on route, for the first week, to catch up with people and do some video for social media.
§21. Riders alone are responsible for their safety.
§22. Riders alone must police their conduct and report any race discrepancies, to the racedirector, for further penalty actions – in the spirit of good sportsmanship. Time penalties can be given for taking the wrong roads and thereby gaining an advantage. Penalties are calculated accordingly and will be added to the finish time. A three person jury, working behind the scenes, will settle any doubts of breaking the rules.
§23. The finishline is the finishline - see description in the Athletes Guide. Placing is according to who crosses the finishline first. There will be no shared place compensation for being half a whisker behind another rider.
§24. There is no mechanism to communicate to riders on course.
§25. Riders alone are responsible for communicating with their loved ones.
§26. Riders are responsible for contacting racedirector, through Messenger, as soon as possible with regards to out of the ordinary events - ie discovering a tracker (SPOT) has run out of battery, going off track for bike repair, going to a doctor/hospital, with an injury/illness, or staying an extra day in one place. It does not apply to going shopping at a local supermarket off route. This is considered an ordinary event.
§27. Updates, to the racedirector, are not intended to ensure rider safety.
§28. Online GPS tracking is also not intended to ensure rider safety. It is for info-only, and validation of course compliance.
§29. Relegation: The Round Denmark Bike Race and Gravel Race reserve the rights to relegate a rider from the Classification for confirmed rules violations.
§30. No rider will be notified of possible relegation mid-race. It is the sole responsibility of all riders to know the rules, police themselves, and in cases of course deviation, recognize their error + correct it before proceeding on route. Ideally any rider who defaults on any part of rules 2 through 6 will honorably scratch from the race. The Round Denmark Bike Race and Gravel Race are do-it-yourself challenges - racers alone must police themselves.
§31. It is the rider’s responsibility to know and observe local laws.
§32. Riders must act in the spirit of self-sufficiency and equal opportunity for all racers. If a racer voluntarily scratches mid-race, yet continues on to finish the race, their individual tracking page will remain online/updated for informational purposes.
§33. Riders are allowed to find alternative routes around unforseen obstacles on gravel roads; like fallen trees, deep soft sand or if undergrowth has made it impossible to ride the track. Riders are obliged to share a position (take a screenshot of your position on the map) and a photo of the obstacle, when deciding to navigate around an unforseen obstacle. Both should be send imidiately to racedirector through Messenger.
§34. All riders are permitted to find alternative routes around unforseen roadwork or other obstables blocking the tarmac road. The alternative route should be of equal or longer length than the road you were supposed to travel. If it is shorter, you have to give yourself a time penalty for the shorter distance, which is equal to what it would have taken you to do the correct distance - and imidiately inform racedirector of your incured time penalty.
§35. All riders are obliged to share their live position, through Messenger, with racedirector, when reaching around 20-15 km from the finish line.
§36. Mandatory items. Any missing items will result in not getting permission to start until items are required:
§37. Raceorganizers can never be held accountable for any injury, or other loss, a participant may experience. All racing is at one's own risk and responsibility. Riders are responsible for having correct insurances that cover illness, hospitalization, stolen bike and belongings and damage to other people or people's property.
Apart from the above, the following applies for pairs.
§38. Pairs are self supported units, allowed to share any and all resources within the units. The rules are the same as for solo riders with one all encompassing exception: that support is allowed between the paired riders. The unit may share resources, navigation duties, as well as being allowed to draft and tow etc… Paired riders are essentially joined across the country. Pairs have to travel exclusively with each other and have to be in viewing distance, of one another, at all times. Riders must reach the end of the route before the pair is deemed finished. Last rider unto the finishline counts.
§39. Paired racers may not draft other pairs/solo riders or interfere with solo riders in any way.
§40. Paired riders must each carry a tracker. If one of the riders quits the race, the other is allowed to continue to finish and may be ranked with an asterisk denoting paired travel to start with.
§41. Paired riders may not ride, between 22:00 and 05:00, if one of the riders are below the age of 18. This is to respect a very young rider's need for extra rest.
To clarify, paired riders start together, ride together, and hopefully finish together. Drafting is allowed between the pair as well as sharing all other resources. These features are what distinguish paired riders from solo riders.
§42. Visually impaired and disabled riders can compete as single or pairs. The same rules apply.
§43. Disabled riders are allowed to circumnavigate gravel roads, in the road race, if the chosen means of transportation is unsuitable for gravel roads or it would be impossible to get around obstacles.
§44. A disabled rider can bring one abled supporting rider.
§45. A visually impaired rider can bring one seeing supporting rider and ride a tandem.
§46. A supporting rider may only ride behind a disabled rider, and is allowed to help in any way necessary for the disabled rider to get around the track.
§47. A seeing supporting rider is allowed to help in any way necessary for the visually impaired rider to get around the track.
§48. A disabled rider may not draft a supporting rider - but are allowed to draft a pair rider, if riding as a pair.
§49. Supporting vehicle is not allowed to follow the disabled rider on the route. Supporting vehicle, with necessary wheelchair etc. are allowed to drive from meeting point to meeting point - like places for toilet visists, places to eat and sleep etc.