Race update – Friday, 7 February 2014, 2.30pm
Dear AMB100 racers,
We are contacting you ahead of Sunday’s AMB100 Marathon race to keep you informed of the latest developments at Stromlo Forest Park.
Weather forecast
The current weather forecast for Sunday is a cool morning around 13 deg. at 5am when the 100-milers start their race. After the now earlier mass start at 8am we expect the majority of riders to be finished by 1pm. The temperature forecast for midday is 30 degrees. We have spent the last few days at Stromlo Forest Park and we are working closely together with their crews to prepare for Sunday. We know that the hottest time of day in Canberra is late in the afternoon, from about 3-4pm. By then we expect temperatures to be in the high thirties and our event to be finished.
Monitoring riders from 1pm, last lap 2pm
We will start monitoring riders coming through timing and their average lap times from 1pm and have a conversation if they feel comfortable to do another lap.
After 2pm no new laps can be started.
There are additional water stations out on track that are clearly marked, including a manned marshall point at the half-way mark of the course at the Double Dissolution/Party Line intersection, which you will pass twice. We will have first aiders on-site as well.
We will avoid the strongest heat of the day, but we urge all riders to look after themselves and listen to their bodies and ride and race within their limits.
Start hydrating on Saturday and keep your fluid and especially electrolyte intake up during the event.
Stromlo Forest Park weather policy
Since our last communication, it is now a possibility that the fire rating will be elevated to “Extreme” across the ACT for Sunday and Stromlo Forest Park will be forced to close in that instance. Unfortunately authorities will only make this decision by 5pm on the Saturday.
Should this scenario come true, we, the race organisers from Rocky Trail, will make a call to postpone the AMB100 Marathon race at 5pm on Saturday, 8 February and an alternative event date has been set for the 16th February.
We wanted to give you a heads up today already, so that especially riders who arrive from out of town have the option to delay their trip to Canberra until then and can still get to Stromlo that evening/night if it all goes ahead as planned and expected.
Camping and accommodation alternatives Saturday night
Event participants who are already at Stromlo Forest Park before Saturday afternoon and had planned to camp overnight for Sunday’s race will be asked to vacate the premises with us and all other public visitors, should a park closure be enforced – if you require alternative camping options, we can recommend the EPIC/Exhibition Park Canberra, located in Mitchell, just off the Federal Highway before you get onto the Northbourne Avenue (~20 min from Stromlo).
We spoke to the EPIC today and they have plenty of availabilities and an after-hours office, where you can check-in yourself and then pay for your stay in the morning. Instructions can be found via this link on their website (PDF).
We can also recommend our hotel partner, the Crowne Plaza Canberra. All Rocky Trail riders can save up to 20% off their stay when they book via this link or you can call 1300 662 218 and quote the code IDAZS.
Thank you
We really appreciate your understanding and cooperation – we are absolutely ready to race, the track is marked, our crew is on arrival – in fact, our race director Martin is out right now to check signage that we put in place yesterday. But we are cooperating with emergency authorities and risk management and rider safety are our main concerns. As announced yesterday, the race track length was shortened due to the warm weather forecast to around 25km, which will provide some relief we hope. However, you will still get to race the best trail sections of Stromlo, including an even longer Party Line, a brand-new addition to the riding network and we are looking forward to an exciting race.
For a copy of the final rider briefing from yesterday, 6th February, including a track description and the planned race schedule, please >>click here<<.
Please bear with us and we will keep you updated.
Kind regards,
Juliane & Martin
We would like to thank all riders and our sponsors for their support!
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