JetBlack 24 Hour Rider Briefing
(last updated: 6 February 2017)
For the first time, the JetBlack 24 Hour will be held at the Awaba MTB Park and we’ll be ‘Racing in a State Forest of Trance’! The 2016 event was our first race with our then-baby Cosmo, who is now a cheeky toddler and sure to be keeping the Grandparents busy, who are on en-route from Austria right in time for the race!
Here are some important bits and pieces of information in the race lead up.
Share your race experience with us – use the official event hashtags:
#jetblack24 #rockytrailracer
Online registration
Will be open until Thursday evening before the race.
>> Click here to register!
- Online registration closes on Thursday, 16 February, 9pm, unless all 350 spots have been filled previously. There is no on the day registration.
- There will be an additional podium for the 3 fastest male and female Single Speed riders. You need to race the entire race exclusively on Single Speed bikes and tick the Single Speed box when registering.
- Age determination date is race day, which means the age you are at the date of the race determines the age group you are racing in.
- You can choose to ride in your age group or Elite.
- Junior Teams – requirement for all team members to be 18 years or younger on race day.
- Miniumum age for solo is 18, teams of 2 and 3 is 16 years, for teams of 4 and 6 is 12 years on race day. Exceptions to the rule are possible – send us an email to discuss.
- Master Teams – requirement for all team members to be 40+ or older on race day. We will offer this category if more than 3 teams sign up.
- Team 6 OPEN is a category that is not divided into age groups or gender categories. All teams in this category race against each other.
- If you are racing in a team where riders fall in different age groups the following rules apply:
- If all team riders are over 19 years old then the youngest defines the age group.
- If one team rider is under 19 then the average age will define the age group.
- Each rider needs to agree to our General Race Rules
- The solo rider/the team with most laps in the least amount of time wins. Master categories are offered if a minimum of three rides/teams have signed up.
- All results will be displayed in your various age groups as well as the overall male/female results.
- Each rider needs to sign our Race Waiver; parents or guardians needs to sign on behalf of riders younger than 18 years.
- You do not require any racing license to participate in this event.
>> What’s included in your race entry
- Free camping at Awaba (possible Fri, Sat, Sun nights).
- Entry for spectators and camping is free.
- Results certificate for download from our results portal after the event.
plus
- All your rider photos for FREE thanks to “Bacci Fresh Pasta”
Bacci’s Fresh Pasta & Meals –
What they say: “We make fresh meal solutions created to allow families and friends to come together and enjoy great fresh meals.”
What we say: “We love eating Bacci’s Pasta, because it just tastes delicious. There are no funky ingredients in there, just hearty food that’s yummy. The owner of Bacci’s Fresh has been racing with Rocky Trail from the beginning too, so an even better reason to always have a packet of Bacci’s Fresh in the fridge!”
PHOTOS: we will have three official race photographers from OuterImage.com.au out on track for us and you’ll be able to download your photos from their website after the event. Private photography is allowed; any commercial operator is required to apply for an official media accreditation from Rocky Trail Entertainment via email by Friday, 17 February. Thanks for your understanding and cooperation.
>> How to get there
Location: Awaba MTB Park
Coming from Sydney:
Head up the M1 towards Newcastle. After about 100 km take the Freemans Dr. exit. Turn right at Freemans Dr and drive for 4.6 km. Turn right at Mount Faulk Rd and continue for 2.4 km. From there you can see the MTB Park signs.
Coming from Newcastle
Head down the M1 towards Sydney. Take the Palmers Road exit and turn right. Turn left onto Freemans Dr and drive for about 6km. Turn right at Mount Faulk Rd and continue for 2.4 km. From there you can see the MTB Park signs.
>> About the event centre and race track
This is the map of the event centre, which is also on our website. It’s a Google Maps set-up, so if you zoom out, you can see the race track and the map legend is on the right.
Within the main event centre we will set up a dedicated 24H and 6+6H Solo pit area – there are plenty of spots and we will lay out the race track so that as many tents as possible are directly next to it.
Solo riders:
- We will mark out the solo pit area and it will be quite clear how the tents should line up. If you’re unsure, have a chat to our crew to assign you a spot when you arrive.
- If you do need car access to the solo pit area, can you please drive in and leave by 9am, so that we have all cars out of the solo pit area by 9:30 the latest. Transition zone, start/finish straight etc. will have to be built / organised around it then. Thanks for your cooperation!
Team riders: spots can be taken on a first-come, first-serve basis. You can also camp directly next to your car – the event centre is set up that the furthest away from the transition zone is less than 200m or so.
Music: Part of the Rocky Trail experience is that we have a pumping event centre with a wide variety of funky tunes. We will have a “warm-up” session by our DJ on Friday evening (until 9-10pm) and will start the music on Saturday from 7am. During the racing night it will be turned right down (from ~11pm), so that the camp is quiet and the guys still racing can hear it as they come through the transition area. In the wee hours of the morning, when it gets lonely out on track they look forward to hearing a bit of music and a little chat with the crew.
Announcements and music will recommence on Sunday morning by 5:30am for the re-start of the 6+6H riders.
Camping and parking: We will have a dedicated area for caravans as well as a solo pit lane trackside. On Saturday we will have marshals on-site to help direct the traffic and point you in the right direction for camping and setting up. Camping is free.
Accommodation: may we recommend checking out the local tourism websites:
- http://www.visitlakemac.com.au/
- http://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/north-coast/lake-macquarie-area
Amenities: We will of course have toilets for you but no showers. Please bring your own camping showers to the event.
Wet conditions: This track withstands wet weather very well and is bone-dry right now. We will keep you updated of any updates.
Hot conditions: We do have a water tank for drinking and another one for washing etc in the event centre. The race track is located in very established bushland and rainforest-like vegetation, so nice and shady. Also the event centre is surrounded by huge trees.
>> RACING
Timing:
We will be using our chip timing system – you will be issued with number plates that have magnetic timing strips on the back. It is important that you don’t fold up your number plate as then the functionality is not ensured; also, if you loose your number plate, please come see us at the timing tent and we can re-issue you a new one. Your race times and results will be displayed on screens live in the event centre.
Double number plates for solos:
All 24H and 6+6H solo riders will automatically be issued with two number plates, as a lot of them usually bring two steeds. If you are a team rider who needs a second number plate also, please talk to Juliane and her crew at the registration tent on the day before the race starts.
Start procedure:
All event participants need to be present at the rider briefing on Saturday at 11:30am.
At 12pm there will be a mass start for all riders: 24H solo, 24H team and all 6+6H racers. We will explain team transitions during the rider briefing on race day.
6+6H procedures:
These guys get a break over night. You are allowed to start a last lap until 5:59.59 pm on Saturday, those laps will still count. We will then publish a re-start list in the event centre.
Basically:
- If you finish at or before 6pm, you/one member of your team will start at 6am on Sunday.
- If you finish after 6pm, you will start with the relevant minute-delay on the Sunday, e.g. if you finish at 6:12pm, you will start at 6:12am.
- We will have our Race Director and crew ready to call you up to the start line and to count you down for your race start.
- Teams can nominate any team rider to start the second day for them.
Lights:
- Lights have to be on all 24-hour riders’ bikes by 7pm the latest. Only front lights are required.
- 6+6 Hour racers won’t require lights as they will have enough day light.
Recharging:
- We will have a light re-charging station set up from about mid afternoon. We do kindly ask that you bring yours with full batteries, please. We have a couple of power boards and if you have a spare one, bring it along, but we should have good capacity.
Finish procedure:
You are allowed to start a last lap until 11:59.59 am on Sunday, those laps will still count.
>> Results and Rider List
We will provide a LIVE portal to follow the race results throughout the event. We will post the direct link on our results page online. – We will push out social media posts via Facebook and Twitter to keep the “outside world” updated about what’s happening too.
>> Full event schedule
>> Food
Food and drinks will be available all day including deliciously invigorating coffee, hot and cold drinks, yummy snacks and hearty pasta meals. For people camping overnight on Saturday, we recommend bringing breakfast.
Water – will be provided on-site.
We will have our caterers Mona and Anthony from “The Daily Espresso” on-site all weekend and they will serve yummy food from Friday evening onwards. They will have a BBQ on the Friday evening and offer breakfast on Saturday and Sunday with various egg & bacon rolls etc. as well as pasta and yummy wraps and sandwiches and sweet treats all weekend. And their coffee is awesome too!
Further information:
Portable toilets are available as well as two fixed State Forest toilets.
Introducing: the Cosmo Classic Kids Trophy – this is a free kidlet race for the youngest shredders (about 100m time trial around the small loop near the car park) as well as a *drum roll* JetBlack 24 Minute race for the up and coming Junior Champions who’re keen on the new junior loop at Awaba (only a few 100m). No need to sign the kids up beforehand; we’ll have a list at the registration tent on the day that you can fill out and we’ll probably do them towards the mid to late afternoon on the Saturday when the main race is well underway and to avoid the warmer afternoon hours.
First Aid – the fabulously friendly crew from Pink First Aid will be on-site from Saturday 10am.
Bike Shop – The crew from Fizo Cycling will be looking after you. We recommend that you have spare-parts that are very specific to your bike with you. Any bike-related services and repairs are free, for spare-parts they will charge the standard rates.
RAFFLE – As mountain bikers we spend our time riding outdoors and even though we don’t mind a good mud puddle, most of the time we ride in the sun and heat. With our JetBlack 24 Hour set in the summer racing season, we are teaming up with the Cancer Council NSW to provide educational tools and goodies at the race. There will be several activities including a RAFFLE to raise funds to go towards skin cancer research.
Stay in touch and share the love!
When you take photos at the event, please us the official event hashtags: #jetblack24and #solo24 – that way we can follow your posts and join in the conversations! You can follow us on the following Rocky Trail social media channels:
We will have a small army of instagramers out and about for us also, so be sure to tune in once in a while to check out what’s going on!
THANK YOU!
It’s great to have you on board and racing with us at the JetBlack 24 Hour – we’re looking forward to meeting you!
We would also like to thank our headline sponsor JetBlack Cycling Australia – these guys have been huge supporters of all Rocky Trail races since our inception in 2008 and the JetBlack 24 Hour is a credit and shall be a tribute to their commitment in the Australian cycling industry.
A huge THANK YOU to all our event supporters!
See you there!
Photos used thanks to OuterImage.com.au and Dan de Witte.
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