What’s it all about?
ACE Races are brilliant events for anyone looking for a challenging day out in the country. Pace yourself and enjoy the activities and the views, or go all out and compete in the ACE Race Series, racing head to head with others. These notes are written predominantly for first time participants in ACE Races and therefore tend towards commentary on the 1 day events, which are the ideal launch pad into AR. You might be considering making a foray into this exciting sport or you might be looking for a different style of event to do at the weekend. You might have a load of mates and just want to go and “get amongst it” or you might be training for other outdoor or endurance pursuits. If you are any of the above, or if you have just found yourself on our website because you’ve landed here from somewhere else, chances are that an ACE Race 1 day event will be for you, and you will love it. Other the years 1000s have taken part in ACE Races and enjoyed the great locations, the exciting courses and the challenging activities. The concept is routed in the founding principles of ACE Races – Adventure, Challenge and Endurance.

What’s involved?
There is a page dedicated to the 1 Day series which has full event info. The event comprises running and biking sections that link together check points – “CPs” – and it’s your task to collect as many of these as you can throughout the event. You will use maps (provided) to get your way around the course and collect as many CPs as yo ucan. You go as fast or as slow as you like and you can compete as a team of 3, a pair or a solo. Along the way, you will encounter challenges that you must overcome. These are fun and engaging – and could be mental or physical or both!

If you have done one or two 1 day events, or you fancy getting involved at a more committing level in the first instance, ACE Races do run a longer event called the Dirty Weekend. This event involves running and biking like the 1 day series, but introduces kayaking, rope work and other challenges into the format in terrain that is more rugged. The 2008 Dirty Weekend will take place in Southern Scotland over the weekend of 05th/ 06th July and it is uniquely positioned to allow you take part in a 1 day, 2 day or “elite” overnight class within the event.

Training and skills
The 1 day events are intended to give a really good introduction to adventure sport. They are deliberately non-intimidating and the atmosphere warm and friendly. The training you will need to do, and the skills you will need to have acquired, are relatively modest. You will need a bike (although you can hire one from us) and be confident riding it easy off-road terrain. You will also be running off road, so ensure you are up to scratch with more rugged terrain than just your local streets. The maps are provided and at least one person in the team needs to be able to read it! The navigation is fun though and is not designed to catch you out. It’s a great skill to learn and ACE Races help you do just that!

Event Details

All correspondence is sent via email and through the website. Event details (including directions to venues) and a log of any previous email correspondence is also placed on the website. (No details are sent through the post). There is a whole host of info on the website for you to get the full low down on the events, but if in doubt, just give us a call on 0845 009 4365 or email us at info@aceraces.com and ask our experienced office staff what it’s all about.
You enter online here and entries will always close the weekend prior to the event.

Classes and Prizes
You can run in one of a number of  categories. Solo, pair or team of 3. if you are pairing up or running as a team, you can race mixed or single sex. The solos will do all that the pairs and teams will do, but the challenges are adapted slightly for solo participants.

There is a wide range of superb prizes provided by the event sponsors. Typically teams coming 1st - 3rd will receive awards in all classes, but there are also lots of spot prizes available too. So you might be a winner, even if you haven’t any hope of winning!

Insurance and risk
Adventure racing is demanding and inevitably exposes competitors to levels of risk. These events are professionally managed by Detail Events, an adventure events company and as such the nature of the activity involved is risk assessed pre-event and all relevant safety systems are employed. You are in good hands. We do suggest that competitors consider having individual insurance cover for their sporting endeavours and would recommend www.sportscoverdirect.com where simple policies can be downloaded to cover the types of sports found in ACE Races.

ACE Race 1 Day Series Entry Criteria
A team can enter a single 1 Day event or the whole series, but to qualify for a series ranking, at least 2 team members must remain constant for all 3 events – that’s Pippingford, Bracknell and the South Downs event.
Read more about ACE Races 1 day series here. Read some information about the ACE Race “Dirty Weekend” here. See you at the Races!