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Red Bull Timelaps - a one-day, 25-hour team cycling challenge in Windsor Great Park (+ video)

Event takes advantage of the clocks going back in October to pack an extra 'Power Hour' into the day...

"Spring forward, Fall back," goes the American saying about which way to adjust your clocks, watches and sundry other timekeeping devices twice a year. And the clocks going back in October provides the inspiration behind a new event, the Red Bull Timelaps, which will take place in Windsor Great Park and is claimed to be "the world's longest one-day bike race" - because it spans 25 hours.

Starting on midday on Saturday 28 October and finishing at noon the following day, the event will see up to 150 teams of four riders take on a 6.6 kilometre closed circuit inside the park in the shadow of Windsor Castle in Berkshire.

Only one rider from each team will be allowed on the circuit at a time, meaning that "participants will have to demonstrate a mixture of strategic nous, endurance and determination to overcome the challenge."

The winner will be the team completing most laps within the 25 hours - and to spice things up, laps completed on a special shorter circuit during a 'Power Hour' starting when the clocks go back at  2am will count double.

Organisers say that the event will see Windsor Great Park "opening its gates to a cycling road race for the first time ever" - although in fact, it hosted the individual and team road races at the 1948 London Olympic Games.

They add: "The park’s well-surfaced, undulating and traffic-free roads will provide the perfect location for the race."

Team entries cost £250 or £200 if all riders are aged under 25, and you can also enter as an individual, in which case organisers will hook you up with three fellow riders to form a team.

Head here to enter or to find out more information.

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

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7 comments

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meursault | 7 years ago
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What is the closing date to apply for this?

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pruaga | 7 years ago
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I just wish that loop was open on a normal day.  It's hard to make a decent loop in the Great Park due to the various gates and private sections.

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xtw | 7 years ago
0 likes

Strange rule - "Drafting is allowed with members of the same gender" 

Also, going to be open to public to walk on the course as normal.

A few months back Windsor GP had laid down a lot of surface gravel making pretty much every corner dodgy for cyclists even at ~10mph.

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brooksby replied to xtw | 7 years ago
2 likes

xtw wrote:

Strange rule - "Drafting is allowed with members of the same gender" 

That's the "no staring at stranger's arses" rule  (doesn't apparently exclude gay cyclists, which is nice and inclusive of the organisers... ).

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RobD | 7 years ago
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hmmm... the weather at the end of October could make this a bit of a wet and windy slogfest if they're not lucky (although not that different to August at the moment I guess), sounds like it could be fun though

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graybags | 7 years ago
3 likes

Will no doubt appeal to the Regents Park crowd as a relief from the boredom of 3 mile laps !

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Leviathan | 7 years ago
0 likes

This is cheating, everyone knows that the Earth takes 23 hours, 56 minutes, 4 seconds to rotate regardless of your clocks.

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