RULES
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Last update: 2024-07-05
The idea of the challenge
“Baltic Bound” challenge has one main goal for you: finish “Baltic Bound” within the time limit and self-supported manner.
Every participant of the event must follow the rule of an unsupported adventure. By unsupported we mean that a participant has to compete without external help from others (family, team, friends, etc) that is not available to other participants of the challenge.
Participants can buy food, equipment, rent a room, wash their clothes, fix bicycles, etc. during the challenge, but have to use only those services and resources that are publicly available to other participants as well. Taking a rest in a private house or booking a hotel room not on the same day, dinner with the family and friends that is paid by others is not in the spirit of this event so it's forbidden.
If you want to withdraw from the challenge, you must stop live tracking system, contact organizers and tell about your situation. In case of emergency you can contact organizers by phone. Organizers will make everything within their possibilities to help the participant.
Obligatory to have
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Location tracking device given by organizers before the start. (If lost or damaged there is 120eur fee)
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Safety measures (helmet, safety vest or light reflecting clothes).
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Passport or ID card.
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Lightning system, including front and rear lights.( Extra headlamp is recommended)
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Powerbank to charge location tracking device given by organizers
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Sleeping bag or alternative for it.
Recommended to have
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Tent, bivy or hammock that has protection from rain.
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Fully waterproof rain jacket
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At least two water bottles or similar capacity hydration system
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Multitool to service your bicycle.
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Spare derailleur hanger.
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Extra inner tube or tools to fix your tubeless tire.
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Thread and needle, zippers
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GPS device with all countries' around Baltic sea maps installed.
Friends and family
Friends or family can visit participants on the route, but can only give moral support. Any other form of help from friends and family will be considered as violation of the rules (no pacing, buying dinner, providing material help or service is allowed)
In case of major technical problems
Things happen on the road. Having that in mind we do strongly suggest to evaluate your abilities to take care of the issue if fixing on the spot is impossible. We are not in the Andes or the desert so there are towns with bike or repair shops. Evaluate time limits for the nearest CP and make decisions based on that. If you have a major problem and wish to get help from aside (family, friends, etc) call organisers and we will make decision based on the situation. You might be able continue the ride but not competing and will get “*tech. problems” indication next to your finish time.
GPS navigation
GPS navigation is one of the most important participant’s items, with its help he\she can have an evidence that all the checkpoints were collected successfully and ride was according to the rules (e.g. unsupported).
Using smartphones for navigation is permitted only if they have correct software (e.g. Komoot, OsmAnd), riders know how to use it and can be used without battery save mode - to get a correct position. We do recommend to use smart phones for a back up only.
Tracking
All participants must use location tracking device given by organizers. It is used to monitor the position of the participant at any given time during the adventure. If you have any issues with the location tracker during the adventure, please contact the organizers since any inconsistency of tracker work that will be noticed during or found later afterwards might result in DSQ (disqualified).
The participants’ location tracking system is used to check on their location, but not to ensure their safety.
Virtual checkpoints
Riders are presented with online checkpoint map (see "About" page). It contains both standard checkpoints, both virtual checkpoints. Virtual checkpoints are talismans of this event, lighthouses, near which rider or pair has to make a photo and send to official organizer's email (presented in contact section).
Standard checkpoints have closing times. Closing times are presented in "Plan" webpage.
Virtual checkpoints are placed in between standard checkpoints. They don't have additional cut-off times - can be visited anytime during the adventure, just in clock-wise order.
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Coordinates of virtual checkpoints in visiting order:
Free route
Event route is free to choose. The goal is to reach all checkpoints and finish in timely manner.
Ways to create free route: use platforms like Komoot, Garmin Basecamp, plotaroute or similar.
Standard checkpoints:
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Start/Finish
Route/track restrictions
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Don't use highways. e.g. E4 in Sweden - it's not safe to ride there and is mostly forbidden.
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Take ferry from Helsinki to Tallinn.
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Go around Kaliningrad, Russia, through Jurbarkas city and Vištytis town.
Participants
Persons 18 years and older are allowed to participate.
Help
Participants can receive help from other participants in case of:
Medical help
Technical help
Moral help
Food or water (in extreme cases)
Rules for pairs
Pairs can share their resources. The rules are the same as for solo cyclists, but having one main difference: any support is allowed between those two riders. Pair can share resources, help navigate each other, etc.
Pairs can ride as solo participants, but the finish will be timed when the last person from the pair will cross the line.
Pairs still have to use two tracking devices and carry them separately. In case one of the pair riders withdraw from the challenge, other can continue to the finish line and his\her entry will be marked as *finished solo, but started in pair.
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While pairs can be registered, they can also be formed while riding. Participants (both) should inform organizers about their agreement to form a pair while riding. If two solo participants are sleeping two or more times together, near each other, and haven't informed organizers about becoming a pair - organizers might consider their disqualification (marked as DSQ).
PostPacking
​Sending your prepared packages to different post/parcel machines and post offices and collecting them along the route is not allowed.
Finish
A participant, who reaches a designated finish is asked to return tracker, charging cable and present a checkpoint card for signing it. If a participant will not present a correctly filled checkpoint card and there will be no photos received by organizers to official organizer's email in designated time, organisers leave the right to mark participant's status as DNF (Did not finish).
Technical and inventory check
On pre-start day an experienced bicycle mechanic will do a quick bicycle check, as well as "Must have" items will be checked, so participants need to make sure their bicycles are ok. The mechanic might have some time for a small fix of participant's bicycle if it's not OK but don't count on it. This check is done to lessen technical problems along the way, so more participants can finish the challenge.
We would like to remind
Any human powered bicycle in good condition is OK, even those that are not used in traditional events (we recommend road bike but the choice is yours).
The participants are responsible for their own safety.
Only participants are responsible for their actions during the challenge.
“Baltic Bound” organizers can exclude a participant from the challenge for not following the rules, including can disqualify participant publicly stating their misbehavior, inappropriate actions against the rules.