Hello everyone, thanks for for patience.
I am happy to start taking registration for the 2019 edition of the Kiwi Brevet and Kiwi Brevette events.
Here are the links to the two courses. Please note these links are for planning purposes ONLY, I will provide a finalised .gpx file and cue sheet for each event closer to the start.
Brevet - 1112 km with 20500m ascent https://ridewithgps.com/routes/27305903
Brevette - 756 km with 15300m ascent https://ridewithgps.com/routes/27444344
There may be some minor changes to these routes but they will not change much, you can start planning food and water stops, contact services for opening times etc.
This is a SELF SUPPORTED bikepacking adventure. You must complete the ENTIRE course under your own steam, without a support crew or ANY outside assistance (other than what is commercially available to every participant).
To register please send us an email to kiwibrevet@gmail.com with the following information.
Name(s) - You can ride either event as an individual or a team
Email address for ALL participants
Team Name if you have one
Event participating in - either Brevet or Brevette
Then head over to this page and make a donation of at least $50 PER PERSON to Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue. (Please use at least your first name and first initial of surname so I can check them off)
https://givealittle.co.nz/fundraiser/kiwi-brevetbrevette-2019
Please note you are ALL (at least one tracker per team) required to use a SPOT tracker for both events
Tracking and SPOT hire will be provided by Maprogress. A link will follow to register for tracking or to hire trackers.
Any questions flick me a message to kiwibrevet@gmail.com
Cheers, Scott and Jo
05 December 2018
28 April 2018
Broken body means time to map
Hello one and all!
Some of you will know, others will not but I (Scott) broke a couple of vertebra in my neck on Easter Sunday whilst mountain biking. I'm a lucky boy, no permanent damage and a full recovery is expected. It has slowed me down somewhat - but it has freed up some time to start mapping out routes for Kiwi Brevet 2019.
Kiwi Brevet and Brevette 2019 will start and finish in the traditional home of the Kiwi Brevet, Seymore Square in Blenheim on Saturday 2nd February 2019 at 10am. You have until 10pm on Sunday 10th February to complete either of the courses.
We hope to be somewhat more organised this year than in the past but you know how life gets ;-)
Keep an eye on updates here and on Facebook over the coming weeks.
Cheers, Scott and Jo
Some of you will know, others will not but I (Scott) broke a couple of vertebra in my neck on Easter Sunday whilst mountain biking. I'm a lucky boy, no permanent damage and a full recovery is expected. It has slowed me down somewhat - but it has freed up some time to start mapping out routes for Kiwi Brevet 2019.
Kiwi Brevet and Brevette 2019 will start and finish in the traditional home of the Kiwi Brevet, Seymore Square in Blenheim on Saturday 2nd February 2019 at 10am. You have until 10pm on Sunday 10th February to complete either of the courses.
We hope to be somewhat more organised this year than in the past but you know how life gets ;-)
Keep an eye on updates here and on Facebook over the coming weeks.
Cheers, Scott and Jo
01 February 2017
Rules 2017
What's shown below is an edited version of the rules blurb from 2014. The main thing is to complete the course under your own steam, without a support crew or ANY outside assistance (other than what is commercially available to every participant).
Text-ins (rather than 'call-ins') are to be made from designated towns along the route until you either finish or abandon the brevet. Text event HQ on 021 0325 069
The designated towns are in the cue sheets.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What is the Kiwi Brevet? What defines it? How does it differ from a race?
The Kiwi Brevet is a cycle touring challenge. It is defined by the course and the event rules. You can complete the course without following the rules, but you will have completed something that is, to some degree, different from the 'Kiwi Brevet'.
A really great dirt brevet has a challenging time component, but that is only one small element of what defines success in this event. If there were 'winners' in the inaugural Kiwi Brevet, I would say they were the riders who exceeded their expectations and shared their adventures with others (through photos, blogs, amusing call-ins and articles, etc). If you can meet some of the locals, enjoy some great food and scenery; and finish uninjured with a little bit left in the tank, then you have done very well indeed! And if you enjoy the company of fellow breveteers - deepening old friendships or developing new - you've really hit the jackpot.
The event culture is largely determined by its participants, but the rules lay the groundwork for how the riders tackle the course. With that in mind, here are the rules for 2017.
1. Do it all yourself, under your own steam.
2. Riders must carry all their own gear (i.e. no domestiques, unless you are part of a team).
3. No outside support (deliveries only to public addresses, no support from friends along the way, no support vehicles of any kind meeting you along the way). Prior to the race you may only post supplies to post offices.
4. Follow 100% of the course.
5. It is recommended that riders carry a personal locator beacon, and agree to cover the cost of rescue in the event they need to be evacuated.
6. Riders must not complete the course in less than 4 days (This event is not about finding the fastest rider).
7. Riders must finish in under 8 1/2 days. That is, by 10pm on Sunday the 8th Feb.
8. Between 9am one day and 9am the next, every rider must spend at least one block of at least six hours not travelling. That is, the maximum time any rider may spend travelling along the course will be 18 hours (between each 10am-to-10am period)
9. When on public roads, follow the NZ Road Code.
10. Text-ins are to be made from designated towns along the route until you either finish or abandon the brevet, text event HQ on 021 0325 069
11. Riders must observe all rules laid down by land mangers along the route (such as the Department of Conservation). Riders must not camp or light fires in the McDonald Downs Station section or the North Bank of the Wairau forest section of the course.
12. Don't be a dick
We intend having a finishing list, BUT please remember this is NOT a sanctioned event or race. Now I fully understand the competitive nature of these events, I get it, but please try to take part whilst keeping these guidelines in mind. This is a gentleman agreement, no one is out there watching your every move although the MAProgress site does provide near 24/7 ability to virtually do so.
Enjoy it, it is an adventure more than anything else.
Text-ins (rather than 'call-ins') are to be made from designated towns along the route until you either finish or abandon the brevet. Text event HQ on 021 0325 069
The designated towns are in the cue sheets.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What is the Kiwi Brevet? What defines it? How does it differ from a race?
The Kiwi Brevet is a cycle touring challenge. It is defined by the course and the event rules. You can complete the course without following the rules, but you will have completed something that is, to some degree, different from the 'Kiwi Brevet'.
A really great dirt brevet has a challenging time component, but that is only one small element of what defines success in this event. If there were 'winners' in the inaugural Kiwi Brevet, I would say they were the riders who exceeded their expectations and shared their adventures with others (through photos, blogs, amusing call-ins and articles, etc). If you can meet some of the locals, enjoy some great food and scenery; and finish uninjured with a little bit left in the tank, then you have done very well indeed! And if you enjoy the company of fellow breveteers - deepening old friendships or developing new - you've really hit the jackpot.
The event culture is largely determined by its participants, but the rules lay the groundwork for how the riders tackle the course. With that in mind, here are the rules for 2017.
1. Do it all yourself, under your own steam.
2. Riders must carry all their own gear (i.e. no domestiques, unless you are part of a team).
3. No outside support (deliveries only to public addresses, no support from friends along the way, no support vehicles of any kind meeting you along the way). Prior to the race you may only post supplies to post offices.
4. Follow 100% of the course.
5. It is recommended that riders carry a personal locator beacon, and agree to cover the cost of rescue in the event they need to be evacuated.
6. Riders must not complete the course in less than 4 days (This event is not about finding the fastest rider).
7. Riders must finish in under 8 1/2 days. That is, by 10pm on Sunday the 8th Feb.
8. Between 9am one day and 9am the next, every rider must spend at least one block of at least six hours not travelling. That is, the maximum time any rider may spend travelling along the course will be 18 hours (between each 10am-to-10am period)
9. When on public roads, follow the NZ Road Code.
10. Text-ins are to be made from designated towns along the route until you either finish or abandon the brevet, text event HQ on 021 0325 069
11. Riders must observe all rules laid down by land mangers along the route (such as the Department of Conservation). Riders must not camp or light fires in the McDonald Downs Station section or the North Bank of the Wairau forest section of the course.
12. Don't be a dick
We intend having a finishing list, BUT please remember this is NOT a sanctioned event or race. Now I fully understand the competitive nature of these events, I get it, but please try to take part whilst keeping these guidelines in mind. This is a gentleman agreement, no one is out there watching your every move although the MAProgress site does provide near 24/7 ability to virtually do so.
Enjoy it, it is an adventure more than anything else.
31 January 2017
.gpx files
I have emailed the .gpx files out to all who have donated (and let me know), if you haven't received an email and believe you should have please email me at kiwbrevet@gmail.com
Cheers, Scott
Cheers, Scott
27 January 2017
Finially
Good afternoon to you all!
With just over a week till start time I can finally let you see the confirmed routes for both events.
As you all know these have been tumultuous times - earthquakes, slips, weather bombs, road closures, other obstacles, the list goes on! I have my fingers and toes crossed that in the next week nothing else changes, but if it does, I am ready.
The biggest challenge has been with the Brevette course and as such, this year it is not going to be possible to change events after day one as both courses leave Blenheim via different routes. If you're on the fence about your fitness, motivation or capabilities take the time now to have a look at each route and decide which you want to do. The Brevet is 1100km with about 15500m climbing and the Brevette is 600km with about 10500m climbing. Both are fantastic routes and have their own unique features.
This is the link to the final Brevet route, once again this is NOT where you should get the .gpx file or cue-sheets from. This is provided to you today to help you plan you ride, how much food to take on day one, how much water to carry, what shops to contact for opening times etc.
With just over a week till start time I can finally let you see the confirmed routes for both events.
As you all know these have been tumultuous times - earthquakes, slips, weather bombs, road closures, other obstacles, the list goes on! I have my fingers and toes crossed that in the next week nothing else changes, but if it does, I am ready.
The biggest challenge has been with the Brevette course and as such, this year it is not going to be possible to change events after day one as both courses leave Blenheim via different routes. If you're on the fence about your fitness, motivation or capabilities take the time now to have a look at each route and decide which you want to do. The Brevet is 1100km with about 15500m climbing and the Brevette is 600km with about 10500m climbing. Both are fantastic routes and have their own unique features.
This is the link to the final Brevet route, once again this is NOT where you should get the .gpx file or cue-sheets from. This is provided to you today to help you plan you ride, how much food to take on day one, how much water to carry, what shops to contact for opening times etc.
This is the link to the final Brevette route, once again this is NOT where you should get the .gpx file or cue-sheets from. This is provided to you today to help you plan you ride, how much food to take on day one, how much water to carry, what shops to contact for opening times etc.
Please let me know if you find any errors, I have spent the last two days going over these maps in pretty close detail so I am feeling confident they are a-ok, but hey, I'm human and I make many a mistake.
Jo and I will spend the weekend completing the cue-sheets, once that is done the .gpx files will have been triple checked and I will email them out.
The cue sheets will come to you as a .csv file so you can format them how you like, add in lines, colours, additional information etc. Plus we will send them out in a .pdf format which you can print and use as is.
Currently the .gpx file of the entire Brevet route is too large to import into a Garmin so I will split it into as many files as I need to to get it to upload.
As per usual, any questions fire us an email at kiwibrevet@gmail.com
Pedal on, Scott and Jo
24 January 2017
Just another hurdle
We have just been alerted to the fact that the Rainbow Rd is currently closed due to flood damage. I will contact the land owners tonight (only available between 7-9pm) to see if I can get an update.
In the meantime the Awatere Valley Rd has reopened today so that is an option again. I was trying to avoid that as I suspect there will still be a lot of heavy traffic/work being carried out on this road and the last thing they need is a group of riders cruising through.
Basically this means we are back to the drawing board. I am going to take the afternoon off work to spending some time reworking the routes.
Sorry for the uncertainty of the routes but Mother Nature seems to be conspiring against us.
Stay tuned, Scott and Jo
In the meantime the Awatere Valley Rd has reopened today so that is an option again. I was trying to avoid that as I suspect there will still be a lot of heavy traffic/work being carried out on this road and the last thing they need is a group of riders cruising through.
Basically this means we are back to the drawing board. I am going to take the afternoon off work to spending some time reworking the routes.
Sorry for the uncertainty of the routes but Mother Nature seems to be conspiring against us.
Stay tuned, Scott and Jo
21 January 2017
Course routes etc.
This time in two weeks the riders will be about four hours into the 2017 edition of the Kiwi Brevet!
After much back and forth I can finally confirm the course for both the Brevet and Brevette.
Due to the uncertainty of the slip in the Awatere Valley we have decided to travel in the same direction as the 2015 edition which allows us to utilise the North Bank Rd. which travels on the north side of the Wairau River, thus avoiding the extremely busy SH 63 for as long as possible. This road passes through private forestry. Permission was granted on the proviso that everyone will be through in one day, there is no camping allowed and absolutely no lighting of fires, not even camp stoves. Please also note that the bridges in the forested area have all been removed so you will get wet feet early on in the event!
At the 89km point both courses join SH63, please please please be careful crossing this bust main road. You continue travelling west on SH63 for 14km before turning right to head down the Rainbow Rd towards Hanmer Springs.
There are NO services on the route for the first 243km, you need to plan accordingly, Water is accessible at numerous points along the way but you will need to carry enough food for 243km of tough riding. Please don't underestimate this. A good policy would be to start out easy, very easy, the first 163km are slowly climbing. There are no medals for going the furthest on day one then having to pull the pin.
I will provide some further descriptions of each course in the next fews day, but in the meantime I have added the links to the event courses in the sidebar to the right or you can check them out here:
Brevet - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18363606
Brevette - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18411429
These are for reference and planning only, they are NOT the final .gpx files and cue sheets, these will follow next week.
The link to the MAProgess tracking page is also in the sidebar or can be found here - https://kiwibrevet2017.maprogress.com
Any questions flick me an email at kiwibrevet@gmail.com
Cheers, Scott
After much back and forth I can finally confirm the course for both the Brevet and Brevette.
Due to the uncertainty of the slip in the Awatere Valley we have decided to travel in the same direction as the 2015 edition which allows us to utilise the North Bank Rd. which travels on the north side of the Wairau River, thus avoiding the extremely busy SH 63 for as long as possible. This road passes through private forestry. Permission was granted on the proviso that everyone will be through in one day, there is no camping allowed and absolutely no lighting of fires, not even camp stoves. Please also note that the bridges in the forested area have all been removed so you will get wet feet early on in the event!
At the 89km point both courses join SH63, please please please be careful crossing this bust main road. You continue travelling west on SH63 for 14km before turning right to head down the Rainbow Rd towards Hanmer Springs.
There are NO services on the route for the first 243km, you need to plan accordingly, Water is accessible at numerous points along the way but you will need to carry enough food for 243km of tough riding. Please don't underestimate this. A good policy would be to start out easy, very easy, the first 163km are slowly climbing. There are no medals for going the furthest on day one then having to pull the pin.
I will provide some further descriptions of each course in the next fews day, but in the meantime I have added the links to the event courses in the sidebar to the right or you can check them out here:
Brevet - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18363606
Brevette - https://ridewithgps.com/routes/18411429
These are for reference and planning only, they are NOT the final .gpx files and cue sheets, these will follow next week.
The link to the MAProgess tracking page is also in the sidebar or can be found here - https://kiwibrevet2017.maprogress.com
Any questions flick me an email at kiwibrevet@gmail.com
Cheers, Scott
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