Audax United Kingdom Long Distance Cyclists' Association
JurisdictionUnited Kingdom
Membership8697 (end 2019)[1]
Founded1976 (1976)
AffiliationAudax Club Parisien and Les Randonneurs Mondiaux
ChairmanChris Crossland
SecretaryGraeme Provan
Official website
www.audax.uk

Audax UK or AUK is a British cycling club that oversees randonneuring (long-distance cycling) in the United Kingdom.[2] It was formed in 1976 to help British riders complete the qualifying rides for entry to the Paris-Brest-Paris randonee.[3] Audax UK is recognised by Audax Club Parisien as the official brevet-coordinating organization for the United Kingdom, although in practice events in Northern Ireland are organised by Audax Ireland. Audax UK members sometimes informally describe themselves as AUKs.

By the end of 2018, Audax UK membership had exceeded 8,000 for the first time and 2019 will see the highest number of "calendar" events (i.e. mass rides that take place on a specific day) yet. These events are open to all riders, whether they are Audax UK members or not (non-members pays a small fee for "temporary membership" for the duration of the event). The official magazine, Arrivée, is published four times per year.

Events

A completed brevet card from a 100 kilometres (62 mi) 'populaire' calendar event, overseen by Audax UK.
A control point on an Audax UK event in Wye, Kent.

AUK coordinates and validates Audax events but does not organise any events directly; these are typically organised by existing cycle clubs, local Cycling UK groups, or informal local Audax groups such as "Audax Club Mid-Essex" or "Audax Ecosse". The events are non-competitive, with riders needing only to complete the ride distance within specified time limits. There are three types of rides:

  • Calendar events are organised with some similarities to sportives, although with more emphasis on self-sufficiency. Rides of 200 km and above are known as Brevets de Randonneurs, whereas rides under 200 km are known as Brevets Populaires.
  • A "permanent" is a designated route which can be ridden by the rider on a day of their choice. The attempt is subsequently validated by AUK. The routes have usually been used for calendar events in the past.
  • A "DIY" allows the rider to design their own route (which must be validated by "proof of passage" or a GPS track) and the day of the ride.

In the 2017–18 season, 21,585 rides were completed and validated on 541 calendar events.

Notable rides

The notable calendar events include London–Edinburgh–London, held every four years;[4] the National 400; London-Wales-London (formerly the Severn Across), a 400 km ride from West London to Chepstow in Wales and back again;[5] the Bryan Chapman Memorial, a 600 km ride from South to North Wales and back again;[6] and the Mille Pennines, a 1000 km ride held in Northern England. The "Dorset Coast 200 km" is the oldest continuously organised (since 1978) 200 km calendar event in the UK.

In the 2019 season, the most popular events for each distance were:[7]

  • 100 km – Devon Delight, Newton Abbot
  • 200 km – Ditchling Devil, Wimbledon
  • 300 km – 3Down, Chalfont St Peter
  • 400 km – Brevet Cymru, Chepstow
  • 600 km – Bryan Chapman Memorial, Chepstow

National 400

The National is a 400 km "flagship" calendar event originally organised by the CTC in 1982. This was re-established in 2012 and has been organised by a different local group each summer:

Cover of 1982 National 400 km Brevet Card

Arrows

The Easter Arrow and Summer Arrow are team events in the flèche style, in which teams have 24 hours to ride as far as possible and finish in York.

Time limits

The time limits for Brevets de Randonneurs Mondiaux rides are set by ACP as follows:
♦ 200 km – 13 hours 30 minutes
♦ 300 km – 20 hours
♦ 400 km – 27 hours
♦ 600 km – 40 hours

Brevet Populaire events can be run at slower speeds than BRM events.

Points and awards

Points are awarded on the basis of 1 point for every full 100 km ridden on rides of 200 km and above. The AUK season runs from 1 October to 30 September each year. There are trophies for the highest scoring individuals and clubs each year. In 2018 these were won by Shaun Hargreaves and Four Corners Audax respectively.

Audax UK allow members to qualify for numerous awards, as set out in the tables below. All distances are in kilometres (km).

In parallel to the main points system, there is the Audax Altitude Award (AAA) system for grimpeurs. AAA points are awarded on the basis of 1 point for every 1000m of climbing, rounded to the nearest quarter point and subject to a minimum climb rate which depends on the distance.

Distance Awards

Medals or cloth badges are available for individual rides of the following distances: 50 km, 100 km, 150 km, 200 km, 300 km, 400 km, 600 km and 1,000 km.

Randonneur Awards

The Randonneur awards[8] aim to encourage riders to progress through increasing distances, and are awarded for rides completed within a single season.

The Super Randonneur is awarded for completing 200 km, 300 km, 400 km and 600 km rides in one season. 458 riders completed an SR in the 2017 season.[9] Entrants to Paris-Brest-Paris must ride this series in the same year as the PBP ride to qualify for a place. Some groups organise their own "Super Randonneur Series" of these distances, such as the Mid-Essex series and the Wessex series.

Award Name50k100k150k200k300k400k500k600k1000k1200k+TimespanOther requirements
Randonneur 500 (CB)YYYY1 seasonLonger distances can be substituted
Randonneur 1000 (M/CB)YYY1 seasonPlus another 400 km of events
Super Randonneur (M/CB)YYYY1 seasonLonger distances can be substituted
Super Randonneur 2500YYYYY1 seasonno substitutions allowed
Randonneur 5000 (CB)Audax events totalling 5,000 km1 season
Randonneur 10000 (CB)Audax events totalling 10,000 km1 season

Brevet Awards

The Brevet awards encourage riders to keep riding over several seasons, with the exception of the Brevet 500 which is aimed at younger riders and is awarded for rides within a single season.

Award Name50k100k150k200k300k400k500k600k1000k1200k+E2EPBPLEL24hrTimespanNotes
Brevet 500x51 seasonOr 2x100km and 2x150km
Brevet 1000 (M)x10Lifetimesee note 2
Brevet 2000x20Lifetimesee note 3
Brevet 3000events totalling 3000 kmLifetime
Brevet 4000 (CB)x20Lifetime
Brevet 5000 (M)YYYYYeitherY4 yearssee note 4
Brevet 25000 (CB)x3x3x3x3YYeitherY6 yearssee note 5

Special Awards

Award Name50k100k150k200k300k400k500k600k1000k1200k+E2EPBPLEL24hrTimespanNotes
Randonneur Round the Year (CB)At least one 200 km or longer in 12 successive calendar monthsLifetime
International Super Randonneur (CB)YYYYLifetimesee note 6
Bronze Grimpeur (M)any Audax event worth ¼ to ½ AAA pointN/A
Silver Grimpeur (M)any Audax event worth ¾ to 1¾ AAA pointsN/A
Gold Grimpeur (M)any Audax event worth 2 or more AAA pointsN/A
Audax Altitude Award (M/CB)accumulation of 12 or more AAA points, i.e. 20,000m of climbingLifetime
AAA Triple Award (CB)accumulation of 3 Audax Altitude AwardsLifetime
AAA 3x3 Award (CB)accumulation of 3 AAA Triple AwardsLifetime

Notes to tables

  1. M = medal, CB = cloth badge
  2. 10 rides include rides ridden in Brevet 500; alternatively, 5x200km Audax events in one Season
  3. alternatively, 10x200km Audax events
  4. plus additional Audax events to top up to 5000 km
  5. plus additional Audax events to top up to 25000 km; 200k, 300k, 400k and 600k rides are officially defined as a Super Randonneur series and as such longer events may substitute for shorter ones of these
  6. each event must take place in a different country; additional levels of the award also exist, e.g.: ISR(2C) if they are held between 2 continents

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Audax UK Annual Report 2018-19 https://www.audax.uk/media/2104/auk-annual_jan_2020plusfinal_4.pdf
  2. ↑ Swaine, Matt (5 June 2015). "There and back again: riding 373 miles across Wales over a weekend". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  3. ↑ AUK 2011, p. 2
  4. ↑ Cyclist http://www.cyclist.co.uk/news/3151/the-uk-s-toughest-audax-london-edinburgh-london
  5. ↑ "Rise of the ultra-cyclists: a new breed of riders go the distance". The Guardian. 31 May 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  6. ↑ Swaine, Matt (5 June 2015). "There and back again: riding 373 miles across Wales over a weekend". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  7. ↑ Audax UK http://www.aukweb.net/results/archive/2019/events/?Type=Calendar&Combined=false&Sortby=Riders&Sortdir=DESC
  8. ↑ Audax UK overview of randonneur awards
  9. ↑ Audax UK Super Randonneurs for the 2017 season

References

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