About The Montra Sangla Duathlon in Park Cafe, The Mall, Shimla

THE SANGLA DUATHLON – An Introduction
The Sangla Duathlon is a gut wrenching, endurance race in the stunning setting of The Sangla valley of Himachal Pradesh. Often described by many travelers as the most beautiful of all Himalayan Valleys, Sangla also known as the Baspa river valley is a bowl shaped valley surrounded by the towering peaks of the Kinner Kailash Himalaya. The magnificent landscape and mountainous terrain adds galore to one of the finest Duathlon course in India. The mountain biking is on natural singletrack trails and country roads and the trail running is through lush pine forests of oak, cedar and birch. All this at an elevation between 2680mts (8792feet) at Sangla and 3600mts (11,811feet) at Chitkul, the last village on the Indian side on the border with Tibet. The event is suitable for all abilities, whether you have never competed in this type of event before or looking for a tough challenge.

The course of the race is mostly off road on singletrack trails for cycling and includes tarred sections of village roads as well. The trail running is through a well defined trail cutting through a deep forest of cedar, birch and oak. The course will also feature a river crossing, a boulder field navigation and while cycling one will have to cross the river on a span at one place.

Categories
1. Solo Men
2. Solo Women
3. Teams of Two (relay)

Distances
Race Day One || CYCLING – 42kms, TRAIL RUNNING – 8kms
Race Day Two || Trail Running – 16kms, Cycling – 31 kms

Entry Fees and Registration
The entry fees for the race is 12,750 INR (Indian Rupees Twelve thousand and seven hundred and fifty). There is an entry fees waiver of 25% for students and Himachal Bonafide residents. This applies to Solo category.
The entry fees for Team participation is 25,000/- INR (Twenty Five thousand Indian Rupees)

To register your place for the race please mail to botadventure@gmail.com with the subject line as REQUEST FOR REGISTRATION FORM and upon receiving the form please mail it back. The website for race is www.sangladuathlon.com and would be live on August 20th, 2014 and you can fill the entry form on the website as well.

RULES
These are the rules which shall apply for the Sangla Duathlon 2014.
1. The minimum age to qualify to participate in Sangla Duathlon is 18 years (Eighteen Years) as on October 1st, 2014.
2. All participants need to report at Himachal Bhavan, Safdar Hashmi Marg, New Delhi, at 1930 hrs, on October 1st, 2014. Participants who are arriving early at Sangla or taking their own transport please do inform the Race Director at +91-89883-80393 and mail to botadventure@gmail.com.
3. All participants will be given a timing chip at the start of the race which needs to be retained until the end of the race. Anyone losing the chip stands for DNF and compensating for the cost of the chip. It is mandatory for each participant to sign up for the timing chip.
4. The Last Date for registering for the Sangla Duathlon is September 20th, 2014.
5. All cyclists are to wear a helmet, knee guard and elbow guards at all times.
6. No Mobile Phones iPods or other MP3 Players/mobile devices are allowed during the course of the race.
7. As much of the bike course is single trail, when approaching a slower rider, call out to inform them you wish to pass, and overtake only when safe. If being overtaken, hold a consistent line to one side of the path to allow the faster rider through when there is enough space and it is safe.
8. All competitors must obey any instruction from any course marshal.
9. No empty drink bottles or food wrappers are to be discarded on the course.
10. Each Participant will be given bib numbers for running and number plates for cycling. These must be displayed properly at all times.

TEAM RELAY
· Team Relay consists of 2 participants.
· The 1st Participant will do the Running part and the 2nd Participant the Cycling part of the Duathlon event.
· 1st Participant will Run and pass on the BIB with Timing Chip to the 2nd Participant who will complete the Cycling and again passes the BIB with Timing Chip back to the Running Partner who will complete the 2nd stage of the Running to complete the Duathlon Team Relay.
· There are 2 Categories: Team Relay (Men) and Team Relay (Women). If a Man and a Woman form a Team they will be competing in the Team Relay (Men) category.
· The 2 participants in the Team Relay can be colleagues, friends, family members or any 2 individuals can come together to form a team where one is a Runner and the other Cyclist.
· Both the Participants will be given Finisher Medals and the team Timing Certificate.

PRIZES, AWARDS and RECOGNITION

1. Top 3 Finishers in each category to receive Awards and Certificates
2. All finishers to receive Medals and finisher certificate.

THE PRIZE MONEY is as Follows for the Categories

SOLO MEN and WOMEN
1st Prize INR 50,000/-
1st Runner up INR 30,000/-
2nd Runner up INR 15,000/-

TEAM RELAY CATEGORY
1st Prize INR 80,000/-
1st Runner Up INR 50,000/-
2nd Runner Up INR 30,000/-






TRANSPORT, ACCOMMODATION and FOOD
Your registration fee entitles you to transport from Delhi to Sangla and back to Delhi. Your bikes would be transported in a separate truck.
Accommodation is on twin sharing basis at Hotel Rupin River view in Rakcham, Sangla valley.
All meals are included in the race package with non vegetarian being served in the evenings. During the course of the race there would be hydration points at equal distances (3 while cycling) and (4 while running). You would be given a nutrition pack in the morning which would include dry fruits, chocolate and a juice. Meals are tasty Indian fare with attention on a carb rich diet.

WEATHER
Sangla is a medium altitude Himalayan valley made by the river baspa and flanked by the Kinner Kailash range. October is usually the onset of Autumn and this entails Morning and evening temperatures of 8-10 degrees and day temperatures up to about 15 degrees. We should expect the mornings and evenings to be cold.

MEDICAL STATIONS and RESCUE
There would be a medical station at the start and the finish point of the race. Trained Rescue marshals would be deputed along the trail course for action in case of any eventuality or an injury.

ESSENTIALS TO CARRY
1. Warm Jacket
2. Fleece
3. Floaters
4. Cycling shoes
5. Safety approved helmet
6. Running shoes
7. Cycling toolkit
8. Head Torch
9. Knee Guard
10. Elbow Guard
11. Raincoat
12. Essential Personal Medicines
13. Gloves
14. Day Bag
15. Hydration Bag
16. Dry fit full sleeve jersey
17. Leggings
18. Cycling Shorts
19. Camera with extra battery
20. Lots of good attitude, enthusiasm and smiles.

Itinerary
Day Zero October 1st, 2014, Wednesday
Board the evening Volvo bus to Shimla at 20:30hrs from Himachal Bhavan, Safdar Hashmi Marg, New Delhi.
Day One October 2nd, 2014, Thursday
You are received by the race representatives at Shimla. Disembark and board race cabs which will drive you to Sangla valley (7 hours) with a lunch halt at Rampur. Arrive in Rakcham about 1400hrs and check into hotel. In the evening an orientation will take place about the duathlon and each participant will be allocated bib numbers, jersey and a bag.
Day Two October 3rd, 2014, Friday
It’s a day for some exciting mountain biking as the first stage of the duathlon starts at 800hrs in the morning. Across the Baspa bridge as we mountain bike through the offroad leading onto a 3kms singletrack to Mastrang, where we cross to the other side of the river and pedal our way towards Chitkul. At Chitkul we head on to another Singletrack leading us to Nagasthi camp and then we back track towards Chitkul and further to Rakcham and Batseri finishing the cycling stage there. The second stage of the duathlon is a trail running section from Batseri to Rakcham through a verdant pine forest of Birch, Cedar and Oak. Total Distance – Cycling – 40kms, Trail Running – 8kms. Elevation Rakcham 2870mts, Batseri 2740mts, Chitkul 3490mts. Cycling terrain – 80% offroad.
Day Three October 4th, 2014, Saturday
Today the first stage is running the trail in reverse from Rakcham to Batseri and then it extends further to Sangla village. The second stage is cycling as we pedal our way back to Rakcham to the podium. The duathlon finishes here with a prize distribution function in the evening.
Day Four October 5th, 2014, Sunday
We board our cabs at 800hrs in the morning and drive to Shimla. Catch the Volvo bus back to Delhi at 20:30hrs.