Adventure racing is a combination of two or more disciplines, including orienteering and navigation, cross-country running, mountain biking, paddling and climbing and related rope skills. An expedition event can span ten days or more while sprints can be completed in a matter of hours. There is typically no dark period during races, irrespective of length; competitors must choose if or when to rest.Adventure racing historically required teams to be of a specified size and to include both men and women, but many races no longer restrict team size and include single-sex divisions. Some also include age-based categories.
Race types
Lengths
Sprint: typically a two to six hour race, featuring minimal navigation and occasionally involving games or special tests of agility or cunning.
12-Hour: a six- to twelve-hour race, featuring limited navigation and orienteering.
24-Hour: a race lasting between 18-30+ hours, typically involving UTM-based (Universal Transverse Mercator) navigation. Often basic rope work is involved (e.g., traverses or rappels). 24-hour and longer races often require that competitors employ a support crew to transport gear from place to place. Other races do not permit support crews, with race organizers transporting gear bins to designated checkpoints for racers.
Multi-day: a 36-48+ hour race, involving advanced navigation and route choice; sleep deprivation becomes a significant factor.
Expedition: Three to 11 day race (or longer), involving all the challenges of a multi-day race, but often with additional disciplines (e.g., horse-back riding, unusual paddling events, extensive mountaineering and rope work).
Lengths
Sprint: typically a two to six hour race, featuring minimal navigation and occasionally involving games or special tests of agility or cunning.
12-Hour: a six- to twelve-hour race, featuring limited navigation and orienteering.
24-Hour: a race lasting between 18-30+ hours, typically involving UTM-based (Universal Transverse Mercator) navigation. Often basic rope work is involved (e.g., traverses or rappels). 24-hour and longer races often require that competitors employ a support crew to transport gear from place to place. Other races do not permit support crews, with race organizers transporting gear bins to designated checkpoints for racers.
Multi-day: a 36-48+ hour race, involving advanced navigation and route choice; sleep deprivation becomes a significant factor.
Expedition: Three to 11 day race (or longer), involving all the challenges of a multi-day race, but often with additional disciplines (e.g., horse-back riding, unusual paddling events, extensive mountaineering and rope work).
Disciplines
The vast majority of adventure races include trail running, mountain biking and (ideally) a paddling event. Navigation and rope work are also featured in all but the shortest races, but this is only the beginning. Part of the appeal of adventure racing is expecting the unexpected. Race directors pride themselves at challenging racers with unexpected or unusual tasks. Races often feature:
Paddling: kayaks, canoes, out-riggers, rafts and tubing;
Traveling on wheels: Mountain Bikes, kick-scooters, in-line skates, roller skates;
Beasts of Burden: Horses and camels;
Catching Air: Paragliding, hang-gliding;
Covering Terrain: Orienteering, mountaineering, coasteering, swimming, canyoneering, riverboarding;
Learning the Ropes: Ascending; rappelling, traversing (including via zip-line).
The vast majority of adventure races include trail running, mountain biking and (ideally) a paddling event. Navigation and rope work are also featured in all but the shortest races, but this is only the beginning. Part of the appeal of adventure racing is expecting the unexpected. Race directors pride themselves at challenging racers with unexpected or unusual tasks. Races often feature:
Paddling: kayaks, canoes, out-riggers, rafts and tubing;
Traveling on wheels: Mountain Bikes, kick-scooters, in-line skates, roller skates;
Beasts of Burden: Horses and camels;
Catching Air: Paragliding, hang-gliding;
Covering Terrain: Orienteering, mountaineering, coasteering, swimming, canyoneering, riverboarding;
Learning the Ropes: Ascending; rappelling, traversing (including via zip-line).
Formats
Adventure Races (AR) come in various formats and difficulties combined with the listed disciplines. Because of the navigation aspect to adventure racing, orienteering style races are borrowed to create different race formats.
Full Course: A race with mandatory transition areas and check points that are obtained in order to officially finish the race.
Short Course: A format typically used when cut-off times are instituted and to avoid forcing teams to 'DNF' (do not finish) where one or more sections are omitted in order for teams officially finish a shorter version of the race.
Adventure Rogaine: A format borrowed from orienteering where the race has a set finish time and the objective is to obtain as many points as possible within the given time frame. Adaptations for AR include mandatory and optional points and also borrowing from Rogaining, varying point values based on the check point location.
Adventure Races (AR) come in various formats and difficulties combined with the listed disciplines. Because of the navigation aspect to adventure racing, orienteering style races are borrowed to create different race formats.
Full Course: A race with mandatory transition areas and check points that are obtained in order to officially finish the race.
Short Course: A format typically used when cut-off times are instituted and to avoid forcing teams to 'DNF' (do not finish) where one or more sections are omitted in order for teams officially finish a shorter version of the race.
Adventure Rogaine: A format borrowed from orienteering where the race has a set finish time and the objective is to obtain as many points as possible within the given time frame. Adaptations for AR include mandatory and optional points and also borrowing from Rogaining, varying point values based on the check point location.
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