Part of the Battle in the Bowl weekend!
Take a look too at Battle in the Bowl Super CX – an epic day of racing on Sunday 6th September!
Event Status:
Updated Mon 13th July
This event is going ahead as planned, operating under best advice and social distancing and safety practice.
Sept
5
2020
Start Time
8:30am – 9:00am
Finish Time
Event Centre closes 4:00pm
The Battle Gravel 100 comes to the Battle in the Bowl Super CX weekend! This is a new, extra event, seperate to the Sunday race programme, that takes you on a fantastic 100km (or 65 or 45km) open hill ride on the South Downs, starting and finishing at the Battle in the Bowl race site!
The Battle Gravel 100 is a dirt track celebration of the stunning countryside at the Winchester end of the South Downs! Starting in the stunning Matterley Bowl and including a start and finish on the Battle in the Bowl race circuit, the route leads you out onto the South Downs way to lead you into a deeper exploration of this fantastic area! If you’ve ridden the South Downs Way before, this is a great opportunity to discover some the amazing trails off of the SDW piste; and if you haven’t, then you’re in for a treat!
You can ride Battle Gravel on it’s own, but why not make a weekend of it? Ride one of the shorter distances as a warm up to your race on Sunday, or ride the full 100, camp over and watch the racing the next day – make the most of a great weekend!
Start Location
Matterley Bowl,
Winchester
Matterley Bowl
Book Your Place Now
Route Stats
The lowdown on this ride in numbers, profiles and maps; where the route goes, where the hills are, how demanding it is and which bike to use.
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Physical severity
%
Technical severity
Short Route
Mid Route
Full Route
Bike Suitability
Which bike will be best or this ride? The Wildwood is open to any bike and any rider – but here’s our guide to which type of bike suits this course best.
- Gravel / Adventure Bike 90%
- CX (race style cyclocross) 80%
- MTB 85%
- MTB (29er) 90%
- Hybrid* 65%
- Road* 45%
Warning: This ride contains off road sections and rough surfaces. Only use road bikes that are capable of some off road. DO NOT use any bike you do not want to expose to dirt and the risk scratches or some damage. Only use a bike with strong wheels and off road capable tyres. Remove mudguards prior to the ride.
Riding the Winchester Downs
This is where the South Downs Way starts it’s journey eastwards, but there’s a lot more to this ride than just it’s most famous trail!
The route uses the SDW to give you plenty of open, hilly chalk/gravel trail, mixes in loops off of the Downs ridge to create variety and work you through this gorgeous National Park landscape. Plenty off road content is connected by quiet country lanes that give you an opportunity to spin your legs out before you hit the dirt again. The east and west end of the loop have subtly different characters, as the South Downs get into their stride, meaning by the time you return to the beautiful Meon Valley setting of the ride base, you’ll feel you’ve really been somewhere! your legs will tell you too; the hills don’t pull their punches around here!
100km Full Route
The full Gravelcross challenge, taking on the best and toughest riding in the area!- Fully route marked by the event team
- Route map for all riders
- GPS files sent to pre entered riders (enter in advance to receive these)
- Rider timing by transponder tag. Results posted to these web pages.
- Mid ride Feed/Support Station.
- Finishers medals
- Hot food and drink available at event base.
- Emergency contact numbers for our team made available for you to carry with you.
- Additional late booking charges apply from 1 week before the event: +£2 in last week of booking, +£3 on the day entry.
65km Mid Route
A great day of riding, including the pick of the riding on the full route.- Fully route marked by the event team
- Route map for all riders
- GPS files sent to pre entered riders (enter in advance to receive these)
- Rider timing by transponder tag. Results posted to these web pages.
- Mid ride Feed/Support Station.
- Finishers medals
- Hot food and drink available at event base.
- Emergency contact numbers for our team made available for you to carry with you.
- Additional late booking charges apply from 1 week before the event: +£2 in last week of booking, +£3 on the day entry.
45km Short Route
Shorter, sharp and fun, a terrific ride that avoids the hardest sections of the longer routes.- Fully route marked by the event team
- Route map for all riders
- GPS files sent to pre entered riders (enter in advance to receive these)
- Rider timing by transponder tag. Results posted to these web pages.
- Mid ride Feed/Support Station.
- Finishers medals
- Hot food and drink available at event base.
- Emergency contact numbers for our team made available for you to carry with you.
- Additional late booking charges apply from 1 week before the event: +£2 in last week of booking, +£3 on the day entry.
Book Your Place Now
Event Logistics
On the Ride
Once you’re ready to start, report to the start / finish area with your timing chap strapped to your ankle. Listen to the short briefing and ride across the timing mat as directed. As you go around the route, you will find bright orange signs and ribbons to follow. At route divide points, you will find yellow signs showing you which way to go to follow the Full, Mid or Short routes. These should guide you around the whole route, but use your map if you think you have strayed off course or have a problem with the route navigation. There are also emergency contact numbers on the edge of your map. Ride safely at all times, and remember that you are on public rights of way and roads. This is not a race, so please ride appropriately, and be friendly and polite to other trail users you meet. At the end of the ride, pass over the timing mat once again, and hand in your timing chip. For those interested in there ride time, these will be available on the computer screen at the finish.
Entry on the Day
You can enter the event on the day, although there is a small surcharge of £3 (so pre entering is recommended). Just arrive before the end of the registration period and pay at the desk.
Registration
Go to the registration desk on your arrival. If you’ve pre-entered via the internet or posted your entry, you’ll have a timing chip on an ankle strap to collect at the desk. If you haven’t pre-entered, pay at the desk and a chip will be allocated to you. Collect your colour A4 map at registration also. Next, get yourself ready to ride.
Following the Route
Follow the orange signs and orange ribbons (you will shown samples of these at the ride briefing) regardless of which route distance you are riding. Everybody follows orange. At route divide points, you will see a set of yellow signs, with “Full Route”, “Mid Route” or “Short Route” written on them, pointing in different directions. At this point, follow the right sign for the route you are riding. Once you get beyond the route divide point, you will start following orange signs and ribbons again.
(Please note, in spite of our best efforts, signs can go missing or be tampered with during the course of the day. Make sure you pick up a copy of the route map at event registration, and carry it with you for use if needed. We also send out GPS files to all pre entries prior to the event, so if oyu want ot have the route on your phone or GPS device, sign up online now!)
Food and Drink
There will be food, water and energy mix at a feed station on the course to help you stay fuelled during the ride. Hot and cold food & drink and snacks will be available to purchase from the event centre before and after the ride. (Including our ever popular home made chilli!)
Rider Timings & Medals
Riders are electronically timed, with rider times displayed on a screen at the finish line. Gold, silver and bronze time bands are set as an optional ride incentive, and finishers medals are presented to reflect the time band you achieve.
PLEASE NOTE: rider timings are provided for personal interest only and time bands are an optional target that you can choose to ignore. This event is not a race. No winner is declared, and no status or prizes are awarded for ‘beating’ other riders. The ride time and completed distance for any individual rider is taken on trust and cannot be definitively verified by the organisers.