Pacific Atlantic Bike Race
 

Shortest distance across the country at 3100 miles. Race date is 5/1/22. Could be a bit warm for this one. Same format as Trans Am. Bike packing self supported race.

www.pacificatlanticbikerace.com

Almost all bikepacking or self-supported races are free to enter with no prizes or awards. What is the $295 fee for?

Some of the more historic bikepacking races are free because they are basically self-organized as well as self-supported. More recent racers have an official organizer and overhead costs that need to be covered. Have a look around the events listed in the calendar on my Ride Far website.

This is $5 less than the Trans Am Bike Race, and a fair amount less than the Transcontinental Race. I have to imagine that for any race that's not an alleycat, the organizer faces considerable liability, and I wouldn't be surprised if a lot of that went into insurance. On the TABR, the organizer does take time out to follow and document at least part of the race, with a photographer, so some of it is probably covering their expenses. No idea if that is true here.

This is following the Southern Tier route. I seem to recall there was another proposed race on the same route.

"The entrance fee will be $295. This includes a GPS route, tracking by Trackleaders"

The Race Rules page is empty..lol...its a free for all!!!!! The website is sloppy. The race director is Ken Jessett, maybe born European since uses "whilst" in his writing.
https://www.pacificatlanticbikerace.com/race-rules

"You will cross America on navigable paved roads from the Pacific to the Atlantic using the southern tier route designed by Adventure Cycling and you will see it and experience it all from the seat on your bike."

Got to get your priorities straight. Anyone heard of the promoter before?

Fees often/usually include a SPOT tracker for a month on such races. One would assume the ACA GPS route had a fee to be paid by the organizers. I know the TABR guy was out on course, I think I saw him around the Ohio River. On shorter races like RATN, Michael has people check out the course in advance, which is not free. Plus, you get the cool cap.

If $300 is too much to cross the country, don't look at what it costs to enter a triathlon

Or RAAM for that matter

Who said it was too much? The question was what is the $295 fee for?

Link to race
 

The link in my initial post will get you there

In addition to what I wrote, I think there is a fee to trackleaders...??

I also think the Promoters got smart and now buy liability insurance, too.

Nathan Jones did or does follow more or less the leaders and takes photos. I also know that on RATN photos are taken in large amounts. One presumes some of the entry fee supports those taking photos.

I usually think what does a person get for $250 entry to a 50 mile grand fondue event, other than 5 bucks per mile. LOL

I wonder how hard it is to get liability insurance, considering how hard it was for RUSA. There was a fatality on a long distance race across Florida (I think) this year. The bike law guy was bragging about how he got a settlement from a ride promoter that didn't have an ironclad enough waiver. And was saying how having a bike ride at night was unscrupulously dangerous. I was going to ask him what he thought of my waiver. "if you go on this ride, you're going to die. By signing this waver you admit it will be your fault"

I can't speak to bike races per se, but I am involved in organizing a different kind of event, and liability insurance is a huge PITA, and is expensive. And we have rigorously worded waivers.

One thing that a race like this has to contend with is that an injury could happen in any of a number of states, so jurisdiction becomes a problem. Looking at the TABR waiver, it doesn't have any language to the effect of "any disputes arising from this agreement will be adjudicated in XX county of YY state." Which seems like an oversight, now that I think about it.

Seems easier (in the US at least) to organize a free event in which the participants are just going for a ride and happen to be riding with others. It's not technically an event. All riders have responsibility only for themselves. This seems to work for the Tour Divide and other off-road oriented bikepacking races. I raced one this summer. Paid ~$30 for Trackleaders to track me. I already have a Spot device. No need for prizes or "free t-shirts" or other swag. Just show up and ride.

I didn't realize Tour Divide was run that way. Crush the Commonwealth is also just a website. It wasn't being kept up for a couple of years, but people were still doing the ride.

I didn't realize Tour Divide was run that way either. But yeah, it does make sense.

IndyPac has been run this way since Mike Hall's death—the organizers of the previous event dissolved it and disclaim any responsibility for what the event has become.