As I set out the course for our Tilford event earlier this month, it was clear to me that our fabulous Summer is well and truly over - even though it's still pretty warm, the trees are rapidly shedding their leaves, creating some beautiful golden carpets on the trails and bridleways. Autumn in the Surrey Hills is truly magical.
 

The Surrey Hills Challenge and Festival of Sport at Denbies Winery on Sunday, 23 September, was badly hit by terrible weather, with only a tiny fraction of the expected 2,000 people turning up. By the time it brightened up a bit in the afternoon, it was too late for people to "make a day of it". Despite the weather, we managed to meet some interesting people, and there is a possibility that we may become more actively involved in the Festival next year.
 

  

This month, I want to highlight a trend that is causing me some concern - the declining number of people taking part in Adventure Racing. It seems that it is not just Tri-Adventure that is experiencing this reduction. Our good friends at Open Adventure, a company that has been around for a long time, have also experienced this fall-off in numbers, leading them to remove certain events from their calendar. Furthermore, I belong to a networking organisation called Race Directors HQ, and there are lots of posts from Race Organisers trying to understand what is going on.

Here at Tri-Adventure, we continue to put our heart and soul into creating great experiences for Adventure Racers, and we do need to increase the number of people taking part in our events if we are to have a long-term future. I don't believe that our prices are too high, as we've basically kept them unchanged for the last five years. I'm extremely keen to know what you all think about this, and I would welcome any comments and suggestions you may have. - please do take a minute to get in touch here.

 

Tyler Hill Adventure Race - 25 November
 

     

    

After a pretty successful forage into Kent last Autumn, where we put on our first Adventure Race comprising four events, we're heading back to Tyler Hill (near Canterbury) on Sunday 25 November. Online entry is already open.

Mickleham Adventure Race - 9 December 
 

 
 
      

Mickleham proved very popular in January this year, so we're back there in the Village Hall a month earlier on Sunday 9 December.   Online entry is already open.

Shere Adventure Race - 6 January
 

 
 
      

We usually get a really good turnout at Shere and, with this event being the first of the New Year, and during the first week to boot, it'll be a great time to get out into the fresh Surrey Hills air, and to start tackiling some of the Christmas excesses!.   Online entry is already open.

 

 

  

Although the numbers were down on this time last year, we had a pretty successful event which took place in ideal racing conditions. Participant feedback was very positive about the course layout, and the challenges that were posed.  The Race Report can be viewed here.

Christmas is coming!

We've got a fabulous range of quality items in our Tri-Adventure Shop, ranging from hoodies to Silva compasses, and branded mugs, all at really good prices. Or what about a cycling top or a Tri-Adventure Gift Voucher? Last year, our Race Gift Vouchers and our Navigation Training Course Vouchers were particularly popular.  Just go to our shop, place your order and we'll do the rest.

                                   

For any of your Running Kit then I would highly recommend Alton Sports.  I am one of their Run Ambassadors and they are so supportive in the events and Challenges I do.  They also have 5 shops and their website can be found here: Alton Sports.

Or what about a water bottle, a newly designed mug, a neck warmer, a phone charger, or a map board? For those of you who take part in team racing events, I've also added a Bike Tow to our range of race related items.

All these items are always on sale at all our events as well.  

I also have a BikeBoxAlan for hire with more details in the Tri-Adventure shop.

                                                   
 

That's all for this month. Make the most of Autumn, and I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at Tyler Hill on 25 November..