Iowa Wind and Rock is a self supported adventure on the gravel and back roads of Iowa presented by Spotted Horse Cycling, LLC. The primary rule is that you are responsible for yourself. Nothing more than the route will be provided to you. In the likely event of a DNF, you are required to find your own way home. You are expected to follow all laws accordingly, conduct yourself in traffic in a safe and legal manner, respond to changes in the weather and road conditions with your personal safety as the primary concern, be a responsible citizen, and never be a jerk to anyone. These are the highlights, below are some specifics.
Reponsibilities
1. The Iowa Wind and Rock will occur regardless of weather conditions. Expect horrible weather and you won’t be disappointed or ill prepared. Be prepared for extremes of temperature and precipitation regardless of the weather forecast.
2. Don’t be a jerk. Participants must always conduct themselves in a manner that will not bring discredit to themselves, the event, or the promoters. Don’t litter. Don’t be rude to or harass anyone who lives or works on or near the route. Being a jerk will negatively impact your ability to participate in future events.
3. Participants must obey all applicable city, county, state, and federal laws. Stop at stop signs and lights, yield to vehicles, livestock, wildlife, and pedestrians when necessary. Share the road.
4. Yield to ALL emergency vehicles. Failure to yield any emergency vehicle or failing to obey instructions given by emergency personnel will result in immediate disqualification.
5. You are on your own! You alone are responsible for your personal safety. Respond to changes in weather and road conditions with your personal safety and the safety of those around you as your primary concern.
6. Each participant is considered to be on a private excursion and remains solely responsible for any accidents in which he or she may be involved. No responsibility can be accepted for participants becoming lost, stranded, injured, or worse.
Route and Checkpoints
7. Cue sheets are the sole source of navigation. Cue sheets will be handed out between 3 and 3:45am on race morning. Please read the rider emails for specifics. There will be no route markings, and the route is 100% open to traffic. Street signs are often missing or illegible. Every effort will be made to ensure the cue sheets match the street signs that are there, and if followed, will ensure that you remain on route.
8. There will be checkpoints, with published cut-off times, located along the route. Any participant not reaching a checkpoint before the established cut-off time will not be allowed to continue past that point.
9. The route must be followed at all times. No shortcuts or alternate routes are permitted. Do not trespass on private property! Participants must remain within the primary boundaries of the roadway at all times. If the roadway is bordered by fences or ditches, riders must stay between them. Trespassing or deviating from the planned route will result in disqualification.
10. Due to inclement weather, or other unforeseeable circumstance, the course may be altered by the promoters. Should this occur, participants will be sufficiently advised. If you encounter a dangerous situation (example, flooded road), please call or text the race director at the provided number.
11. If you exit the course for food, supplies, or any other reason, you must re-enter the course at the same spot you left. If you get lost, you must backtrack and rejoin the course at the same point from which you left.
12. A participants may not advance along the route by any means other than by bicycle or by foot. Accepting a ride means that you are withdrawing from the event.
Equipment
13. Participants must start and complete the entire course on the same bicycle frame. All other components and equipment may be repaired or replaced* during the event. (*Single speeders, see rule #16.)
14. While operating their bicycle, participants must wear a securely fastened helmet that meets the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) standard for bicycle helmets.
15. All participants must have at least one clear front headlight and one red tail light mounted on their bike for the duration of the event. More is better. All participants must have something reflective on their body, in case they are off the bike; e.g., vest, arm or leg bands, or clothing. More is better. No lights or reflective gear on between dusk and dawn will result in disqualification.
16. Participants in the single speed categories shall have only one gearing combination installed on their bike, and must complete the entire event using the same gearing combination.
17. Participants in the fat bike categories shall have tires with a width of 3.8 inches or more.
18. No e-bikes, electric assist, nor anything other than a 100% human powered bicycle is allowed.
Support
19. Iowa Wind and Rock is a self-supported, ultracycling event on the gravel and dirt roads of Iowa. Participants should carry necessary food, water, equipment, and/or money for C-stores. Caching supplies along the course is not allowed. An approximate distance between resupply opportunities will be provide to participants.
20. Personal outside support is not allowed during the race. Family or friends being present out on the course, helping you with navigation via phone, or leaving drop bags will result in your disqualification.
21. Resupply at C-stores, visiting friendly farmers, and receiving help from fellow participants is allowed and encouraged.
22. Drafting off of other event participants is allowed. Drafting off of a non-participant cyclist or off a motorized vehicle will result in disqualification from the event.
23. Have a plan for whom to contact in an emergency or in case you cannot finish the race and need to be picked up. Depending on your provider, cell service may be limited; be prepared to travel several miles to receive a signal.
24. Personal GPS trackers such as the SPOT or Garmin InReach are allowed for personal safety use only. We realize that many of you do own and use these devices for communication in areas of limited cell service, and in case of emergency. That use is allowed. You should not publicly share your track, invite people to track you during the event, or have anyone use that information to post updates about your location. This also applies for goes for Strava, Garmin LiveTrack, or any other app that can broadcast your location during the ride. It is a small world, and if you do this it will get back to us and result in your disqualification.
Withdrawing from the Race
Participants may, in the case of an emergency, mechanical failure, or other problem, be assisted by motorized transport. By accepting motorized transport, you will be automatically disqualified from the event.
25. If a participant needs to withdraw from the race, they must notify the race director via the supplied phone number. Don’t leave us wondering where you are! Doing so violates Rule #2. Don’t be a jerk, and may impact your future ability to participate.
Iowa Wind and Rock 