Final rules for 2007, posted on May 6. Changes made after May 6, if any, will be highlighted at the top of this page and will be clearly announced at the event. For a summary of differences between 2007 rules and the rules of previous years, scroll down to the bottom of the page.

Important city-specific information is found on the pages SF-specific Info and Seattle-specific Info.

Rules for Night & Day Challenge

References to "team" and "teams" below also apply to individuals competing solo in the 3 hour and 7 hour events.

Participants must check in at the event center by 3:30 pm on Saturday, even if they have preregistered. At that time you will receive your race bandana (see below).

At 2:30 a ten-minute pre-race briefing will be given. Toward the end of the briefing, all participants who have checked in will receive the following:

• A two or three page color map of the race area with each of the checkpoints circled in purple. These are USGS topographical maps reduced to 1:35,000 scale from their original 1:25,000 scale.
• A pastel, letter-size copy of the question sheet.
• A one page black and white copy of the map, called the intention sheet (explanation below), one per team. Your team may request an extra copy of the intention sheet.

If you check in after map issue, you will receive these items immediately after checking in.

You will use the time between map issue and the 4:00 start to plan which checkpoints your team will visit, and in what order. Mark your intended route on the intention sheet, which must be turned in before you start. Circle the checkpoints you plan to visit, connect them with lines (no need to show your exact route between checkpoints), and draw an arrow to show your direction. The sheet is used for safety purposes and will not be shared with other participants. It is permissible to make changes to your route during the race.

At 3:50, teams will be called to assemble for the start. At this time, final announcements will be made, and each team will exchange its intention sheet for a white, legal-size copy of the question sheet, identical in content to the pastel ones received at 2:30. This contains a multiple choice question for each checkpoint. You will answer this question when you reach the checkpoint to prove you were there; the question is easily answered by observing the area around the checkpoint. On this sheet, you must also write the time you visit each checkpoint, using either the 24 hour clock or AM/PM notation. You must mark your answers and times on the white legal-size sheet, not on a pastel sheet.

Tide information (times and heights of low and high tides) will be printed on the maps. The fact that two checkpoints are both on the coast does not imply that it is safe, or even possible, to travel between them on the beach. Use your judgment in combination with the tide information to make your decision.

Rules for Participants to Follow While On the Course

Teams must stay together at all times. You and your teammates must always be within voice contact. There is one exception: Bike teams can leave one member with the bikes when visiting checkpoints inaccessible by cycling.

Except for ferries and busses explicitly allowed for a specific Night & Day event, all travel must be under your own power. If your team is in the foot division, no participant may make use of any wheeled transport except for wheelchairs and strollers.

You will prove that you have visited a checkpoint by answering a simple question about the checkpoint location. You may not attempt to answer these questions in any way other than by visiting the checkpoint. In particular you may not telephone others to get the answers for you, nor may you obtain answers from other teams. Guessing is also prohibited. If you happen to know the answer to the question in advance, you are still required to visit the checkpoint in order to claim credit for it.

If you reach a checkpoint location and the question does not make sense, first double check that you are at the correct location. If it still doesn't make sense, write down a detailed description of some aspect of the location to prove you were there. This sometimes happens due to construction or other changes that may take place between course vetting and the day of the race.

You are not required to wear your team number. You must, however, disclose your name and team number to anybody who asks, including race officials, police officers, other participants, and the general public.

You are required to wear a day-glo orange or day-glo yellow bandana tied onto your person or gear in a visible fashion, or a day-glo orange safety vest. This identifies you as a participant in this race and also provides a small measure of visibility. The bandana can be either an event bandana which you have purchased or a bandana which we will provide on loan. Safety vests will also be available on loan. No other particular apparel is required.

Traveling through private property is prohibited, except such private property that allows public access. Traveling through parks during park closing hours is also prohibited. Checkpoints in parks, buildings, and other areas that are closed at night will be highlighted in yellow on your map, and their closing hours will be indicated in the checkpoint description.

If it comes to the attention of a race official that your team has significantly violated any of the above rules, you may be penalized or disqualified at the discretion of the race directors.

There is no restriction on the use of additional navigational aids, such as maps and devices. It is permitted to ask bystanders for navigational assistance.

Duathlon Division

A duathlon division is offered for the 7 hour and 16 hour events. Duathlon participants will go on foot for the first half of the time, and on bike for the second half. The event center will serve as the transition area. Bikes will be stored in the event center. Bikes for each time period (7-hour, 16-hour) will be released halfway through the time period. Duathlon participants may arrive at the transition area before the halfway mark, but they may not depart on their bicycles until the halfway mark. It is permissible to depart on bicycle after the halfway mark.

Safety

The biggest hazard faced by race participants is vehicular traffic. We urge you to exercise the utmost caution. Foot participants, take extra care when running in streets and crossing streets. Under race conditions, and especially while navigating using a map, it is extremely easy to step into the street without looking carefully for cars and bicycles. Remember: "Look before you leap".

Cyclists have the added challenges of riding as a team and navigating while riding. Early in the race, develop protocols for communication, for riding as a pack, and for stopping to consult the map. Choose one person to make navigation decisions at any given time. We advise affixing your maps to your handlebars. We also advise assertively occupying an entire lane of traffic (this is your legal right) rather than trying to ride single file down the side of the road. Cyclists are required to obey all traffic laws, including riding in the direction of traffic and stopping at red lights. Cyclists may ride on the sidewalk if they yield the right of way to pedestrians and travel at a safe speed.

Although no particular apparel is required other than the day-glo bandana, we strongly advise reflective clothing and/or gear for those who will be out after dark. Each cyclist must wear a helmet. After dark, each cyclist must use a headlight and either a taillight or a reflector. (A taillight is strongly recommended.)

Please be courteous to bystanders. If on foot, don't bump into or alarm other pedestrians.

If it comes to the attention of a race official that a participant has behaved in a manner that jeopardizes his/her safety or the safety of other teams or the public, the participant's team may be penalized or disqualified at the discretion of the race directors.

We are not providing any aid stations on the course. It is up to you to obtain fluids and nutrition along the way. Remember to stay hydrated. Use bathrooms when you find them, especially at night, because if you wait until you need one you may be out of luck.

The race staff is not equipped to provide medical assistance of any kind. If you become injured or experience some other emergency, first obtain aid for yourself from neighbors, bystanders, or businesses, or by calling 911 if the situation is severe. After any urgent need for help has been met, phone the event center to notify us of what happened. The phone number is printed on each map page.

If your team chooses to drop out of the race, you must report back to the event center within 45 minutes of the time limit for your race. Otherwise we must assume that you have run into trouble, and we will initiate a search for you.

Scoring

Each checkpoint is labeled with a number between 10 and 159. The point value of each checkpoint is equal to its number rounded down to the nearest ten. For example, checkpoint 27 is worth 20 points; checkpoint 123 is worth 120 points.

When you return to the event center at the end of the race, you will hand in your scoring sheet. The time you turn in your scoring sheet will be noted as your return time; you may not make changes or additions to the scoring sheet after you turn it in. Your total score will be calculated; you will receive points for each correctly answered question. If you answer a question incorrectly, you will receive a penalty of one half the point value of the question.

If you failed to write down the time you visited a checkpoint, you will receive a penalty of 5 points for that checkpoint. The maximum penalty for not writing down the time you visited checkpoints is 5 times the number of hours in your division.

If you return to the event center late, you will receive a time penalty of ten points per minute for the first five minutes, and 15 points per minute thereafter, up to 45 minutes. If your team returns more than 45 minutes late, you will lose all your points. For the purposes of calculating late penalties, minutes are rounded up to the next whole minute. For example, if a team is 2:07 (two minutes and seven seconds) late, the team is considered to be three minutes late and has 3 x 10 = 30 points subtracted from its score.

Teams will be ranked according to the number of points they accumulate. In the case of a tie, the team that returns to the event center earlier will be ranked higher.

Prizes will be presented to the top individual or team in each of the following competition divisions:

• 16 hour duathlon
• 16 hour foot
• 16 hour bike
• 7 hour duathlon
• 7 hour foot
• 7 hour bike
• 3 hour foot
• 3 hour bike

Each of these divisions will be further divided into classes as follows:

• Men
• Women -- all team members are women
• Mixed -- at least one team member is a woman
• Veteran men -- average age of team members on race day is at least 50
• Veteran women
• Mixed veteran

• Family -- at least one team member is age 12 or younger
• Junior -- all team members are age 18 or younger
• Corporate — at least half of the team members are affiliated with a particular organization, and the team is named after the organization.

Awards (ribbons or certificates) will be presented to the top five teams in each class.

Team member dropping out of race

If one member of a team becomes disabled or chooses to drop out of the race, the remaining team member(s) may drop out or they may choose from two options for continuing to participate, provided the remaining team would be eligible to participate under the rules (i.e. - no solos in the 16 hour event):

Continue on the course and receive an unofficial result.

Start from the event center as a new team with a new (blank) score sheet.

In any case, the entire team must first take care of the member that is dropping out by either escorting that person back to the event center or to a hospital, in the case that the person needs medical attention.

New for 2004