ROF Rules & Regulations
1. General
2. Conduct
3. Traffic Laws
4. Drafting
5. Mechanical Support
6. Bicycles & Aero Aids
7. Helmets
8. Lights
9. Teams
10.Sleep
11. Route
12. Checkpoints
13. Support Crews/Follow Vehicles
14. Following the Rider/Hand-off’s/Passing
15. Day Time Following
16. Night Time Following
17. Penalties
18. Judging & Protests
19. Prohibited Drugs & Testing
1. General
- Following are the Rules & Regulations for the Ring of Fire 6/12/24 Hour Time Trial. All Rules & Regulations must be obeyed by all riders and support crew members at all times.
- This event is a non-drafting time trial. Every inch of the course must ridden by each rider or team.
- Rider safety is our paramount concern. All rules and regulations are meant to maximize the safety of all riders. In an emergency, all attention must be focused to resolve the situation. Riders and/or their support crew who help in an emergency will be given a credit for any lost time.
- The 12 and 24 Hour divisions and categories are events in the John Marino Challenge. Riders can earn 1 difficulty point for the 12 hour race and 2 difficulty points for the 24 hour race. In addition, your performance will count towards your consideration for the 12 or 24 hour racer of the year.
2. Conduct
* All riders and support crew members must conduct themselves in a civil manner.- When entering a checkpoint, do not act in a loud or disruptive manner, especially late at night.
- Riders or support crew members may not act maliciously towards another rider, support crew member, race official, volunteer, spectator, etc.
- Riders or support crew members may not intentionally impede the progress of another rider or support crew member.
- Riders or support crew members may not intentionally misdirect another rider or support crew member.
- Any rider and/or support crew member acting in a manner deemed inappropriate will result in that rider’s immediate disqualification.
3. Traffic Laws
* Riders must obey all traffic laws at all times. At red lights, riders must stop and wait for a green light. At stop signs, riders must come to a complete stop and check for traffic before proceeding.- Riders must keep as far to the right as safety permits, and use the shoulder whenever possible.
4. Drafting
* Drafting is not allowed in any race, category or division.- Riders must maintain at least a 10-meter space cushion between each other and vehicles.
- Any rider caught drafting will be immediately disqualified.
5. Mechanical Support
* Riders should be self-sufficient. Their support crews should have everything necessary to make repairs and adjustments.- Race officials can and will help, but take absolutely no responsibility or make any guarantees to fix any mechanical problems.
- A rider or support crew member may assist another rider or support crew member.
6. Bicycles & Aero Aids
* All bicycles must be propelled solely by human force.- Bicycles must be no more than 2 meters long and 75 cm wide.
- No limit as to the number of bicycles a rider may use.
- Reflective tape or reflectors must be installed on the back of pedals, cranks, seat stays, wheels and forks for 24 hour racers. Reflective material is recommended but not mandatory for 12 hour racers.
- Disc wheels, wheel covers and aero bars are allowed.
- Any other non-standard aerodynamic aids are prohibited.
- If there is a question as to the legality of a particular item, it must be presented to the race director for inspection prior to the start of the race
7. Helmets
* Riders must wear an approved helmet at all times.8. Lights
* As per Oregon State law, lights must be used from dusk to dawn.- As per Race Across Oregon, Dusk is at 7 p.m. Riding without lights after 7 p.m. is grounds for immediate disqualification!
- Riders must use a steady white front light visible from 300 feet and a steady red rear light visible from 500 feet. Lights may be battery or generator powered. A halogen headlight of 2.4 watts and a taillight of 0.6 watts are the minimum required.
- Any rider caught riding without lights will be immediately disqualified.
9. Teams
* Teams may be comprised of 2 – 4 members. Each team member must register individually.- The same rules and regulations that apply to individual riders also apply to teams.
- Only one member of a team may be on the road at any given time except when changing riders.
- No drafting is allowed for teams.
- Team riders may change riders any time on the day loop. On the night loop, teams may change riders only at the start/finish area.
- There are no restrictions as to the length of time any one rider must ride. A legal rider exchange occurs when the front wheel of the incoming rider overlaps the rear wheel of the departing rider. The riders do not need to touch.
- Support vehicles follow same guidelines as for single riders.
10. Sleep
* Sleep is not mandatory, but is recommended when a rider needs it.- A race official can order a rider or support crew member to sleep if that rider is suffering from sleep deprivation and/or riding or acting in an unsafe manner.
11. Route
* All riders and teams must ride every inch of the route.- If a rider goes off course, they may be driven back to the exact spot where they left the course. An official must be notified immediately when a rider leaves the course.
- A rider may also leave the course to go to a motel, restaurant, store etc. They may be driven to and from the course, but must leave and return from the exact same spot. An official must be notified immediately when a rider leaves the course.
12. Checkpoints
* There will be one main checkpoint: at the Imperial Lodge in Maupin.- A rider must stop at a checkpoint, to let the timekeeper record his/her number and time of passage. Penalties will be awarded if a ride fails to check in.
- It is solely the rider’s responsibility to make sure their time is recorded.
- If a rider stops at a checkpoint for an extended period, they must report to the timekeeper when they leave.
13. Support Crews/Follow Vehicles
* While we recommend the use of a support crew, we have made the use of one optional. If a crew is used, it may leap frog their rider during the day (providing support via pedestrian hand offs), but will only be able to support from the parking lot of the Imperial Lodge once the racer is on the night loop.- Please indicate on the rider application if a support vehicle will be used. This vehicle must be registered before the start. A rider name must be displayed on the left front and left rear of the vehicle.
- Support crew members must obey all of the rules and regulations. If a support crew member violates a rule, it can result in the disqualification of their rider.
- Support crew members must be considerate of the surrounding area in which the course travels. They should not play loud music or behave in a disruptive manner, especially during the night.
- Support crew members are not allowed to ride a bicycle on the course at any time during the race. If a support crew member needs to go for a training ride, they may do so in the surrounding area. You may ask the race director for a suitable route.
- All vehicles intended to be used to follow the rider must be less than 78” wide.
- All follow vehicles must display courtesy to other traffic when following their rider. This includes dimming their headlights when another vehicle or cyclist is approaching.
14. Following the Rider/Hand-off’s/Passing
* Riders may not be pushed, pulled, towed or otherwise assisted by the follow vehicle.- If a follow vehicle is causing traffic to build up, it must pull over and allow traffic to pass.
- Continuous travel alongside a rider is prohibited.
- All hand-off’s to the rider must be made via pedestrian handoffs. This means NO MOVING HANDOFFS TO THE RACER, EVER!
- Under no circumstances should the rider be on the driver side while the vehicle is moving.
- Under no circumstances should the follow vehicle disregard traffic to the rear when making an exchange or when pulling out into traffic.
- If two riders are close enough together that both of their follow vehicles are traveling together; neither follow vehicle shall impede the progress of the other.
- When one rider is passing another, the rider being passed must allow the pass to take place.
- When passing another rider 15 seconds is allowed, if a rider cannot pass in this time he or she must back down and maintain the 10 meter margin. This will be watched closely by event officials and penalties for both riders may be assessed if it continues.
15. Day Time Following
* Support vehicles are allowed to leap frog their rider, providing support via pedestrian hand offs.- Make certain you have enough supplies to make it through the entire night before 8PM. Most stores in the area will close by that time.
16. Night Time Following
* Night time following or direct support is not allowed at the Ring of Fire.- If a rider has a support crew, they will only be able to provide support for the rider from the check in area.
17. Penalties
* All riders must obey all rules at all times. There will be no exceptions- Penalties include running stop signs, drafting willingly, and unsportsmanlike conduct.
- If a rider is seen after dusk without proper lighting he or she will be disqualified immediately. If a battery fails while a rider is doing a lap, he or she is responsible for having extra batteries with them.
- If a support vehicle follows a rider rather than driving at the speed of traffic, a penalty will be assessed. Unless otherwise noted, the following penalties apply:
- Penalty for first offense: 5 minutes, served immediately.
- Penalty for second offense: 10 minutes, served immediately.
- Penalty for third offense: 15 minutes served immediately.
- Penalty for fourth offense: 20 minutes served immediately.
- Penalty for fifth offense: IMMEDIATE DISQUALIFICATION
18. Judging & Protests
* The decision of the race director is the final word on all matters.- Any complaints against another rider or crew must be filed within 10 minutes of the last rider finishing. Any final ruling will be made within 20 minutes of the finish of the event. The chief official has the final ruling on the finishing order of the event.
19. Prohibited Drugs & Testing
- Intravenous injections are not to be given to or taken by any rider or support crew member.
- Ring of Fire follows the UMCA in terms of banned substances. See the UMCA website for a list.
- Drug testing may be performed on any and all riders and support crew members at anytime during the race or up to 24 hours before or after the race. Drug testing will be performed at the discretion of the race director and/or race officials.
- How we’ll administer a drug test we have no idea so this is one toothless rule. Since prize money, fame and fortune are minimal in RAO events we’re pretty much trusting you to ride clean.
- If a rider fails a drug test it will result in their immediate disqualification and a ban of three years from all Race Across Oregon events. If a support crew member fails a drug test it will result in the immediate disqualification of their rider and a ban of three years from all Race Across Oregon events for themselves and their rider.
- If a rider or support crew member refuses to submit to a drug test, they will be assumed guilty and will be given the same penalties as if they had failed a test.
- A rider or support crew member may not use a substance that is on the following prohibited drug list. In addition to this list, all illegal drugs and all alcoholic beverages are also banned.