Already renowned as one of the toughest sportives in the UK, the 2014 Wiggle Dragon Ride – set to take place on Sunday June 8 – will now feature a grueling 305km Dragon Devil distance.
Next year’s event also includes the traditional 222km Gran Fondo and 152km Medio Fondo routes in the Brecon Beacons, and will see the return of the 47km Corto option
Sportive riders hoping to tame the Dragon Ride are advised to act quickly to secure their place when general entries open at 9am on Thursday October 10, with previous editions of the Dragon Ride seeing the 5,000 places sell out out in less than 24 hours.
The Cycletta women-only ride will also return after debuting last year and will follow the same route at the Corto course.
Riders who have participated in five or more editions of the Dragon Ride, or those who tackled the double – the Wiggle Dragon Ride and Wiggle Etape Cymru – in 2013, can take advantage of the priority window, which opens on Thursday October 3.
This year’s newest distance will feature nearly 3,500m of climbing, taking in the traditional climbs and stunning scenery of the Rhigos, Black Mountain and Devil’s Elbow, with the addition of the 480m, 15%-gradient ascent of Devils’s Staircase.
Not one for the faint-hearted, riders hoping to tackle the Dragon Devil distance are advised there will be a very limited number of places available for this option and so should get in quickly.
Nick Rusling, CEO of organisers Human Race said, “This is a real challenge which we created to respond to the demands of our cycling audience for their toughest challenge yet.”
Funds raised by participants will go to the ride’s new official charity, Macmillan Cancer Support, and Ian Lulham, Macmillan’s Cycling events manager said: “We are delighted to be the official charity partner for the Wiggle Dragon Ride and extend our relationship with Human Race cycling events.
“We hope the knowledge that riders’ efforts are helping to support people affected by cancer will encourage and motivate more people to join Team MacMillan and take part in this fantastic event.”
For more information and to register your interest, visit www.humanrace.co.uk/cycling
