Condition of Participation – 5th Olympic Expedition “from Rio de Janeiro to Tokyo”

BaltiCCycle 2020 (03.02–04.07) & its continuation BC 2021 (03.27–07.24)

BaltiCCycle (BC) is not a commercial tour, all organizers are volunteers, and the collected registration fee goes only for covering organizational expenses. Each route is different; therefore, it is impossible to work out all details in advance. Research and checking all roads of long transcontinental BC is hardly possible because of time and economic reasons. Joining BC you become a part of the team, and we expect from you a good will and a right understanding of our principles and rules. Your assistance in organizing daily program and solving all difficulties is highly appreciated.

Notes. The ride will happen on the conditions we offer below if enough participants – at least 10 covering all parts of the route, and 15 in Japan – register for the tour. We must know it in advance (for booking boats, hostels, campings, car hire, etc.); therefore, the deadline of registration is fixed at the February 27, 2021 (for cycling in the South America) and April 27, 2021 (cycling in Hawaii & Japan). If we not collect enough participants for a part of the route, the current ride conditions for that part can be changed. After registering you will be regularly informed by email about the registration progress and covid-19 situation.
The 5th Olympic BC2020 “From Rio de Janeiro to Tokyo” is scheduled for participants having experience in long-distance travels and harsh cycling-camping conditions. To cycle the whole route is a big challenge. You should be prepared for adventures, extreme heat and humidity, cold winds and rough weather conditions and unexpected obstacles on the road. The ride is open for everybody but before signing you should think about your mental and physical capability to complete it not to make problems for yourself and the group.
BC participants gather for the ride from different countries. We recommend bringing on your bike a national flag or other symbol that local people could see us as an international friendly cycling community. Our Olympic rides are organized under the honour patronage of the Polish Olympic Committee and we will carry it symbols, too.

Organizational rules. We try to keep our organizational principles similar to the previous BC tours.

Arrival/Departure. Costs of the arrival/departure are not included in the participation fee. You can join and finish the ride at any point of the route, and you have to plan yourself how to do it. We can pick you up for the additional fee in the radius of 50 km (100 km both ways, 3 € per 10 km). You should contact the ride organizers by phone or email at least two days before. Leaving from the intermediate points of the route should be not a problem: the public transport connecting villages with big cities is available almost everywhere on the route; many domestic airports have flights to big towns. Though the ride schedule is fixed but the real dates can be slightly shifted (plus/minus 2-3 days) because of bad weather conditions or other unexpected obstacles. Have it in your mind when planning arrival. Click here to find the rough recommendations how to reach us on the route.

Visas. You have to check if you need visas at your country’s consulates. It is recommended to obtain all necessary visas individually, no group visas available. If you need assistance we can help you after your registration. Your passport should be valid at least 1 year ahead from the start of ride. You can be asked to show your tickets and financial sources crossing the borders.

Ferries. The ticket prices are not included in the membership fee, and you have to pay for them separately during the ride. We will book tickets for the group in advance. The approximate fares for the planned ferries according 2019 prices (there can be more unexpected transfers):

Catering. It is highly recommended to bring along a gas stove for preparing meal in the campsites. There will be wild parts of the route without restaurants and supermarkets. Entering unpopulated areas it will be a possibility to carry some reserve of products as well as drinkable water in our van. If no drinkable water at the campsite, the driver is responsible for carrying water.

Vaccination. You have to bring with you the International Certificate of Vaccination (the yellow booklet) with certifications of vaccination. The vaccination/medicine to be active must be taken a few weeks before your start. Consult with your local vaccination centre. No obligatory vaccinations, but there are some recommended:

Necessary equipment and documents:

Children until 18. Children can take part in the ride only together with parents (one or both) or another adult who is authorized by notary to take care and is fully responsible for the juvenile.

Luggage transport. We strongly recommend carrying all necessary personal stuff in the panniers on your bike. The service of luggage transportation by the support car is limited to 25 kg; it is included in the registration fee. You should be ready to carry all your stuff a few days on the bike if it will be necessary because of delayed car formalities on the borders or in case of emergency (car accident or some other unexpected circumstances). If you plan to transport luggage over 25 kg (altogether not more than 40 kg) in the support car you have to indicate when registering and pay in advance (2 € per diem). Neither organizers nor drivers are responsible for safety of your luggage. You should insure your luggage against theft personally.

Membership fee. We fixed a variable membership fee, from 30 € to 18 € per diem, depending on the number of your participation days and the section of the chosen route. In this way we support those who are going for long distance. The participation fee for the first 30 days of travel is fixed to 25 € per diem, for 31-60 days 22 € per diem, and for the days from 61 to the end of travel 18 € per diem. The membership fee in Hawaii due to very high prices of camping accommodation is increased to 30€ / day. No discounts for  that part of the route will apply.
You have to indicate the number of days you plan to travel in the table of the Registration Form, and your membership fee for the whole tour will be counted automatically. To organize the whole event with fewer troubles we ask everybody who has intention to take part in the expedition to fill the registration form as soon as possible.  
If the registration and the half of membership fee are not received until February 27, 2021 (cycling in the South America), and April 27, 2021 (cycling in Japan), the whole fee increases by 10% automatically as well as all discounts cancelled. The second half of participation fee must be paid 10 before your start date; otherwise it increases by 10% as well.
The membership fee will not be required from those local cyclists who help in organising the ride and will cycle less than 3 days. They have to cover only the sleeping costs. The organizers will appreciate if local participants will purchase a package with ride symbols (T-shirts, flag and sticker).

The membership fee includes:

Discounts. The discounts are applicable only if the Registration Form and at least the half of membership fee is received not later than February  27, 2021 (for the route in South America), and April 27, 2021 (for Japan). Discounts don’t accumulate.

Emergency Fund. For a long-distance route in such remote countries it is impossible to evaluate all expenses, therefore we create the Emergency Fund, which money will be used only in the case of force majeure (for example, car accident, robbery, etc.). Your deposit is 2 € multiplied by the number of days you will take in the ride. The unused part of your deposit will be returned back in 60 days after the ride finish.

Additional paid service (optional):
booked by registration;

booked during the ride:

Resignation rules. The date of resignation is fixed up when the resignation letter is received by organizers: before the ride by email bc2020@bicycl.lt or bc2021@bicycle.pl, during the ride it should be delivered to the leaders of expedition and confirmed by them. The date is important, because it determines the amount of refund. The membership fee for the travel days exceeding 60 days after resignation date are fully returned, and for the first 60 days are returned in the following manner:

Organizers:

Honour Patronage. ThePolish Olympic Committee.