THE RULE “6° NATURAID MAROCCO 2009”

Naturaid is an international competition.
It will be held from October 25 to October 1 November, 2009
The official language of the event will be Italian.
The course should be totally or partially modified by Organizing committee, at any moment.
Participants must follow the directives received from the Organizing committee, as well as all the laws in force in the country (respect of the nature, respect of the environment, behavior on the road, and assistance in case of people in danger: the Organizing committee declines any responsibility in the case of not observance of this directive.
The personal baggage will be transported on the jeep from the organization.

Couple end individual participation to NATURAID are considered. 

Each participant will automatically accept and follow this directives once registered. The Organizing committee reserves the right not to accept the registration of a competitor.

Individual competition: no distinctions of age and sex.

NATURAID is prepared and controlled by experts which ensure the correct development of the competition. The commissioner controls the run and checks for the reference as well as for the assistance points. The personnel dedicated to the logistic surveys the efficiency of many other aspects: bivouacs, transports…
Following the decisions and the indications of the personnel is mandatory: penalties should be applied in case of non observance of this rule, including the elimination from the competition.

Temperature in October: 25/35°C (day), 0°/5° (night). (In 2005 the temperature was -8°)
The path offers a various and inhomogeneous ground: powder, sand, stones, and probably some wadings. In case of sand storm or other problems which cause lost of visibility, any participant must stop along the pathway, waiting for instruction from the commissioners.
The Organizing committee reserves the right to modify the course, due to the environmental conditions.

Oct 25 departure from Italy (Milano-Malpensa)
Oct 26 briefing
Oct 27 start competition at 04:00
Oct 28 bcompetition
Oct 29 competition
Oct 30 finish competition at 20:00 (total time 88 h)
Oct 31 transfert to Marrakech
Nov 1 departure from Marocco, arrival in Italy (Milano-Malpensa)

The Organizing committee reserves the right to modify dates and program.

The competitors will receive a number; it has to be applied to the bike, in forward position (it must be visible anterior and conserved carefully and clean for all the competition). It is forbidden to cover the number with any other mark.
The competitors agree not to expose obscene, political and religious publicity, neither in contrast with the officials sponsors.

The technical and administrative verifications will take place October, 26, 2009 beginning at 8.00 AM.
All the participants must show all the required material, to be used during NATURAID.
The material and the documentation have to be approved from the Organization.

Run:
The complete run of the competition will stay secret. His development will be comminicated October, 26, 2009.
The run will take place in a natural environment, with forced passages (Check-Points).

Timing:
The Organizing committee will start the stop-watch at the beginning of the competition, stopping it at the end. Penalties and bonus will be assigned by the jury. Neutralisations are also possible.
The Direction of competition reserves the law of assign penalty or allowances to the timed time.

Classification:
At the end of the competition a general classification will be realised, based on the time, corrected for the penalties and for the bonus. (hour-minute)

Rewards:
The greatest reward for participating in an NATURAID is the satisfaction of completing it. Doing an ultra-marathon on mountain end on desert is no easy matter. An NATURAID finish will enhance any resume!

Check-Points (CP):
Along the run there will be check-points, indicated in the road book. A responsible will take note of the passage (arrival and departure time) of each participant at the CP.
At any CP, a control card has to be subscribed; if not, a penalty will occour.
Who do not respect this article, will receive a penalty of 3 hours (at the first violation) or the disqualification (at the second violation).

There will be many different check-points and restocking of water. For safety reason, only in the CP will be possible to rest for cooking and to sleep. But along the run will be possible to have lunch/dinner in the restaurants in the small villages.
Who do not respect this article, will receive a penalty of 5 hours (at the first violation) or the disqualification (at the second violation).

Road Book:
the Organization will deliver to each competitor, before the start, a road book containing all the necessary information about the competition, the position of the CP and the distribution of water, partial an total distances, characteristics of the ground.
The exact path will remain secret before the delivery of the road book, the October, 26, 2009
During the briefing, the Director of the run will provide more information about the critical points of the competition.

Safety rules:
The competitors must participate to NATURAID respecting all safety rules.
They must act like responsible individuals.
Their behavior doesn't ever determine danger. Each participant must consider in personal excursion. The roads are free, and some traffic has to be expected, that's why it is obligatory respect the rules of circulation and all the official system of signals; it is always mandatory to maintain the right side, using the existing reserved tracks for bikes, when present.
Each participant must have got an insurance for civic responsibility, through the own federation.

The participants must have a agonistic license released from an official institution and they must show a medical certificate (which a validity not older than 2 months) that attests the fitness of making competitions of mountain-bike.

A general briefing will be organised by the Committee October, 26, 2009 after the verifications. It will allow to illustrate the characteristics of the competition, to give dispositions around the carrying out of the competition and of answer the questions of the participants.

The Organizing committee will supply the necessary mineral water for each participant.
The distribution of the water will be done at the departure and at any chech point: 3 liters of water will be delivered each time.
In order to guarantee the respect for the environment, the competitor that will throw away empty bottles or other wastes will be disqualified. Empty bottles have to be leaved at the check points.

Mandatory equipment

The equipment can be checked by the Organizing committee at any moment before and during the competition. The material obligatory must be in good person state.
An evaluation of the material, evaluated not conform by the Organizing committee, could produce the disqualification of the competitor.

Mandatory Material:

• 1 survivor cover of aluminium
• 1 whistles
• 1 fire lighter
• 1 knife
• 1 portable lamp with supply batteries
• 1 suck-poison pump and hemostatic drawstring
• 1 sleeping bag
• 1 compass
• 1 mirror
• 1 bike helmet and gloves
• Integrators or mineral salts, 2000 calories per day of food (8000 calories for 4 days).

Lights on the bike: (see art. 14 - illumination)

• 1 white anterior (+ supply light bulb and batteries or double white)
• 1 red back (+ supply light bulb and batteries or double red)
• transversal refracting stripes or a refracting jacket

It is mandatory to hold the material during the competition.

It is mandatory to correctly wear the rigid protective helmet during all the competition, under any condition.
Whoever will be noted without helmet will automatically excluded from the final list.
The Organizing committee of the NATURAID cannot be considered responsible of the accidents that could happen during the competition.

The light of the bikes, mentioned above (see article 12) have to be permanently and strongly fixed to the bike, and permanently turned ON during the evening and during the night: (please, observe, fixed light, not intermittent!); a back-up system of illumination is recommended.
The organizers will forbid the start of all those participants whose system of illumination do not obey the rules.
Each participant must turn on the lights when the night approaches, and in case of visibility not sufficient (rain, fog, sandstorm). Everyone must have its own lights ON, even in group.
At night, apparent dresses and refracting bracelets are recommended; transversal refracting stripes on the sweaters or a refracting jacket are mandatory. Each infringement to these rules, will involve penalties.

The competitors must respect the environment, avoiding the abandon of rubbish of any kind along the run.
The competitors must follow the designated run carefully, they must help other bikers, if necessary. A mechanical assistance from peoples extraneous to the Organizing committee is forbidden.

Each competitor must provide for all that is necessary for the completion of his competition without any external support. The competitor could not be helped by trainers or masseurs or cars (along the run controls will be possible).

Make use of the assistance guaranteed by the organizing committee only. Transgressors will be disqualified.

An insurance policy that covers the risk of sanitary repatriation only is subscribed by the organizing committee.

The competitors participate under their responsibility, the Organizing committee will be free from any type of responsibility in case of accident, falls or illness during the competition; individuals won't attribute responsibility to others also in case of contact or accident caused by them.

Participants free the Organising Committee from each responsibility in case of any accident, damages or death, occurred during the NATURAID.
The Organizing committee won't be in any way responsible for the lost of objects, material or other goods, before, during and after the competition.

The Organizing committee reserves all the exclusive right of producing and utilising the images of the NATURAID.
Once inscribed, the competitors allow that the organizing committee use their name and image for all activities, present and future, relative to the presentation, the promotion, and the description of NATURAID.

Any external photographic or coverage is forbidden. The video and photographic material produced by the participants can be used only privately, except the case of specific authorizations.

In case of abandonment, the competitor must inform the Organizing committee as soon as possible, contacting one of the members of the staff.
An abandonment card, available at the direction desk, will be subscripted and deposited.
If possible, the staff will escort the competitor to the arrival.

The costs of researches, in the case that the participant does not inform the organizing committee, will be charged on the competitor.

The retired competitor and the competitors that finish the run before the scheduled end, will provide for their own accommodation

Each fraud causes the exclusion of the participant from the competition.

Penalty
The competitors must respect the instructions that the Organizing committee furnishes in any moment of the NATURAID, if these rules were not respected the competitor should be penalized, even after the end of the run. The Organizing committee could remove from the run those competitors that do not guarantee the progress of the competition in safety conditions.

Food
Each competitor will provide for his alimentary needs during the competition.
He must select the foods considering the physical efforts and stresses (weather, climate, hostile environment) related to this special run. A daily amount of 2000 calories (minimum) is required; in case of control, the competitor that won't present a minimum of 2000 calories per day of run will be penalized as follows:

1st time: 2 hours
2nd time: disqualification

During a control in competition, the competitor have to demonstrate of having a self-sufficiency feed in calories matching the number of remaining days.

Numbers
In case of loss or damaging of the number, the competitor must inform a commissioner as soon as possible, in order to avoid penalties. The absence of the number or its incorrect position should determine the disqualification of the competitor. The falsification of the number will determine immediately the disqualification of the competitor.

Check-points
Registrations (by means of a signature) at the arrival to a CP and at the departure from a CP are mandatory. Who do not respect this article, will receive a penalty of 3 hours (at the first violation) or the disqualification (at the second violation).

Time limit
When the maximum limit of time has expired, the competitor will be disqualified. If required, the commissioners can decide to remove a competitor from the run, basing on his average speed and the distance left from the finish line.

Assistance
The competitor assumes all the responsibility if he pass through forbidden sectors or he uses a non authorised way. This will determine a penalty of an hour or the disqualification.
Any external assistance, except those of the organizing committee, is forbidden and it will determine the disqualification.
The use of an any vehicle will determine the disqualification of the competitor.

Other cases of disqualification:

Environment
Any waste, which responsibility can be proved, found along the run, will determine the disqualification

Doping:
in case of doping there will be the immediate disqualification.

PENALTIES

No medical certificate – disqualification
No helmet – disqualification
No compass – 1st time 2 hours, 2nd time disqualification
No 2000 cal/day – 1st time 2 hours, 2nd time disqualification
No knife, whistles, fire lighter, antivenin pump – 2 hours
No safety cover, mirror, lamp – 1 hour
Sleep and to cook eat far from the check points – 1st time 5 hours, 2nd time disqualification
No lights on the bike – disqualification
No (or false) number – disqualification
Out of time limits – disqualification
Doping – disqualification
External assistance – disqualification
Production of waste along the run – disqualification

The Organizing committee will spend any possible effort in order to guarantee the participants the same conditions, even on a psychological point of view.

The participation to this competition means the full acceptance of this regulation. Complaints relative to the final classification or incorrect behaviors will be possible. No collective complaints will be considered.

Any complaint or claim, for any motive, must:

Be addressed to the jury and delivered to a component of it within 30 min from the publication of the classification
Be accompanied by a caution of 200 € (caution will be returned only in case of acceptance of the complaint)

The organizing committee reserves the right to judge any controversy non considered in this regulation.

 – Dead line is September, 18, 2009

Cancellation of the registration:
the annulments of registration, the declarations of renouncement and the questions of reimbursement must arrive by E-MAIL within the August, 1, 2009. After that time, 30% of the payment done will be retained. After the Midnight of September, 10, 2009, the 50% will be retired; after the Midnight of September, 18, 2009, no reimbursement will be possible.