British Cycle Quest

The British Cycle Quest is a challenge in which the cyclist must visit six sites in all the traditional counties in the United Kingdom, which comes to a total of 402 sites, 252 in England, 48 in Wales, and 102 in Scotland. As well as visit the site, the cyclist must answer a question to prove they have been there. The quest has no time limit. One main purpose of this quest is to visit different parts of the U.K. which might not otherwise have been visited. On completion of this task, a commemorative certificate and trophy is awarded. Smaller certificates are also available for visiting 50 sites. A certificate and a bronze medal may be obtained after visiting 100, 200 and 300 sites [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/] .

History

The British Cycle Quest replaced the Touring Explorer's Award in about 2000. The need for a replacement came about because many of the sites to be visited no longer existed or else temporary clues had been found. Even now, there are issues with clue which may not necessarily be easily available. A list is given on the CTC website [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/problems.htm] .

Even now, questions are revised and edited significantly on annual basis. For example, 2006 saw 13 edits [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/pdf/bcq_updates2006.pdf] , while 2004 saw as many as 21 edits [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/pdf/bcq_updates2004.pdf] . this high editing rate helps to ensure that all the clues exist, and helps overcome access issues which may arise when land changes ownership.

Shorter Versions

It is possible to do just some of the British Cycle Quest, without doing the whole thing. This can be done by ordering just a part of the cycle quest, such as one county or one country (England is split into two regions here). There is also a discounted price for odering five county cards at the same time (see costs)

Costs

As of 13th December 2007, the costs of ordering the cards is:
*1 county card-Two unaffixed first class stamps (68p)
*5 county cards £1.50 (30p/ card)
*England Region A or B £5.20 (roughly 25p/ card)
*Wales £2.10 (roughly 26p/ card)
*Scotland £4.32 (roughly 25p/ card)
*Whole U.K. £15.15 (roughly 23p/ card). [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/pdf/order_form.pdf]

It can be seen that there is notable economy of scale, and that for someone wanting to attempt the whole British Cycle Quest should order all cards at once, also because of the cost to the individual of sending the order form.

Success Rate and time taken

Only four people have so far successfully completed this challenge [http://www.ctc.org.uk/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=3396] . It is reckoned by the Cyclists' forum that six years is a good time to complete the task in for someone who is working a full time job.

External links

* [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/index.htm The official British Cycle Quest Site]
** [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/pdf/order_form.pdf Order form for British Cycle Quest]
** [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/pdf/bcq_updates2006.pdf Most recent revisions to the questions]
** [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/problems.htm List of known problems]
** [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/pdf/bcq_leaflet.pdf Publicity leaflet]
** [http://www.ctc-competitions.org.uk/bcq/leaders.htm List of people who have achieved part or all of the challenge]
* [http://www.ctc.org.uk/DesktopDefault.aspx?TabID=3396 Tales from people who have completed the quest]