Where you see our Test Pilot badge attached, it pretty much means that this trip is a first (or perhaps a one-off) and that (probably) no-one has done this trip before. Not just us, we mean nobody! Our Test Pilot format means trailblazing and exploratory small-group forays to go and do ground-breaking routes where very few have gone before. Consequently, these trips are extremely expeditionary in nature and are not the ‘finished article.’ You will need to roll with all of the excitement that brings but rest assured, these trips are always professionally managed in the Rat Race way and we have successfully operated our Test Pilot programme with intrepid #ratracers since 2017.
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1-4 WEEKS DURATION
Epic adventure journeys at the ends of the Earth, featuring incredible formats in extraordinary off-grid locations. Rat Race has never ploughed the same furrow as others and our Bucket List challenges are totally unique in the adventure marketplace. You can typically expect to make a journey from point-to-point under your own steam, undertaking disciplines including trekking, cycling, running, kayaking, packrafting or other – sometimes incredibly unique – modes of travel. Itineraries are usually ‘all inc’ and we'll provide accommodation or event campsites en-route, food and professional trip management throughout.
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1-2 WEEKS DURATION
Expeditions re-engineered, Rat Race style – you will not find a Kilimanjaro trek or the Inca Trail here! These trips are the very definition of adventure – uncertain outcomes, deep engagement with local landscape and culture and with a sense of immense mission and purpose for each and every one. Typically travelling together as a small group with guides and close-support functions, these are our most visceral and raw adventures.
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1-3 WEEKS DURATION
These are classic Rat Race outings: Packing all of the adventure punch we are renowned for, but achieving it in a shorter format, typically between
1 day up to a ‘long weekend.’ Sometimes these trips feature accommodation options and sometimes they are single day affairs. These are Rat Race’s most accessible events but do not be fooled – the adventure stakes are high and the grit required is chunky.
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1-5 DAYS DURATION
STYLE OF TRIP
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In all cases the trips will be undertaken in the small group expeditionary style with a group leader and some other crew acting in specialist guiding and support roles. In some trips, the group may always travel together, at the same pace.
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In some instances, there may be the possibility of splitting the groups to suit different paces, but this is the exception vs the rule. For the most part, the Test Pilot trip allows a small group to blaze the trail on a route that will then potentially become a larger Rat Race event.
DISTANCES AND DISCIPLINES
We have also provided very rough guides to the disciplines involved and associated distances. Please do bear in mind, distances and discipline splits may well change considerably as our planning escalates on each trip. That’s part of the fun.
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RATINGS
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We have used a very simple rating system to show how difficult each trip is. Clearly all of our trips are in epic locations and they do also all require a fairly epic level of physical commitment – that’s the point! Plus there is only so much we can convey through this coarse visual ‘scale.’ But we hope these very rough indicators at least manage to convey to you the levels posed by each trip, vs other trips.