Just one week to go until the October issue of The Great Outdoors magazine hits the shelves and lands on doormats. It will of course include lots of coverage of the 2018 Challenge and details of how to enter the TGO Challenge 2019.

For regulars we thought it might be worth highlighting a few changes. Don't worry there is nothing major - the format won't change for the 40th anniversary!

1) Entry period slightly reduced - so you need to get your application in by 21st October.

2) Event Details will be sent when you apply (rather than when places confirmed) so first time entrants can see what they have let themselves in for! So receiving the details doesn't mean you have a place.

3) Those who did their 10th or 20th last year will go into the draw with everyone else rather than waiting to see if we are undersubscribed. It seemed unfair to exclude them from the 40th celebrations. If they get a place in 2019 they may be asked to defer if 2020 is oversubscribed.

4) Entry fee for 2019 will be £65 per person.

5) NEW START POINT! Several Challengers have tried to access the Cowal peninsula in the past so the marina at Portavadie will be our 14th start point.

6) Route submission deadlines have been brought forward slightly and this year they will be strictly applied. Extensions will only be given in truly exceptional circumstances.

7) Medical information and emergency contact details will be requested via an online form in March/April to ensure they are up to date.

8) Spaces for the Thursday dinner were very tight last year so will be allocated in the order they are requested. Once we have 180 places filled we will start awaiting list. So if you want to guarantee a place if you cross successfully get your route sheet in early as that is the only way they can be requested!

9) The Friday dinner will be a celebration of past and present Challenges. We will invite past Challengers to attend so if you know anyone who would like to come please put us in contact with them.

Excellent news in all respects, Ali and Sue. I had just been getting an itchy feeling in the back of my neck that said: "Time to watch the post box!".

And thank you for listening about the Cowal Peninsula. After a southerly route last year, I won't use it just yet but it'll be nice to know it's there.

I won't mention Wester Ross again for a wee while .......!

Vanessa

Hi Ali & Sue,

Could I ask why has the entry price gone up again?

£65 per person is a lot of money when the price was only £30 in 2015.

Not compared to other events through. The Great North run will be £56 next year and another £65 to guarantee entry if you ran this year!

Lynsey

When the £ drops to parity with the € next year and a better rate for our friends from the US you won’t have any complaints from them!

Hi, this is Emily at TGO magazine.

Unfortunately costs associated with running the Challenge have increased in recent years so we've had to increase fees to keep the event sustainable.

We do appreciate that any increase in cost is difficult for some members of the Challenge community and have therefore kept the increase to a minimum.

We hope you agree that the Challenge is still good value for a fortnight's event.

Emily

hi Emily. will the badge be complementary for the 40th ?? that would make a nice gesture !!

Hi Emily.

I need a new hat! A tile, a titfer.

My old TGOC hat from 2004 has finally expired. It was a really versatile light Polartec peaked cap with a 25th anniversary commemorative logo. Best hat I've ever had, and I cannot find anything remotely similar.



Any chance of a bit of quality head covering merchandise from a sponsor? :tophat:

p.s. If any challenger has an unused one from the 25th year, and wants to sell it, please drop me a line. Ta.:blush:

hi phil. £50 quid will get you mine,:grinning: :tophat:

mmm!!! well its actually £70 if you think about it???:innocent:

Hi Terry Emily is away for a few days so we'll answer instead .
Sorry it will still be an extra charge of around £5 for the pin badges which only just covers the cost of producing them. Only about half of people want them which is why we separated them out from the entry fee a few years ago to reduce a previous price increase for everyone.

£50 Terry? £50??? :scream:

I'll wait until after Brexit. That nice Mr Carney says that'll be about 50p then! :joy:

Seriously though, I'll go to £20 inc P&P for an 'as new' unused one that's just lived in a drawer for the last 14 years.

TBH, I think £65 is extremely good value for an event. Especially one of this length.

And not being contentious but, there is a simple way not to pay it..

Don't Enter..

Puts on Tin Hat :joy:

At 65 pounds it is very reasonable. Consider that most of spend hundreds of pounds or HRM Canadian dollar equivalents on footgear, tents, bags and clothing and even several hundreds of pounds for GPS SOS devices.
To have the vetters help, the coordination, the Emergency SAR facilitation and the many other supports it is a great value.
It would of course be better if it included a bottle of Scotch, free meals and massages at every stop point, a small donkey to carry things on some days and other such amenities.
I am looking forward to seeing some known faces and some new ones as well.

My fingers are twitching to apply even if signup will start in the middle of the night tomorrow here in the wilds of Canada. After a difficult crossing last year due to injury I hope to be able to stick with a more strenuous route in 2019. Thanks for the great work you and the team do for all Challengers. The 65 price is fine with me as the overall cost for someone from Canada to participate including travel comes to about 1500 - 2000 pounds. I hope to see some old faces and some new friends also.
Dara OhUiginn, Ottawa.