Tour de Bintan 2014 Pre-Event Brief

Tour de Bintan 2014
Pre-Event Brief
Welcome to the Tour de Bintan 2014. We hope that your training and preparation have gone as
planned and you are ready to tackle the race in fine style. In order to make your travel to the event
smooth and your race enjoyable, we compiled a list of important information.
Travel from Singapore
Do you already have a Ferry Bike Slot?
If not, contact BRF immediately to book one; email: [email protected] , tel: (+65) 6542 4369.
Bike slots are limited for each ferry.
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Your ferry to Bintan leaves from the Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal (TMFT), 50 Tanah Merah Ferry
Road. Please arrive 2 hours before departure at the ferry terminal.
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Bike protection – although the ferry and hotel staff have been briefed and trained to handle your
bike with care, consider protecting your frame with bubble wrap or similar material. If you want to
eliminate absolutely all risk you could pack it in a bike box.

Remove pedals – we seek your cooperation to remove the pedals from your bike before the bike
is checked in. It helps the staff a lot in loading and unloading your bike safely and swiftly.
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Remove accessories from bike – bike computer, drink bottles, saddle packs, etc. – as they may
get lost / removed during transport.
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Boarding pass collection
Collect your boarding pass (and bike luggage tags) from your ferry operator. For the majority of
participants this is the Bintan Resort Ferries (BRF) counter. For participants that booked the ferry
through Journeyful, please look for the Mozaic ferries counter.
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Bike luggage tags – Advise the BRF staff on which hotel you would like your bike to go to and
you will be issued the appropriate bike luggage tags.
Fill in your bike luggage tag and retain the corresponding sticker for verification upon collection of
your bike.
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Important!
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Passport – Don’t forget it as Bintan is Indonesia. Your passport needs to be valid for at least six
months and have one page available for your VOA (details below).
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Visa On Arrival (VOA) – Some nationalities require a visa on arrival. Please have with you
USD15 for application in Bintan. For a list of nationalities that do or don’t require a visa, click here.

Island transfer – If you are staying at the Official Host, Nirwana Gardens, or one of the Official
Hotel Partners (Bintan Lodge, Angsana and Bintan Lagoon Resort), the hotels will transport you
and your bike directly from the ferry to your hotel.
(At Nirwana Gardens collect your bike from the Bike Depot / Resort Centre).
Bike tag for return ferry (Bintan to Singapore) – On your departure from
Singapore you will also receive a white colour bike luggage tag from the BRF staff for the return
journey.
DON’T LOSE IT! Without the bike tag your bike can not go on the ferry back to Singapore. (A
new bike tag is chargeable: SGD 12 per tag.)
If you stay at another hotel than mentioned above, choose one of these two options:
Option 1: Collect your bike from the Bintan Ferry Terminal
On arrival at the Bintan Terminal, you need to exit the terminal and keep a left to collect your bike
from the dedicated bike collection area.
Option 2: Send your bike to the Nirwana Gardens Bike Depot
Mention this explicitly at the ferry ticket collection counter at TMFT, so you receive the correct
bike tag.
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Confirm return ferry – Please confirm your return ferry to Singapore as early as possible with
your hotel, ideally upon arrival. The hotel will then collect your boarding pass on your behalf. Due
to limited bike slots, change of ferry timing is strongly discouraged (amendment fees apply).

Bike Depot – Nirwana Gardens has a dedicated “Bike Depot” at their Resort Centre (3 minutes
walk from the Nirwana Resort Hotel lobby) to manage the bike transfers.
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Bikes transferred to Nirwana Gardens from the ferry terminal, official hotels or race venues
will all be delivered to the Bike Depot.
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Return your bike to the Bike Depot to transfer your bike to the ferry terminal, official hotels or
other race venues.
For other hotels’ bike holding areas, check with the concierge.
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Bikes return to Singapore – 2 options:

Option 1: drop your bike at the Nirwana Gardens’ or your official hotel’s Bike Depot, 3 hours
in advance of your ferry departure, (applies to all cyclists regardless of where you are
staying). It will be transferred to the ferry terminal and checked-in for you. You only
need to collect it on arrival in Singapore.
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Option 2: make your own arrangements
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Currency
Indonesia’s currency is the Rupiah (USD 1 = approx IDR 9,000).
Note that Singapore Dollars are no longer accepted at the Bintan Resorts hotels!

Time Zone
Note that all times for the Tour de Bintan are in Bintan Time (GMT+07:00), which is one hour
behind Singapore (Singapore 7am = Bintan 8am).
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Taxis from TMFT – taxis are in high demand at the Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal in Singapore on
your return from Bintan. Consider to book one in advance to avoid delays.
Regular Taxis:
Comfort Taxi: 6552 1111
Dial-A-Cab:
6342 5222
SMRT Taxis: 6555 8888
TransCab:
6555 3333
Premier Taxis: 6363 6888
Prime Taxi:
6778 0808
Yellow-Top Taxi: 6293 5545
7-seater Maxi Cabs:
Maxi Cab:
6535 3534
Limo Maxi:
9008 7079
Ezy Limo:
8448 0222
Limo Taxi Cab: 8368 9737
Alex Limousine: 9003 2237
Maxi Cab Limo: 8388 3885
Day-trippers:
Cyclists who purchased a day-trip package will receive a separate email and brief with the special
arrangements for their travel to and from Bintan, like express immigration clearance, transport to and
from the start venue, race kit collection, and more.
Bike Mechanic
Ensure your bike is in good order before you bring it to Bintan! Mechanics will be on site for last
minutes fixes and tunings, but please don’t rely on them.
Race Kit Collection
Race kit collection is on Friday. You will not be able to collect your race kit on Saturday morning.
Please check the event time schedule for the race kit collection opening hours.
For Category 1, 2 and Women race kit collection takes place at the Criterium venue at Tanjung
Pinang.
For Category 3 and Gran Fondo race kit collection takes place at the Nirwana Resort Hotel in Suria
room.

Please check your name, category and team name on the participant list that is posted on the
event website www.tourdebintan.com. Please inform us of any errors; email
[email protected] or call +65 6838 0873.
Important! Each participant must collect his race kit in person. You are required to bring a photo
ID (photocopies are not allowed) and your registration confirmation.
 Race entries are non-transferable to another person. Changing category is no longer allowed.
Timing Chip
The timing chip is a disposable sticker that is attached to your bike seat-post flag found in your race
kit. Don’t cut or fold the sticker to avoid damage to the timing chip.
Race Briefing (Friday between 7pm and 9pm at
Nirwana Gardens)**
Race Briefing is compulsory for ALL cyclists.
Cyclists arriving on the 8pm ferry and staying in a different hotel than Nirwana Gardens are advised
to take the Nirwana Gardens bus from the Bintan Ferry Terminal to attend the race briefing and collect
their race kit (before going to your hotel) .
** Check the event time schedule for more detail.
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Hotel Shuttle
Official hotels Bintan Lodge, Angsana and Bintan Lagoon Resort provide transfers to and from
Nirwana Gardens and the other race venues.
Check with your hotel or the Official Travel Agent, Albatross, if the free shuttle is included in your
package or whether additional fee applies.
Cyclists staying at other hotels have to make their own transport arrangements.
Check out the shuttle schedules on the Tour website for departure times.
Getting to race start on Friday
The Criterium on Friday is held at Tanjung Pinang a 1h15m drive from Nirwana Gardens and other
Bintan Resorts hotels. Buses are departing from the official hotels and from the Bintan Ferry Terminal
in two special cases. (Participants taking the bus directly from the Bintan Ferry Terminal to the
Criterium require a purple ‘priority’ bike tag when they check in in Singapore)
Check out the shuttle schedules on the Tour website for departure times.
Please ensure that you have filled out the recent Tour de Bintan questionnaire to select which bus you
would like to take to the Criterium.
Getting to race start on Saturday
The start and finish venue of stage 1 on Saturday [Simpang Lagoi] is located 15km from Nirwana
Gardens. Participants have the option to ride the hilly(!) road there as part of their warm-up or take the
shuttle service provided by Nirwana Gardens and the official hotels. Check out the shuttle schedules
on the Tour website for departure times.
Important!
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Cyclists who plan to take the bus to the start of Stage 1 must hand their bikes at the Nirwana
Gardens Bike Depot or their hotel before Friday 10pm for timely transfer.
Cyclists who decide to cycle to the start of Stage 1 have to remove their bike from the Nirwana
Gardens Bike Depot before Friday 10pm.
The bus to the Criterium and Stages are also available for supporters and spectators, subject to
availability on the day.
Buses from Nirwana Gardens to the race venues or official hotels all depart from and return to the bus
stop in front of the Suria Room Foyer of the Nirwana Resort Hotel (i.e. where race kit collection and
the race briefings take place).
If you are not staying at the official host Nirwana Gardens or one of the official hotels (Bintan Lodge,
Angsana and Bintan Lagoon Resort) you have to make your own arrangement for transfers.
Getting to race start on Sunday
The start and finish venue of stage 2 on Sunday is at Nirwana Gardens. Participants staying at official
hotels have the option to ride to Nirwana Gardens as part of their warm-up or take the shuttle service
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provided by their hotel. Check out the shuttle schedules on the Tour website for departure times and
travel distances.
Stage Details
Maps & profiles
Maps and profiles of the stages are available on the route page of the Tour de Bintan website;
Criterium / Stage 1 / Stage 2
Every year, cyclists underestimate the challenge of Stage 1. The heat combined with the very
undulating terrain of Bintan will provide a formidable challenge for all. The hills are not extremely
steep or long, but the road hardly ever flattens out. So, we suggest you pace yourself well.
Cut-off times
Cut-off points have been set for all three stages. If you don’t make it on time to the cut-off times, you
will not be allowed to continue the stage. You will be brought back to the start / finish line by bus.
Check out the cut-off times (at the bottom of the rules & regulations page) for more detail.
Note: if you don’t finish a stage, you will be disqualified for the competition, but still allowed to
start stage 2 in the Gran Fondo.
Category Women – Stage 1
Stage 1 consists of 135km for the Women’s Category to prevent the Women’s peloton from being
caught by Category 3. Two loop sections are cut out to ensure the women stay ahead.
Check out the route map on the stage 1 page for more details.
Note: women taking part in the Gran Fondo are to complete the total Stage 1 distance of 150km.
Category 2 Qualification
For safety reasons, only the fastest 100 Category 2 cyclists in the Criterium qualify for Category 2 for
the following stages of the Tour. They have to collect a new race kit to be able to start in Category 2
for the next stage. Official results and qualifiers will be announced on 17:00 at the Suria Foyer at
Nirwana Gardens.
Category 2 cyclists that do not make the cut become Category 3 cyclists for the following stages. The
Criterium result does not count for the General Ranking of Category 3.
Category 3 Safety Measure
For safety reasons, Category 3 is starting in two waves for Stage 1 with a maximum of 150 cyclists.
Each wave will have a stage winner. The jerseys are awarded to the fastest finisher (GC) and cyclists
with most points (ACE and KOM) of both waves.
Category 3 Qualification
The best 50 cyclists of each wave are allowed to start in the Category 3 peloton for Stage 2. All other
Category 3 cyclists start with the Gran Fondo. Their times will still be recorded and accumulated, but
they are no longer in competition for the stage victory, GC, ACE or KOM jersey and team
classification.
Rolling Start
The first of 1 to 3 kilometers of the stages will be neutralized, depending on the stage and race
conditions. The commissaire will signal the end of the rolling start and the start of the competition.
Neutral Support
Note that the Tour de Bintan is providing neutral drinks and mechanic support (see details below)
during the rides of the Tour de Bintan. Private support vehicles or personnel are not allowed during
the Tour stages.
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Drink Support
Read the Drink Support document for the kind of drink support you can expect.
Private Support is NOT allowed.
Important!
Start with full bottles! Start every stage with two full drink bottles on your bike. Mobile drink support
(when provided) starts after km 30 and stops 10km before the finish of stage 1 and 2. The Criterium
does not have drink support.
Bring your own bottles!
Bottles will not be provided by the race organizer at the beginning of a stage. You need to have your
own bottles.
Fueling! The Tour de Bintan provides you with fluids throughout the stages and some snacks.
However don’t rely on the drink stations for food and bring your own food (gels, bars, etc) on the ride
as well.
Mechanic Support
Read the Mechanic Support document for the kind of mechanic support you can expect.
Private support is NOT allowed on the ride.
Important!
Race repairs! Repair services during the race are provided free of charge. However, there will be a
charge for spares like tubes, tyres, cables, chains, etc.
Please respect our service staff
Any form of verbal/physical abuse to our service staff will result in immediate disqualification.
While a mechanic issue may ruin your race, that’s part of cycling.
With 1,000 cyclists on the road, although the mechanics will give you the best assistance possible,
they may not be able to assist everyone. We are implementing better systems every year to allow the
mechanics to assist you and do so in a timely manner, but there is no guarantee that it will always be
possible.
Therefore, you are advised to not fully rely on the neutral wheels and mechanics and bring spare
tubes and a repair kit to fix punctures.
Thank you for your understanding.
Medical Support
Every category will have an ambulance with a doctor following the convoy. Please ensure that your
medical condition and allergies are known to us and that you have given us a proper emergency
contact. At race kit collection you will have a last opportunity to update us. Also please fill out the back
of your race numbers. If you have any medical concerns about your participation, please contact us
now at [email protected] or look for the Medical Director on race weekend.
The priority for the Medical Team is to look after you during the race. For any non-race related
illnesses or injuries, please contact the hotel clinic.
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Rules & Rankings
For an overview of the prizes and rankings of the Tour de Bintan please visit the prizes page of the
event website: www.tourdebintan.com/prizes.php
For rules and regulations, check out www.tourdebintan.com/rules-regulations.php. See here a few
important ones. The most important rules will also be highlighted in the race briefing.
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Cyclists that end up in a peloton of a different category during the ride are not allowed to interfere
with the competition of this category peloton at all times. Cyclists doing so will be disqualified and
banned from the competition.
Private support vehicles or staff are prohibited from the event during the stages.
Aerobars, aero helmets, sleeveless shirts, compression wear, bottle cage holders behind the seat
and wheels with less than 12 spokes are not allowed at all times, to name just a few. Check the
equipment section for more rules.
Protests have to be lodged within 15 minutes after the finish of the stage by means of an official
appeal form at the information booth. A non-refundable appeal fee of S$100 applies.
Saturday Lunch
Lunch is provided for all Stage 1 cyclists on Saturday. Collect your lunch box from the Food & Drinks
tent at the Tour Village.
Sunday Awards Ceremony and Lunch
Buffet lunch is provided on Sunday from 12:00 to 14:00 for all cyclists racing on Sunday, and will take
place during the Awards ceremony at the Nirwana Gardens Resort Centre.
Sunday lunch tickets for friends and family and those who entered only for the Saturday stage can be
purchased at race kit collection at the Nirwana Gardens counter
Merchandise and other purchases: Bring some
cash
Vendors will be at the race kit collection for last minute purchases but won’t be able to accept credit
card payments. Please bring some cash. (Indonesian Rupiah, Singapore Dollars and US Dollars are
accepted.)
Snacks and drinks will be available at the all race venues. Again, bring some cash (Indonesian
Rupiah).
Tour Dinner (Saturday 7:00pm)
Don’t miss the Tour Dinner for a review of the day’s competition and Gran Fondo rides, a presentation
of the stage 1 winners, interviews with the key players and special performances of the day and much
more.
th
You can still buy tickets online until Thursday 6 November.
Venue: Nirwana Resort Hotel
Date: Saturday 8 November
Time: 7pm
Price: Adults - SGD$40
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Kids (12 & under) - SGD$22
Tour Jersey
The 2014 Limited Edition Tour de Bintan Jerseys and Bib Shorts are available for purchase at race kit
collection.
th
Also available online until Thursday 6 November:
2014 Tour de Bintan Jersey
2014 Tour de Bintan Bib Shorts
$85
$75
Final Advice
In order for everyone to have a great race experience, we would like you to take note of the following.
1. Roads are Not Closed!
The police will attempt a rolling road closure and stop traffic as the peloton of each competitive
category passes. Though, normal road rules still apply. Riders are to keep as close as safely
practical to left hand side of the road, whether in a peleton or not. The Police have the right to
stop the race as they see fit due to any safety concerns that may arise.
2. Come Prepared!
The terrain of Bintan is challenging and so is the tropical climate. For many of you this may also
be the first time to race/ride multiple stages in one weekend. Bring your bike in good condition
and plan your ride in terms of hydration, fueling, pacing and race tactics, so you will finish the
weekend in good form.
3. Point Out Hazards!
The local government makes every year a tremendous effort to provide good road conditions for
the tour. However there may still be some areas with hazards. Warn riders behind you of any
immediate danger: potholes, humps, rough road, sharp corners, etc.
4. Ride Safely!
Don’t put yourself or other riders in danger by swerving or sudden braking. Negotiate sideway
movements carefully. Be considerate.
5. Drinking on the Move
Don’t forget to drink amidst all the excitement. Once you start to feel thirsty, it is too late. The
competitive categories have water carriers following them (except for Cat. 3 on Stage 1). If you
want to have a new drink bottle, drop to the rear of your group and raise your hand with an empty
drink bottle in it to alert the carriers. Stay left as the carrier will drive up to take your empty bottle
and replace it by a fresh bottle from your right.
6. Wheel Changes/Punctures
Wheel changes and puncture repairs are to take place on the left hand side of the convoy/road
only!
a) To have a wheel change, put your hand in the air to attract the attention of the mechanic
support team. Make sure you have dropped your chain into the smallest for a quick change.
The motorbike riders with neutral wheels are NOT mechanics, so be prepared to change your
wheel yourself.
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b) In case you end up behind the peloton you are advised to have two spare tubes and a pump
or inflator with CO2 cartridges on your bike during the race, as you will not have the support
of the neutral wheels / bike mechanic anymore.
7. Respect the Marshals
Allow the race marshals and other officials to do their job. We do not tolerate any form of
verbal/physical abuse and may lead to immediate disqualification.
Photos
Finisherpix will be taking your Race Action photos. Photos will be available for purchase online about
48 hours after the event on the FinisherPix website.
How to Contact Us
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Till Wednesday: (+65) 6838 0873 or email [email protected]
On Friday 7 November: Bintan Race Office (+62) 770 692 505 (ask to be transferred to the Tour
de Bintan race office or Picasso Room)
On Saturday and Sunday: look for us on site at the information desk.
More information: www.tourdebintan.com
Sponsors who Support Us
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