The Monster, tipped to be the hardest sportive in the UK, is set start accepting entries this Sunday for 50 brave riders.
The circular course, which covers 190km and 4,200m of Welsh-heartland climbing, will roll out from Llangadog in the county of Carmarthenshire on Saturday August 30.
Willing participants can stake their claim to one of the limited places from 7pm on Sunday through cycling events company and The Monster organiser, A Cycling’s, website.
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The organisers are advertising the event under the tag-line ‘something to rip your legs off’, and have declared their ride the toughest sportive in the UK, even claiming prominence over the Fred Whitton Challenge, in the Lake District, which put two participants in hospital earlier this month.
The numbers appear to stack up. The Monster trumps the Fred Whitton Challenge’s 180km and 3300m of climbing in both distance and height, also giving the 300km Wiggle Dragon Devil sportive’s 3,437m of climbing a run for its money.
If that’s not enough to convince you of the brutality of this sportive, the ride’s profile can be seen here.
Entrance to the event will set you back £26, but with that you should expect the standard sportive amenities such as route marking, a supplementary GPX navigation file and individual rider timing.
Upon completion of the event under the 10.5 hour time limit you will also receive a novelty t-shirt to celebrate your achievement.
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If you can’t make it to the finish line, there’s no shame in it, A Cycling are expecting retirees and are running a broom wagon to follow the ride and sweep up any stragglers.
But, if you managed to tame The Monster and fancied more, or you’re just a stickler for punishment, your participation will grant you free entry to the following day’s Grimpée Mynydd Ddu.
So, are you brave enough? Enter on Sunday at www.acycling.com/tours/the-monster
Elliot joined team road.cc bright eyed, bushy tailed, and straight out of university.
Raised in front of cathode ray tube screens bearing the images of Miguel Indurain and Lance Armstrong, Elliot's always had cycling in his veins.
His balance was found on a Y-framed mountain bike around South London suburbs in the 90s, while his first taste of freedom came when he claimed his father's Giant hybrid as his own at age 16.
When Elliot's not writing for road.cc about two-wheeled sustainable transportation, he's focussing on business sustainability and the challenges facing our planet in the years to come.