Saturday March 25th, Maats Utrecht

After a successful first edition last November, the Maats Checkpoint Challenge is back for its second instalment. We've found another 10 amazing checkpoints that will take you in a new direction from our Utrecht store.

This challenge (or race for some) is all about planning, route skills and teamwork. There’s no route, just 10 checkpoints (CPs) that are worth a visit for you and your teammate. You connect these checkpoints to create your own route.

Two out of ten CPs are mandatory, the other eight are optional. So it’s up to you to decide how long your route will be. If you want to check off all CPs, expect to ride approximately 200km. The shortest route along the mandatory CPs will be around 100km.

We will draw up a classification at the finish. The team that checks off all checkpoints and does so in the shortest amount of time wins the challenge.

Are you up for the challenge? Team up & and join us on Saturday March 25th in Utrecht.

Event Details

• 9:00 gathering at Maats Utrecht, Twijnstraat, for coffee and ride briefing, start at 9:30
• Max 30 teams of two
• All CPs will be reachable on a road bike with wide-ish tires, but you will have to ride some easy gravel
• At one of the mandatory CPs there will be food and drinks, but bring enough yourself for during the ride
• You have to be back in store before 18:00 (cut-off time)
• We’ll share the CPs a few days before the event so you can start planning your route in advance
• Team ticket price €60 (€30 pp)
• Included: coffee before the start, food and drinks at one CP, beers and snacks afterwards at the finish

After booking a ticket we send you an extensive briefing a few days before the event.

Join us on Saturday and Sunday, May 11 to 12, for a weekend of gravel riding, camping, good food and fun people! Together with PEdALED we present ‘A Bikepacking Odyssey’ to celebrate the introduction of PEdALED at Maats!

We will go for a big ride on Saturday (150km and 100km options) with lunch at the halfway point. The ride ends at a beautiful campsite on ‘de Veluwe’ where we’ll pitch our tents and enjoy a night surrounded by nature. We’ll provide dinner and hope you will bring your best campfire stories. Maybe we’ll even go for a quick Posbank Sunset Ride, who knows. On Sunday you can go your own way. Hit the trails around the campsite or pack your bags and join one of the groups riding back home, it’s all up to you! Brand Ambassador Quinda Verheul will be there, as well as some people from PEdALED.

Saturday’s ride details

• Ride from Maats Amsterdam (meetup 9:30, 150km)
• Ride from Maats Utrecht (meetup 11:00, 100km)
• Lunch from the Maats Van at the halfway point
• Bring your gravel bike or MTB, we’ll hit some rough stuff

Camping details

• We’ll stay at a beautiful campsite on de Veluwe
• Bring your own camping gear
• Or rent some from us for €20 extra (SOLD OUT)

Sunday’s ride details

• Do whatever you like on Sunday
• Hit the local trails, join one of the various groups riding home or take the train back home

What’s included

• Bag service with the Maats Van
• Lunch and dinner on Saturday
• Breakfast on Sunday
• A camping spot
• Optional: camping gear (tent, sleeping mat, sleeping bag)
• Bad weather? We'll reschedule or refund you your ticket

This year it’s 5 years ago that we opened our store at the van Woustraat in Amsterdam. To celebrate this, we are organizing a series of amazing events this summer. These are events that are in line with the things we have done with Maats in recent years or events that we have wanted to organize for a long time and for which this is the perfect reason.

Dropping - Saturday Oct 14

This is a new event based on a typical Dutch concept: a dropping. Imagine a departure in the early morning hours with a touring car to an unknown destination somewhere in the Netherlands. There are two pickup locations: Amsterdam & Utrecht. When you arrive at the location, your bike will be waiting for you and you will receive the location of the first checkpoint.

Once you’ve reached the first checkpoint, the location of the next one will be revealed, and so on. Five checkpoints later and about 150km further you will arrive back at our Amsterdam store where we will draw up the results. This event is not just about speed; route skills, navigation and the ability to improvise will play important roles. Eternal glory awaits at the finish line...

Details

• Saturday 14 Oct
• Gather from 06:00 at Maats Amsterdam for coffee and briefing
• Departure by bus at 07:00
• Second pickup location in Utrecht at 7:30
• Drive to an unknown place in the Netherlands where your will get the location of the first checkpoint
• Start at 09:00
• At each checkpoint you will receive the location of the next one
• The total route will have a length of around 150km
• Afterwards we will draw up results for: fastest individual and fastest team
• Navigation with any type of device is allowed
• Doable on 28mm road tyres
• Participate on your own or as a team of two
• Expect some surprises
• Participation is at own risk

What is included

• Coffee before departure (in Amsterdam)
• Transport by touring car to start location from Amsterdam or Utrecht
• Food and drinks at finish location at Maats Amsterdam
• Prizes for individuals and teams