RAYNET-UK is the national voluntary communications service provided by licensed Radio Amateurs.
All communications between Race Control in Horton-in-Ribblesdale and checkpoints, including the summits of Penyghent, Whernside and Ingleborough, will be engineered and provided by RAYNET operators.
More than 30 members from RAYNET Groups across the North of England and further afield will update Race Control on the progress of competitors and provide safety information from remote locations to alert officials to any potential problems.
But this is just a training exercise for RAYNET, which was formed in 1953 after the East Coast flood disaster. RAYNET’s prime role is to provide back-up communications for the Police, Fire and Ambulance services and others on a Government approved list when their radio systems overload or fail.
Since 1953, RAYNET has been involved in many national emergencies, including the Lockerbie disaster, where we provided 200 radio operators each day for the first 10 days. Fortunately, such emergencies are comparatively rare, so RAYNET trains by operating at sporting and charitable events, particularly in areas where cellphone cover is poor.
These include: The Three Peaks Race, the Lyke Wake Race and Etape-du-Dales 112-mile cycling sportif and Yorkshire Three Peaks Challenge events for major charities. Members from North and West Yorkshire and Cleveland are involved in around 20 events each year.
In 2014 RAYNET provided an emergency radio network covering 2,000 square miles for the Tour de France and in 2019 we operated for North Yorkshire County Council on the UCI World Road Cycling Championships.