Yes. List place names where possible, towns, villages or local landmarks. For GPS DIYs especially, there is no need to be too precise as this is just a summary.

First, check with that your organiser will acccept scans or photos - Not all do.
Scan or photo your receipts together or individually as you like, though individual photos of receipts works best. Please note:

1. All receipts the ‘right way up’ in whatever page format you use please.
2. Number receipts and give individual files appropriate names 1-name of controls.jpg, etc.
3. Make sure photos are lit properly. No need for flash umbrella's just make sure they are legible
4. DO NOT use hi-lighters to highlight time and date stamps, as this renders text illegible when viewed online. Better to underline the relevant text.
5. Consider file size and use a tool like MS Picture Manager to compress images where appropriate. Hi-res photos of 1Mb or more will easily shrink down to ~15kb.
6. Finally, please double check that your photos are legible before you send them in!

AAA points can be claimed for GPS DIY perms only. Where initial analysis indicates the GPX track may be eligible for an AAA award, it is automatically forwarded to the AAA secretary. But our regular processing will not identify marginal cases, or routes which do not qualify for AAA overall, but contain hilly sections of 100km or more. If you feel "there are AAA points in there somewhere", please let your DIY org know or take it up with the AAA Sec directly.

Passing through/past a Control it doesn't really matter but if 'bouncing' off a control, i.e., changing direction, you should get reasonably close. If possible, identify the cafe/store where you will plan to stop, otherwise if the Control represents a "turn point", mark the "outer boundary" of the area where you expect to obtain a control receipt or for a GPS DIY, mark the roads you actually plan to ride

Yes, and at least one intermediate checkpoint for routes of 100km or less

Ferries are fun but require careful planning. Ensure you know the crossing times and frequency, and allow time for the ferry crossing itself, boarding, etc. Should your ferry be cancelled, an appeal would be allowed because this is equivalent to a diversion because of a closed road. However, if you miss your ferry because you are behind schedule, an appeal will be rejected. The crossing time is included in the time allowance for the event but not the event distance. It's simplest to consider them as extended moving cafe/rest points.
If your route is circular and has one ferry crossing, consider plotting the route from and to the ferry arrival and departure points. This allows the route to be plotted as a single Googlemap route showing the correct route distance for validation purposes. You can start your ride at any point along the route. If your route does includes more than one ferry crossing make a note on the entry form so the organiser will know your brevet will require special attention.

No. The route must be submitted before the event starts.

You can change the date of a DIY perm until 23:59 the day before. After that, if you don't ride or abandon the attempt the Brevet is marked DNS/DNF. If you do DNS/DNF, please do let us know as it helps us keep the books tidy.

Your brevidence/GPX track should be returned to the DIY organiser within 14 days of completing the event. If this is not provided your Brevet may be marked DNS/DNF and closed.

It's an Audax thing. An Audax is an internationally recognised form of cycling event which consists of completing a route defined by a sequence of checkpoints (controls) to an agreed time schedule, evidenced by "proofs of passage" collected along the way. Controls are required at regular intervals to allow for rest and refreshment.

After your ride upload the recorded GPS tracklog using the form accessed from the event in your "Upcoming and Pending" list.

• The tracklog should be either a .gpx file contain a track or tracks, a .tcx file, a .fit file
• If there are several files you can combine them in a .zip file. Please don't include anything other than track files in the zip file.
• Zipping also works to reduce file size if your file is too big for our upload limits. If there are several tracks in your zip file, you do not need to join them up.
• If there is ‘stationary’ time at the beginning & end of your tracks you do not need to remove it (but please do remove any track segments or distance unrelated to your DIY ride).
• The maximum upload size is 10MB

There are elements in the tracklog file that AUK uses to help validate that the ride was completed:

• on a bicycle
• with a functioning GPS device to ensure route integrity,
  within time limits. 

Processing the file in some software or websites can remove some of those elements and give the appearance of tracklog created by a computer. AUK expects ‘raw data’ as far as possible. 

No, but it never hurts to collect them just in case you have a problem with your GPS.

Good question. Nominally the function of the GPX track for Advisory Routes is to confirm you have traversed the control points. Having said that we expect to receive a complete record of your ride. Inevitably there will be times when there are gaps in the record, however, if the evidence indicates the rider may have taken an unscheduled short cut then the Brevet will not be validated. For Mandatory Routes the event distance should be clear from the pre-submitted gpx track. Just remember to stick to the route!

If your GPS is running before you start/after you finish and you have the tech, feel free to trim away any extraneous sections, otherwise we'll deal with at validation. Just add a note when you submit your GPS track to say it requires special attention.

If your GPS resets during the ride for whatever reason – “I generally turn my eTrex off when I'm at controls” - you'll likely end up with multiple track segments. That's not a problem, our validation tool will automatically join the supplied track segments for processing.

If you are riding A DIY advisory route, get to a sweetshop, buy a chocolate bar, keep the receipt and collect receipts as proof of passage for the rest of the route. If you are riding a DIY mandatory route, then without a complete tracklog, the ride cannot be validated. So it might be advisable to carry a backup GPS device, e.g. a smartphone or a GPS logger.

No. If you don't complete the route you entered you 'DNF' (Did Not Finish)

DIY rides are recorded on your Individual Results List as either BR (for distances of 200km or over) or BP for shorter rides. Take a close look at the detail page of the award you are interested in.

No - Fundamentally all audax events whether Calendar events, conventional Permanent events, or DIY events, are intended to be standalone events entered solely as Audax events, not in combination with other cycling events. DIY events, like other Audax events, are treated as their own event within the audax spirit of self-sufficiency, personal achievement and non-competitiveness.