AMERICAN RANDONNEUR - rusa.org · American Randonneur 3 RUSA Welcomes Its New Members! # Name City...

RUSA Executive CommitteePresident . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Lois SpringsteenVice-President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Mike DaytonTreasurer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Eric VigorenSecretary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Edward RobinsonBoard Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Jennifer WiseBoard Member . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Don HamiltonRBA Liaison . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .John Lee EllisBrevet Coordinator . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Mark ThomasMedals & Awards Coordinator . . . . .John Lee EllisMembership Office . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Don HamiltonNewsletter Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Mike DaytonPermanents Coordinator . . . . . .Edward RobinsonRoutes Committee Chair . . . . . . . . . .John KramerRules Committee Chair . . . . . . . . . .John Lee EllisSouvenir Coordinator . . . . . . . . . . . .Jennifer WiseTeam Randonnée Coordinator . . . . .Paul JohnsonWebmaster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Don Bennett

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Volume Twelve Issue #4 November 2009

AMERICAN RANDONNEUR

Message from the PresidentAs we close the books on another successful

year of randonneuring in the US, I’d like tothank our volunteers and give a preview for2010.

Please join with me in thanking our retiringRBAs for their service and welcome the newones to our team.Michael Berry is steppingaside in San Diego and is being replaced byDennis Stryker. Jason Karp started a newregion in Bozeman, MT this past year and SteveYetman is handling Greenville-Spartanburg, SC as Bethany Davisonretires. And you, riders, please don’t forget to take a look at the pointspage of our website at www.rusa.org/points.html and pat yourselves onthe back as you ask your local RBA if there is anything you can do to helpout.

We also have some changes to the volunteer team as Scott Brittleretires as Route Coordinator. As is so often the case, we’ve had to replacehim with three people as our sport continues to grow. Thanks go to TimBol, John Kramer, and Geoff Swarts who have stepped up to handle theBrevet Routes certification duties. As Bill Bryant retires as TeamRandonnée Coordinator, we welcome Paul Johnson to that post. I’mpleased to report that Bill is not getting too far away because like many ofyou, I continue to “Ask Bill” on a regular basis. The online RUSA storeand awards system has been a wonderful addition in the evolution of ourmember services and we thank Jim Kuehn as its software developer. Allof these members make valuable contributions to our sport and we owethem a huge debt of gratitude.

With our recent election, RUSA Board of Director changes are alsoafoot. We will be saying goodbye to Don Hamilton as his term limit isreached at the end of 2009 and we welcome new board member CecilReniche-Smith to the board for 2010. As Don leaves the board, I reflectfondly on his active participation these many years and will continue tovalue his opinion as we keep him on our volunteer staff. Jennifer Wisewas reelected for an additional term on the board as was John Lee Ellisas RBA Liaison. We are so very fortunate to have such a talented field ofvolunteers who also stood for election this fall as we thank Ed Felker,Greg Olmstead and Phyllis Hamilton; these members are alreadyextremely active as RUSA volunteers in their locale and on a national leveland we look forward to their continued contributions. It takes a special

LOIS SPRINGSTEEN

�Continued on page 6

Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .PageWelcome New Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3R-12 Recipients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4RUSA News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6Passings: Todd Martin, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7Passings: Steven H. Barbour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8Dr. C: Jimmy Olsen Dons a Cape . . . . . . . . . .10PBP’11 Q&A . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122008 Treasurer’s Report . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142010 Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15-17RBA Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18-19American Randonneur Award Form . . . . . . . . .20Ask Bill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21Ride Report: Seattle 600K . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25My Summer Vacation Essay . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29Endless Mountains 1240K . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .311200K: Right for You? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37Can-Am Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40

American Randonneur

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RUSA Welcomes Its New Members!# Name City State/Country

5595 Aaron L Bratka Xenia OH5596 Kari Crowe Campton NH5597 Aaron Bigio Chestnut Hill MA5598 Oral Powell Montego Bay Jamaica5599 Michael Yates Fort Worth TX5600 Rick Hall Delavan WI5601 James Simpson Scottsdale AZ5602 Jane McClellan Concord MA5603 Leslie Shapiro Atlanta GA5604 Cliff Hopkins Silver Spring MD5605 Clif Dierking Severna Park MD5606 Rick Stafford Minneapolis MN5607 Blaine Conrad Portland OR5608 Charlie Ferrell Minneapolis MN5609 Michael Price Anchorage AK5610 Anna Price Anchorage AK5611 James Stollenwerck Watch Hill RI5612 Pat Damron Monroe WA5613 M P Chandra Irving TX5614 Kaitlin Zoe Haws Seattle WA5615 Jim Wisener Carlsbad CA5616 Wally Pistone Vista CA5617 Samuel Thomas Temecula CA5618 Daniel B Phillips Oceanside CA5619 Joe Morgan Carlsbad CA5620 Wayne Jacobsen San Juan Capistrano CA5621 Curt Shumway Chandler AZ5622 Cammillo Fenzi Woodside CA5623 Harold Kloepfer Yuma AZ5624 Osvaldo Colavin San Diego CA5625 Mike Abbott Santa Barbara CA5626 Jason Dom Waynesboro PA5627 Chip Benson Memphis TN5628 Kyly McMurrary Vancover WA5629 Pat Thornton Arlington TX5630 Phil Auchten Vista CA5631 Dave Provine Millersville MD5632 Todd LeBlanc Lakewood CO5633 Wil Rogers Maitland FL5634 James Ruppel Annapolis MD5635 Sadaf Syeda Brooklyn Park MN5636 Bryan McConnell Kingman AZ5637 Christopher C Chun Escondido CA5638 Jay A Yurkiw Columbus OH5639 Robert E Abraham Escondido CA5640 Mick Jordan Palo Alto CA5641 Fredia Barry Nashville TN5642 Thomas Trinidad Jackson TN5643 Kurt Schusterman Brentwood TN5644 Adrian Rodriguez Houston TX5645 Jonathan F Wendel Ames IA5646 Wayne Clark Cary NC5647 Chris Shumate Carlsbad CA5648 Cindy Gagnon Boulder CO5649 Elisa M Ross Gervais OR5650 Mamie Brouwer Seattle WA5651 Kevin Bloom Tallahassee FL5652 J Ernest Lanas Dallas TX5653 Shannon Jordan Allen TX

# Name City State/Country

5535 Ken Coonley Rockford IL5536 Chris Sharkey Issaquah WA5537 David V Miller Corvallis OR5538 Keith Snyder New York NY5539 Andi Ramer San Diego CA5540 Don Ramer San Diego CA5541 Margaret O’Kelley El Paso TX5542 Alex Shnyra Overland Park KS5543 Charles Eaton Midland TX5544 Mike Morganson Anchorage AK5545 John M Kerrigan Midland TX5546 Kendall Wong Odessa TX5547 Ben Aranda Milliken CO5548 Meyling Sanford Odessa TX5549 Yolanda Guerra Odessa TX5550 Peter Norquist Pleasanton CA5551 Dennis Ahern Boise ID5552 Afra Zmrhal Boulder CO5553 David A Loomans Weston WI5554 Bill Gashler Lakewood CO5555 Chris D Priest Lakeville MN5556 Richard Moore Edina MN5557 Thomas Gosnell Stillwater OK5558 Michele Brougher St Louis Park MN5559 Craig Mosher Ben Lomond CA5560 Stephen Lamb Tigard OR5561 Randall Anderson Minneapolis MN5562 William L Kyburz Vienna VA5563 Marilyn E Anderson Vienna VA5564 Mike Ziemke Merrill WI5565 Nick Lucas Mandeville LA5566 Terry Keele West Linn OR5567 Paulo Irulegui Redwood City CA5568 Jeffery White Midwest City OK5569 Andrei Solodin Saint Paul MN5570 Ron Shaw Chicago IL5571 Kate Watkins Anchorage AK5572 Michael Henderson Dolores CO5573 Bryan Berna Bremerton WA5574 Michael Solecki Wilton CT5575 Tom Grenier Anchorage AK5576 Michael C Ahrens Chicago IL5577 Ted Archer Corinth TX5578 Don Counts San Diego CA5579 Rose Baker Arlington TX5580 Michael W Ryan The Woodlands TX5581 James D House Maumee OH5582 Ken Engh Spencerville OH5583 James J Van Campen Mountain View CA5584 Kristine L Symer Tacoma WA5585 Dija A Amer Brooklyn NY5586 Amie Holliden Portsmouth VA5587 Acmae El Yacoubi Ithaca NY5588 Ashok R Singh Chester NY5589 Edward A Whittaker Hoboken NJ5590 Steve Gleason Golden Valley MN5591 Pascal Hannecart Norfolk VA5592 Alan Hall Plano TX5593 James Costello Millville NJ5594 Charles Lotte West Hills CA

�Continued on next page

American Randonneur

4 November 2009

5654 Paul Cronin Lafayette CO5655 Mike Moran Boca Raton FL5656 Matthew Brooks Chula Vista CA5657 Steve Saltzman Durham NC5658 Irek Koziol Chicago IL5659 Pramila Jayapal Seattle WA5660 Carol Nin Indianapolis IN5661 Gerald Torrance Corinth TX5662 Mark Reynolds Lubbock TX5663 David Parsons Portland OR5664 Tanya Swarts Mercer Island WA5665 Michael Schechter Seattle WA5666 Jim Slyfield Bothell WA5667 Lyn Gill Kent WA5668 Jo Ann Frink Santa Clara CA5669 Erika G M Reeves Denton TX5670 Edward Patrick Reeves Denton TX5671 Cressler Heasley Dallas TX5672 Wallace J Bigler Houston TX5673 Edward Yu Mountain View CA5674 Adam Lowe Mansfield TX5675 Dr. Randall Dirks Waconia MN5676 Rebecca Dirks Waconia MN5677 Jonathan Clamp Princeton NJ5678 Darin Crowley Crestview FL5679 Alan Gossard Kirklin IN5680 Ben Thibodeaux Katy TX5681 Theodore J Burke Bellevue WA5682 Benny Kincer Glen Burnie MD

5683 Dave Pettigrew Fort Myers FL5684 Tim Zak Pittsburgh PA5685 John Lepire Newport Beach CA5686 Beckett Haight Long Beach CA5687 John Klever Denver CO5688 John Gordon Tobaccoville NC5689 Dari Bartz Columbus OH5690 Alan Travis Phoenix AZ5691 Len Szmurlo Glenwood IA5692 Lloyd Jones Westminster CO5693 Sarah Mullin Minot ND5694 Michael Baker Blackshear GA5695 Kenneth Eugene Askew Jr Eden Prairie MN5696 William Hunt Fountain Valley CA5697 Ogden John Olmstead Rocky Mount NC5698 Jerry Riccardi Kansas City MO5699 Charlie Fenske Fort Worth TX5700 James Heyman Plymouth MN5701 Steve Valladolid San Diego CA5702 Donald Jagel Germansville PA5703 Allen Jansa Garden City TX5704 Kevin Gregory Dallas TX5705 Thatch VandenBergh Centennial CO5706 Neil Fleming Atlanta GA5707 Maria Falbo Raleigh NC5708 John Kydd Bainbridge Island WA5709 Ken Lanteigne Columbus IN5710 Steven Moss Holbrook NY5711 Patrick Weiss San Jose CA5712 Lisa Clark Shaker Heights OH

RUSA Welcomes Its New Members!�Continued from page 3

Latest R-12 Recipients

(F) = Female; [#] = No. of R-12 Awards

Alan Gosart [2] Murfreesboro, TN

Ed Kristensen Escondido, CA

Narayan Krishnamoorthy [2] Kirkland, WA

Eric D Anderson Anaheim, CA

Kenneth Jessett Houston, TX

Jeff Newberry Austin, TX

Roland Bevan Ben Lomond, CA

Alan Bell Seatac, WA

Bruce R Berg Berkeley, CA

Steven T Graves [2] Gretna, LA

Christopher Heg Seattle, WA

George Winkert [3] Highland, MD

Dion G Dyer [2] San Diego, CA

Richard Stum Mt Pleasent, UT

Patrick Horchoff [2] River Ridge, LA

Suzanne Nowlis (F) Seattle, WAJanice Chernekoff (F) Lyon Station, PAIan Flitcroft Williamson, GARobert Riggs [4] Houston, TXAndrea Koenig (F) [2] Denver, COWilliam Fischer Elmira, NYBob Hammond Southlake, TXCharles Jenkins [2] Denison, TXPatricia Jenkins (F) [2] Denison, TXJames N Smith [2] Gunnison, UTMark Vinette [3] Bethesda, MDBrenda Barnell (F) [5] Dallas, TXJon Monteith Houston, TXTom Marchand Jacksonville, FLMark Wolff Jacksonville, FL

American Randonneur

6 November 2009

R U S ANEWSNEWS

person to step forward to volunteer for these growing jobs andour organization is all the richer for it.

As we look forward to 2010 and beyond, I’d like to drawyour attention to some important pieces in this newsletter.Excitement is already building for PBP in 2011 as we notice avery full calendar of ACP brevets for next year. John Lee Ellishas prepared a Q&A piece on qualifying for PBP. It is my sin-cere hope that everyone who wishes to go to PBP will havethat opportunity so in that vein, RUSA will continue to pro-vide information to everyone as the ACP formulates its entryplans.

As we go to print, we have 509 events on our calendar for2010 (so far). This represents more than a 4-fold increase overthe quantity of events that were offered back in 1999 when wehad “only” 28 regions. For 2010 we now have 47 regions offer-ing events. The health of our organization is strong butdepends on your continued volunteer efforts. Ask your RBA ifyou can help out, or drop us an e-mail or give us a call to tellus how you’d enjoy helping out.

President’s Message (continued)

Wise, Reniche-Smith WinRUSA Board Seats

Jennifer Wise, a foundingmember of RandonneursUSA, has been re-elected to thegroup’s Board of Governors,while Oregon randonneurCecil Reniche-Smith won a seatin RUSA's latest election forthree-year terms from1/1/2010 to 12/31/2012.

Colorado RBA John LeeEllis was re-elected as RBA-Liaison.

Reniche-Smith will fill theseat of retiring board memberDon Hamilton, who was noteligible for reelection.

In the latest election, 303of RUSA’s 2,350 active mem-bers voted by regular mail ore-mail. Twenty membersvoted for only one candidate.

These votes were record-ed for the general board can-didates: Jennifer Wise—239;Cecil Reniche-Smith—134;Ed Felker—122; GregOlmstead—47; and PhyllisHamilton—44.

Ellis received 17 votesfrom RUSA's RBAs for theliaison post. Only RBAs canvote for that position.

A former board memberand RUSA Vice President,Ellis was elected as RBALiaison last year and ranunopposed in the latest elec-tion.

The 2010 board will becomprised of Wise, Reniche-Smith, Ellis, LoisSpringsteen, Eric Vigoren,Edward Robinson and MikeDayton.

“The board extends aspecial thanks to DonHamilton for his years ofdedicated service to U.S. ran-donneurs as chair of theMembership Committee andhis leadership on RUSA’sboard,” said Springsteen,RUSA’s president. “His inputon the board will be missedand his counsel will continueto be sought.”

Ellis Re-elected As RBA-Liaison

Wise Reniche-Smith Ellis

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 7

Passings

May 4, 1963 – October 3, 2009Remembering Todd Martin|The Salamander King

Todd George Martin wasa friend like no other to somany. Quiet and consistent,Todd never wavered from hislove of cycling and thefriends lucky enough toknow and ride with him. Hegave selflessly of his timeand knowledge, always quickto ride with or help another.We were all lucky to call himfriend. Todd touched somany people in so manyways that there aren’t enoughwords. He lived many lives inhis short time and found hishome with cycling. He hadbeen heard to say the last 6years were the happiest yearsof his life.

Born May 4, 1963 inWalnut Creek, CA, Toddmoved to Ohio at the age of14 to live with his father. Inhis early 20’s, he moved toNorth Texas which he calledhome until his untimelydeath.

Upon hearing of hisunexpected death at the ageof 46, cyclists and friendsthroughout North Texasexpressed disbelief and dis-may. The picture of health,Todd, “Hott Toddie” to somany, displayed the grace,character and humanity weall strive for. Always the firstto help and always the firstto encourage, Todd was theever-present smile, the coolhead under pressure and theconscience to live your life asyou would like others toknow you. Most knew him asa cyclist first and foremost ashe rode with two primary

clubs and logged tens ofthousands of miles, first withthe Fort Worth BicyclingAssociation and then withLone Star Randonneurs.With both groups, he was aquiet and beloved leader.

Known for his devotionto Subway sandwiches and100 mile “fades” in the heat,Todd could eat the biggestmeal on a brevet andMacGyver his (and our) wayout of any mechanical issue.He could impersonate at willand somehow knew everysong, including commercialsand TV jingles. As LSR con-tinued to tease him about hisheat issues, Sparky theSalamander found a homewith Todd and before beingkidnapped and held for ran-

som bynefariousforces,Sparkyenjoyedvacationsaway from Todd on RAAMand PBP. Sparky lived onTodd’s helmet until his ownuntimely death due to heatstroke.

Todd wrote of himself“They told me when I was inhigh school that when I gotolder, I would still be actinglike a teenager, doing crazystuff, playing with some ofthe same toys I used to playwith and stuff. I guess theywere right. I still do and Ilove it. The toys cost a littlemore nowadays but every-thing does. I never wanted

some of the regular stuffeveryone else has, I do myown thing. Regular has justnever been a word I woulduse to describe myself.”

A RUSA member since2006, Todd is survived by hisfather, George Martin,Richwood, OH; sisterLindsey Anne Cannon,Pleasant Hills, CA; and hischosen families of the FortWorth Bicycling Associationand Lone Star Randonneurswho miss him very much.

Long live the SalamanderKing.

BY PAM WRIGHT

American Randonneur

8 November 2009

Steven H.Barbour P.E.

Steven H. Barbour, 58,of Upper Arlington, diedWednesday, July 22, 2009 atthe O.S.U. Medical Centerfollowing injuries sustainedwhile riding his bicycle onSaturday, July 18, 2009.

He was born May 14,1951 in Portsmouth, Oh.,son of Hercules and Caroline(Miniotis) Barbour. Steve wasa civil engineer with the OhioDepartment of Transportationretiring after 25 years of serv-ice. Previously he wasemployed by R.D. Zande &

Associates for several years.Steve gave the gift of life toothers by being a tissuedonor.

He was a 1969 graduateof Whetstone High Schooland received a Bachelor ofScience in Civil Engineeringfrom Ohio State Universityin 1973. He was a memberof the Annunciation, GreekOrthodox Cathedral. Stevehad a passion for cycling.He was a member ofColumbus Outdoor Pursuitsand has been leading ridessince the 1980s. He’s partic-ipated and volunteered inTOSRV, Columbus FallChallenge, and Top of Ohio

rides. He’s been awarded theprize for cycling the mostmiles to the Hilly Hundredin Bloomington, Ind. sever-al times. Steve especiallyenjoyed the Randonneur

Rides (long distance, timed,unsupported rides) andBoston-Montreal-Boston.He was well known andliked in the Central Ohiocycling community. Stevewill be remembered for hiskind spirit, his eagerness tohelp, his concern for others,his sense of humor and hislove for uphill riding. Hewill be deeply missed byfamily and friends. Thefamily would like to thankthe staff of the OSUMedical Center and Lifelineof Ohio for the compas-sionate and professionalcare provided for Steve andthe family.

Passings

Editor’s note: The following isan excerpt of a remembrance sub-mitted by a riding friend of Steve’s.

I was blessed to haveknown Steve and have theprivilege to ride with him.Steve was a quiet and gentlesoul, whose kindness endearedyou to him.

If there’s just one amazingthing to be said about SteveBarbour, it is, that the mancould climb hills. Okay, so youthink, “what is so amazingabout that?” We all climb hills.Ah, but here is the kicker. Putall these attributes together atone time. He climbed hillsalways standing, never sitting,any hill or mountain, any-where, any length, and all thewhile chatting up a storm with-out breaking a sweat. I’mtelling you, that is just plainunnatural! I knew of no oneelse who could actually speak,

let alone hold a conversationgoing up some of these Ohiohills. Not Steve though. Hewould be carrying on aboutsomething, ask you a question,and typically our answer wouldbe a grunt. Okay, my answerwould be a grunt.Nevertheless, Steve’s definitionof a moderate hill was farfrom normal. Moderate to him(15-20 percent grade), wasextremely difficult to us merenon-climbing cyclists.

I look back on the veryfond memories of doing manybrevets and other rides withhim. Many of those hillybrevets in which he alwayswaited on me, and whoeverelse rode with him were alwaysan adventure of passion withcycling. You see, I call Steve atrue randonneur. Why? Well,he would always stop and helpfellow cyclists he came uponwho were having mechanicaldifficulties. Always! Neverfailed. Even in the rain, while I

sometimes stood there not sopatiently waiting in the rain forhim to finish. All the while,having an admiration for hispersistence and patience inwanting to help another cyclist.He was not going to leave untilhe fixed the problem. If hecouldn’t fix the problem, hewas more than apologetic. Hewas always willing to ride withme and another female ran-donneuring friend (Eve Hush),even though we were alwaysmuch slower on the hills thanhe. He kept fellow brevet rid-ers from DNF’ing by fixingtheir bikes, and he encouragedpeople like myself who have abig fear of riding in the dark.He was a true cycling leader.

Someone said in tribute tohim that Steve had an analyti-cal mind. He never got intothe electronic gadgetry things,took forever to get an e-mailaddress, but man, his mind waslike an automated GPS. Henever got lost, and he had the

maps (with no GPS assistance)all figured out before thebrevet. While, I personally ama GPS and cue sheet kind ofgal, he would have none ofthat. It took Eve, other friendsand myself two years to con-vince him to get a cell phone.He finally caved.

Steve was a very humbleman. It’s been hard to get onmy bike since the accident,but I have. All the while,weeping for the loss of avery dear friend, who all ofus had such an immenserespect for. I will, as will allof us, work through my grief.I believe that Steve wouldwant us to be brave andshare his love of cycling!More importantly he proba-bly would want us to pursueencouraging and educatingnew cyclists. As a ride leaderfor Columbus OutdoorPursuits, I intend to keepdoing just that. Because Stevemattered to a lot of us.

Steve Barbour: A Passion for Cycling, a Very Fine Friend to AllBY DONNA BUSH

American Randonneur

10 November 2009

Originally I intendedthis article to be all aboutthe “F” word. Few thingsheat up a conversationamong rondos’ like theword, “fenders.” Though Idon’t consider it profanity, Ihave learned to give somethought to my surroundingsbefore I raise the subject. Ialso thought it might betimely. But that’s a discus-sion for another day, or per-haps another fall. There issomething else a bit morepressing that I want toaddress.

As you may have heard,I have been blessed with theopportunity to serve as yournew group ride coordinator.

Sounded good when LoisSpringsteen broached thesubject, I mean how hardcould it be? Write an obliga-tory Flèche article once ayear and answer a few mun-dane questions now andthen, not to mention all theperks.

Actually, as I consideredthe possibilities I did what Iso often do when facinglife’s seemingly inscrutablequestions: I asked BillBryant for advice. As I amsure all of you know, Bill isthe human equivalent ofWikipedia (English version)when it comes to all things

rando. In fact, I have it ongood authority that as soonas rando becomes anOlympic sport the Presidentwill declare Bill to be a liv-ing cultural treasure.

I turned a whiter shadeof pale after he filled me inon the duties that come withthe assignment. I won’t boreyou with the details, after allsomeone will have to fill inonce I’ve had my turn andas they say down by theriver bank, “you don’t wantto scare the fish before youget your hook in the water.”


Jimmy Olsen Dons a CapeBY PAUL JOHNSON

www.rusa.org 11

American Randonneur

Group Events (continued)

It will be a challengebut I want to give you a fewassurances:

First: Following in Bill’sfootsteps is indeed likemessing around with thecape in Superman’s closet(or is that a phone booth?)I’m not there yet and youcan assume that if it takesme awhile to respond toyour question as regardsteam events, it is probablybecause I am waiting forBill’s take. I’ll do my best,and Bill has agreed to sup-port me.

Second: I’ll make a boldcommitment here. I wouldlike to see a dramaticincrease in participation inteam events, not just Flèchesbut Darts and Arrows too inthe next two years. I believethe team events can be asmuch fun, or more so than aregular old brevet. I’ll try to“up” the fun factor whileattempting to minimizesome of the annoyancesthat are attendant to these

very special events.And finally: This will

not become the quarterlyrant on rando team events.Flèches, Arrows, and Dartsare certainly unique but anarticle every quarter mightbe a bit much. A stale pizzapocket hits the spot fromtime to time, but a steadydiet? I don’t think so. I’llprobably offer somethingspecific in the winter editionbut I hope to continue toproduce a few paragraphshere on the lighter side ofour special sport.

Even so, I can’t help butcomment on a couple itemsin the 2010 ride calendar.With 19 Flèches planned (arecord!) I am really anxiousto see how many teams par-ticipate. In North Carolinathey are planning to run aDart (12-hour event) con-current with the Flèche.This is a great strategy tointroduce riders to teamevents. And up in theNorthwest, OregonRandonneurs and SeattleInternational Randonneurswill once again end the sea-son with Darts that share acommon end point. I’ve rid-den this event a couple oftimes and it is fun to hearthe stories of my pals com-ing up from Oregon.

By the way, I’ve been innegotiations with Bob Rollabout commentating theFlèche if it becomes anOlympic sport! I’m sureBobke could make it clearerto the uninitiated than say,Phil and Paul, “suitcase ofpain” aside.

Flèches-USA History

YEAR SITES1999............................42000............................92001............................92002............................82003............................82004............................132005............................112006............................122007............................132008............................142009............................132010............................19

10/17/09 by Bill Bryant

Team Deer with Headlights, one of the many Flèche teams thatparticipated in 2009. L-R: John Lee Ellis, Greg Courtney,Catherine Shenk (team captain), Michelle Grainger and SteveLe Goff.

12 November 2009

American Randonneur

Even though PBP is still almosttwo years away, RBAs and other RUSAmembers have raised many questionsabout the ACP’s plans for implementinga country quota system. Here, our RBALiaison, John Lee Ellis, has summarizedthe common questions that we havereceived from our members andexplains what we know so far. Pleaserest assured that we will continue tokeep our members informed of anynews on this from France and thatRUSA’s role in the management of thisquota (if any) will be transparent andfair. For the text of the ACP’s commu-nications on this issue, please go tohttp://www.rusa.org/announce.html. -Lois Springsteen.

Q: Have the qualification require-ments changed for PBP?

A: No, they remain the same: youneed to complete a Super-Randonneurseries (ACP brevets of 200k, 300k,400k, and 600k) in 2011, finishing by

mid-June of that year. You may ridethem in any order, and may substitutelonger distances for the Super-Randonneur distances. What’s new for2011 is that each country will have arider quota. The ACP says that if acountry has more (qualified) applicantsthan places in its quota, you can

improve your chances of being selectedby the riding you do in 2010.

Q: Will accumulating a lot of dis-tance in 2010 brevets help my chancesof getting into PBP’11?

A: Only very marginally: your kms

PBP’11 Q&A |What You Need to Know About 2010 Events

In September, Bicycle Quarterly staged the exhibit “The Art ofthe Constructeur Bicycle—Alex Singer and René Herse” at IlVecchio Bicycles in Seattle, WA. On display were 12 exception-al bicycles from René Herse and Alex Singer, as well as a 1940saluminum Barra randonneur bike weighing less than 24 lbs. withfenders, racks, lights and wide tires. Star of the exhibit was theHerse tandem that posted the fastest time of all randonneurs(together with a similar tandem built by Jo Routens) in Paris-Brest-Paris 1956. A 1954 Alex Singer also was a veteran of PBP1956, while a René Herse track bike had been ridden to sever-al French championships. The exhibit included a rare HerseDémontable with a take-apart frame to facilitate airline travel andtwo camping bikes with racks for loaded touring.

Herse tandem. This tandem posted the fastest time in PBP 1956.Photo by Jean-Pierre Pradères from The Competition Bicycle©Vintage Bicycle Press.

Overall shot of the exhibit. Photo: Ryan Nute.


American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 13

PBP 2011 (continued)might help add a fraction of a place tothe US rider quota. Furthermore, it ishard to predict the effect of individuals’kms or the country’s as a whole, as itdepends on what riders in other coun-tries are doing.

Q: Will riding longer brevets in2010 help my chances more than ridingshorter ones?

A: Yes, the ACP says highest “pre-registration” preference will be given toriders completing a 1000k, followed bythose completing a 600k, followed bythose completing a 400k. We don’t yetknow the details of how pre-registrationwould work.

Q: Will riding a 1200km GrandRandonnée in 2010 help my chances?

A: No, and it will not aid the riderquota either. However, some 1200k’soffer ACP 1000k + 200k options. (Youwould not get Randonneur Mondiaux1200k credit, but would get ACP 1000k

and 200k credit.) In 2010, the Cascadeand Last Chance offer 1000k + 200koptions.

Q: Do RUSA non-ACP brevets orRUSA permanents have any effect?

A: No, except for the trainingeffect, of course.

Q: Must the 2010 brevets I ride bein the US to help towards PBP’11?

A: Yes and no. Riding a long ACPbrevet helps your pre-registration statuswhether you ride it in Dallas, Paris, orBritish Columbia. But in terms of help-ing the country quota, it’s the aggregateACP kms ridden in US events (by allriders, American and foreign) that mat-ters.

Q: Does my nationality (British,French, Canadian, etc.) determine whichquota I fall under, or my membership(RUSA, Audax UK, OntarioRandonneurs)?

A: The ACP says it’s your nationali-

ty that matters.Q: Will there be other 1200k’s

besides PBP to ride in 2011?A: Most likely. It is now possible to

organize Randonneur Mondiaux 1200k’sin a PBP year. There may be one ormore in the US.

Q: Will a non-PBP 1200k in 2011count towards the ACP Randonneur5000 award?

A: Only in terms of distance credit,as RM 1200ks already do. It would notsubstitute for the requirement to ride aParis-Brest-Paris.

There will no doubt be more ques-tions—and more clarification we canprovide in time—but as Lois states,RUSA will continue to work in theinterest of our members and clarity inunderstanding what your options are.

—John Lee Ellis

American Randonneur

14 November 2009

RUSA continues to have a strongfinancial basis. This is due in large part tothe many active volunteers who devote somuch time and effort to the organization.Volunteers make RUSA what it is. If youwould like to be more involved at a local

level, contact your RBA. Another optionis to contact the heads of any of thecommittees and offer your assistance.Additional help is always welcome.

2008 was the start of a transition forRUSA finances, particularly with theRUSA Store going online in March 2008.Medals and an ever increasing list of sou-

venirs can be ordered directly with PayPalfacilitating almost seamless transactions.Hopefully, soon RUSA membership willalso be available for online renewal.

Officially, RUSA’s total assets onDecember 31, 2008 were $121,891,although this figure is somewhat inflatedbecause some 2008 expenses were paid inearly 2009.

Membership dues provided the pri-mary source of income. Interest, adver-tising, and souvenir sales also providedsources of revenue. Direct benefits to themembership included the newsletter (thelargest single expense), processing ofrenewals and new membership applica-tions, and ACP processing of brevetresults.

The cost “to keep the lights on” soto speak reflected just 9.5% of organiza-tional expenses in 2008. Total expendi-tures for the year were $69,184 with$40,491 in itemized operational and pro-gram specific expenses, $24,036 in RUSAstore purchases, and $5,192 in salesallowances.

Liability insurance for brevets was apass through expense. RUSA purchased aliability policy at a group rate and passedthe discount to brevet regions who reim-bursed the actual cost. While the bulk ofthe premiums were paid in early 2009, the2008 premiums for brevet and perma-nents insurance were $5,570 and $3814,respectively.

Net income for the year was $19,364which resulted in an increase in depositsof $16,031. The difference in theamounts is reconciled by the transfer ofassets from cash to inventory, some ofwhich was sold within the year. Theseemingly low cost of the store sales wasdue in part to purchases (primarilymedals) that had been accounted for inprevious years but were added to theinventory when the store went online.

I am happy to entertain any ques-tions or comments that you might have. Ihave been proud to serve as your treasur-er and look forward to carrying out myterm.

2008 Financial Report

IncomeMembership $39,571Interest $1,063Newsletter advertising $4,992Insurance reimbursement $5,054RUSA Store $9,175Total income $59,855

ExpensesManagement and general expensesMembership office expenses $5,458Teleconferences $1,698Directors and officers insurance $1,000Postage, office supplies, RBA supplies $895Website $239Subtotal $9,290

Program Specific ExpensesNewsletter printing and mailing $21,2812007 ACP homologation fees $5,393RBA reimbursement program $2,527Liability insurance $2,000

Subtotal $31,201Total expenses $40,491

RUSA Store SalesGross sales $35,154Shipping $(4,657)Paypal fees $(535)Gross sales, less allowances $29,962

RUSA Store InventoryStart of year $22,780Sales $(20,787)Purchases $24,036Inventory value adjustments $4,447end of year $30,476

Assets Beginning of year End of yearCash—non-interest bearing $75,384 $18,352Saving and temporary cash investments $- $73,063RUSA Store inventory $22,780 $30,476

Total assets $98,164 $121,891

2008 Treasurer’s Report | A TRANSITION YEARBY ERIC VIGOREN, RUSA TREASURER

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 15

Region Event

AK: Anchorage (100 km) 06/13 (100 km) 08/07 (100 km) 08/28

AZ: Casa Grande (200 km) 11/13

CA: San Francisco (100 km) 07/17

GA: Atlanta (300 km) 06/19 (200 km) 09/11

IL: Chicago (100 km) 07/17

LA: New Orleans (200 km) 06/26 (200 km) 07/03 (200 km) 11/06 (200 km) 12/04

MA: Boston (107 km) 04/17 (100 km) 06/13 (350 km) 08/07

MA: Westfield (100 km) 03/14 (100 km) 10/10 (170 km) 10/10

MD: Capital Region (200 km) 03/20 (200 km) 10/16 (200 km) 11/13 (200 km) 12/11

NC: High Point (180 km) 04/01

NC: Raleigh (100 km) 08/14

NM: Cedar Crest (300 km) 08/28 (300 km) 10/23 (200 km) 12/04

OH: Columbus (200 km) 10/16

OR: Portland (200 km) 09/17

PA: Eastern (150 km) 10/23 (200 km) 10/23 (200 km) 11/06 (200 km) 12/04

TN: Nashville (250 km) 10/23 (200 km) 11/27

TX: Austin (200 km) 12/11

TX: Dallas (102 km) 01/01 (200 km) 02/21 (325 km) 03/06 (200 km) 07/31 (200 km) 10/16 (300 km) 10/16 (200 km) 10/30 (300 km) 10/30(400 km) 10/30 (400 km) 10/30 (600 km) 10/30 (400 km) 11/20 (300 km) 11/27 (200 km) 12/04

TX: Houston (200 km) 11/13 (600 km) 11/13

WA: Seattle (100 km) 02/28 (100 km) 07/10 (110 km) 08/29 (200 km) 09/18

Location Date Distance (km) Contact Web Site

VA: Northern 2010/06/10 1200 Matt Settle http://www.shenandoah1200.com/

WA: Seattle 2010/06/26 1249 Mark Roehrig http://www.cascade1200.com/

CO: Boulder 2010/09/15 1200 John Lee Ellis http://www.rmccrides.com/lastchance.htm

2010 RM 1200k Events

2010 RUSA Events

American Randonneur

16 November 2009

2010 ACP EventsRegion 200 km 300 km 400 km 600 km 1000 km Flèche

AK: Anchorage 04/17 05/01 05/16 05/29 06/05 06/1907/17 09/11 05/22 05/29 07/17 09/18 06/05 06/19 06/19

AZ: Casa Grande 01/02 08/21 02/27 05/08 03/27 04/24

CA: Davis 03/06 03/20 04/17 04/30

CA: Los Angeles 01/02 05/22 02/20 06/12 03/13 09/11 04/10 10/09 04/29 04/16

CA: San Diego 01/09 06/05 07/10 02/06 06/19 08/07 03/06 04/10 04/17 04/30

CA: San Francisco 01/23 02/06 04/25 06/12 10/09 02/27 03/27 05/22 04/02

CA: Santa Cruz 07/24 08/07 08/21 09/04 09/25 06/24

CA: Santa Rosa 03/13 04/10 05/08 06/05

CO: Boulder 04/17 05/01 07/10 08/28 09/18 09/2510/02 05/15 08/14 06/05 06/19

07/17 07/3105/22 06/1907/17 07/17 09/15 05/07

FL: Central 01/09 09/18 02/06 03/06 04/17 10/15 04/02

FL: Gainesville 01/16 02/20 03/13 04/10

GA: Atlanta 02/06 03/27 03/06 04/17 05/01 05/08 05/29

IA: Cedar Valley 04/17 05/08 06/19 07/10 05/08 06/19 07/10 06/19 07/10 07/10 08/06

IL: Chicago 05/01 05/15 06/05 06/26 07/17 05/01 05/15 06/05 06/26 06/26 07/17

IL: Quad Cities 04/10 05/01 06/26 07/17

KY: Louisville 03/06 04/24 05/22 06/26 04/03 07/17 05/08 06/05

LA: New Orleans 01/02 02/13 08/07 03/13 09/11 04/10 10/09 05/15 10/30

MA: Boston 05/01 07/24 09/25 05/15 07/24 06/05 07/10 05/21

MA: Westfield 03/28 04/24 05/08 08/28 09/18 05/29 06/26 04/09

MD: Capital Region 01/09 03/27 04/10 08/14 09/18 04/24 05/08 05/22 06/05 04/16

MN: Rochester 05/01 10/02 06/12 09/18 06/26 08/21 07/24 09/11 05/14

MO: Kansas City 03/27 05/08 05/22 05/29 05/31 07/1008/21 09/04 04/10 05/30 06/01 05/08 05/22 06/12 04/23

MO: St. Louis 03/20 03/27 04/10 05/08 05/15 05/2906/26 07/17 08/21

04/10 04/17 05/08 05/2906/26 07/17 07/31 08/21

05/08 05/2906/26 05/29 06/26

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 17

2010 ACP Events

Region 200 km 300 km 400 km 600 km 1000 km Flèche

MS: Jackson 01/16 02/20

MT: Bozeman 06/19 07/10

NC: High Point01/02 02/06 03/06 03/07 06/05 06/06 07/0307/04 08/07 09/03 09/04 09/05 09/06 10/0910/10

02/06 02/20 07/03 07/0408/07 09/03 09/04 09/0510/09 10/10

03/06 06/05 07/0308/07 09/03 09/0409/05 10/09

07/03 09/0410/09 09/03 04/02

NC: Raleigh 04/10 08/14 10/02 04/24 05/08 05/22

NE: Omaha 09/09 09/10 09/11 09/12 09/09

NJ: NYC andPrinceton 04/10 04/25 07/18 05/08 09/05 05/29 06/25

NM: Cedar Crest 03/27 05/15 04/24 05/29 06/26

NY: Central/Western 05/08 05/22 06/05 06/19 07/08 05/14

NY: Saratoga 03/28 04/25 05/08

OH: Columbus 03/27 08/28 04/10 05/15 06/12 04/23

OR: Portland 03/06 03/20 06/15 07/10 08/14 09/18 10/02 03/27 04/03 07/24 04/24 05/01 08/07 05/22 08/24 06/12 04/16

PA: Eastern01/02 02/06 03/06 03/27 04/17 05/15 06/0507/31 08/14 09/11 09/26 09/27 09/28 09/2909/30 10/01

04/17 05/01 05/22 08/26 04/23

PA: Pittsburgh 04/03 06/19 08/21 08/22 09/12 07/10 07/31

PR: San Juan 02/21 03/20 04/17 05/28 04/30

SC: Spartanburg 05/01

TN: Nashville 01/30 02/27 03/13 03/27 07/10 04/10 08/28 05/22 09/23 04/23

TX: Amarillo 03/15 03/19

TX: Austin 01/09 02/20 04/10 05/08 05/08

TX: Brownsville 01/23 02/20 02/20

TX: Dallas 01/01 01/23 02/13 03/06 05/01 05/29 06/2609/04 09/18

01/23 02/13 05/01 05/2906/26 09/04 09/18

03/06 05/01 05/2909/04 09/18

05/01 05/2909/04 05/29 04/02

TX: Houston 01/02 01/16 02/06 02/27 03/20 04/17 05/1506/05 07/17 08/07 09/11 10/02 01/16 03/20 09/11 02/06 05/15 10/02 02/27 04/17 10/02 04/02

UT: Cedar City 04/17 07/17 09/04 05/22 06/19

VA: Northern 03/13 03/20 03/21 08/07 04/10 08/14 05/01 05/08 09/11 05/29 09/25 10/09

WA: Seattle 03/13 03/20 04/25 07/24 09/12 03/27 04/03 08/07 05/15 08/21 09/24 06/05 09/1109/25

06/26 08/1909/24 04/16

American Randonneur

18 November 2009

Region Organizer Address Tel. Tel2/Cell FAX E-mail

AK: Anchorage Kevin TURINSKY 2301 Saint Elias DriveAnchorage AK 99517 907-276-6299 [email protected]

AZ: Casa Grande Susan PLONSKY 858 Center StreetHenderson NV 89015 520-450-1335 [email protected]

CA: Davis Dan SHADOAN 812 Eucalyptus StreetDavis CA 95618 530-756-9266 530-756-0187 [email protected]

CA: Los Angeles Greg JONES 4465 Cedarglen CtMoorpark CA 93021 805-523-2774 805-523-2774 [email protected]

CA: San Diego Dennis STRYKER 4233 Arguello StreetSan Diego, CA 92103 619-977-9334 [email protected]

CA: San Francisco Rob HAWKS 5630 Santa Cruz Ave.Richmond CA 94804 510-526-2653 [email protected]

CA: Santa Cruz Lois SPRINGSTEEN 226 West Avenue SantaCruz CA 95060 831-227-6266 831-227-6266 650-964-7037 [email protected]

CA: Santa Rosa Robert REDMOND 814 Winton DrivePetaluma CA 94954 707-799-0764 707-769-9678 [email protected]

CO: Boulder John Lee ELLIS 2155 Dogwood CircleLouisville CO 80027-1169 303-604-1163 [email protected]

FL: Central Timothy BOL 1140 S Orlando Ave Apt E5Maitland FL 32751 407-538-0580 [email protected]

FL: Gainesville Jim WILSON 620 NW 27th WayGainesville FL 32607 352-373-0023 [email protected]

GA: Atlanta Andy AKARD 1326 Pasadena Ave NEAtlanta GA 30306 404-216-9601 [email protected]

IA: Cedar Valley Robert FRY 2124 Touchae StreetWaterloo IA 50702-4126 319-226-5436 [email protected]

IL: Chicago Jim KREPS 2732 N. Central ParkChicago IL 60647 773-862-9879 [email protected]

IL: Quad Cities Joe JAMISON 1101 20th Avenue EastMoline IL 61244 309-235-4284 [email protected]

KY: Louisville Steve RICE 40 Plantation DriveShelbyville KY 40065 502-494-5288 [email protected]

LA: New Orleans Patrick HORCHOFF 8909 Ormond PlaceRiver Ridge LA 70123 504-738-1352 504-957-1768 [email protected]

MA: Boston Tracey INGLE 204 Barton RoadStow MA 01775 978-212-5500 508-789-6290 [email protected]

MA: Westfield Don PODOLSKI 55 Franklin St.Westfield MA 01085 413-562-5237 413-562-5237 [email protected]

MD: Capital Region William BECK 17719 Foxmoor DriveWoodbine MD 21797 410-442-9946 [email protected]

MN: Rochester Michael AELING 603 E 10th StreetWinona MN 55987 507-459-1629 [email protected]

MO: Kansas City Bob BURNS PO Box 1387Blue Springs MO 64013 816-229-6071 816-229-6444 [email protected]

MO: St. Louis John JOST 9122 Conser CourtSt. Louis MO 63123 314-843-4486 [email protected]

2010 RBA Directory

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 19

Region Organizer Address Tel. Tel2/Cell FAX E-mail

MS: Jackson Michelle WILLIAMS 213 Hillside St.Ridgeland MS 39157 601-573-2057 601-932-3987 [email protected]

MT: Bozeman Jason KARP 713 Cheery DriveBelgrade MT 59714 406-388-1099 406-599-2897 [email protected]

NC: High Point Tony GOODNIGHT 1939 Barringer RdSalisbury NC 28147 704-637-6289 [email protected]

NC: Raleigh Alan JOHNSON 308 Ashe StMorrisville NC 27560 919-467-8457 [email protected]

NE: Omaha Larry LARSON 2477 North 150th StreetOmaha NE 68116 402-496-1840 [email protected]

NJ: NYC andPrinceton Leroy VARGA 27 Beaufort Ave

Dover NJ 07801 373-366-5098 [email protected]

NM: Cedar Crest John MAZZOLA PO Box 811Cedar Crest NM 87008 505-263-7090 [email protected]

NY: Central/Western Peter DUSEL 1119 Lake RoadOntario NY 14519 315-524-8519 [email protected]

NY: Saratoga John J. CECERI JR 7 Pearl StreetSchuylerville NY 12871 518-583-3708 [email protected]

OH: Columbus Bob WADDELL 254 South Westgate AveColumbus OH 43204 614-561-4914 866-712-2207 [email protected]

OR: Portland Susan FRANCE 25797 SW Neill Rd.Newberg OR 97132 503-628-7324 503-685-1337 [email protected]

PA: Eastern Tom ROSENBAUER 300 Burke StEaston PA 18042 610-559-1145 610-559-1145 [email protected]

PA: Pittsburgh Jim LOGAN 215 Lindenwood DrPittsburgh PA 15209 412-822-7778 [email protected]

PR: San Juan William A. MEDINA PMB 242, 100 Grand Paseo Blvd,Suite 112 San Juan PR 00926-5902 939-745-0707 787-283-2934 sanjuancycling-

[email protected]

SC: Spartanburg Steve YETMAN 114 Beaufort StGreenville SC 29615 864-292-6315 [email protected]

TN: Nashville Jeff SAMMONS 1512 Aberdeen DrBrentwood TN 37027 615-373-2458 615-833-3407 [email protected]

TX: Amarillo Nick GERLICH P.O. Box 53Canyon TX 79015 806-499-3210 [email protected]

TX: Austin Wayne DUNLAP 3108 Creeks Edge ParkwayAustin TX 78733 512-402-9953 408-857-5458 512-372-7139 [email protected]

TX: Brownsville Edward ROBINSON 3750 N. Sam Houston Blvd.San Benito TX 78586 956-276-9171 [email protected]

TX: Dallas Dan DRISCOLL 2811 Hollywood DrArlington TX 76013 817-460-5734 817-925-0158 817-461-5100 [email protected]

TX: Houston Robert RIGGS 4418 KingfisherHouston TX 77035 713-301-7093 [email protected]

UT: Cedar City Lonnie WOLFF PO Box 416 CedarCity UT 84720 435-559-0895 435-586-0594 [email protected]

VA: Northern Matt SETTLE 67 Cullers LaneStrasburg VA 22657 540-465-2116 [email protected]

WA: Seattle Mark THOMAS 13543 160th Ave NERedmond WA 98052 206-612-4700 425-702-8881 [email protected]

2010 RBA Directory

www.rusa.org 21

American Randonneur

Q: May a group of ridersparticipate in a brevet riding in theaudax style?

A: That is an interestingquestion. The short answer is,“Yes.” But in actuality it isprobably more like “Well,sort of; it all depends on howtrue to the audax formula thegroup wants to be.”

The long answer is a lit-tle more complicated. Ofcourse a group of randon-neurs and randonneuses mayband together and ride aBrevet des RandonneursMondiaux (BRM) togetherfrom start to finish. This iscurrently happening atAmerican brevets and has foryears. A group of riding palsor clubmates might set a pacethat works for everyone’sability and arrange their reststops beforehand so that theyride with a plan. If they cycleat 22 kph (14 mph), the offi-cial audax pace between thecheckpoints, then it wouldlook pretty much like anaudax brevet.

But let’s take a closerlook at how an official audaxbrevet is run. Like our BRMstyle of free-pace randon-neuring, the fixed-pacebrevets of the Union deAudax Française (UAF) havedistances of 200k, 300k,400k, 600k, and 1000k. Theyalso have their own versionof Paris-Brest-Paris (PBP),which is run every five years.The equipment and clothingused in audax events is thesame as used in our style ran-donneuring. The UAF also

has its own set of rules andawards.

Perhaps the most strikingdifference between our styleand theirs is that there is oneor more “captains of theroute” on each audax brevet.They are usually identified byan armband and it is forbid-den to pass the leaders—when one signs on to ridewith an audax event, it isunderstood that one is therefor a group ride and nothingelse. The captains control thepace so that 22 kph is main-tained between the stops.(They have some latitude toadjust things if bad weatheror unusually mountainousroads are encountered.)There are pre-arranged reststops about every 50-70 kilo-meters, and these range from15 to 30 minutes, with 90minutes for a lunch stop. Ifthe ride is 600k or longer,then there is usually a sleepstop of a few hours’ durationeach night. When an individ-ual rider needs a pit stopother than at the official reststops, then that person mustchase and catch back to thepeloton; the same goes with apuncture or other mechanical

problem. (Often one seesseveral riders stop with thepuncture victim to help himor her regain the shelter ofthe pack.) If someone growstired and drops off the pelo-ton and finishes alone, thereis usually some timeallowance for this. During theaudax PBP, for example, thegroup aims to finish in 85hours and five more hours isgranted for struggling indi-viduals. Stragglers or not,when you ride an audaxbrevet, it is very much “all forone, one for all” and the pri-mary goal is for the partici-pants to ride and finishtogether.

Compare that to thefree-pace brevets organizedby Randonneurs USA(RUSA). One can ride moreslowly than 22 kph, and fastertoo. The speed range on ourbrevets is from about 15 to32 kph. Cyclists of all abilitiesare welcome, and they canride any kind of human-pow-ered vehicle they like. Onecan cycle alone or in a group,as they prefer. One stopswhen the urge strikes, not bya schedule. Or, if someonepunctures an entire group

may want to stop to aid theircompanion, or use the repairto satisfy some personalneed—the choice is entirelytheirs. All in all, there aremany ways (and speeds) toride a BRM event, while onthe audax brevet there is justone.

Still, for many randon-neurs the group approach tolong-distance cycling is attrac-tive since the long miles goby better with company thanwithout. Many people feel thecamaraderie found in randon-neuring is one of its chiefattractions, and I agree. Mypals in “Team Girlene” are agood example. We haveabout a half-dozen membersand we frequently collectsome hangers-on duringbrevets, so it is normal thatten to a dozen of us end upriding shoulder to shoulderhour after hour. We call outthe pace so as to stick togeth-er from start to finishbecause we like each others’company—but not becauseof some regulation. Strongerriders stay at the front to helpthe weaker riders (like me.) Ifcars approach from behind,the “tail-gunner” calls outand we quickly get into sin-gle-file formation. We try toshare the work and set anefficient pace that works forus all, not something setdown in a rule book. Ourstops are somewhat ad hocand we will halt in-betweencontrols if someone needs apit stop, or has indigestion, or

Bill Bryant has been riding brevetssince 1983 and is a two-time finisher ofParis-Brest-Paris. An organizer of localrandonneuring events since 2000 withLois Springsteen, he is also one of thefounders of Randonneurs USA. Billwas on the RUSA Board of Directorsfrom 1998-2006 and its President in2004-2005. Bill is also the recipient ofthe 2006 American Randonneur award.He is currently working on an in-depthhistory of Paris-Brest-Paris.

Ask Bill | Audax Style in the U.S.?

�Continued on page 24

American Randonneur

24 November 2009

is hungry, but again this is bygeneral agreement and notsome set agenda. Overall, itdoes resemble an audaxbrevet on a superficial level—but not in the details, andespecially not in the compul-sory pace for all participants.All in all, it is a fun way totackle the brevets and we fre-quently see some othergroups on northernCalifornia brevets doing thistoo (but they often gofaster—we average about 13-14 mph, just a little under theofficial audax pace.)

Anyway, there is nothingin RUSA’s Rules for Ridersthat prohibits this type ofthing so long as we follow thebrevet regulations correctly.We obviously have no per-sonal support in-between thecheckpoints, but do note thatthis is allowed on an audaxbrevet. (They usually haveone or more mechanical sup-port vans trailing the riders.)We also have to follow theprevailing local traffic laws(which in California meansriding single file if a car isovertaking our group, forexample.) This might be aproblem if real audax ridingwere ever organized in ourstate, and in many others Isuspect.

But here is the interestingpart (at least to me anyway.)When RUSA was formed, thefounders agreed to follow theregulations of the AudaxClub Parisien (ACP) and inturn they made us the soleAmerican organizer of theirBRM events (once the mori-bund InternationalRandonneurs becamedefunct.) We added a few

American adaptations likerequiring ankle bands andhelmets, but they are essen-tially the same rules as used inFrance—with one exception.They have a regulation in theFrench version that specifical-ly forbids the free-pace BRMbrevets to be run as fixed-pace audax events, with theirdesignated road captains whoset the pace, compulsorygroup riding, one speed usedthroughout, etc. This is clear-ly aimed at keeping the free-pace nature of BRM eventsintact, and that audax groups,while welcome to ride BRMevents as a group, cannot usethem as de facto UAF events.(For example, one sees audaxclubs riding the randonneurPBP together, but it is not theaudax version of PBP sincethey must follow the rulesand customs of their free-pace hosts.) When we startedRUSA a decade ago, we dis-cussed this regulation and feltit was an unnecessary rule forthe United States, a countrythat had no history of—andprobably no future potentialfor—audax brevets. We want-ed our brevets to accept awide range of rider abilities,along with encouraging amore “sporty” attitude aboutgoing at a fast pace (ifdesired).

As it turns out, this mat-ter came up recently with theRUSA Board and they unani-mously agreed not to pursuea request made by some rid-ers who wanted RUSA toinclude a new audax divisionamong the organization’sslate of events. There wereseveral thorny issues thatmade it a non-starter, prime

among them that having twosets of rules for one organi-zation is highly problematicto say the least. The bottomline is that the ACP and theUAF are distinctly differentorganizations with funda-mentally different approachesto long-distance cycling.RUSA does not wish toinsult our ACP colleagues inParis by taking on a newassociation with the UAF.RUSA is, and seems destinedto remain, a BRM organiza-tion, not some hybrid. Iffolks want true audax riding,they will need an affiliationwith the UAF and it wouldbe necessary to build up theirown domestic program sincethis is beyond the scope ofRUSA’s founding principles. Ihave no doubt that manyRUSA members, myselfincluded, would likely doboth types of brevets, just ashappens in France. (On theother hand, it is telling thatthe number of riders actuallydoing audax rides is in steepdecline. Though often com-parable in numbers of partic-ipants to the randonneurPBP events of the past, inrecent times the group for-mat has clearly lost populari-ty. At the most recent audaxPBP in 2006 there were but150 entrants. Compare thatto 5,200 for the randonneursin 2007.)

At any rate, RUSAdropped the French “noaudaxing in BRM events”regulation off of ourAmerican version of theRules for Riders back in 1998and here we are. There havebeen a few efforts to startaudaxing here in the States

over the years, but they haveall failed thus far. I think themain reason is that the vastmajority of “group oriented”randonneurs are perfectlyhappy riding a BRM event ina pack with a flexible pace,so what is to be gained bybecoming a more formalaudax brevet? Do folks reallywant rules that make themride together at the group’sunchanging pace, or to stopwhen the ride leader so dic-tated? I don’t think so. As is,a group of randonneurs andrandonneuses can easily emu-late (most of) the characteris-tics of the audax format andenjoy a RUSA BRM event inthat fashion if they like—butany formal affiliation withthe UAF and trying to useRUSA brevets to build“their” calendar would notbe wise. I suspect thenRUSA would likely dust offthe ACP’s “no audaxing” reg-ulation and put it in the regu-lations. To allow both styleswould muddy our mission ofpromoting free-pace BRMevents, and it would nothonor our agreement withthe ACP. Most of all, ourRUSA members frequentlyride at different paces duringa brevet as their energy flowand personal interests dic-tate. RUSA has grownsteadily since its inceptionand I believe this is becausewe promote a “big tent”type of long-distancecycling that welcomes awide variety of speeds andindividual approaches dur-ing each brevet—and notsomething that allows onlyone pace that must be donein a group.

Ask Bill (continued)

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 25

At 2 a.m. on Saturday, Istop my bike just beforereaching Ricksecker Point onthe long climb to Paradise.Across the valley is the hugecone of Mount Rainier, illu-minated faintly by the half-moon. A thousand feet belowme, the newborn NisquallyRiver rushes down its gravellybed, its waters finally free ofthe glacier that spawned it.The river makes the onlysound that resonates thiswarm night. A shooting starvanishes behind the ridge onthe other side of the valley. Ihave not seen a car in anhour. I begin to enjoy thisride.

“This ride” is the SeattleInternational Randonneurs“Mountain 600 km” brevet. Itgoes around Mount Rainier ina figure-8 loop, with fourmajor climbs to Paradise onMount Rainier, to WindyRidge on Mount St. Helens,then cross the Cascade Rangevia White Pass, before return-ing over Chinook Pass. Muchof the ride is on backroads,often far away from the nexthuman habitation.

Earlier, I had seen itssnow-capped cone glow inthe evening light as I rodewith my friend RyanHamilton from Seattle to thestart in Enumclaw. As organ-izers of the ride, we wantedto support the ride withoutusing cars, so Ryan rode amore direct route across theCascades to the “overnight”control, while I was going toride the route itself to ensureall roads were open.

It was dark when the

brevet started at 9 p.m. Werode on familiar roads alongthe foothills of MountRainier. I teamed up withKole Kantner, an amazingrider who seems to spendevery waking hour on a bike.He already rode the pre-ride aweek earlier, and now waspushing the pace again. I lethim go ahead just before thefirst climb, knowing I wouldnot be able to keep up. As Isaw Kole’s red taillight vanishin the distance, I wonderedwhether he would be able tokeep up his ferocious pace.My goal is to finish the ridein less than 28 hours. Thefirst climb of a long rideoften is challenging for me, asmy body has not yet got intothe rhythm of climbing forhours without interruption.Often, a brief stop helps meregain my focus, which is why

I stopped in the middle ofthe climb at Ricksecker Point.

As I get going again, Irealize that my stop hasworked. Climbing mountainpasses always seems easier atnight than during daytime,and I soon reach Paradise, at1650 m (5400 feet) the high-est point of the ride. Thecontrol here is at the VisitorCenter. Of course, the VisitorCenter is closed in the middleof the night, so the control is“informational.” Usually, thismeans that riders answer aquestion like “How manyrecycling cans are in front ofthe building,” but to makeeverybody’s life easier, I amplacing stickers that riders canpeel off and stick on theirbrevet cards as proof thatthey have been here. Kole isstill here, and so is Steve Frey,who passed me when I pulled

off the course at a camp-ground to get water. I givethem their stickers, and theytake off down the hill.

With the stickers in place,I point my bike down the hill.Remembering the road fromRamrod (Ride Around MountRainier in One Day) andother rides helps here, as doesmy IQ Cyo LED headlightthat provides ample illumina-tion. I soon pass Steve, andthen see Kole on the roadbelow, one hairpin turn aheadof me. As the road straight-ens out, I get in the aero tuck,and catch him just beforeBox Canyon. Looking back,we get another glimpse ofMount Rainier in the moon-light. Then I roll ahead onthe downhill. We may meetup again down the road, but

Seattle 600K |The Long Climb to Paradise


BY JAN HEINE

Ryan Hamilton on the climb to Windy Ridge during a pre-ride. Photo by Jan Heine.

26 November 2009

American Randonneur

with so many climbs anddescents, I find it easiest toride at my own pace.

A quick stop inPackwood at a 24-hour gasstation provides water andsupplies for the long leg toMount St. Helens and back.The gas station attendant hasseen randonneurs before, sohe isn’t the least bit surprisedwhen riders pull in at 3 a.m.Rolling along the valley pro-vides some nice rest, bothmentally and physically, afterMount Rainier’s demandingtopography. Much of thecourse follows the old road,which has a nice rhythm as itwinds its way along the valleysides, safely out of the way ofall but the largest floods.

At 5:30 a.m., I cross theCowlitz River at Randle. Thebridge here is not simply aconveyance across a river, butalso a portal to anotherworld. From here, I will ridemore than 50 kilometers onsmall mountain roads, simpleribbons of asphalt with nolane markings, until I reachWindy Ridge. I won’t seeanother house, and only ahandful of cars, until Iemerge from this mountain-ous world in five hours’ time.My favorite roads alwaysmake me go faster, and Iaccelerate as I ride throughthe forest. I stash my extrafood and a water bottle insidethe guardrail of a bridge, hid-den from view. There is noneed to carry an extra 4 kg (9lbs.) up the 1500 m (5000feet) to Windy Ridge andback. I will retrieve themwhen I return.

The unmarked turnoffto Forest Road 26 indicates

that the climbing starts inearnest. Almost impercepti-bly, twilight has arrived, and Ican make out the roadbeyond the beam of myheadlight. As I climb, I noticethe bright yellow dawnbehind the ridges to the east.Then I get another view ofMount Rainier, this time fromthe southwest, its dome glint-ing majestically in the morn-ing light. The road is steephere, and when I rode thisclimb in June, I was suffering.Now I am in better shape,and have found a goodrhythm. The bike and I workin perfect harmony at a pacethat seems sustainable indefi-nitely.

I love this narrow road,which now turns into a longdownhill. A few gravel patch-es require my full attention,but even with comparativelynarrow 32 mm tires, the bikeflies over them just fine. Thenmore climbing follows. Mylight has become superfluous,so I turn it off. I reachNorway Pass, but the climb-ing isn’t over yet. On therollers that follow, I try tocarry as much momentum asI can into each uphill by usingthe aero tuck to full advan-tage on the short, but steepdownhills. However, a sectionof 18 percent slope zaps mymomentum, and I struggle. Idecide to stop, use the bath-room, and then walk the 20meters (60 feet) to the top.Walking relaxes my legs,whereas pushing up thisincline might have hurt myknees.

I am now in the blastzone from the 1980 eruptionof Mount St. Helens. Almost

30 years after the cataclysm,the landscape still is litteredwith fallen trees. Shrubs coverthe landscape today, and ashhas washed over the road inplaces. During the downhills,I approach corners with care,lest I hit a patch of ash withdire consequences. I enjoy thecrisp morning air, and almostunexpectedly reach the top,descend to the main road,where volunteer John Pearchhas spent the night. Healready is up, and has pre-pared pancakes! Having afriend in this forbidding land-scape is touching. I check inwith him, then continue toWindy Ridge.

The truncated flanks ofMount St. Helens are coveredwith a dusting of new snow.The forbidding crater loomsahead, getting bigger witheach ridge I cross. I recall hik-ing into the crater with ageology field trip 17 yearsago, when this landscape waseven more barren and new. Ireach Windy Ridge and affixmy stickers to a sign, thenturn around. The weekbefore, Kole and VincentMuoneke had difficulty stay-ing upright in the rainstormas Windy Ridge lived up to itsname. Not so this balmymorning. The air is so clearthat I can see Mount Hood inOregon to the south. Straightahead and due east is MountAdams, backlit by the morn-ing sun. Then I turn a cornerand there is my old friend,Mount Rainier, again.Looking back, I see the craterof Mount St. Helens. Thismay be the first time I haveseen four volcanoes from thesame spot on the ground.

The descent is an almostcontinuous sequence ofcurves. My well-worn tiresgrip the pavement as I leanthe bike harder with eachturn, building speed on theshort straights in the aerotuck. Then I meet Kole head-ing the other way. I calculatethat he is about 45 minutesbehind. The fatigue of theprevious weekend may bebeginning to show. All toosoon, I reach John’s camp, eata few pancakes, then head onas Steve arrives on his wayout. As I climb toward BearMeadow past the dead trunksof huge trees, killed by theblast but still standing, I drinkthe last from my bottle andeat the last bite of energy bar.My estimate for the suppliesneed for the climbing toWindy Ridge was about right.

Another exhilaratingdescent follows. I take it easyon two tricky hairpins, thenroll onto the bridge where Ihave stashed my food anddrink. I find my bottles ofliquid meal replacement andmy spare water bottle, butwhere is my clear plastic bagwith my energy bars? The bagisn’t far, shredded by sharpbeaks. And the bars are gone,without a trace. Not even awrapper is left. How could Iforget the attraction of color-ful wrappers to birds, espe-cially near campgrounds,where birds know that thecolorful wrappers containfood? There is no use cryingover spilled energy bars, so Ihead on toward Packwood.Riding along the CowlitzRiver, the road surface of

Seattle 600K (continued)


www.rusa.org 27

American Randonneur

Seattle 600K (continued)Cline Road feels rougher thanusual today. I wish for tireswider than my 32 mm. Thecanopies of the trees touchabove the road, providing anice pattern of light andshadow on the road. A fewshort climbs make me stretchmy legs, before a sharpdescent spits me into thebucolic farmland of theCowlitz River valley. Like agreat symphony, a good ridehas a nice rhythm, and Iappreciate the less demandinginterludes between the moun-tain “stages.”

In Packwood, I stop atthe same gas station where Ihad been 8 hours earlier. Ifind some Powerbars thatreplace the bars lost to thebirds. At the edge of town,the climb toward White Passbegins. After a few gentlerollers, it soon increases insteepness. Traffic is light, butthe sun is at the highest pointalong its orb across the sky. Ibreak up the relentless gradeby stopping at a few scenicturnoffs to look at a waterfallon the other side of theforested valley. As I continue,my feet begin to hurt fromthe heat. When I see a puddleof muddy water by the road-side, left from the previousweek’s tempest, I stop tobathe my feet and shoes, andthe pain disappears. Theclimb to White Pass is 32 kmlong. It helps to know thatthe gradient eases after thefirst third. In the heat, I amnot out to set any recordshalf-way through the ride, toofar into the ride to feel theexcitement of the early miles,and too early to speed up forthe finale.

The descent to the“overnight” control atRimrock Lake is spoiledslightly by a headwind, but adescent is a descent, and Ireach “Snug Harbor” in goodspirits. Ryan has ridden hisbike here during the night tostaff the control. He is asleepas I arrive, but the soup onthe stove is warm, providinga welcome break from pack-aged energy foods. We have abrief “brevet organizers’meeting.” I eat a second bowlof soup, then head out after20 minutes off the bike.

Traffic is heavy in theearly afternoon, but theshoulder is clean and smooth.I see the water rushing out ofthe dam below, then descendinto the valley of the TietonRiver. The landscape east ofthe Cascades feels so differ-ent from the mountainswhere we usually ride. Treesare sparse on the hillsides,then vanish entirely as I moveeastward. Basalt columns linethe road, narrowing the valleyand forming rapids in theriver. It’s a favorite spot forrafting, and I envy their spoton the cool river during thishot afternoon. We wave ateach other, and I realize that Icannot complain. The head-wind has turned into a ¾ tail-wind as I head northeast. Ibuy another soft drink tocope with the heat, then con-tinue. As the valley narrowseven more, I see an ominoussign: “Road Works Ahead. 30minute delay.” Soon I see along line of cars and trucks.As I roll to the front, I seeevery vehicle that has passedme in the hour or so since Ileft the control. A lone flag-

ger at the front is sweating inthe heat. He explains:“Rockfall. It’ll be open soon.But I’ll let the cars throughfirst, so they don’t have topass you again. That will takea while.” Since the road doesnot have a shoulder, I prefernot to ride in front of a mile-long queue of impatient cars.

I feel deflated. For morethan 18 hours, I have pedaledhard, limited my stops to thebare minimum, only to bethwarted here by a few truck-sized boulders that crashedonto the road. Resigned tofate, I lay down my bike onthe gravel and climb down tothe river. I step into the coolwaters, immerse my legs, andenjoy the gentle massage ofthe fast-flowing water. After afew minutes, the water getstoo cold, and I climb back upto the road. The next tenminutes seem like an eternity.Then a pilot truck appears,with a line of cars comingtoward us. Soon, I will be onthe road again! Not so quick:An eternity passes beforeeach direction’s two mile-longqueues of cars has passed.Finally, I start pedaling again,37 minutes after I stopped.Soon I come upon the slide.Large loaders are still at workclearing the other lane ofboulders.

The turnoff to Highway410 marks the beginning ofthe climb to Chinook Pass.For 75 km (47 miles), theroad will only climb, gentlyfirst and then steeper. It is thegrand finale of this ride.

The last time I climbedthis road was in the middle ofthe night during a weekday,and I enjoyed having the road

to myself, seeing only four orfive cars during the entireclimb. How I wish for suchsolitude now! It feels like agreat exodus is happening inYakima, with half the popula-tion driving their trucks upthe pass. Where are theygoing? Enumclaw isn’t a pop-ular destination. Tacoma per-haps? At least the drivers arefriendly, giving me plenty ofroom as they pass.

I remember that duringmy last ride, I was battlinghowling headwinds in thenarrow valley. This afternoon,the gods are on my side, anda strong easterly wind blowsup the valley. The miles passwith little effort as I gain ele-vation. I stop at Cliffdell, mylast supply opportunitybefore the night and themountains. I linger a littlelonger here, knowing that Iwon’t get off my bike againuntil the finish in six hours.

Halfway up the pass, itstill is warm, and I suddenlyrealize that my two water bot-tles might not be enough toget me over the pass. I havepassed the last campgroundwith water. When I see twohikers get into their car, I askthem for water, and they havesome to spare. I continue myascent. Until now, I haveclimbed smoothly in my“big” chainring (48 teeth),making very good time. But Iknow the last few miles ofthe pass are unrelenting intheir steepness. The topcomes into view, but I knowthat the hard work is onlybeginning. The trees at thepass look small, but they are


American Randonneur

28 November 2009

giant, and I can barely discerna car on the road ahead. I donot have a computer on mybike, but the mile markersindicate that 5 miles (8 km)remain to be climbed.

Having seen MountRainier from three sides dur-ing this ride, I really want tosee my favorite peak from theeast when I crest the top. Thelight is fading already, so Ihave to hurry to make thisappointment. I work hard topedal smoothly in my 32-21,the biggest gear I ever haveused on this climb. My bikebecomes an extension of mybody, and still pushed by thegentle tailwind, we soar upthe road, which climbs high

above the valley, surroundedby talus slopes. I envisionmyself as an eagle gliding onthe thermal updrafts, as dark-ness descends around me. Igive it everything I have,knowing that the last 100 kmof this ride are almost alldownhill. Tonight, ChinookPass is the end of the ride,and I ride accordingly.

It is 7:55 when I pull offat the parking lot just belowChinook Pass. I am pantingas I pull on my arm and legwarmers, turn on my light,then climb the remaininghundred meters to the pass towarm up again before start-ing the descent. As I crest, Isee the majestic black dome

of Mount Rainier outlinedagainst the blue evening sky. Imade it!

In the darkness, Idescend with caution. Thebike wants to roll, and I reinit in by braking hard fromtime to time, allowing therims to cool in between. It ispitch dark when I reachCayuse Pass and return tomore familiar roads. The bikeflies now, I am going at least45 mph. The speed limit is35, yet several cars insist onpassing me. It doesn’t takelong to reach the turnoff toSunrise. I enter the park againand begin the climb towardthe White RiverCampground. With my ener-gy spent, it seems like arelentless uphill, even thoughwe aren’t doing the “real”climb to Sunrise. Looking upthrough the tall trees, I seethe stars in amazing clarity.The Milky Way stretchesabove, and a bright shootingstar vanishes behind MountRainier. I can make out themountain only because itblocks the stars, leaving ablack triangle in the sky. Themoon won’t rise for anotherfew hours.

Finally, I reach the camp-ground, attach my stickers tothe sign-in board, and turnaround. It takes only a fewminutes to reach the parkentrance, where I fill up mywater bottles one last time.Even though I have been onthe road for 24 hours, I donot feel sleepy. The climb tothe main road tests my wearylegs, then I tuck as the bikeraces downvalley again. Thewind rushing by my earsdrowns the noise of the tires

on the road and the clickingof the freewheel. When theroad flattens out, I look at mywatch. It should be possibleto do better than 27 hours.The final miles could be along slog. Instead, they turninto a challenge.

I spin my gears as fast asI can, use the aero tuck onthe steeper sections, andwork smoothly on thestraight parts. Traffic has dieddown, and the road has fewfeatures. Riding along at fulleffort is meditative, and thetime passes quickly. I recog-nize landmarks, zoomthrough Greenwater, andsoon reach the turnoff toMud Mountain Dam. As Istop at the last informationalcontrol, I am out of breathand have a hard time findinga good spot for my stickers.The descent of MudMountain Dam always isexciting, even more so in thedark. Again, I take it easy, andaccelerate only as I reach thevalley. With the adrenalinefrom knowing the finish near,bike and rider surge ahead. Acar slowly approaches frombehind, but does not pass.They may wonder why I amriding on this farm road like aman possessed in the middleof the night. The last twomiles always are longer than Iremember, and I am glad tosee Kings Motel appear onmy right. I pull up at thenight window, and the sur-prised clerk signs my cardand hands me a key to ourroom. I check my card: Iarrived at 11:24 p.m., 26:24hours after I started. I mademy goal. Now it’s time to getsome sleep.

Seattle 600K (continued)

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 29

This summer I had theopportunity to participate intwo 1200km grand randon-nées—the Super BrevetScandinavia in Denmark,Sweden, and Norway and theLast Chance 1200 in Coloradoand Kansas. Some (membersof my family, perhaps) wouldconsider two 1200s in a yearto be a bit odd or extreme.One nice thing about randon-neuring, however, is that youcan always point to someoneelse who makes your activitieslook positively sane. Perhapsit’s Bill Olsen, who rode five1200s this year, or VincentMuoneke, who rode an aver-age of 1000km of perma-nents per month this yearthrough September, or JohnEvans, who rode three 1200sin three countries on two con-tinents in five weeks—all onfixed gear.

I offered my stories ofthe two rides to editor MikeDayton for the RUSANewsletter, but ran afoul ofthe unwritten rule thatnewsletter articles aboutbrevets should not take longerthan the brevets’ time limits toread. If you are willing tomake the time commitment,my detailed stories—Super

Brevet Scandinavia 2009and Party on the Plains—can be found on my blog atrusa64.blogspot.com.Instead I offer here a back-to-high-school “compare andcontrast” essay.

Every 1200 that I’vedone has offered somethingdifferent. The SBS and theLC were my seventh andeighth different grand randon-nées. Even the repeated 1200shave offered a different expe-rience each time. Variations inthe scenery, in the terrain, inthe local culture, in the riderfield, in my fitness, in theweather, in my approach, andin a multitude of other factorsyield vastly different storiesfor each 1200. For all the dif-ferences between the events,there were also quite a fewcommonalities, many sharedby all the other 1200s that I’veexperienced.

Navigation. I spentmuch of the Super BrevetScandinavia on the edge ofbeing lost. The cue sheet syn-tax was different than that towhich I’ve become accus-tomed. Bike roads followed,diverged, or merged with themain roads on the cue sheet.My befuddlement reached aclimax on the second nightwhen the highway on the

route sheet was clearly markedwith a “no bicycles” indica-tion. Following the bike routethat I vainly hoped might leadback to the highway, I wassoon dodging Saturday nightparty-goers on the cobbledstreets of Trollhattan. And Ihad not even reached the twoominous sounding cues onthe route sheet that both iden-tically read “Y-kryds ved ôreSjö - ingen kendteskilte/noknown signs.” Whatever thatmight mean. On Last Chance,more than three-quarters ofthe event is a 580-mile out-and-back on US 36. Gettinglost wasn’t a big concern.

Communication.Although English was widelyspoken on both rides, it wasnot the first language on SBS.Only five riders were fromcountries other thanDenmark, Sweden or Norway.The Scandinavians understandeach others’ languages, butprefer to speak their own. Soa Dane speaks Danish to aSwedish rider and the Swederesponds in Swedish. It worksfor them. Most of the time.When it doesn’t, they resort toEnglish, and then I can figureout what’s going on.Sometimes. I took a similarapproach. I’d tentatively speakEnglish (to other riders, to gas

station clerks, etc) and thenwait, full of hope, for theEnglish response that wasalmost always forthcoming.On Last Chance, everyonespoke English, or some dialectthereof, missing only the wordfor fenders.

Beer. I’ve always believedin beer at the finish of abrevet, but ever since PBP2007, I have been a fan ofanother important functionfor beer on a long brevet.Beer at the overnight stop is acarbo reloading agent, asource of hydration, and agreat sleep aid that helps mybody transition from riding tosleeping. In Scandinavia, thisis not news. Crates of goodbeer were available at theovernight stops and generallyconsumed by all. On LastChance, self-help in the formof a convenience store shop-ping trip was necessary at thetwo Atwood, KS overnights.(In Byers, CO, my hero EricSimmons provided the suds).In the Kansas/ Coloradoplains, the beer choices areawful and are all “3.2” beer—thus increasing the ratio ofhydration assistance to sleepaid.

Water. The Super Brevet

MMyy SSuummmmeerr VVaaccaattiioonn EEssssaayy

BY MARK THOMAS


30 November 2009

Scandinavia involved a lot ofwater. When necessary, theroute would just head acrossthe water—there were sixferry crossings on the ride,including five in the first 275kilometers. Of course wewould get no credit for thedistance covered by the boats,but we would also get noallowance for the time spentwaiting for or riding on theferries. On the other hand, wewere treated to some greatscenery and a great sunsetover the water. We rode alongthe sea, by lakes, and alongfjords. On Last Chance, werode by amber waves of grain.

Old Friends. Recently Ireceived a communicationfrom a Dutch friend inform-ing me about a few 1200s tobe held in Europe next year.“You are one of the usualsuspects,” he informed me.Indeed, a community of“usual suspects” can beexpected to turn up at 1200sanywhere. In Scandinavia, I

stayed with Stig Lundgaard,whom I know from 1200s inAustralia, New England, andFrance. I rode with JohnEvans, a Oz-dwelling Britishexpatriate whom I know from1200s in Australia, NewEngland, old England, andFrance. In Colorado, I rodewith several riders that havevisited Seattle for rides—Sharon Stevens, Albert Kong,Bill Olsen, and probably oth-ers. I know local RBA JohnLee Ellis from BMB, PBP,and his visit to our Cascade1200. I suspect that many ofthe new friends that I madeon these two rides will turnup again at future events.

Incredulous Locals.I’ve often suspected that oneof the attractions of randon-neuring for me is the enjoy-ment I derive from gettingan incredulous “you’re doingwhat?” reaction from com-plete strangers. “It is notusual,” observed a conven-ience store clerk in Norway.

He wasreferringspecificallyto myrequest fora storestamp, butit fit well tothe wholeendeavor.In Kansas,the normalbefuddle-mentexpressedabout ridingabsurdlylong dis-tances wassupplemented by some con-fusion about why we’d beriding where we were. In St.Francis, a delightful lady justshook her head on realizingthat riders from the PacificCoast to the Atlantic Coasthad converged on Kansas toride to Kensington (popula-tion 600) and then just turnaround.

Joyful Finish. Maybe Ikeep riding because it feels sogood when I stop. I don’tthink it’s just the beer (Tuborgin Norway, Fat Tire inColorado) at the finish thathas me smiling. A great feel-ing of accomplishment is justas refreshing as a cold beer.Plus I get a cool new stickerfor my car.

American Randonneur

My Summer Vacation (continued)

Rider Result

ABBATE, Alain 77:31

AKBARIAN, Hamid 83:45

BINDER, Hans Jørgen 69:52

BONNER, Ken DNF

BOUHUYZEN, Henk 65:50

BRUCE, Robert 80:48

DICK, Nathan 85:27

ELLIS, John Lee 69:30

FLANIGAN, John 48:24 +11:18

GARDINER, Wendy 75:47

HIMSCHOOT, Ron 86:31

ISHAM, Rick 85:27

Rider Result

SELBY, Ron DNF

SHAPIRO, Paul 83:45

SHOPLAND, Ian 83:45

SHUNDROVSKAYA, Viktoriya 77:31

SMITH, Dennis 72:05

SMITH, Vernon 59:42

SNAVELY, Henry DNF

STEVENS, Sharon 69:52

SUTTON, Leslie DNF

THOMAS, Mark 83:45

TYER, Vickie 72:05

WHITEMAN, Stephen 82:25

Rider Result

JOST, John 81:20

KAISER, Chris 73:06

KOENIG, Andrea 66:48

KONG, Albert 66:59

LeBLANC, Todd 80:48

MYERS, Beth 78:35

MYERS, Brent 78:36

NIXON, David 75:47

OLSEN, William 77:31

POGORELZ, Robert 80:48

ROZELLE, Paul 83:45

RUSSELL, Thomas 76:21

Last Chance 2009 | Rider Results

www.rusa.org 31

American Randonneur

The ride started outpromising enough. Weatherforecasts called for tempera-ture ranges between 40-60Ffor most of the 775-mileroute, with a 40 percentchance of rain on Saturday.We were expecting comfort-able days and cool evenings,with some possible rain onthe final 200K day of theride.

Alan Gosart and I droveup together from Tennesseeto Pennsylvania. We weredeparting Quakertown underovercast skies, with tempera-tures in the mid-50’s. Manyriders appeared to be over-dressed. I was comfortablewith arm/knee warmers anda vest, with a heavy jacketpacked for the cool eveninghours. We had a modest 208miles to reach our overnightcontrol in Hallstead, but weweren’t making any predic-tions on our arrival time.Our ride started at 4:00 a.m.to avoid the morning traffic.

After a while, Alan and Ilet the speedsters scrambleup the short hills, usuallystaying within sight of theirtaillights. A few miles later inCoopersburg, we lost them.There was a brief momentof confusion, only to havethem pop out of a side roadat a right angle as we joinedback up on the bridge. Onand off we experienced alight dusting of rain.

Within a couple ofhours, we arrived at the BlueMountain Drive Inn Control(mile 34). Most riders just

checked in and proceededimmediately to the nextclimb. The summit crossedover the Appalachian Trail,the first of many crossings.Another climb took us upFox Gap, where a secret con-trol awaited. I took theopportunity to top off waterand grab a banana. Theroads were wet and misty.We’d been warned not tomiss the left turn on thedescent. After sweating upthe 2.5-mile climb, we wereslightly chilled coming downthe gap. After we arrived inPortland, we walked acrossthe Delaware River pedestri-an bridge to stretch our legsand enjoy a morning view ofthe peaceful river. We were

now in New Jersey.At mile 83 we arrived at

the Gourmet Gallery inBlairstown. The control wasstaffed for quick departures,but offered such a wonderfulselection of goodies that Ididn’t see anyone fail to stopand eat. We left after a shortstay and headed out towardthe hills.

Most of the climbs wereshort, steep, and unremitting.Thanks to Lynn Greer atGran Fondo, my compactgearing was now blessed witha big fat 29-tooth cog. Theshifting performed flawlesslyuntil much later in the ride,when the road crap took itstoll. On these hills you makeinstant decisions. Do you

power up in your big ring,only to find yourself facing awell around the next corner?Or proceed slower in thesmall ring? Occasionallywhen I goofed and condi-tions permitted, I’d pull aquick U-turn, pointing thebike downhill, shift, thenswing back up the hill.

By the time we’d arrivedat the River Market inBarryville (New York, havingcrossed a state line again ear-lier) Alan and I had complet-ed a full 200K of riding,almost one sixth of thecourse. Our route would takeus past rivers and small lakes.I was chilled again, although

BY JEFF BAUER

Inaugural Endless Mountains 1240K

The secret control coming into view at the top of Fox Gap. Photo by Bill Beck.


32 November 2009

American Randonneur

the precipitation was barely alight sprinkling. Even theclimbs were no longer aguarantee that I’d stay warm,though I had a heavier jacketavailable whenever condi-tions became uncomfortable.

On the way toCarbondale, Alan experi-enced knee problems. Hisoverall pace was good, buthe was forced to walk tosteeper section of the hills.Many riders told us the climbjust prior to Carbondale wasthe toughest of the ride, sowe kept our pace down. I setmy GPS screen so I couldmonitor the elevation gain,and not be deceived intocommitting to a false sum-mit. The GPS was surpris-ingly accurate. Each pedalstroke gained approximatelyone foot of elevation gain,so I could count my stokesup to the top of the climb.Cool.

The descent was markedas “caution on steep twistydescent,“ but the warningwas overly conservative.

Once inside the Carbondalecity limit, however, it wasnecessary to watch for trafficpopping out of side streets.To be honest, I wasn’t reallylooking forward to theCarbondale control. Nothaving patronized a DunkinDonuts since BMB in 2002, Ididn’t realize they offeredreal food. So I ordered a veg-gie egg wrap and chocolatemilk while I waited for Alan.

We managed to leavewithin the shadow of day-light, with a mere 34 miles toour overnight control inHallstead. The short mileage,however, belied the difficultyof the final bits of climbing.Even with my winter jacket, Iwas slightly chilled with tem-peratures in the low 40s.Shortly before 10 p.m., wecrossed over theSusquehanna River andarrived at the Colonial BrickInn at Hallstead, PA.

Compared to a normalcontrol, a suite of motelrooms is a decadent luxury.Although not upscale lodging

by any means, we had hotfood waiting, enthusiasticvolunteers catering to ourneeds, showers and warmbed. Alan and I had a roomto ourselves. I grabbed somefood and took it back to myroom along with my dropbag. Eager to get out of mywet clothing, I took a quickbath then arranged a three-hour nap. Alan was consider-ing bailing due to his kneeproblem, but promised towait until morning to make afinal decision.

Morning arrived. I’d got-ten two full sleep cycles andfelt pretty good. I was wear-ing fresh ride clothes and Iwas ready to roll. Alan wascertain that he wouldn’t con-tinue, so I gave him my carkeys. Local friends of hisgave him a lift back toQuakertown.

I headed out in the dark,preferring to ride solo ratherthan join up with a group. Ineeded time to get back inmy rhythm and adjust myclothing layers. At first I wastoo hot, then too cold. Ichatted with Jim Loganbriefly. Soon I was passed bya fast group of three riders,and hopped on for a while,not really drafting, but juststaying within their generalproximity for a while. Amotorist pulled up and com-mended us on our visibility.After a while I needed totake a nature break and bidthe group adieu. Perhaps I’dover-hydrated, but when thetemperatures dropped to the40s I found myself needingto take 2-3 pit stops per hourand I was barely finishing a

single water bottle betweencontrols.

The section fromHallstead to Sayre was fairlyflat to rolling. We’d beenwarned to prepare for seri-ous climbing later. For nowwe’re back in New York,having earlier crossed theChenango River and werepassing through a series oftowns: Binghamton,Endwell, Owego, andWavery. The significance ofthis will soon become appar-ent.

Soon the rain started.Gently at first then a heavyflow. I tried to compensateby riding harder, but my feetand hands were gettingnumb. The temperature wasabout 42F. I stopped at a 24-hour market to borrow someplastic bags to wrap aroundmy feet and hands. If I’d hadany sense, I’d have stayedinside to wait out the rainand warm up, but figured mybest bet was to get back onthe bike and generate bodyheat. However, I hadn’tcounted on the effects ofhypothermia.

I focused on gettingback to Route 17C. I wascold, wet and numb, but justkept pedaling on. Here are acouple of clues that mymind wasn’t working:

1) My GPS was beepinglike crazy.

2) Other outbound rid-ers were coming toward meon the other side of thestreet, calling out my nameas we passed in oppositedirections.

AttentionMembers

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members. It is critical that you

inform the membership office of any change

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Endless Mountains (continued)


www.rusa.org 33

American Randonneur

How long did it take toregister? About 18 miles. Mybody finally warmed up andI took a mental assessmentof my situation. I had passedby the last riders a few milesago and would have to makea major effort to retrace myroute.

In one sense this washilarious. In another sense,potentially a disaster if I ranout of time. I would need toquickly recoup these lostmiles. Fortunately, the nextcontrol involved depositing apostcard and wasn’t timed,so I had a good chance tobank extra time before thenext timed control inDushore.

Once I got my mojoworking, I started to put onthe speed, especially up theslight inclines. I passed thefirst couple of riders andasked them for a mileagereading. Now mentally func-tional, I could work out aplan to gradually bank time.Aside from the constantnature breaks that plaguedme, I had the diversion ofchasing down rabbits aheadof me. Once I’d recoupedthe lost 18 miles (for a totalof 36 bonus miles), I coulddrop the emotional baggagethat comes from being off-route. Up until then, I didn’tpermit myself to think aboutthe inevitable ride disap-pointment of riding bonusmiles.

Not far from the Sayrecontrol, I met up withMichelle Dulieu, a rider I’dshared some miles with dur-ing the brutal 2006 Cascade1200K. She is now a bike

mechanic and had stopped tofix a chain for one of theBrazilian riders. We talkedabout the Cascade, LEL, anda potential Quadzilla ride in2010. After we’d droppedour postcards off at theSayre Post Office, I went offto stock up food and waterat a local Jim Dandy market.

Not long after I crossedanother bridge over theSusquehanna River, I noticeda couple of riders comingout of a fast food joint. Oneof them eventually caught upwith me. It was HenriqueCaldas, the Brazilian whosechain Michelle had earlierrepaired. Henrique spokeexcellent English, but wassuffering terribly from thecold. We discussed cycling inBrazil. His mother is a bigElvis fan and he’ll be takingher to the Graceland man-sion in Memphis next year.

We rode through a lousysection of mud-coveredroad, splattering our drivetrains with wet gook.Henrique’s cue sheet had dis-integrated in the rain, soalthough the course wasmarked he was happy to fol-low another rider. Once wearrived in Dushore, PA (mile309), Henrique was about totranscribe the next section ofmy cue sheet before anotherrider offered him a replace-ment.

Eager to move on, Igrabbed some food, waterand rode out toward Canton.I was soon joined by Markand Bill Olsen. We were tra-versing a fairly scenic section.The sun was occasionallypeaking through the clouds,

so Mark would accelerate upthe hills and take photo-graphs of the scenery. Lotsof climbing here with awarning not to overheat yourrims on the steep descents.

I arrived at the Exxoncontrol in Canton (mile 344)before dark. Our overnightcontrol in Lamar was anoth-er 80 miles distant. The cuesheet stated there were limit-ed services, so I stocked upon food. With temperaturesin the low 40s, I felt two fullwater bottles would carry methrough. As it was, everytime I’d take a sip, I’d feelthe liquid drop straightthrough my bladder.

The ride to Lamar start-

ed with 14 miles of steeprollers. I hardly rememberanything about this section,though I’m pretty sure I rodesolo. I ignored my averagespeed, the current time,everything, except the nextturn. I was cold and sleepyand just needed to concen-trate on making theovernight control in Lamarto get some sleep.

About 32 miles into thissection I passed a couple ofriders who were coming outof Harpers CreeksideTavern. The pub was stayingopen later specifically for theEndless Mountain riders and



had a warm coal stove burn-ing inside. As tempting as itwas, I knew that stopping 50miles before the overnightcontrol would only make thefinal section harder. Withsome reluctance I rode intothe dark evening.

One of the riders wasLarry Grabiak, someone Irecognized from prior 1200Kevents. I was having someissues on staying focused,due to the cold and lack ofsleep. At this point I had rid-den over 200 miles sinceHallstead with almost 50miles remaining to Lamar.Larry cautioned me that mytaillight wasn’t functioning. Ihad a micro light backup andanother full sized taillight inmy drop bag, so the microlight (a single LED poweredby a couple of lithium batter-ies) would have to sufficeuntil I arrived in Lamar.

Perhaps another dozenmiles or so, we encountereda support van. Larry and theother rider stopped for hotfood. I topped off my water,grabbed a slice of pizza forthe road, and pedaled onbefore I chilled down.Fortunately there was a nicelong climb ahead, though Iwas dreading the inevitablechilly descent. The next 40miles were a bit of a blur. Igot briefly turned aroundafter crossing theSusquehanna River again, buta nice lady at a Best Westerndirected me back on course.

Maile Neel was waitingat the Hampton Inn inLamar and I was happy tosee such nice accommoda-tions. Larry had arrived a fewminutes ahead of me and we

were assigned the sameroom. We each elected tosleep 90 minutes and contin-ue, Larry even neglecting ashower to avoid cutting intohis sleep time. Amazingly, Iwoke up rather refreshed,though dreading the coldmorning. Comparativelyspeaking, I was reasonablyefficient in getting back onthe road by 6:30 a.m.

The next control wasanother postcard drop off atthe Loganton Post Office.The roads were foggy and Istill had to make naturebreaks about every 15 min-utes. After a long climb therewere a series of rollingdescents into Loganton whenit started raining again. Thepost office wasn’t officiallyopen, but it was possible togo inside to get a briefrespite from the rain. Larrywasn’t far behind me and JudHand soon arrived. Wedeparted separately.

I enjoyed the terrain forthe next couple of hours andstopped in a local market topurchase some work gloves,as my glove liners justweren’t up to the task. Aword about the local markets.We hear a lot of talk inTennessee about southernhospitality, but the people weencountered in Pennsylvaniawere some of the nicest I’veever met. They were genuine-ly curious about our ride anduniformly wished us luck inour endeavors.

The exception to thisrule would be the Sheetzcontrol in Mt. Union (mile517), where we were warnedto keep a close eye on ourbikes. It appeared to be in a

sketchy neighborhood. Theclerk refused to sign ourbrevet cards, so we obtainedreceipts in lieu of a signature.

I rode out of Mt. Unionwith Henk Bouhuyzen fromOntario. He was having sleepdeprivation issues and wewere to encounter some ofthe most difficult weatherconditions of the ride. Asnight fell, the rain increased,making visibility poor. Ipushed my glasses to thebridge of my nose, so Icould peer over them, pro-tected by my long cap brim.The traffic and descents werenerve-wracking. I chattedwith Henk when possible tokeep us both alert.

Although the weatherwas difficult, the temperatureremained above 50F, so Iwasn’t miserable. Or at leastnot as miserable as Henk.When we arrived at theTom’s mini mart inMifflintown (mile 561),Henk’s girlfriend and somesupport people were waitingfor us.

We looked like drownedrats. The plastic bags I’dwrapped around my sockshad been collecting waterand my toes appeared tofloat in water. I punched afew holes in the bags so thewater could drain, but myfeet were wrinkled anduncomfortable from thesoaking. The straps of mysandals had abraded the topsof my feet which nowappeared weirdly bloated.

Henk wanted me to waitfor him, but after 15 minutesI was visibly shivering.Another rider had shown up,so I suggested that they

could ride together and Icould move on. In the mean-while some other riders hadbeen picked up in the rain.

We were starting to hearrumors of large numbers ofabandons due to the weather,with a possible DNF rate of50 percent. This spurred meon, thinking with my 36bonus miles, I couldn’t affordto slack off. There was noguarantee I wouldn’t makefurther mistakes due tosleep-deprived errors in judg-ment, and I had 98 milesremaining to reach theovernight control.

The next 40 miles wasanother blur. The rain hadeased up, but the roads werestill wet. As long as I keptmoving, I stayed warm,though temperatures weredropping. I don’t recall anyparticularly difficult climbing,but I was still moving at asluggish pace. And I still hadto stop about every 15 min-utes to empty my bladder.When I thought I’d finallygotten my mojo working, I’dlook down to see my com-puter register 15 mph.

About four miles fromthe control I started lookingfor Old Colony Road. TheGPS indicated a turn comingup and I found the “EM”mark, but the road lookedlike a driveway. So I pedaledup ahead. No road ahead, soI went back. Could this actu-ally be Old Colony Road? Awet, unpaved road? Maybethe road would improve, so Irode up a quarter milethrough sketchy gravel until Iwas convinced that I was off

American Randonneur


34 November 2009


route. I rode back to theintersection. Sure enoughthere was a visible sign: OldColony Road. Sigh. I was rid-ing about 5-8 mph with therear tire constantly slidingout from under me. After 1.7miles of this nonsense I wassoon in the final stretchtoward the Denny’s controlin Selingsgrove (mile 601). Iarrived just as the rain beganto pick up again.

There were several ridersslumping over their booths,with the detritus of half-eaten plates crowding thecounters. The sole waitresswas overwhelmed and Iexplained to the control staffthat I just wanted my cardsigned and would ride overto the market across thestreet. One of them con-vinced me to stay and ordera meal, but I wasted a good30-40 minutes when I couldhave been moving down theroad.

I had 58 miles to theHampton Inn in Pine Grove(mile 659). I was unlikely tomake it before daybreak andI was not certain if I couldremain awake until I arrived.The replacement taillight hadalso stopped working, so Iwas again reduced to a singleLED powered by a couple ofquarter-sized lithium cells. Iwas not a happy Planet Bikecustomer.

We were supposed towalk our bikes across theSusquehanna River walkway,but it’s a long bridge andnobody at either end and Iwas in a hurry. Upon leavingthe bridge, the cue sheetadvised riders to keep theriver on the right, so we

would not travel 14 miles inthe wrong direction. Soundadvice.

Rolling roads followedthe river with good fog lines.When I was not under a treecanopy the full moon per-mitted fast descents evenwith a weak light. The infre-quent motorists whoinevitably turned up theirbright lights were an occa-sional annoyance, causing meto lose my night vision andslow down. A fair number oflarge trucks lumbered pastme as I hugged tightly to theright side of my lane.

I was somewhere aroundthe town of Gratz when Istarted to get punchy andknew it was time to get offthe bike. There’s a woodenpavilion nearby which would

provide cover if the rainshould return. I noted thetime then got myself into adeep meditative state, relax-ing my muscles. Randomimages flashed through mybrain, but I focused onbreathing and I was animpartial observer to theshow. After about 15 min-utes, the random activitystarted to die down and theneurons were firing normally.I got up, a little stiff, butalert. I never know for sure ifthis will work, but it usuallybuys me some time. Once Imade it to Pine Grove, Icould get some sleep if nec-essary.

I stopped for anothernature break and I waspassed by another rider,either Scott Gator or John

Fessenden. I’ll call him Scott.I caught up with him and westarted chatting. I made itclear that I didn’t want himto wait up for me, but if itworked out we could ridetogether for a while. We weremostly compatible. Later wepassed by Jud Hand who wasstopped by the road. Heasked if we were in a hurryand we were — we were tooclose to the end of our men-tal tethers. Soon Scott and Iencountered John Fessendenand we more or less rodetogether as the sun rose. Weeventually arrived at theHampton Inn control in adense fog.

It was a major relief toarrive at the Pine GroveHampton Inn (mile 659). We

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 35



Riders at the Lamar Overnight Control. L-R: Bill Beck, Randy Mouri, Greg Conderacci, Rob Welshand Chris Gaughan. Photo by Maile Neel.

Rider Result

Michael Anderson 94:14

Dan Barbasch DNF

Jeff Bauer 88:46

William Beck 86:52

Rogério Bernardes DNF

Daniel Blumenfeld 88:10

Henk Bouhuyzen 91:46

Nicholas Bull DNF

Henrique Caldas DNF

Richard G Carpenter DNF

Dan Clinkinbeard DNF

Greg Conderacci DNF

Paul H Donaldson DNF

Michelle Dulieu DNF

John Fessenden 91:21

Micah Fritzinger 86:15

Rider ResultScott Gater 91:21

John Fuoco 88:46

Dan Fuoco DNF

Christopher L Gaughan DNF

Alan Gosart DNF

Larry Grabiak DNF

Judson L Hand 91:21

Guy Harris 90:16

Geoffrey Hastings 90:16

Noel Howes DNF

Albert Kong 91:46

Martin Lavoie DNF

Jim Logan 91:44

Judith Longley DNF

Kate Marshall DNF

Craig Martek 89:18

Joseph Maurer DNF

Rider Result

Randy Mouri 83:24

Vincent Muoneke 86:14

William Olsen 91:31

Mark W Olsen 91:31

Henrik Olsen 86:34

Jerry Phelps DNF

Henrik Schroeder DNF

Patrick Shank DNF

Vincent Sikorski 86:27

Raymond L Skinner DNF

Jim Solanick 88:46

Glen Steen DNF

Michael R Sturgill DNF

Victor Urvantsev DNF

Rob Welsh 86:15

Endless Mountains 1240K || Rider Results

had a mere 200K of relative-ly easy terrain to ride on ourfinal day. I took a quick mealand shower. LaurentChambard generously loanedme a spare taillight. The sunwas shining, and for the firsttime I actually felt warmwhile I was out on the road.My feet were still swollen, soI was gingerly pedaling in alow gear as three riderspassed me within the firstfew miles.

One of the riders, DanClinkinbeard, turned aroundand joined me as the othertwo were going too hard forhim to follow. We were soonjoined by another rider, DanBarbasch. Both Dans hadalready DNF’d, but decidedto ride the final 200K por-tion of the route that day.

We wandered throughthe gently rolling Amishcountryside for a couplehours, then saw AndrewMead in a SAG van waitingfor us with food and water. Igrabbed a banana and grate-fully accepted an ice coldCoke. The temperatures werenow hot enough that Iremoved another upper layer.While we were stopped, DanBlumenfield arrived on hisrecumbent. We joked aboutjust calling everyone aroundhere Dan.

Just before arriving atthe control in New Holland(mile 716), we stopped atWeavers Bike Shop. It is runby and caters to the Amishcommunity, with an empha-sis on practical versus stylishcycling accouterments. I pur-

chased a can of spray lubeand generously coated mysqueaking drive train.

After a long break in theSheetz control, we headedout for our final leg of theride with John Fuoco. Johnwas concerned about hisbrother Dan who’d fractureda hip while crossing wet rail-road tracks earlier. Soonafterward, we picked up JimSolanick, who’d taken a briefafternoon nap. The five ofus proceeded at a leisurelyconversational pace for thelast 59 miles.

The terrain got steeper.Around mile 744 we hit anincredibly twisty two-mile runof a descent, the kind thatmakes you say “Wheeee!” outloud. An hour later wedonned our night gear, and

wound down the final milesto a satisfying ride conclusion.My long-distance tandempartner, Mary Crawley, waswaiting at the finish, alongwith Maile Neel and TomRosenbauer. Smiles and con-gratulations all around.

Conclusion: The rideand the support were incred-ible. It is unfortunate thatthe weather incurred such ahigh 55 percent failure rateamong riders, but I woulddefinitely come back to rideit again. Major kudos to thestaff volunteers for markingsuch an extensive course,painting 18 pages of cuesheet directions on 775 milesof roads. Many thanks toeveryone who planned,assisted or participated inthis event. Bon route!

American Randonneur


36 November 2009

American Randonneur

www.rusa.org 37

Editor’s note: Long distancecyclists approach randonneuring inmany different ways. Some arespeedy; some are methodical. Someeat powder; others eat cheeseburgers.Some carry enough tools for Tourde France support, enough food foran Arctic expedition, and enoughclothes to fill a teenager’s closet; oth-ers carry an allen wrench and atube. Common to all randonneursis a willingness to help other ridersand to explain their approaches tothe sport. From the wealth of vary-ing advice offered, new randonneurscan craft their own styles. In thatspirit, we offer the thoughts of oneof our most experienced 1200kmriders.

The enjoyment of bicy-cling differs from person toperson. Some people enjoytouring while others enjoy rac-ing. Some people love moun-tain biking while other stickstrictly to paved roads. Evenwithin the RUSA community,there are those that enjoy theshorter brevets and those thatlove longer ones. As you startto think about the comingyear and potentially aboutPBP in 2011, you might beconsidering doing one of the1200K events. You might alsobe wondering whether a1200K event is right for you.

Your decision to tackle anepic ride requires more thandeciding whether you haveenough physical fitness. Thefastest, most physically fit ran-donneur may not be the mostsuccessful. Other elementscome into play as ride dis-tances get longer. Getting inphysical shape may be the eas-iest piece of the puzzle. Thisarticle addresses the other ele-ments. A few elements you

might be able to improve dur-ing the next few months.Some others are just ingrainedin our personality makeup.Unless you can minimize theirimpact, they may make thedifference between finishingand not finishing.

Ultimately, you are theonly one to decide if youwant to tackle the longest ran-donneuring event. However,there are some basic questionsyou can ask yourself to guideyou in your decision. Whatfollows are some basic ques-tions I’ve developed, alongwith rating guidelines. Rateyourself on a scale of 1 to 10as to where you fall within theextremes. After completingthis questionnaire, you shouldhave a good understanding ofwhat it is like to do a 1200Kand be able to answer the ulti-mate question: “Is a 1200Kthe right event for me?”

1. What is your goal: tofinish first or finish onyour bike?

This is the most impor-tant question of them all. Assuch, it is worth twice thepoints (20). I cannot empha-size the importance of know-ing your ultimate goal. Youhave 90 hours to complete a1200K event and you’ve dedi-cated months of preparation.How do you think you will feelif half-way through the eventyou find your pace is five or 10hours ahead of the cut-offtimes, but you are in the slow-est 25 percent of the riders?What if you are within twohours of the cutoff? Will yourdesire to continue be there?

At every 1200K I’ve metsomeone that just “couldn’tkeep pace.” As one rider toldme this year, he decided toquit because we were getting

further and further behind. Itdidn’t make any difference thatwe still had plenty of time tospare. We just weren’t going tobe among the leaders.

If your goal is to finish onyour bike, then most likely youwill. If you are worried aboutyour placement, then there is abig chance you will fail.

Give yourself one pointif your goal is to finish first,five if you want to finish inthe top 10 percent, 15 if youwant to finish in 90 hours and20 if you plan to finish onyour bike regardless of howlong it takes.

2. What’s more impor-tant: interacting with othersor the scenery?

People are social animals.For some, beyond exercise,interacting with other riders isan important aspect of theircycling enjoyment. For others,the joy of being outdoors andenjoying nature makes theirday.

Randonneuring eventscan be a lonely sport. Otherthan PBP, most 1200Ks haveless than 100 people. There isa high probability that at somepoint you will be riding byyourself.

Even if you start with theidea of riding with a friend,there is a chance they will notfinish. At that point, you willbe on your own.

Typically, you will meet upwith someone and ride togeth-er for a few miles and thenpart ways. It’s not unusual tospend the whole ride with thesame handful of riders, butonly spend short periods withthem throughout the ride.

So how do you react toriding alone? Do you need thecompany of others to keepgoing? If so, give yourself 1

point. If riding alone is onlyappealing during the day giveyourself 5 points. If you pre-fer riding alone, give yourself10 points.

3. Are you likeMacGyver or NASCAR’sTony Stewart when itcomes to bike repairs?

There are a lot of superfit and super fast riders that ifall goes well, can blowthrough a randonneuringevent like Tony Stewart cantear up a NASCAR racecourse. What happens whensomething mechanically doesnot go right? Tony has a pitcrew within 2 miles at alltimes. How will you deal witha mechanical issue possibly 50miles from civilization? Doyou need a pit crew?

I don’t want to soundinsulting, but I have met riderson the side of the road whocould not fix a stiff chain linkor change a flat tire. Twice Ihave met riders that had theirlights fall off and did notknow how to remount them.

I’ve also met riders thatcan improvise bike repairs likeMacGyver in the 1980s TVshow.

Examples are convertinga multi-speed bike to a singlespeed when a rear derailleurbroke and finding a junkmountain bike shifter to useas a replacement for theirroad shifter.

What is your bike mainte-nance skill level? If you relyon others then give yourself 1point. If you can tackle any-thing then give yourself 10points.

4. Do you search for abike shop or is one onboard your bike?

Is a 1200K the Right Event for You?BY KEN KNUTSON


There is some rationalefor believing that if your bikehas had a tune-up just prior toa ride and you have new tiresand cables, not much can gowrong. That is probably cor-rect, but 1200K is a long dis-tance. An unexpected potholeor rockslide can wipe out anew tire in an instant, leavingyou stranded unless you havea spare. Chains do break andit is usually a new one wherethe connecting link wasn’taligned correctly. Even if youare an expert bike mechanic,do you have the tools andparts to fix your bike? Are youthe type of rider that believesyou won’t need spare partsand can borrow tools to fixyour bike (1 point), is it yourstyle to carry the basic toolsand parts to fix most com-mon bike issues (7 points), oris your bag loaded withenough stuff to completelyrebuild a bike (10 points)?

5. Is your fuel tank half-full or overflowing?

Most likely, there will beplenty of food and wateravailable at the next control.However, what do you do if ithappens to take you longerthan expected to get here?What will you do if the con-trol is at a remote spot and forsome reason the food runsout? Do you carry just enoughfood and water to get to thenext route sheet-identifiedfood source (1 point), enoughto make it to the next control(5 points) or have a reservefor at least an additional 60miles just in case (10 points)?

6. Clothing optional orformal wear?

For a day ride like a cen-tury, the weather is easy topredict and it is easy to decidewhat clothing to take. That isnot the case for a 1200K. A

classic example was the 2004Last Chance 1200K. It wasdescribed as the hottest, cold-est, wettest, and windiest year.The first day of the ride wasover 100 degrees. Midwaythrough the ride a weatherfront went through resultingin a night of heavy rain, hail,and tornadoes. After thestorm passed, the nighttimetemperatures were in the low30s. Without proper clothing,it would have been a miser-able ride. Are you a clothingminimalist, carrying a lightjacket (1 point), do you pickup and drop off clothes atcontrols to adjust to theweather conditions (5 points)or do you pack enough cloth-ing to survive any possible sit-uation (10 points)?

7. Support group orself-support?

Obviously, the easiest andquickest way to complete arandonneuring event is tohave a support group. With asupport group, you can mini-mize the amount of food,parts, tools, and clothing car-ried. The support group canhave a hotel room ready and ahot meal available when youarrive at the control. Thedown side is they can encour-age you to get more sleep, orrecommend you drop out ifthey think you are too tired.There is also the chance awell-meaning personal sup-port person could get you dis-qualified by coming to yourassistance outside the controlarea. As defined on the RUSAwebsite, “randonneuring islong-distance unsupportedendurance cycling.” Do youneed personal support tomake it through the ride (1point) or are you willing to beself-supporting (10 points)?

8. Looking for a mod-

ern restroom with runningwater or will any bush meetyour need?

Sometime during a1200K event you are going tohave to take a nature break. Atsome point, every animalseeks relief. As we cycle downcountry roads, we see cows,horses, and other animalsfreely going about their busi-ness. In our culture, this is aprivate matter. However, facil-ities are limited outside citylimits. So the question is whatis your comfort level? Do youwait until you can find a mod-ern restroom (1 point), willyou most likely wait until youfind a restroom (5) or whennature calls, do you head forthe nearest bush (10 points)?

9. Is your ride diet sci-entifically calculated or doyou rely on road kill?

There are numerousbooks and articles discussingnutrition for optimal perform-ance. It doesn’t take muchsearching to come up with aplan for how many caloriesand how much liquid oneneeds to consume per hour.These plans are great in anideal environment. However,outside of specialized stores,the energy bars and drinksthat you might be used tousing aren’t available.

Even at controls, yourfavorite choices might not beavailable. In the “outback,”the ride organizers may havearranged for a local civicgroup to provide support.These well-meaning folksmaybe surprised and over-whelmed by how much youeat, resulting in temporaryfood shortages. In addition,the food selection may seeminappropriate for a randon-neuring event.

Another common prob-

lem might be the water. Whilethe local water may be agree-able with the locals, it mightnot taste right to you.

So how do you react tothis situation? Do you find itupsetting that they don’t havethe food and drink to meetyour needs (1 point), rely onfuel supplies out of your dropbags (5) or do you go with theflow taking what is offeredand if need be seek out otherfood sources along the route(10 points)?

10. Do you need a GPS(1), play follow the leader (2)or enjoy orienteering (10)?

A good friend of mine,who is a three-time PBP fin-isher, told me he has neverlooked at the route sheet. Hefollows other riders and usesthe arrows posted along theroute. That philosophy workspretty well for PBP since theroute is well marked and thereare over 5,000 riders strungout along the route. PBP isthe exception. Most otherroutes are not marked andhave less than 100 riders.

Counting on findingsomeone to follow might notbe possible at most eventsbecause of the small numberof participants. In addition,the “follow the leader” tech-nique is only as good as thenavigation skills of the leader.If you are using this tech-nique, make sure rider rolesare well-defined. Often timesthe leader is setting the paceand relying on one of the fol-lowers to verify the route.From my own personal expe-rience, I am usually followingsomeone else when I havegotten off course.

The new tool gainingpopularity is the GPS. I won’t

American Randonneur

1200K—Right For You? (continued)

38 November 2009


get into a discussion aboutwhether they should be used,but I will say at this time theyare not a replacement for aroute sheet. The main usageissues are the limited batterylife as well as programmingerrors that can take riders onan alternative route.

What is your riding style?Do you use a GPS in place ofthe route sheet (1 point),mostly play follow the leader(2 points), or really enjoy ori-enteering (10 points)?

11. Is your approach toweather “Good DaySunshine” or “Singing inthe Rain”?

My most memorable “rainmemory” occurred during thefirst PBP night in 2007. I waswet from the constant rain,and for a brief period the rainwas intermixed with sleet and Iwas out of the saddle climbinga hill. As I climbed, I feltextremely happy and singingout loud. At the same time,other riders were already decid-ing to call it quits. Everyonedeals with adverse weatherconditions differently. I’ve metfolks that have showed up forbrevets and then elected toturn around and go home ver-sus spend the day in the ele-ments. Then there are thosethat have the attitude that themore difficult the conditions,the more they will have to bragabout afterwards. Over my 111200K rides, I’ve experiencedthree with temperatures over100 degrees, two with tempera-tures in the 30s, five with rain,including three with thunder-storms. In addition, there hasbeen hail, sleet, and tornadoes.My point is over 90 hours youare most likely going to runinto less-than-ideal weather. Sohow are you at coping withless than desirable weather?

Does adverse weather causeyou to head for home (1 point)or do you find yourself“singing in the rain” (10points)?

12. A day trekker (1) ornightrider (10)?

Many excellent bicyclistslive by one motto, “be homeby dark.” It is possible, yethighly unlikely that you canfinish a 1200K without spend-ing several hours night riding.If you are uncomfortable rid-ing, potentially alone in thedark, then this isn’t the sportfor you. If you are comfort-able, then this can be a veryenjoyable experience. Onemoonless night in 2001, Ientered one of several tunnelson the Gold Rush Randonnéeroute. Inside the tunnel, it waspitch black. When I came out,the difference between theabsolute dark tunnel and thestar laden sky was spectacular!What is your comfort level?Do you feel a need to stick tothe comfort of daylight (1point) or are you a creature ofthe night (10 points)?

13. Full night’s sleep orpower nap?

I first noticed power napswhen I was about 8 years old.My grandmother would take afew 15-minute naps and thenbe ready to go for severalhours. She rarely slept atnight, except for short naps.Many people, includingmyself, live most of their lifein this manner. At the otherend of the spectrum are folksthat require a full night’s sleepto function. That isn’t an issuewith normal daily living, but isa potential issue with randon-neuring events. Unless you aresuper fast, there isn’t enoughtime to sleep more than acouple hours at a time. Canyou function on limited sleep?

If you feel you need morethan two hours at a time, thengive yourself 1 point. If youcan get by with one 90-minutebreak every 24 hours giveyourself 5 points. If you canfunction for at least 6 hourson a 15-minute power nap,then give yourself 10 points.

14. When it comes tosleep, do you need a hotelroom or would you be com-fortable in a chaotic busstation environment?

A typical 1200K sleepfacility is more like a bus sta-tion than a hotel room. Theyare usually in a gymnasiumwith mats on the floor. Often,the sleep area is in the sameroom as rider check-in andfood service. Therefore, thereis a lot of commotion as peo-ple are eating, talking, andheading in and out.Depending on where the con-trol is located, there may ormay not be hotels close by.For me, sleep breaks aremostly about resting the eyesand stopping motion.However, everyone has his orher own requirements. Whatis your comfort level? Do youfeel you need a hotel room (1point), or can you get along inthe bus station environment(10 points)?

15. Private bath or com-munal showers?

One last point to consid-er is personal hygiene. Thisvaries as much by individual asdoes our bicycle equipment.Everyone has his or her owntolerance. Some complete thewhole event in the sameclothes without freshening upalong the way. The majoritytend to freshen up aboutevery 400k. The question ishow much privacy do youneed? For the most part, theshower facilities are typical

gym class, mass showers. Onthree events, there was at leastone control where the show-ers were unisex! In addition,most likely there will only becold water. Not exactly theRitz-Carlton, is it? If you needa private, hot shower, giveyourself 1 point. If your phi-losophy is, we are all ridersand you just want to knockthe road dust off, give yourselfthe full 10 points.

Now that you have grad-ed yourself, how did you do?If you got the maximum 160points, then you not only havethe right personality traits tocomplete a 1200K, but mightbe looking for a more chal-lenging adventure. If youscored less than 50, this mightnot be right for you. If youare uncertain, then I suggestyou think about each of thesequestions while you are doingyour qualifying rides or thinkback to how you have handledthe situations described. It ispossible to complete a 1200Kwith a low score, but in myopinion, the higher the score,the greater probability thatyou will succeed.

This article is intended togive you insight on what youwill experience. These are myopinions, not hard-and-fastrules, but they will give yousome idea on what it takes tosucceed on one of these epicevents. If you decide to tryone, look around and if I’mthere say hi!

Ken Knutson is an accom-plished randonneur. A RUSAmember since 2001, he has complet-ed more than 40,000 kilometers ofbrevets, including 11 1200K events.He is a two-time Randonneur 5000recipient, an Ultra RandonneurAward recipient and a two-time R-12 Award recipient.

American Randonneur

1200K—Right For You? (continued)

www.rusa.org 39

Long ago in NorthAmerican randonneur history,there were only two sanc-tioned 1200k brevets in exis-tence in North America. Thefirst on the scene was the clas-sic Boston-Montreal-Boston1200; and then later, theCanadian Rocky Mountain1200 was created. JenniferWise, Director of the BMBand Real Prefontaine,President, British ColumbiaRandonneurs Cycling Club(Jennifer was also President ofRandonneurs USA; and Realwas also President ofRandonneurs Mondiaux)reportedly had a difference ofopinion as to whether or not arandonneur could complete

two 1200k brevets in one sea-son. Real Prefontaine solvedthe issue by successfully com-pleting both the BMB 1200and the Rocky Mountain 1200in one season. According tolegend, Real also collected acase of beer from Jennifer!!

Since then, the Can-Ampin has become a muchsought-after award. Some ran-donneurs have several Can-Am pins! In 2008, 11 randon-neurs earned the Can-Am pin,using the Cascade 1240, theColorado Last Chance 1200and the British ColumbiaRocky Mountain 1200 toachieve their award.

In 2009, 17 folks earnedtheir Can-Am pin, using oneor more U.S.A. 1200s plus theinaugural Ontario Granite

1200 to achieve their award.They are: Henk Bouhuyzen;Hans Dusink; Gary Baker; JeffMudrakoff; Bill Olsen; MarkOlsen; Carol Bell; DanClinkinbeard; John Morris;Barry Chase; Gregg Courtney;Dick Felton; DavidThompson; Bob Koen; KenKnutson; Rob Welsh; and KenBonner.How Can I Earn My Can-Am Pin?

Within the period fromJanuary 1 to December 31,inclusive, successfully com-plete at least one RandonneursMondiaux/ACP sanctionedbrevet of at least 1200 km. inlength in each of Canada andthe U.S.

Advise the organizer ofthe final qualifying brevet that

you will be attempting to earnthe much coveted Can-Ampin, so the organizer can havean appropriate number ofCan-Am pins available at thefinish of the brevet.

A Can-Am pin can beearned multiple times. butonly once per calendar year.

Currently, 1200+ kmbrevet organizers can obtainCan-Am pins from KenBonner ([email protected]),British Columbia RandonneursCycling Club.

Questions regarding theCan-Am pin can be directedto John Lee Ellis ([email protected]),Randonneurs USA or KenBonner [email protected] ColumbiaRandonneurs Cycling Club.

2009 Can-Am Pin Awarded To 17 Riders

Can-Am recipients. L-R: Ken Bonner; John Morris, Gregory Courtney; Mark Olsen; Henk Bouhuyzen; Dick Felton; Bill Olsen; uniden-tified; Hans Dusink; Carol Bell; Jeff Mudrakoff; Gary Baker. Not pictured: Barry Chase and Dan Clinkinbeard. Rob Welsh earned hisCan-Am pin at the Endless Mountains1240. Photo by Linda Bradley.

American Randonneur

40 November 2009

BY KEN BONNER

PHOTO GALLERY

The weather and normal wear and tear can take their toll on a brevet card. But this is something else. RBA and photographer BillBeck explains: “Of course they get wet. I’ve also seen blood and other stains that I prefer not to identify. But the most unusual wasdefinitely this card. It had gotten wet, so the owner had tried to dry it in the hotel microwave oven. The thing caught fire and about halfof the card was destroyed. But fortunately for the owner, all of the control times and initials were intact. So it was accepted for an offi-cial finish. I still have the card, at least until I mail it back at the end of the year.” The picture shows ride organizer Chris Mento holdingup John Guth’s card.

www.rusa.org 41

American Randonneur

1 20 2009

Randonneurs USA Member Souvenir Order Form

NAME _________________________________________________ RUSA MEMBER #________

ADDRESS______________________________________________________________________

CITY___________________________________________STATE________ ZIP______________

TELEPHONE________________ EMAIL _______________________ DATE ___________________

PAYMENT METHODS: PAYPAL: www.paypal.com and send payment to [email protected] CHECK: payable to Randonneurs USA; send to RUSA Souvenirs, 10 Bliss Mine Rd, Middletown, RI 02842

Questions? Email us: [email protected]

ITEM DESCRIPTION PRICE SIZE QTY TOTAL S & H

RUSA CLASSIC LOGO JERSEY SHORT-SLEEVE TOURING JERSEY: S-M-L-XL-XXL $65.00

RUSA LONG-SLEEVE JERSEY LONG-SLEEVE RUSA JERSEY S-M-L-XL-XXL

$75.00

RUSA PBP 2007 JERSEY SHORT SLEEVE JERSEY: Size XXL only $65.00

SHORT SLEEVE WOOL JERSEY

MENS SIZES: L – XL – XXL WOMENS SIZES: S - M - L $90.00

LONG SLEEVE WOOL JERSEY

MENS SIZES: M – L-- XL – XXL WOMENS SIZES: S – M - L $95.00

RUSA SLEEVELESS WIND VEST RUNS SMALL: S-M-XL-XXL $55.00 RUSA POLO SHIRT WHITE WITH EMBROIDERED LOGO: S-M-L-XL $27.00

RUSA T-SHIRT WHITE SHORT-SLEEVE: S-M-L-XL $12.00 RUSA FLECHE T-SHIRT WHITE SHORT SLEEVE with Black Trim: M-L-XL $12.00

RUSA WATERBOTTLE WHITE 28 OZ WATERBOTTLE $5.00 RUSA CYCLING SHORTS LYCRA BLACK SHORTS: S-M-L-XL $45.00

RUSA LAPEL PIN SINGLE PIN $2.00 RUSA LAPEL PINS 2-9 PINS $1.75 RUSA LAPEL PINS 10 OR MORE PINS $1.25

RUSA REFLECTIVE SASH SAYRE Sash: Yellow: Limit 2 pp $5.00 RUSA REFLECTIVE ANKLE BANDS SAYRE: Yellow Velcro: Sold in pairs: Limit: 2 pr pp $2.00pr

REFLECTIVE SCOTCHLITE TAPE 9” Strip of 3M Reflective Adhesive Tape 50¢

RUSA REFLECTIVE YIELD SIGN YELLOW & ORANGE REFLECTIVE TRIANGLE: Limit 2 pp $5.00

RUSA SOCKS SNUG FITTING CYCLING SOCKS: S/M or L/XL $10.00pr

RUSA COTTON CAP WHITE-BLUE-RED CAP WITH RUSA LOGO: S/M or L/XL $16.50

RUSA WOOL CAP WHITE-BLUE-RED CAP WITH RUSA LOGO: S/M or L/XL $27.50

RUSA WOOL CAP w/ EAR-FLAPS WHITE-BLUE-RED CAP WITH RUSA LOGO: S/M or L/XL $31.50

RUSA DUFFEL BAG WHITE LIGHTWEIGHT NYLON WITH RED TRIM $10.00

RUSA CERAMIC MUG WHITE 10oz MUG WITH RUSA LOGO $8.00

PBP 1999 YEARBOOK PBP 1999 STORIES & RESULTS $7.00

RUSA HANDBOOK MEMBER RULES, REGULATIONS & ADVICE $6.00

RUSA LOGO DECAL 3“ x 5” REMOVABLE VINYL COLOR LOGO DECAL $1.00

RUSA TOP TUBE DECAL 5” x 1” REMOVABLE (BLUE & WHITE LETTERING) $0.25

PBP 2007 DECAL 3” x 5” REMOVABLE VINYL COLOR LOGO DECAL $1.00

Number of Items SHIPPING & HANDLING (USA): Subtotal

$5.00 for first item. Add $1.00 for each additional item (except decals, strips or under 10 pins)

S & H

To order online, visit the RUSA Store at www.rusa.org

Total

American Randonneur

42 November 2009

www.rusa.org 43

American Randonneur

RRRRRandonneurandonneurandonneurandonneurandonneurs USAs USAs USAs USAs USA Mem bership Form

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