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| EMLB starters in front of Independence Hall |
Fifteen determined randonneurs clipped in at Chamounix mansion in Philadelphia. Ten of them made it back to Chamounix after completing the entire challenging course under their own power and within the time limit, thus earning the title of Endless Mountains Liberty Bell 1234K Finisher and receiving the coveted challenge coin award.
It would be amazing if everyone starting the Endless Mountains grand brevet could finish it. This is a difficult bike ride, much harder than other 1200s, and luck plays a role as well. Even the best of riders can be knocked out by the hard hitting terrain or a gear failure. This edition was no exception. Unfortunate technological or physical problems beset five of the starters, knocking them out of the running for an official finish. Three of these, Patricia Brault, Martin Hayes, and Jim Vreeland, after resolving their trouble sufficiently, were able to rejoin the group further down the course and ride on to the finish. These three brave riders did not complete the entire course, but did ride most of the course, and finished the event under their own power. Riders Dan Driscoll and Doug McLerran were unable to overcome their difficulties and re-join. Nevertheless, they did both complete the most challenging part of the course -- a very difficult 400K route up the Allegheny Front and through the Endless Mountains. This is a spectacular and prideworthy accomplishment in itself. Congratulations and well done to all!
There was an excellent volunteer effort to support the EMLB. Thank you so much! Riders, please thank them when you see them. Big brevets can't happen without a core team of volunteers.
Volunteers were important from the beginning. The start of the EMLB was conducted in an audax style, with the group kept together by volunteer audax captain Jakub Piven, and his philadelphia dynamo headlight society lieutennants CJ Arayata and Nick Manta. The audax start fostered safety and comaradarie through the boulevards of the big city, and stopped for group photos at the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. After the 4am audax tour of Center City, they were released by the audax captains to tackle the Endless Mountains au libre. CJ made an album of photos from the start of the event.
The Johnson City first overnight was located at Traditions at the Glen, a historic mansion and golf retreat that has catered to impressive celebrities such as Dwight D. Eisenhower, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Bing Crosby. This time it was staffed by volunteers Jim Bondra and Chris Simser, who catered to equally impressive randonneurs traveling there long distances on their bikes, rather than on chauffeur driven limousines.
Riders leaving before dawn from the Johnson City overnight. It was lightly raining.
The second and third overnights located in Lewisburg, PA, were staffed by Steve and Susan Schoenfelder, who prepared four distinct and excellent home-cooked meals for the riders, as they managed the logistics of the sleep control with little rest for themselves over 48+ hours.
Road angels Len Zawodniak and Bill Slabonik provided on-road neutral support and helped the organizer monitor the progress of riders, continuously checking that everyone was safe. This was critical between "the goat" and "the J", a luncheonette, and a rural truckstop that delimit the ends of the tough Endless Mountains section. Randonneuring is about self sufficiency, but a grand brevet that crosses difficult, sparsely populated terrain, such as the Endless Mountains, requires some on-road support and rider monitoring by trusted, experienced road-angels so that the RBA can attain some calm.
The excellent finish food was catered by volunteers Sean Martin and Brad Layman. Brad also organized a 300K brevet that finished along side the EMLB. Maybe someday a few of those 300K riders will qualify to ride the Endless Mountains -- oh wait! Indeed an EMLB veteran, Ben Keenan was seen finishing the 300, as did another EMLB veteran, 300K organizer and prerider, Brad Layman.
In alphabetical order, the main EMLB volunteers were.
The above list does not include many other supporters and well wishers, such as Pam Wright who assisted the road captains at the Audax start and stood ready to assist on course, and Rick Lentz who hung out in Blairstown cheering the riders as they stopped at Dale's Market. We should also remember the paid staffs at the various hotels, people who went a bit above and beyond their jobs to help us. It's always very humbling to me to receive all this great support from so many folks. Thank them when you see them.
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| Audax volunteers Nick, CJ, and Jakob |
There was a harrowing moment for Spencer Carran as he rode toward the third overnight control. Spencer was accosted by some crazy locals in a pickup truck. They buzzed him several times, then laid in wait to ambush him. Fortunately an armed local noticed the attack and stood with Spencer till the police arrived. There were no injuries, other than Spencer being a bit terrified. Of course, the tough randonneur that he is, Spencer quickly shrugged off the incident, made up the lost time, and finished the Endless Mountains with a smile on his face.
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| EMLB finisher Spencer safe and sound at the finish |
Patricia and Frederic Brault came all the way from France with plans to ride the Endless Mountains together. Unfortunately, technology failed Patricia, as her Di2 rear derailleur died less than 25 K into the ride -- just past Cadence Cycles in Manayunk -- leaving Patricia stranded on the side of the road before 5AM with no way to fix her bike. In an amazing bit of luck, randonneur Matt McLoone was working at Cadence that morning. Matt had a spare Di2 derailleur in a parts bin and repaired Patricia's bike in less that 5 minutes. Patricia decided she would rather return to the group, so the organizer transported her to Blairstown, where she continued on with the group and bravely rode almost the entire course with great panache, finishing together with her husband Frederic.
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| EMLB veterans Patrica and Frederic Brault |
Patricia Brault writes...
There were 15 of us at the starting line, all ready for the adventure. Everything went well at first, and I was riding at around 25 km/h, but after a while, I ran into a serious mechanical issue — a problem with my DI2 electronic derailleur.
While Frederic continued the ride, I had to look for a bike shop to get the problem fixed. Thankfully, the event organizer was incredibly kind and helpful during this stressful moment. From a distance, my daughter Camille acted as my interpreter — I do understand English, but in this kind of technical situation, it can get tricky. Thanks to her help communicating with the technicians, I decided to go ahead with the repair. I then rejoined the group by car, knowing that my ride would no longer be officially recognized. That was frustrating, but I chose to keep going anyway.
Throughout the journey, I got to discover the beautiful American countryside: wide open nature filled with deer, does, and squirrels. We passed through Amish communities riding in horse-drawn buggies, who greeted us warmly, and we saw women working in their gardens.
The landscape was dotted with large, well-kept farms, immaculate lawns, and — since it was the Halloween season — houses extravagantly decorated with spooky flair, in true American style! It was an unforgettable ride, although very physically demanding due to all the climbing and elevation. A big thank-you to everyone who followed, supported, or helped us throughout this adventure. This cycling trip will stay with me forever.
It was a great honor to have PBP course record holder Nick DeHaan ride our Endless Mountains grand brevet. And Nick paid us the greatest possible compliment when he suggested that our little bike ride through the rugged PA terrain might've almost been difficult for him.
Nick DeHaan writes ...
Toughest grand brevet route I've completed so far. Pennsylvania elevation hits hard
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| Just a routine epic feat for EMLB Finisher Nick DeHaan |
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| Ben and Yonnel looked almost as fresh as Nick at the finish -- almost. |
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| EMLB Finisher Randy Anderson heads off into the Pennsylvania Dawn on Day 3 |
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| EMLB Finisher Josh Brown hits the road at 5:40AM |
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| Some of the food that powered EMLB Finisher John D'elia |
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| EMLB Finisher Kurt Barkei sporting awesome helmet hair |
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| Proud EMLB Finisher Benge Ambrogi |
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