Monday, November 7, 2016

Le Retour du Stillwater 200k / Milford 100k Ride Report

Photo by James Haddad

Preliminary results for the 100 k have been posted at:
http://parando.org/PA100k_Results161105.pdf

Preliminary results for the 200k have been posted at:
http://parando.org/PA200k_Results161105.pdf

Results will be submitted in a couple of days to RUSA.

Thanks once again to the well-oiled brevet team of Bill Olsen, Guy Harris, and Chris Nadovich for making this one happen.  They make it look easy.

Fall brevets are always tricky.   Events are scheduled over a year in advance making it anyone's guess as to what weather riders will face.  Thankfully, riders on Saturday's combined Le Retour du Stillwater and Milford events enjoyed just about as nice a day for cycling as one can ask for in early November.  Consider this:  first finisher Chris Maglieri completed this event in 2013 with a finishing time of 8:38; seven riders besides Chris bested that time on Saturday.  Apparently cool weather brought out the best in several randonneurs.  More important to the organizers is that every rider who left the Milford Bakery in the morning returned within the time limit for a 100% completion rate on both events. 

Joe Ray, who was among a pack of fast finishers, had this to say:   
What a fantastic day to be on a bike!  I met a few more PA Randonneurs and we had a glorious time on the Retour.  My wife actually came to start and the finish (calling her my Uber-Rando now) which gave her the opportunity to meet and chat both before and after the ride, which was highly beneficial since she now has a few faces to go with the names I talk about after these events, but perhaps more importantly she can learn that i am not the only/most crazy person out there.
The pre-ride report was right on target with everything; Shades of Death had the worst surface of the entire day, excluding I suppose the 0.2 mile dirt stretch on Old Cemetery Road.  You know you have left Tranquility behind when you get on Shades of Death Rd.
Thanks to Bill and Chris at start/finish, and thanks to the Milford bakery folks for a great place to start!


James Haddad writes:
Andrew,
Thanks to you, Bill, and all the other volunteers that helped make Saturday’s ride another fantastic randonneuring experience. The route was beautiful, especially along the Delaware River. The view from the top of Riverton road was amazing. I’ve ridden the stretch between Milford and Portland a lot in the past months and each time I discover something new. 
James recently wrapped up an R12 and appears to be intent on going for another and perhaps a K-Hound award as well. 

Next up is a return to Lancaster County for a reprise of the Little Britain brevet.  Event details will soon be posted.  I've tweaked the route a touch based on careful notes from February's running.  There remains one small section of gravel road and most of the big hills, but the cue sheet should be easier to follow and we will bypass Nottingham Road (SR 272) in the interest of an improved ride experience.  A pre-ride is planned for later this month.  I'm talking to the weather man in an effort to keep ice out of the picture.  
 
Finally, it is the time of the year when you should check your RUSA and PA Randonneurs memberships and renew, if necessary.   You can check your RUSA status at:  https://rusa.org/cgi-bin/memberrenew_GF.pl
The PA membership list is posted on website. 
 
Andrew Mead
- Eastern PA RBA


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