PA Fleche 2025 Ride Report

Preliminary results for the 2025 PA Randonneurs Flèche are available on the website along with finish line photos.  Barring any issues, results will be submitted to RUSA and ACP soon and will become official eventually. Please check them over and let me know if they seem correct. The homologation process takes time.  Although you may see an ACP certification number in the records before the end of 2025, don't expect your paper certificate from ACP till early 2027. 

Four of six teams completed  their self-designed courses.  There were 25 registered riders. Of those, 21 started and 14 finished (67%).

The finish at Chamounix was staffed by Ben Keenan, along with several other well wishers who were there to cheer the finishers.  CJ Arayata gathered several photos and great videos in this gallery. 

Finish control volunteer Ben Keenan writes.... 

We had a good clear cold April morning as the riders streamed in the final quarter mile stretch to Chamounix, arriving in mostly good spirits , at least considering they’d been riding all night in the cold, wind and rain. Smiles and good humor masked weariness, sore legs and courage (the kind not worn on a sleeve) as the riders turned in soggy cards. A fleche is one of those things nobody tells you how hard it is until after you’ve already found out for yourself (and no longer have anyone else to blame!), but it is also unforgettable. Well done all! Special thanks to the great group that showed up to cheer the riders, some of whom brought excellent cookies, brownies and vegan doughnuts.

Will Sherman (No Pressure) writes...

Team No Pressure returned to a familiar route from New York City to Philadelphia. With one teammate out sick, we pressed on with just three riders. We met at Whitehall Terminal in Manhattan, grabbed breakfast and boarded the Staten Island Ferry. After a quick team photo at Staten Island Borough Hall, we crossed the Goethals Bridge into New Jersey and turned south, facing headwinds toward the Pine Barrens. Rain held off until our first control, a Wawa in New Egypt, followed by intermittent downpours as we rode to another Wawa in Egg Harbor City. The skies cleared up while we ate, and we pedaled onwards, drying off in the sun with all the rain behind us. Our good fortune nearly ended when a crank arm came loose on the Garden State Parkway Bridge. Nobody was carrying the exceptionally-large allen key to reattach it, but a bike repair stand was found a few yards away, and after some wrenching in the dark, we were back on the road. After another Wawa control in Dennisville, we turned back north, still facing headwinds through the quiet Pine Barrens. Our stops were brief, and we were able to take a short nap at a motel before we reached our 22-hour control (a Wawa, of course). The sun was up and shining brightly as we navigated to the Ben Franklin Bridge and through Philadelphia to the finish. Thanks to all volunteers who made this possible and welcomed us in after our surprisingly tough, windy, and wet journey. 

 

Brad Layman (Thunder Gun Express) writes... 

"You better get going—you don't want to miss one second of that ride! It's the best goddamn ride I've ever done in my life!" True to Thunder Gun code, the gang—Ben Swartz, Dan Plechaty, Jakub Piven, and I—kicked off our 24-hour adventure at Chez Ben, cheered on by two extremely friendly cats who clearly understood the gravity of our mission.

Our first stop was Café Layman, where we visited my parents and fueled up before taking on the unknown. Jakub crushed the hills like a true Thunder Gun hero, while Dan enjoyed his final big rando hurrah before leveling up to Dad Mode. Ben battled back from an early bout of dehydration, proving once again that the gang refuses to back down—no brakes, no surrender, no rider left behind!

Mother Nature gave us the full treatment: rain at the start, a tease of sunshine, a legit thunderstorm (Thunder Gun style), then finally clearing skies—but the winds stayed wild all the way to Philly. Overnight, Lancaster County served up tough headwinds, but most of the time we had the wind at our backs.

At around 3 a.m., we stopped at a Turkey Hill, where Ben set an alarm for a quick nap. When it went off, it jolted the whole squad awake like we were under attack from the sewers—we were ready to ride. We nearly thought disaster had struck again when we arrived at our diner control just after dawn and saw the "Closed" sign still hanging. But in true Thunder Gun spirit, we refused to accept defeat—the doors were actually open, and we feasted gloriously on griddle toppers.

Other highlights: we each sampled the world-famous Royal Farms (RoFo) chicken (Thunder Gun approved), inhaled Dragon China Kitchen dinner specials in Delta, PA, and tightened up the paceline to Thundergun it across the Holtwood Bridge without getting passed by a single car.

Finally, we rolled down Main Street Manayunk, which Rando Joey D graciously closed off for our grand arrival. He and Maria T were waiting at Volo Coffee to cheer us towards the finish line, capping off a grimy, glorious Thunder Gun adventure. We Thundergunned the s#*+ out of that ride!

 

[ED: By completing this Flèche, Brad Layman earns the rare and prestigious PA R-5000 award, signifying completion of the PA 200, 300, 400, 6000, 1000, and 1200K+ events.  Only six riders have achieved this honor.  They are: Judson L Hand,  Guy Harris,  Benjamin Keenan, Brad Layman, William Olsen (2), Norman Smeal.  Congratulations Brad and welcome to this exclusive club. ]

Gavin Biebuyck (Coast Cycles) writes...

Surreal - bridges and rivers and canals and ocean and dirt and woods and smoke and chasing shadows

We began in Brooklyn with a flat tire but had that fixed with enough time to grab coffee and stroll onto the open gangway of the Staten Island Ferry.

Meandering across Staten Island from our official start at the ferry terminal and across North Jersey we soon found ourselves at the highest point on our ride.

A surprisingly mediocre coffee shop was respite for the first wave of storms, we carried this luck to the Atlantic where we crossed over to Sandy Hook and were rewarded with one last view of the NYC skyline over 100 miles into our ride.

We pushed south along the Jersey Shore as the sun set, by the time we got to the area of the recent wildfire it was dark and eerie. Smoke rose to our right, we pulled our neck gators over our noses as we passed between burnt sections.

Turning into the West wind, our reward for crossing the pine barrens were two disappointments at Wawas- the first with no bathroom and the second under construction, prompting a slight deviation in our middle of the night waiting game plans.

Finally we made it to Chamounix after a detour through the city center and up the greenbelt. This homestretch may have felt like the longest 25k of the ride.

 

 

Cheng-Hong Li (Tri-State Arrow Express) writes...

We suffered horrendous weather 24-hour straight: strong headwinds, down pouring rains, cold ocean fog, and freezing temperature plus windchill in the early morning hours. But riding at midnight along the quiet roads beside the Delaware River was magical and unforgettable.And, of course, the final 22 hour control at WAWA was the best: with chairs to nap by! We persevered and made it to the finish in time.

 

Four teams made it on time, two didn't, but the two that didn't quite make it on time still showed steel resolve and exemplified the spirit of randonneuring.

Fist Full of Xanax did not qualify for an official finish, as they were late to the finish control by 9 minutes. 

Joe Ray (Fistfull of Xanax) writes of their struggle...

Chris flatted as we entered the Ben Franklin bridge in Camden. He had used his spare tube Saturday as had I. No one else had tube that would fit. So we started pumping and he would ride ask long as it would allow then stop again. We stopped three times then on fourth he said we should go and leave him Bob’s pump. He arrived probably an hour after us, not sure exactly, each pump lasting less than the prior one. We raced like on an urban time trial but the combo of longer-distance from last control than required and stopping for tire put us over. 

 

The other team that wasn't able to complete an official flèche was Team Musette. Their plan was an audacious 500 km trip from Northampton MA to Philly in 24 hours. They almost had it, but some knee trouble in the team caused them to miss the goal by about an hour. Even so, this was an audacious effort, especially given the cold, windy conditions.

 

 

 

Water and Wind 300K Ride Report

There was plenty of water and wind for the Water and Wind 300K, along with near freezing temperatures and up to 3 inches of fresh snow in the mountains. Of 30 registered riders, 12 brave souls clipped in at the start despite these seemingly "impossible" conditions,  seven did most of the ride and five finished.

Yes, a magnificent seven did most of ride. Seemingly undaunted by cold or moisture, they donned eVent and GoreTex and clipped in. True randonneurs.  Rule-9 badasses. There names are: Michael Burns, Nigel Greene, Ben Keenan, Brad Layman, Anton Lindberg, Bryan Niederberger, and Nicolaas van Rhede van der Kloot.

And what an epic ride it was. Proving that there's no such thing as bad weather, just bad gear (and bad attitude), these magnificent seven riders exemplify what randonneuring is all about. Chapeau bas aux grands cyclistes!

 

Unfortunately, badassness and rando spirit only gets you so far. Two of our rando warriors ultimately lost the battle. Both made it about 150 miles, the equivalent of rando spitting distance from the finish, but were forced to withdraw. Anton's digestive problems became a safety hazard and Nigel's machine had a mechanical issue. Nevertheless, both had epic rides. Had their luck been a little different, they would have triumphed along with the others. 

Results of the five day-of finishers, and one volunteer prerider (Pat Gaffney, who had to stop to buy sunblock on the warm sunny day as he checked out the course),  have been posted. Please review the results and let us know if something is not quite right. The results will be submitted to RUSA after review and will become official once certified.  

Thanks to Ron Anderson and Pat Gaffney for running the start, with the help of Nick Asby.  Pat came back to help clean up after the finish, with the assistance of Ben Keenan, Nick VdK, and Anton Lindberg.

Among the magnificent finishers was recently minted randonneur Michael Burns who rode a memorable first 300K and clearly demonstrated that his rando mettle is true and strong. 

Michael Burns writes...

Water and wind and rain and snow! Looking at the conditions leading up to the ride, I told myself that I would pull the plug as soon as I wasn’t having fun. Well, the fun never stopped! I rode my pace, took what the road gave me, and grooved the whole way. I'm fortunate to have the resources and time to spend 17 hours on bike ride!

 Nigel Greene writes...

"Sometimes it snows in April"

The Wind and Water Gap 300k exceeded its name. We had wind and we had water in the form of rain, then sleet, then snow. Add to that, the Pennsylvania climbs; 10%, 12%, even 16%, so many sharp, steep climbs. And the Gaps. My legs got so tired that even the 3% grades required the easiest gear, and the patience, to keep trudging up those climbs.

Nick from Vermont and I were closely matched in pace. We often saw each other at controls and rode together for a bit.

Full rain gear, wet roads, multiple climbs, and a constant headwind made for slow progress. By the time I got to the turnaround in Delaware Gap, it was obvious that this was going to be a full value ride, at best.

Then 40 miles from the end, a mechanical led to a dilemma: do I try to botch together an uncertain solution and spend the next 3+ hours riding in the freezing dark hoping it worked or call it a day. I called it day. 148 miles and over 9000 feet of climbing in a "wintery mix" would just have to do. Overall, a few lessons learned and some Rando rust removed. Another step taken toward LEL.

Here's a picture from the Village Bakery. You can see Nick in the background and the snow on the grass.

 

Brad Layman writes...

The first sign that it was going to be more than just April showers was when the rain turned to sleet in Bucks County. And then as we climbed up Sweet Hollow Rd over Musconetcong Mountain the rain turned to snow. But we were rewarded for dealing with the cold precipitation and headwind from the north when we reached a winter wonderland in the Delaware Water Gap. It was magical scenery from Water Gap to Wind Gap, and lucky for us the pavement was too warm for snow or ice. A lot of great PA winter riding this year had me prepared with gear dialed in for this event. Eventually it stopped raining and a friendly tailwind helped me back to the finish. Two of the three editions of the Water & Wind 300 experienced extreme weather and both were unforgettable. See you at the flèche and 400! Thank you Chris, Pat, Ron, and Nick for taking care of us today. 

Nick vanderKloot writes...

Yes, water there was aplenty in all its forms and the wind made its presence known as well. It was not really a warm day either. But I happily suffer from "early onset randonesia" and just a day later I remember only the many beautiful sights: cherry blossoms contrasting with snow covered ground -like Winter not yet quite ready to give up its podium spot to Spring- ,a white streaked Delaware Water Gap, and many scenic spots along the Delaware river. Of course, I made sure I got my money's worth with more time on the bike than in the car driving down and back from VT (19hrs vs 15hrs :>). It was great riding apace with Nigel for about 150 miles. 

A huge thank you to all the volunteers (Ron, Pat, Nick A, Ben) for a perfect organization and hospitality; not to mention the very warm welcome by Chris at the finish! PA Randonneurs is the best!

Water and Wind 300K PreRide Notes *** UPDATE 1

UPDATE 1 ***

We never liked the traffic on the Rt 115 climb over Wind Gap. RBA emeritus Tom Rosenbauer suggested an alternative and we have updated the RWGPS and Cue data with this new routing. Please be sure you are using cue VERSION 6 with RWGPS data last modified 2025-04-9 21:41:42 EDT. If you are using eBrevet, make sure it has VERSION 6 route data loaded. Latest route data is available here.

Original post. ***

The course was pre-ridden by Pat Gaffney on 29 March. 

The course was found to be in good condition generally. 

 

The descent of Staats Rd at around mile 60 is the first really ripping descent. Enjoy it, but don't outrun your guardian angel. Control your speed.  Be especially alert for the fast left onto Milford Rd, which is easy to miss. There's a wooden bridge immediately at the turn that's hard to see past.  It can be slippery. And bumpy. There can be hidden oncoming traffic. Go slow.

The segment of 611 up into the Water Gap is now open to all traffic. There is only one lane. It has a timed traffic signal that alternates traffic flow. The timing is very short, so don't hesitate, ride through as quickly as possible, and be alert for oncoming traffic.  

Route 115 up and over the Wind Gap after you make the left off of Cherry Valley Rd is very busy and has a narrow shoulder.  Sometimes there's junk on the edge of the road. Stay alert. Stay focused. Be cautious. 

Although not a control, the Wawa at the 200K point in Easton is a good place to stop and fuel up for the final 100K. 

 Bonne route!