PA Dutch ACP 200k Update - 50 deg F???

30 Dec Current Riders Status:

As of noon Thursday, we have thirteen riders confirmed for Saturday's start:

Jon CLAMP

Matt FARRELL

Joe FILLIP

Bill FISCHER

John "F.W." FUOCO

Nigel GREENE

Doug HALUZA

Guy HARRIS

Don JAGEL

George METZLER

Patrick O'DONNELL

Althea Grace PINEDA

Bill RUSSELL

Listed as possibles are:

Andrew MEAD

Tom ROSENBAUER

...both still thawing-out from last January's adventure

Course Volunteers:

Mark Kaufman will be attending to Lancaster operations at Columbia and Lititz, and Ron & Barb Anderson assisting me with the "Berks works".

Additional Route Pics:

Possibly reaching 50 deg F this Saturday? For a flashback of last year's festivities, check out:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rick_carpenter/sets/72157623111059628/

and

http://www.flickr.com/photos/rick_carpenter/sets/72157623147276444/

Hope to see you in the New Year,

Rick

Oh, a few other things to ponder...

the Coveted "Hill Slug" Award Challenge

For those considering taking-up this particularly difficult challenge in the New Year, here is the post describing the history-making record showing of last January:

http://parandonneurs.blogspot.com/2010/01/schuykill-to-susquehanna-pa-dutch.html

Have at-it, if you dare...

Brevet Cards & Cues

As this is a 'free ride', I will only have a limited number of spare, unassigned Controle Cards and Cue Sheets available on a first-come, first-served basis.

To assure that you have a Controle Card reserved in your name, notify me BY NOON THURSDAY at rexycarpenter@gmail.com of your intention to post Saturday morning. Also, remember to print & bring with you your personal copy of the cues from the PA Rando site link; if you cannot do this, again contact me by noon Thursday and I will reserve a copy for you.

Ciao,

Riccardo

PA Dutch 200k - Jan 1 R-12

Details for the January 1,2011 PA Dutch 200k have been posted at:
http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/R12ClubJan2.html
Organizer Rick Carpenter, and fellow PA Randonneur Mark Kaufman recently completed a check-out ride.  RIck posted a brief report and some pictures at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rick_carpenter/sets/72157625520157729/

In order to celebrate the start of the 2011 season, there is no registration fee for this ride (although a current club membership is still required). 

As noted on the event page, there is a diner near the start/finish to meet and top-off before you clip-in. And our organizer, Rick Carpenter, will be hosting a post-ride gathering at his house.

So far, I heard from the following riders planning to start off the New Year by clipping-in for this event:
-Rick Carpenter (organizer)
-Mark Kaufman (volunteer)
-Doug Haluza
-Guy Harris
-Don Jagel
-George Metzler
...If you're planning to join us as well, send an e-mail confirmation to organizer Rick Carpenter:
rexycarpenter@gmail.com

2010 Recap

December 2010

A summary of the 2010 results for the Eastern PA region has been posted at:

http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/Results2010.pdf

Congratulations on all those hard-earned brevets -- collectively, we officially tallied 104,510 Km in completed brevets.  For the second year in a row, those results pushed the Eastern PA region to over 1000 points in the RUSA standings, one of only a handful of regions to do so. Thank you for clipping in and being a part of that success.  But of course, none of those brevets would've been possible, if not for all the volunteers who stepped up and helped out:

- Ron Anderson (PA1000 overnight controle)

- Dan Barbasch (PA1000 overnight controle)

- Rick Carpenter (Advisor, R-12 organizer, PA Fleche, PA600 preride & overnight controle, PA150/200 BBQ)

- Carrie Clamp (PA200k BBQ, PA400)

- Jud Hand (PA150/200 BBQ)

- Guy Harris (PA1000 course sweep & overnight controles)

- Bill Fischer (Scouting)

- Don Jagel (R-12)

- Jim Logan (PA1000 overnight controles)

- Andrew Mead (Advisor, R-12 organizer)

- George Metzler (R-12 controle)

- Maile Neel (R-12)

- Bill Olsen (Advisor, R-12 organizer)

- Curtis Palmer (R-12)

- Bill Slabonik (PA 200/300)

- Gilbert Torres (PA1000 finish)

- Christine Torres (PA1000 finish)

- Len Zawodniak (R-12, PA600 overnight controle)

The Eastern PA volunteers can attest to the fact that rider safety is the primary concern for each event.  But despite all the safety precautions, this year there was a sobering reminder of the risks inherent in our sport: George Swain was severely injured by a distracted driver who hit him from behind.  Thankfully, George is now back on his feet and is hopeful of a complete recovery.  You can follow along on George's road to recovery and deliver your get well-wishes at his blog: 

http://thehudsonvalleyrandonneur.blogspot.com/

As George writes in his inspirational blog, randonneuring is one outlet to explore "…what is humanly possible."  This year, a number of riders completed many notable accomplishments -- too many to list completely -- but some selected ones I'd like to share with you include:

- Ixsa Gollihur officially completing her first brevet, despite coming up a bit short on three previous occasions (including her very first brevet, which was the infamous January R-12 event with 40+ MPH winds and temperatures in the teens).

- Daniel Aaron, Cecilie Adams, Dan Barbasch, Jonathan Clamp, Ed Dodd, Patrick Gaffney, Judson Hand, Don Jagel, Eric Keller, and Bill Olsen are all Eastern PA Super Randonneurs -- Well Done!

- Several riders completed their R-12 series.  Of note, Mark Kaufman book-ended his R-12 with a pair of Eastern PA events: his very first brevet ever was the snowy R-12 December event in 2009, which until the following January, had set the mark for epic winter conditions.  He joins Eric Keller as one of the few riders to earn an R-12 starting with their very first brevet ever.  And yours truly, completed a hard-earned Eastern PA R-12 series that included January's tough winter conditions -- thanks to fellow riders Andrew Mead and Len Zawodniak for helping me finish that one!

- Don Jagel tallied the highest number of Eastern PA kilometers with 4500, just nipping Bill Olsen by a mere 240k … probably because Bill opted to ride a 1200k somewhere instead of a PA event!  Don participated in all but 2 events on the Eastern PA 2010 schedule: January's R-12 and the Fleche.

- Jud Hand, Guy Harris, and Bill Olsen have the distinction of completing a PA-5000, which consists of the following Eastern PA events: PA SR series, Endless Mountains 1240k and 1000k, a Fleche, and 900k in other PA brevets, all within a 4-year period.  Jud Hand and Bill Olsen have the further distinction of earning their PA-5000 within a 12-month period.

For 2011, it will be a very busy year with PBP and several domestic 1200k's to choose from.  The Eastern PA region will be offering many brevets for qualification and preparation including two complete SR series. In addition to a regularly scheduled SR series, a second one is being offered in a compressed “brevet week” format.  But we need some new volunteers to step up and take their turn at the front (and perhaps allow some of the regular volunteers to sit-in for a while). 

-Tom Rosenbauer

Eastern PA RBA

Le Retour du Stillwater 200k: Preliminary Results & Ride Report

Preliminary results for the Dec. 4 Le Retour du Stillwater 200k have been posted at:

http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/PA200k_Results101204.pdf

... please let me know of any corrections or other issues.  Results will be sent to RUSA later this week, and then become final, pending RUSA approval.

Temperatures at the start were around 28F.  The "Mostly Sunny" weather forecast did not materialize..instead, it was a decidedly mostly cloudy day, with a brisk northwest wind making the mid 30F's feel much chillier.  But the few times the sun manage to poke through the clouds was very welcome.  And for the 3rd year in a row, we had some snow for the December event -- although the brief snow showers were hardly comparable to the epic all-day snow storm from last December:
http://www.njrando.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=443#p1451

28 of the 28 starters made it around the course within the time limit, for another 100% completion ... congratulations to all the riders, for this excellent result.  Depending upon how many finishers the LA region had for their December 200k dart, the PA region just might nip them and move into 7th place in RUSA points:
http://www.rusa.org/points.html
At any rate, the 1000+ RUSA points racked up by Eastern PA riders is an excellent result, and a milestone that only a handful of regions reach -- well done, and thanks for being a part of this success!

Of note, Ron and Barbara Anderson completed another R-12 -- well done!  Alan Blanchette also officially completed an R-12, although he actually completed rides for 13 months in a row.  His first event was a permanent last December, that was not officially recognized, due to a misplaced brevet card.

Also of note, Kieran White completed his first Eastern PA brevet and John Silkowski completed his very first brevet, ever.  In doing so, John proved once again, that being a strong, fast rider helps compensate for other shortcomings, including no cue sheet and flat lander gears!  John was highly motivated to mash those big gears up the many short, steep climbs, in order to hang with riding partners, Walt Pettigrew and Jon Levitt (who he counted on to lead the way).

George Metzler writes: "...I thoroughly enjoyed the ride today.  The route was well designed and the cue sheet was top notch. After the long (but gentle) climb up Tunnel Road, John Fuoco and I had a blast on the fast and scenic descent down Sweet Hollow Rd..."

Don Jagel writes: "...Thanks for putting together the brevet yesterday. The Stillwater route works just as well in the reverse direction.  The Pizzeria in Milford is a good controle in the reverse direction, allowing
for a good place to warm up and a quick replenishing of the fuel supplies before the final leg back to Portland.  There was even a brief snow flurry just to make it really feel like December...." 

Special thanks to Bill Olsen, for organizing the event and also to Jon Clamp, for leading the way with the sign-in sheets.

If you have any other comments, stories, or pictures to share, you can forward them to me.

This concludes the 2010 Eastern PA brevet season...validated brevet cards and a season recap will be going out in the mail over the coming weeks.  Happy holidays, and hope to see you clipping in again in 2011, for a busy PBP year of brevets. The 2011 brevet calender kicks off with the traditional PA Dutch 200k on 1-1-11, organized by Rick Carpenter.  

December R-12: Le Retour du Stillwater 200k

*** Update #1 (11/30) ***
The cuesheet has been updated to draft 2, dated 11/28/10, with several minor corrections and clarifications from a scouting trip.  This is most likely the final draft.  Current forecast looks at least dry, but some chilly temperatures and strong northwest winds appear to be on tap.  Those winds should speed our way on the Lafayette to Milford leg.  And with a bit of luck, the winds might start abating as we head back north in the later part of the afternoon.


Course notes:
Mile 1.3: As noted on the cuesheet, please watch for fast traffic on your right as you merge with Rt 94 North.
Mile 15.9: The Stillwater General store is off course, ~0.2 miles to the right -- if you need a hot drink to warm up, this would be a good option.
Mile 17.6 (Controle 2): This is an information controle that happens to be at a post office (answer the question that will be listed on your brevet card).  The post office will probably be open, if you need to get warmed up, but there are no services available.   As you approach this controle, you will actually see the words "Robins General Store" painted on the outside of the building (as indicated on the cuesheet).  But the general store is long gone, and has now been converted into a post office.  Be sure to bring a pencil along, to record your answer.  Please note that this controle is un-timed, so if you get a mechanical or are delayed at the start, you have until controle 3 at mile 29.9 to make up some time.
Mile 25.3: As noted on the cuesheet, this is a steep twisty descent, with two 1-lane bridges at the bottom that might have on-coming traffic.  Please take extra care through this area.
Mile 29.9 (Controle 3): The hot chocolate w/whipped cream and pies are highly recommended.
Mile 124.3 (Controle 6): As you approach Portland near the end, you will be passing the Portland Park N' Ride (where you will be parking your car).  The Park N' Ride is the official end of the brevet and is listed at the final controle.  So you can stop there, and load your bike in your car.  However, you need to then drive the remaining 0.4 miles back to the Portland Diner and get your card signed at the cashier.  There will also be a final sign-in sheet at the cashier to record your time (use your arrival time at the Park N RIde) and leave your brevet card in the envelope there as well.


There will be sign-in sheets at controle #4 (Great Meadows) and controle #5 (Milford) ... please remember to initial these and record your time.  


*** Original Post ***
The December R-12 is on Saturday, December 4th. The website has been recently updated with draft 1 of the cuesheet. We'll be running the same course as the November R-12 in the reverse direction: Le Retour du Stillwater 200k. The November event was certainly a well documented event; the ride report:
http://parandonneurs.blogspot.com/2010/11/stillwater-200k-preliminary-results-and.html
... has links to ride reports and photo albums.

The start/finish is at the Portland diner, where you can top-off with a good breakfast and finish with a post-ride gathering. Please note that the parking is at the Park N' Ride lot, 0.3 miles from the start:
http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/PortlandParking.pdf

Lights and reflective gear will be checked. Be sure to check back on the PA message board for any updates ... the cuesheet will likely be updated after an upcoming course checkout.

I've already heard from a couple of riders planning to clip-in. If you're planning to join us too, send a note to ride organizer Bill Olsen: randonnerd@gmail.com

-Tom Rosenbauer
Eastern PA RBA

*** Rider List (as of 12/3) ***
Barb Anderson
Ron Anderson
Michael Anderson
Al Blanchette
Jon Clamp
Bob Dye
John Fuco
Ixsa Gollihur
Houston Joost
Mark Kaufman
Joe Kratovil
Robin Landis
Jonathan Levitt
Andrew Mead
George Metzler
Christine Newman
Bill Olsen (Organizer)
Ed Pavelka
Bill  Reagan
Tom Rosenbauer (RBA)
Paul Shapiro
John Silkowski
Kieran White
Len Zawodniak

Stillwater 200k Preliminary Results and Report

Preliminary results for the Nov. 6 Stillwater 200k have been posted at:
http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/PA200k_Results101106.pdf
... please let me know of any corrections or other issues.  Results will be sent to RUSA later this week, and then become final, pending RUSA approval.

The mid-30F's at the start were a bit warmer than forecasted.  The bright early morning sunshine made for a spectacular run down the Delaware River, with the mist and fog making quite sight to behold.  I saw at least one photographer along the way, capturing the moment.  It truly was a wonderful time to be out on the bike and enjoy the last remnants of fall -- one of my favorite time of the year.  The clouds moved in shortly after midday, and along with the stiff northwest wind, the afternoon actually felt colder than the morning.  The hot chocolate at the Millside Cafe really hit the spot (I think it was one part whipped cream to one part hot chocolate).  And special thanks to Len Zawodniak for recommending the pecan pie -- that really hit the spot.  And thanks also, to Don Jagel for leading the way with the sign-in sheets.

24 of the 24 starters made it around the course within the time limit, for another 100% completion ... congratulations to all the riders, for this excellent result.  Of note, Ixsa Gollihur recorded her first official Eastern PA completion, after coming up a bit short on 3 previous tries (one of which was the infamously cold and windy brevet this past January).  It certainly was a hard earned result, riding mostly solo all day through the head winds and a couple of hours of night riding in unfamiliar terrain.  Well done Ixsa!

Also of note, Mark Kaufman completed his R-12 series.  Mark joins Eric Keller in what has to be a very exclusive club: an R-12 series that starts with one's very first brevet.  And in Mark's case, his first R-12 event last December, was the infamously snowy one, that until January's ride, had set the standard for "Epic Winter Conditions" on the Eastern PA series.  As Mark said after that one, 'the rest should be easy, after that!'  Well done Mark!

First finisher's Rick Carpenter and Bill Fischer got around in 8:35, with Rick again riding his fixed-gear bike.  Rick writes: "...A uniquely enjoyable route through NW NJ; particularly the latter portion from Great Meadows to Columbia. Oh, and you earned my heartfelt  gratitude in excluding "The Finest Pizza Money Can Buy" - nicely done... "  Rick is of course, referring to 'Louie's Pizza', used as a controle in Great Meadows on previous events:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rick_carpenter/3462644404/in/set-72157617125699458/

Peter Phillips is now 2 for 2 with yet another broken chain (will he perhaps go for a 3-peat?).  Having inadvertently left his chain repair at home, Peter fortunately had St. Bill Olsen behind him, our local "patron saint of on-the-road bike repairs".  Bill luckily had a campy pin among his spare parts.

The DC area tandem team piloted by Ed Felker and stoker Mary Gersema were pleasantly surprised to find a "Tandem Friendly" course, after all the challenging climbs they faced this past summer on the Endless Mountains 1000k.  And fellow rider Paul Shapiro noted that the course went near some of the toughest climbs in the area -- Lommasson's Glen, Rt 519 (into Milford), Adamic, Bellis, Iron Bridge, and Millbrook to name a few. Ed has posted a great ride report (along with pictures) at:
http://thedailyrandonneur.wordpress.com/2010/11/07/pa-randonneurs-stillwater-200k-friendly-to-tandems-and-visitors-alike/
... and be sure to check out Mary's excellent blog and pictures at:
http://chasingmailboxes.wordpress.com/2010/11/07/pennsylvania-randonneurs-stillwater-200k/
Between Ed and Mary, this was one well documented ride!
Fellow DC randonneur, Lane Giardina writes: "...Thanks again for yesterday's great ride.  It was a lovely route shared with a really nice group of riders....".

-- Thanks! It's always a real pleasure when the DC folks come up for a visit.

If you have any other comments, stories, or pictures to share, you can forward them to me.

Next up, is "Le Retour du Stillwater 200k" on December 4, which wraps up the 2010 brevet season.  This is basically the same course as the Stillwater 200k, but in the reverse direction (clockwise) heading to Stillwater first.

November R-12: Stillwater 200k

*** Update #3 (11/2) ***
A GPS file is available from Ed Felker (Thanks Ed!) ... if you would like a copy, send me a note, and I'll put you in touch with him.  Of course, the usual disclaimer applies, that the GPS route is a supplemental aid to navigation, and that the posted cuesheet is the official route.

*** Update #2 (10/31) ***
The Crista Format of the cuesheet was revised on 10/31 to correct for a formatting error (the right hand column on page 2 did not print correctly).

*** Update #1 (10/30) ***
The cuesheet and map/profile have been updated on 10/30 (draft 5) with several route tweaks for quieter side roads, and controle changes in Milford and Lafayette -- both of which are worthy of "Crista Approval".  The Millside Cafe in Lafayette has plenty of seating inside and some tables outside as well.  But if get your meal "to go", there is a very nice park right behind the cafe.  If you follow the stream about 50 yards, there's a gazebo with tables which would also be a really nice area to dine.

In consideration of the DC-area folks clipping in with us, an alternate "Crista Format" cuesheet has been posted, along with the original "PA Format" cuesheet.  The Crista format has the advantage of being more compact and easier to fold.

Some course notes:
- As noted on the cuesheet, bikes must be walked across the Delaware River bridge into Belvidere.
- If you need to replenish your supplies before controle #2 (40 mile segment), there are good options in Belvidere and Stewartsville.
- The entrance to the Milford Bakery is on the right, around back.
- There are convenience stores in Milford, if you don't find what you need at the bakery.
- Mile 119.8: Last time, several riders missed this turn and logged some bonus miles. A different "spotting cue" is in the current cuesheet -- we'll see if this one helps or not. Note that the new cue has the abbreviation "LMR" which stands for "Leaving Main Road".  In this particular case, the main road (with double yellow lines) will bend left up a hill.  You need to take slight bear right (almost straight) which takes you off the main road down a smaller side road with no lines (and no hill!).  There is also a hard right here, but currently, there is some road construction and that road is closed.  So another thing to look for is the road construction.  The cuesheet has another spotting cue: "Low Culvert" which is a sign posted at the turn in question.
- There are couple of left turns on roads with fast traffic at miles: 87.1 (Rt 206), 94.4 (Rt 94), 97.4 (Rt 206).  In general, the course has very quiet roads, but please take extra caution on these few, short busy stretches.

The list of riders has been updated -- if you're planning to join in, just drop me a note. Be sure to monitor the message board for any other updates.  And most importantly, be sure to have a Safe Ride!

*** Original Post ***
The November R-12 is next week on Saturday, the 6th.  The website has been recently updated to reflect the route change: we'll be running the Stillwater 200k (instead of the previously announced PA 204k).  We ran the inaugural edition this past February.  I'll be posting an updated cuesheet with some route tweaks -- mainly to use some quieter side roads instead of the main roads we used for the winter conditions we had last February.  And with the reopening of the Milford Bakery, we'll be making a controle stop there.  The Milford Bakery has relocated down the street at the old RR station, right next to the Delaware River bridge.  The baked goods and coffee are still great and the facilities have been greatly improved -- definitely worthy of 'Crista Approval'!

The start/finish is at the Portland diner, where you can top-off with a good breakfast and finish with a post-ride gathering.  Please note that the parking is at the Park N' Ride lot, 0.3 miles from the start:
http://users.rcn.com/trosenbauer/PortlandParking.pdf

Lights and reflective gear will be checked.

I've already heard from a number of riders planning to clip-in, including a good contingent from the DC area.  If you're planning to join us too, drop me a note.

-Tom Rosenbauer
Eastern PA RBA

*** Rider List (as of 11/5) ***
Barbara Anderson
Ron Anderson
Rick Carpenter
Dawn Engstrom
Ed Felker (DC Randonneurs)
Bill Fischer
Mary Gersema (DC Randonneurs)
Lane Giardina (DC Randonneurs)
Ixsa Gollihur
Guy Harris
Don Jagel
Houston Joost
Mark Kaufman
Eric Keller
Jonathan Levitt
Bill Olsen
Ed Pavelka
Walter Pettigrew
Peter Phillips
Bill Reagan
Tom Rosenbauer (Organizer)
Paul Shapiro
Keith Spangler
Bill Slabonik
Len Zawodniak