Just for fun, I've been doing more research on the Paris-Brest-Paris this week. From what I gather, this picture perfectly captures one of the main aspects of this challenging ride. (Others aspects include: riding at night, in the rain O_O; eating lots of baguettes, even while on the bike; all the nice French people cheering you on and providing snacks/shelter throughout the countryside.
Thanks to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
wurdsome, I now know about a good midwest randonneuring series put on by the Great Lakes Randonneurs club. The PBP distance is 1200k/~746mi, which you must complete in 90 hours. To qualify for the ride, you must complete a brevet series in the same year that you want to ride the PBP. At a minimum, that series consists of 200k, 300k, 400k, and 600k rides.
PBP is run every 4 years; 2011 is the next one. Some riders recommended that you complete the brevet series the year prior to the ride as additional preparation for the PBP year. Doing the series in 2010 is a realistic goal, but not the PBP in '11, so I'm going to pencil in 2015. And if the timing doesn't work out, there are other rides, such as the BMB (Boston-Montreal-Boston), which is on a different schedule.
Chicago people, here's a cool group ride to Three Floyds brewery next weekend. I didn't realize it was that close to Chi, about 27 miles each way. Easy day tour. =)
Though I already have plans for that weekend, so I won't be able to make it.
I had the crab stick+fried rice+soda special for just over $4. Most of the lunch specials are in that price range. I want to go back, maybe for a drive, or another mini-tour with other riders.
According to a sign posted in the window of one of the downtown buildings, El Toro is adding a location in St. Joe, which is pretty cool.
( Read more... )
No rain predicted for tomorrow. If that stays true, where shall I go next?
After running some errands, I decided to ride to Philo this afternoon. The 16+ mile ride was exactly as I expected. The long rolling hills on the country roads are great for a relaxing ride or a good speed workout as well. I rode at a moderate-to-easy pace and never had to spin too fast down any of the hills. The little half mile jog on Hwy 3 is the biggest hill you encounter on that route. It took about half an hour from Meadowbrook Park. It's really not far at all! I got some Gatorade and gas station snacks at Casey's General store, ate in the parking lot, and headed home.
In the future I'll continue to ride on the country roads, Rt. 130 scares me a little bit. The back roads have much less traffic, the cars don't drive as fast, and they give you lots of room when they pass. I spent a mile on 130 on the way there and a mile on hwy 18 on the way home. You have to ride on one of these roads for the last mile into Philo. The shoulders on 130 and 18 are about 4' and 1', respectively, so it'll be 130 in the future for me, since they have about the same amount of traffic.
Also, most of the county roads south of C-U are nicely spaced at 1-mile intervals, so it's easy to calculate your pace if you don't have a cycle computer.
( a few more pics from my ride )
- Coordinates:Philo, IL
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