Randonneur: A cyclist who completes sanctioned long-distance bicycle events inside certain time allotments.

Official rides or "Brevets" are over preset routes and distances, and must be completed within a set time limit with check-ins at control points. Riders are expected to be self-sufficient on all rides regardless of the distance or weather (rain or shine, day or night). Randonneuring is more like rallying than racing. All riders successfully completing the course within the allocated time are eligible for awards, rather than just the front-runners. Riders are encouraged to work together — they compete against themselves and the route rather than fellow riders. The theme of randonneuring is to promote individual health, goal setting, and achievement — all within a non-competitive athletic environment.

The standard Brevet series consists of rides with distances of 200, 300, 400, 600 and 1000 kms. The standard Brevets are conducted under the rules of the world governing body — ( Brevets Randonneurs Mondiaux). Each ride in the standard series serves as a qualifier for the next longer distance. The Super Randonneur is an honor for randonneurs having done a full Brevet series of 200, 300, 400 and 600 kms in the same year.

The "Super Randonneur" is also required to qualify for the longer distance events such as:
the Rocky Mountain 1200 — a 1200K ride held every four years in British Columbia,
the Boston-Montreal-Boston - a 1200K ride held every year but the year of the PBP in Boston,
the London-Edinburgh-London - a 1400K ride held every four years in England and Scotland,
the Paris-Brest-Paris, and many others.

Personally, I completed the RM1200 in 2002, the Paris-Brest-Paris 1200 in 2003, the Great Southern Randonee 1200 in 2004, and the Last Chance Randonnee 1200 in 2005.

The time limits for the distances are as follows:
200K - 13.5 hours
300K - 20 hours
400K - 27 hours
600K - 40 hours
1000K - 75 hours
1200K - 84 or 90 hours (depending on various qualifications)

The clock starts ticking when the rider rolls off the start line and stops when the rider rolls across the finish line. All breaks (sleep, food, etc.) are included in that time. Randonneuring is really a test of endurance.

The biggest event in the world of Randonneurs is the Paris-Brest-Paris 1200 which is held every 4 years. It attracts over 4000 riders!

The longest event (I believe) in the world of Randonneurs is the RAAM (Race Across America).

And some more sites of interest:

The UK Audax site

The Australia Audax site

The Randonneuring USA site

The Ultracycling site (because Randonneuring really is "ultracycling")

Various Randonneuring links

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