Hi,

Many thanks to the MIT riders who came out today for the Latke 200.  Unfortuantely I’m not able to report who showed up because the group I was in got separated from the group that had the MIT riders in it.  However, Brian Leier and Chris Harrington (MB Randonneurs) reported having a great time riding with MIT.  I suspect David Ford and David Crass (?) from FOG also had a fun time.

The weather held up very well today, and we “threaded the needle” between some thunderstorms on the way back.  Traffic was o.k., with only a couple of ranters on the road north of St. Adolphe (desptie single file riding – will that ever change??).  Nice Hardware store/food stop in Keefeld that we’ll have to work into the routes more often.  I finished at about 5:00 with the pack of slower riders (10 hours), just before the rain came tumbling down in Winnipeg.

The real disappointment was in La Broquerie – Cindy’s was no longer serving Potato Latkes!!   Oh, how we lamented that!  In the middle of the night during the 600 Rand ride, we were craving and dreaming of those Latkes.  Looks like Cindy’s is up for sale too.   We’ll have to mine the MIT Chatter board for more ideas of where to partake of some excellent food for these long rides.  Gas station rations just don’t cut it.

Today was the last of the Randonneur rides for this season.  Next spring a revised event schedule (not race schedule) will be posted to the cycling.mb.ca website.  We’ll start with the “Populaire” series which build from about 50k rides up to the first Randonee of 200.  Next season should be a bit more interesting as riders start thinking more about what kind of preparation will be needed for Paris-Brest-Paris (1200km) in 2011.  Of course, MIT is welcome anytime!

Enjoy the fall riding,

Jason Carter

Hello MIT,

I’m not sure if this is the correct place to contact you, but I’ll try here anyway.

I’m one of the Manitoba Randonneurs.  We ran into a few of your riders in La Broquerie, at Cindy’s, in July.  We doddled and then chased, but with the tail wind, you were too fast as you went into Steinbach.

The last Brevet for the season will be in your area – a 200km loop starting on the south end of Winnipeg and going out to Marchand at its furtherest point.  We’re calling it the Latke 200 due to the fabulous potato latke’s at Cindy’s which we plan to devour in copious amoutns.  I thought that some of the MIT riders might like to come along, or join in along the way.  Below is the event notice that we’ve been handing out to various groups (FOG, Muddy Waters, Tribe, Triumph, etc.) – sorry for the length and formatting – I don’t know how to do attachments on this program.

Cheers,

Jason Carter

______________________ 

The Latke 200

Randonnée Brevet de 200 km

organized by

The MANITOBA RANDONNEURS

in

South East Manitoba

SATURDAY, September 6  – 7:00 a.m.

START:   Shell Gas Bar- Pembina Hwy.  and Perimeter (south)

TIME LIMIT:  13.5 hours – loop route

HOW DOES A “RANDONNEE” WORK?

Randonnée means a “long journey”.  Brevet refers to the card a participant carries.  So route cards and maps are handed up to 15 minutes prior to the start.  Please arrive early to ensure cards and last minute instructions can be provided before the start time.  Riders take their route cards to a business (a “control”) in the designated towns to get it date and time stamped. Upon completion, riders give, mail or drop off the card (within 2 days) to event coordinator:

Brian Leier – Manitoba Randonneurs

56 Evesham Key

Winnipeg  R3R 3H5

Brian will send the completed cards to Paris for certification.  Medals will be sent back from the worldwide certifying organization, Les Randonneur Modiaux.  The Manitoba Randonneurs will distribute the medals likely some time in October.

COST:

$10.00 for non-members of Manitoba Randonneurs.   The fee includes a finisher’s medal for those who get their cards certified.

REGISTRATION:

Please zap an email to notify Brian that you will be coming:  leier@mts.net

RULES:

All rides start on time – rain, snow or shine – prepare for the worst, hope for the best.

The ride is not a race.  A randonnée is a test of endurance, self-sufficiency and bicycle touring skills.  You may ride in a pack, on a tandem or be entirely solo – but the objective is to finish within the specified time limit (calculated for a comfortable pace). 

If you arrive prior to the control open time, you must wait for the time before proceeding.  If you arrive after the close time, your ride will not be certified. The cards must be fully completed at the controls.

No route support!  You must be prepared to take care of your own needs (cash, clothes, food, lucky charm) on the bike or purchase at the controls.

Waivers must be signed prior to the event start.

REQUIRED EQUIPMENT: CSA, ANSI or Snell approved helmet. Carry proper identification at all times.

ROUTE:

Here is a link to the route map: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=31824

A complete route map will be handed out at the start.  Here are the controls:

LINKS:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brevet_%28cycling%29