NEW Randonneurs Ontario Awards

Thanks to a proposal by Tim O’Callahan of the Huron Chapter, Randonneurs Ontario is now offering the following awards to its members.

THE O-12

This award goes to members who make a year-round commitment to randonneuring. In order to get this award, you must complete a club-sanctioned 200k ride for 12 consecutive months.  At least 8 of these monthly rides must be Randonneurs Ontario brevets or permanents.  If any of the 12 rides are completed outside Ontario, they must be brevets done with other ACP member clubs.

Recipients of the 0-12 will get a special badge.

ONTARIO EXPLORER

This award goes to the randonneurs who travel between chapters. Complete at least one brevet in each chapter in a calendar year and you will be designated an “Ontario Explorer.”

O-5000

This award recognizes randonneuring mileage. Complete at least 5000kms of sanctioned events within Ontario (includes populaires, permanents, brevets and flèche) in a calendar year and you will become an O-5000 hero.

These new awards show there is more than one way to have a rich and challenging randonneuring season. For the seasoned members and anciens / anciennes there are new challenges to be undertaken. For the newer members, there is a lot of potential for setting some long-term goals.

RO Flèche 2020

The flèche play park. Port Credit is the final destination for 2020. It will occur on 15 May.

This year Randonneur Ontario’s flèche event will take place on 15 May 2020 and all teams will finish their ride in Port Credit, Ontario (located between Oakville and Toronto on the Shore of Lake Ontario).

The flèche is a special event in randonneuring. It takes place early in the season, it must be a planned route of at least 360km, and it must be completed in 24hours. It’s purpose is to promote teamwork, and camaraderie in the early season.

Flèche means “arrow” and it is supposed to refer to all the teams’ routes pointing towards the common destination.

Those contemplating completing this year’s flèche should consult the club’s rules. But here are the main points

  • the route must be at least 360km and must be completed in 24 hours, starting any time between 6pm on 15 May and 10am on 16 May
  • the route must end in Port Credit, Ontario
  • the route must be approved by the brevet administrator at least two weeks before the weekend of the event (so before 1 May 2020)
  • the flèche team must consist of at least three members (but can have up to five)
  • at least three of the team members must complete the ride in order for it to be recognized

Sounds like fun. Night riding will definitely be a major factor, so make sure you have your lighting set up figured out.

I’m hoping to run a team this year. Anyone want to join me?