Our first 200km brevet is Saturday, March 11, with a 7am check-in and 7:30am start from Market of Choice, 29th and Willamette.  Wednesday, March 8 at 7pm is cutoff for early registration discount.  Full details at the event page.

Will-rando.org web site is live

We now have a web site:  http://will-rando.org

On the site, information on our March 11 200km brevet is up, with a link to a Google form for registration.  http://will-rando.org/events/alsea200k

Early registration is up to 3 days before the ride  ($5 current RUSA members, $10 non-members); late and day-of-ride cost is $5 more.  If you want to pay by check, allow a few more days for mail.  PayPal payment is linked from the registration form.

'Nocturne' podcast on randonneuring

Oooh, this is rather nice:   http://www.nocturnepodcast.org/ep-23-proof-passage/

Potential 300k coastal loop

Chris Archibald is developing a potential 300k route that loops out to the coast.  I think we'd want to have a small out-and-back into Reedsport so that riders could stock up on food and water before the long remote section back over the coast range.  

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/16408351

Normally I'd try to put the most demanding parts of a ride in the first half, and on this ride I think the section from Reedsport to Alma is most demanding.  However, it's almost always better to ride north to south on the coast, particularly in summer, so this direction makes sense.  With a staffed control at the top of Oxbow I think it can work.  Thoughts? Suggestions? 

Werewolves of London - Perm or brevet route in development

I've been toying for a long time with a variation on Jack Fortune's "Down the Drain" 200k route suitable for riding any time of year.   This version combines Wolf Creek with London Road.

https://ridewithgps.com/routes/15492692

 I'm not wild about the last part, with a lengthy stretch of Cloverdale.  I prefer getting off Cloverdale sooner and taking back roads into Pleasant Hill (which has a Dari Mart that would serve as a good control), but that adds about 5 miles.  I could trim about that much and lose an information control by using Eagle Valley instead of Hayhurst from Drain to Yoncalla, but Hayhurst is nicer.    Other ideas?

Proposed 200k route: Alsea Loop

I have submitted to RUSA a proposal for an Alsea Loop 200k route, based closely on my Alsea Loop permanent but trimmed a little to bring it closer to 200k.  Keeping it close to the standard distance is important because the time limit for an ACP brevet is fixed and does not depend on the actual distance.  So instead of going west on Ferguson to the Long Tom Grange, this variation goes east on Ferguson to Washburn, and takes Washburn south to High Pass and Alvadore.  (Thanks to Marty Lisk for suggesting that routing.) A bonus is that we get much less of boring, flat, High Pass, and I think that stretch of Ferguson is pretty.

This is just a proposal at this point ... RUSA will review the route and may require modifications.  But given that it is a relatively minor variation on a permanent that has been used for a while, I think something pretty close to this is likely to be approved.

Link on Ride with GPS:  https://ridewithgps.com/routes/1810086

Cues: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4H7C7omet0BQ21BLXgxelZsaU0/view?usp=sharing

(Let me know if the links don't work for you)

Meeting to discuss 2017 brevet calendar

Over on our facebook group (Eugene Area Randonneurs ) there is a poll to find a good time to meet to discuss the brevet calendar for the 2017 season.  If you're not a member of the facebook group, but interested in brevets starting in the south end of the Willamette valley, you can drop me an email.  Candidate meeting times are August 27 or 28 (Sat, Sun), morning or evening; August 29 or 30 (Mon, Tue) evening.