How to Become a Cyclo Montagnard

To be inducted into the Cyclos Montagnards, you either complete one of the existing challenges, or design and complete a new challenge. Guidelines for appropriate challenges are:

- The ride should be challenging for an experienced and fit randonneur - roughly the
same degree of difficulty as completing Paris-Brest-Paris in "Charly Miller
time." The Charly Miller time is 56:40 for the 1227 rolling kilometres of
Paris-Brest-Paris. Such a pace is achieved by about 3% of randonneurs in
PBP.

- The ride should be at least 22 hours long.

- The course should be simple to describe, thereby inspiring cyclists to
attempt the challenge. Examples are "four highest passes" or an
out-and-back to a notable location. Triangle courses are even better because they avoid riding the same roads both ways. Roads cannot be used twice in the same direction.

- The course should include some of the finest cycling roads in the region.

When determining how much time to allocate to the challenge, it is useful to
look at the best times from brevets that might have used the route. The idea is to come up with a time that puts it on par with Charly Miller time at PBP.

Rules

Cyclos Montagnards rides are not races - we are looking for complete cyclists who not only ride hard, but also find their way and plan their provisions along the way.

To become a Cyclos Montagnard, you need to complete one of the challenges within the time limits. Please contact us before you set out on your challenge, so we can provide you with the exact rules and assure verification of your ride. (You don't have to be a randonneur or member of any cycling organization.)

Outside help is not permitted, neither from support cars nor from other riders. Riders in a group may work together, but they may not obtain drafts or other assistance from other riders who are not part of the group. No stashing of gear or supplies is permitted. All riders in a group must finish together to qualify. (No using "rabbits" who tow you for a good part of the way before dropping back.)

Any vehicle may be used for our events, provided it is powered by human power alone. This includes bicycles, trikes, recumbents, tandems, HPVs, etc.

Remaining consistent with the historic origins of these events, we discourage global position systems (GPS) and encourage riders to rely on traditional navigation tools, such as route sheets and maps.

Battery powered headlights are considered "outside assistance." They are allowed but we add a penalty of 1.5% to the time of riders who use battery-powered headlights. This levels the playing field compared to the most efficient generator hub systems available today, which slightly increase the resistance the cyclist has to overcome. This way, a rider with a battery-powered headlight has no advantage over a rider with an efficient generator-powered lighting system. (Taillights consume so little energy that battery-powered taillights are not penalized.)

Cyclos Montagnards challenges are not organized events. Every rider rides on their own, at their own risk, and with their own responsibility toward safety and adherence to local laws and regulations.