Paris Brest Paris 2011
Check-in and pre-ride activities
We arrived in Paris at the CDG airport. Perhaps the most challenging part of the PBP is logistics. After lugging the bike case around Paris in '07, we arranged to have the bike luggage picked up by Blue Marble Travel at the airport and transferred to our hotel in St. Quentin en Yvelines (SQY). The Blue Marble Travel representative arrived exactly on time and took the bike case and duffel bag to our hotel. Debby and I then boarded our train to Amsterdam at the TGV terminal located at the airport. Very easy, convenient and worth the euros to be rid of the case.
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| My faithful companion at check-in |
Our days in Amsterdam passed way too quickly and we were off to SQY for the race. We hopped aboard the Thalys high speed to Paris Nord, then took the 4 Metro line to Mt. Parnasse and a regional train to SQY. We arrived at the Hotel Mercure in SQY and retrieved our luggage. We checked into our tiny room with a funky smell and a defective air conditioner. Since the hotel was booked solid, we could not change rooms. So we opened the windows and made the best of it.
The first order of business was to assemble my bike and prepare my drop bag. This is a small duffle bag that would be picked up by Des Peres Travel (official logistics coordinator for the American Team) and transferred to the Loudeac controle point (I planned to nap at Loudeac outbound and inbound). The drop bag contained fresh kit (cycling clothes), on bike cycling food, and a few contingency items. I dropped the bag off and we went to the SQY mall to find some dinner.
My selected check-in time for the PBP was Sunday morning at 0900. I proceeded to the bike controle (safety check), collected by PBP carnet (control card that is stamped at each controle and required to complete the event), PBP jersey and reflective safety vest. There were no lines and I was back at the hotel within an hour. Deb and I took the train to Chartres for a day of sight seeing. Since this day trip involved a 1.5 hour train ride each way, it was a perfect way to do a little light touring and stay off my feet the day before the PBP.
0500 Monday - SQY to Mortagne au Perche
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| Riders lining up for the 84 hour start |
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| Your humble correspondent |
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| Bikes at the Mortange controle |
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| Race photographer caught me between storms! |
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| Volunteer directing riders to the controle |
Driving rain, thunder and lightning was the order of the day for this stage. The group thinned out substantially and I rode most of the way solo or in small groups. I became very adept at putting on and taking off my rain jacket while riding along as the rain changed from heavy to light and back. Normally the arrival at Villaines is a page out of the Tour de France with hundreds of spectators and a flurry of activity. Today, only a few people supporting riders and event volunteers.
I hopped in to the control, bought a Coke, refilled my bottles and was on my way to Fougeres.
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| It cleared just as I arrived |
The light and heavy rain conditions continued throughout this stage. I figured that 300 of the first 310 kilometers of the PBP were in the rain. It cleared just as I hit the controle, but new dark clouds were moving in. I planned to take a 60 minute break here and have a light dinner. So I checked into the controle and then rode my bike to the cafeteria. They were serving all kinds of food, I had portage (hot potato/split pea/vegetable soup), pomme frittes (french fries), and poulet (chicken leg), and a cafe (coffee). The food went down great, but as I ate a thunder cell moved in and the rain started again. Some thoughts about the rain (I noted these on my e mail update):
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| Dinner in Fougeres |
Good things about the rain:
-water bottles stay cool
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| The Restaurant in Fougeres |
-wear my clear glasses with a little distance correction, better to view the countryside
-no sunscreen
- test out the new rain gear
And the number one reason:
-won't need a shower tonight, saves a few euros!
I walked out of the controle 39 minutes after I arrived into a fresh cloudburst of rain!
1726 Monday - Fougeres to Tineniac
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| Abandon board at Tinentiac |
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| Portage and banana in Quedillac |
I left Tineniac in the rain. I hit the 'secret' controle at Quedillac and grabbed a hot porttage soup and a banana for pocket food later on. The severe weather continued with scattered thunder storms. As if on cue, a cell hit just before I rolled into Loudeac at 1:30 am and continued as I located my drop bag. I reloaded my bottles restocked my food supplies on the bike and headed off to the cafeteria for a '4 hour meal.' Since I planned to sleep, my goal was to consume as much food, primarily carbohydrates, as I could. I loaded up my plate with mashed potatoes, rice and gravy. I also added some chicken and a bowl of portage soup. I finished my meal and checked into the dormir and told the attendant to wake me in 3 hours. I was assigned a cot with a blanket. At this point, my kit was still soaking wet from the rain. I decided to slip into my dry kit for the next day, however, I had only one pair of leg warmers, and decided to sleep with them on, hoping my body heat would dry them off overnight. I slipped on the fleece shirt I stashed in my drop bag for an extra layer of warmth.
It was very noisy in the dormir so I inserted my ear plugs, and despite the cold from my wet clothes, I slept well and got in a solid 3 hours before I woke on my own, a few minutes before my assigned wake-up call. I completed getting ready, drank two Ensures (stuck one in my pocket), and headed out into the mist. At least it wasn't raining!
0545 Tuesday - Loudeac to Carhaix
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| Misty morning in St. Nicholas |
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| Bikes at Carhaix |
1000 Tuesday - Carhaix to Brest
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| Scenic Lake |
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| Roman arches on the road to Brest |
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| Brest! Still no sun! |
1515 Tuesday - Brest to Carhaix
The sun burned through the mist and fog as I rolled out of the controle in Brest. The first few kilometers were uphill through heavy traffic in downtown Brest. I was actually hot for the first time in two days! The route was easy to follow with the retour Paris directional signs and other riders up the road easily visible in their yellow PBP safety vests!
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| Church in Carhaix |
Before long we were back in the clouds on the long climb out of Brest. Somewhere along this section I ran into Rebecca and Scott from Tempe. We had ridden together on a number of the Casa Grande brevets. They are also known as members of the Extreme Picnic Society and were motoring along at a nice pace. I rode with them sharing stories of the ride so far. It was at this point that I learned that the 90 hour group that left Sunday evening had missed all the rain! The only moisture Rebecca and Scott noted was the heavy misting that fogged their glasses earlier that morning! As we reached the top of the climb I bid them farewell and stopped to put on leg and arm warmers and my rain jacket. With the temperature dropping and the long descents toward Loudeac, I figured I'd best layer up. After my quick change I was on my way.
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| St. Nicolas Controle |
The clouds thickened I was greeted with a light rain when I arrived at the St. Nicolas du Pelem controle. This controle was for rest, resturantation (food), and sleeping. It is only 33 kilometers from Loudeac. The organizers added it to the route to relieve the congestion at Loudeac. Since I had no trouble getting a bunk in Loudeac I think it served its purpose. Additionally it had a very convenient water faucet and fast bar where I could reload my SE/Coke brew and be on my way.
The last 18-20 kilometers into Loudeac seemed to go on forever. Finally I reached the top of the hill where I could see the lights of the town and knew it would be a fun descent into the controle. Here is where my Schmidt generator hub and new eDelux LED light really paid off. While other riders had to slow on the descent (very rough road) because their battery lights were dim, I could descent without touching the brakes as my light had the whole road illuminated and it was easy to see the rough spots well enough in advance to adjust my line.
I rolled into Loudeac at 1244 am and set about the same 4 hour routine as the previous night: 1-Get the bike reloaded and ready to go for the next morning. 2-Eat as much carbohydrate as possible. I added a Kronenburg beer to the menu thinking it would help me sleep, it did!. 3- Get to bed. I checked into the dormir, gave them a 3 hour wake-up time (0415) and was assigned a foam pad (actually more comfortable than the cot the previous evening) and fell fast asleep. I awoke 45 minutes AFTER my requested wake-up time!
I am a noisy sleeper (so Debby tells me) so I don’t know if the attendant nudged me to a particularly loud snore, or if they just screwed up the wake-up time. In either case, I got up, drank two Ensures, repacked my drop bag and was on the bike by 0530, about an hour later than I wanted to be on the road!
0530 Wednesday Loudeac to Tineniac
Since I was behind schedule, I didn’t grab a coffee in Loudeac, but just headed out onto the road, with daylight time in France, it was still quite dark at 0530! I chowed down several Shot Blocks (gel cubes with caffeine) that give the illusion of eating with the benefit of sugar and caffeine. That along with my witches brew of SE/Coke, I was generating nice power for early on Day 3! As the sun came up, we rolled into the next ‘secret’ controle outside Loudeac. Again it was properly situated for me, in that my bottles were nearly empty. So I reloaded them and checked into the controle and was ready to roll out when Sophie Matter rolled in. She has completed the PBP a number of times (4-5?) and was looking for a different challenge. She dressed in period clothes as a flower vendor and rode her 6-speed city bike for the PBP.
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| Sophie Matter, the Flower Girl |
I met Sophie on the Oregon Blue Mountain 1000 last year. She is a famous randonneuse who has ridden these sorts of distance events all over the world. My German friends (who you will meet later) also had met her on an event in Germany! In any case, we exchanged greetings, wished each other well, and I was on my way.
Shortly after I left the contole, I came upon Vicki from Ft. Worth. She had a Texas sign on the back of her saddlebag so I struck up a conversation. This was her first 1200 and she was moving along quite well and we shared stories about Texas and our respective children. She was very happy that Mark had spent a year at UT and was excited that Michael was considering Texas State! We chatted for some time, but as we rolled into the restaurtation controle in Quedillac she continued on and I stopped in for a bottle reload, chocolate croissant, and a banana!
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| Sun Block in Tineniac! |
Refilled, I made good time into the controle Tineniac!
1013 Wednesday Tineniac to Fougeres
1013 Wednesday Tineniac to Fougeres
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| Castle in Fougeres |
Tineniac was quite a different scene from two days ago. The sun was out, I had to roll up my leg warmers and my vest came off for the first time on the ride! I lathered up with sunscreen, reloaded my bottles, checked-in and was out of there in 15 minutes. There were many riders on the road at this time, including many teams and riders not affiliated with the PBP. I made good time passing many riders. Occasionally a ‘fast train’ would flash by and I would hop on. Unfortunately, those trains were just a little too hot for me and I would drop off. I rider from Taiwan hopped on my wheel and we ended up working together most of the way from Tineniac to Fougeres. A few riders would hop on our train, but would drop off so it was just the two of us. I think he must have weighed all of 95 pounds and was about 5’ tall. Not like the freight train draft of my Danish friend the previous day, but a solid partner that made the kilometers go by. He would grab his camera and photograph each church in village squares as we rolled through, then stow his camera and continue to hammer away!
We rolled into the town of Fougeres a little after noon, we shook hands and I dropped off to take a picture of the castle, he did too!
1234 Wednesday Fougeres to Villaines la Juhel
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| The park where I flipped my bars in 2007 |
This is the stage of truth! It was on this stage in 2007 that my neck blew out (Shermer’s Neck). Back then, it came on suddenly, a slight twinge at the controle in Fougeres, then about half-way to Villaines I could not hold my neck up without support. I ended up flipping my handlebars to be able to sit more upright. To no avail, by the time I arrived in Villaines in 2007 it was the middle of the night, and I went directly to the medical controle and spent several hours getting care and sleep before pressing on. I finished with my helmet supported by inner tubes lashed to my CamelBack harness!
What a difference 4 years makes! I motored along feeling strong the whole way from Fougeres to Villaines rolling through farm country noting the places along the way in 2007 where I stopped to fix my bars, add clothes, and generally suffer my way along. This year, I felt strong, was generating good power and my only concerns were a) finding a riding partner that could keep up and b) running out of SE mix for my power brew before reaching Paris!
What is different this year, other than I am 4 years older? The biggest difference was my preparation for this year’s PBP. My total training volume was not that much more than from 2007, but this year I engaged John Hughes as my coach to prepare an annual plan and monthly training programs. He provided detailed training plans and feedback from December 2010 to my taper for the PBP in August 2011. I had used many of John’s articles and information he has published for my preparation in 2007. I didn’t think he would take on a 52 year old randonneur as a client, but he did and I have him to thank for my structured preparation and strength on the final stages of the 2011 PBP!
John’s detailed training plans included riding of course, but also included a regime of strength training, stretching, and specific neck exercises because of my experience in 2007. So while my training volume was only slightly higher than 2007, it was clearly more specific, directed, efficient, and effective than 2007. I also had the relief of not having to prepare my training plans, but simply ride them and get feedback from John. I would highly recommend his coaching services to anyone preparing for an ultra event! Thanks John!!!
I really had no takers on the run into Villaines so I rode alone most of the way. A fast train of riders from Slovenia passed and I hopped on, but I could not hold the pace and decided to drop off.
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| Same controle different day! |
Rolling into Villaines, it was totally different than outbound! Hundreds of cheering spectators, applause, and shouts of bon route and bon courage as I rolled into the controle. An announcer was going on and on about the number of riders, where they were from, and who was entering the controle and where they were from. It felt like a page of a miniature Tour de France finish line!
As usual, I simply checked in at Villaines, refilled my bottles, purchased a Coke and left the controle to the cheers of hundreds of spectators lining the streets!
Here is a video from the controle and just outside town.
1702 Wednesday Villaines to Mortagne au Perche
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| French kids cheering on the riders! |
I left the controle and was soon riding along alone in the rolling farmland passing riders. I stopped twice, once to take a picture of some kids cheering me from the second floor of their farmhouse, and once to reload my bottles a stand a local family had put up for riders on the side of the road. They didn’t have Coke, but they did have sugar cubes, so I gladly added two each to my bottles of SE and I was on my way.
About half-way to Mortagne I caught a strong Swedish rider on a hard-tail mountain bike. At first he seemed annoyed that I caught and passed him so he hammered away but I caught him about 500 meters later and I asked if he wanted to share the work to Mortagne. He did and our energy fed off each other, with each pull we seemed to get stronger and stronger and before we knew it we were rolling into the controle in Mortange. We shook hands, he was a supported rider and went off to his camp for some hot soup. I bought two cokes, a jambone et fromage sandwich (in case I got hungry later) checked in, reloaded my bottles at the eau stand at the controle. Again I was out of there very quickly.
2028 Wednesday Mortagne au Perche to Dreux
This stage involves a lot of climbing toward Paris. Again I was passing many riders, but came upon a group that included a number of German and Swedish riders. I powered past the group, but then one of the Germans flashed by me, but slowed about 300 meters up the road. I caught him again, but again he took off. Just then another German, who had been on my wheel, introduced himself. I mentioned that his friend is going to kill himself continually attacking on this long hill. He laughed and said that his friend Johann was just tormenting one of the Swedes! We chatted and introduced ourselves (his name was Frank) I mentioned that my son had spent a year on Koeln (Cologne) Germany on exchange and that Debby and I were heading to Koeln after the ride to visit his host family. Suddenly we were fast friends and riding partners. Frank and I ended up doing most the work as we headed toward Dreux. We picked up a couple more Germans and a Spaniard as our train grew as we picked up the pace to Dreux. Before we knew it, we were rolling into the last controle before Paris!
0025 Thursday Dreux to St. Quentin
As we were making great time toward Paris, we decided to enjoy a hot meal in Dreux before continuing on. We passed on the beer, but I loaded up on potatoes, portage, and a little chicken. We were soon on our way with the lights of Paris on the horizon, but fighting the sleep monster as we all were a bit sleep deprived. How can you tell you have not had enough sleep? Mail boxes and shrubbery look like people cheering you on, until you get closer and realize they are not people at all but your mind telling you to stop and sleep!
Frank got particularly sleepy as we rolled into the villages outside Paris. I offered a caffeine pill I kept as a contingency. He took it, but he was too far gone and started to fall asleep on the bike. We stopped and agreed he would sleep 20-30 minutes, but Johann and I would continue to Paris and we would meet at the finish.
After lots of short climbs and endless villages, we finally rolled into the start/finish town on St. Quentin en Yvillennes! At about 0445 in the morning traffic was light and we rolled into the controle a few minutes before 0500, just under three days after I started! 71 hours, 51 minutes!
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| Post Ride Meal at 0500 Thursday Morning |
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| Johann, Steve, and Frank |
Johann and I checked in and proceeded to the food tent for a huge dinner and beer (at 0500). We had hoped to see Frank. Since my hotel reservation check-in was not until later that day, I went back to the controle, found a spot under a table, and feel asleep for 3 solid hours. I woke to find Johann and Frank milling around with other riders. We took pictures, exchanged phone numbers, and I exited the gymnasium, feeling strong and very happy that my room (albeit small) was ready for early check-in. I crashed for another 3 hours, woke, packed the bike and prepared for Debby’s arrival from England!
Post-ride
We traveled to Koeln on Friday to spend the weekend with Hubert and Gerlinde Fester and their family. They picked us up at the train station and literally rolled out the red carpet. We picnicked in the rain, rode bikes, toured Koeln, attended a German Mass and Village Festival, and generally chilled for two days before heading to Brugge Belgium for two more nights. We explored the town of
Brugge on foot on Sunday and the surrounding countryside on a tandem bike on Monday. Tuesday we traveled to Paris and spent the day on foot shopping and enjoying the city. Wednesday we picked up the bike at Blue Marble Travel and took a private shuttle to the CDG Airport. After a nerve-racking ride (traffic was heavy and our driver was slow) to the airport we checked in and were seated on our plane home.
Brugge on foot on Sunday and the surrounding countryside on a tandem bike on Monday. Tuesday we traveled to Paris and spent the day on foot shopping and enjoying the city. Wednesday we picked up the bike at Blue Marble Travel and took a private shuttle to the CDG Airport. After a nerve-racking ride (traffic was heavy and our driver was slow) to the airport we checked in and were seated on our plane home.
Closing thoughts
I wore my 2009 Whitney Classic Jerseys during the ride. It was a great conversation starter (if we get some entrants from Belgium next year we will know where they heard about it). One couple on a tandem asked me if the Whitney was tougher that the PBP. I said it depends. The 2007 PBP was the hardest event I ever participated in, by far more difficult than any Whitney. I can think of a number of Whitney’s that were more grueling than the 2011 PBP. This year’s PBP while rainy, had relatively mild temperatures and generally favorable winds. With my preparation, I can say that I enjoyed most of the time on the bike on this year’s PBP. Of course there were times (those seemingly endless kilometers into Loudeac and Paris) when the riding was not so joyous! In any case, the PBP is a special event like none other and I am happy that I have completed the ‘07 and ‘11 versions. Deb and I are already planning our trip for PBP 2015!
Click here for all the pictures from our trip!
A bientot!
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