"Does anyone have information (starting time & place, sign-up requirements if any, cost if any) on the ""NYC/NJ-Princeton"" area brevet next Saturday? I was unable to find it on either rusa.org or njrandonneurs.com.
Thanks."
200 km brevet next Saturday?
Sun, 07/30/2006 - 12:45pm
Sun, 07/30/2006 - 1:28pm
#1
Check With Mordechai Silver
Hi Natalia,
Please check with Mordechai Silver, who leads rides for the club. He may be the organizer, and if not, he would certainly know all the details.
Best regards, Chaim
Sun, 07/30/2006 - 2:32pm
#2
It can be found on the RUSA site.
You have to use the search function:
http://www.rusa.org/cgi-bin/eventsearch_GF.pl
There you will find Laurent C's contact info.
Sun, 07/30/2006 - 3:04pm
#3
Information
Natalia,
The ride leaves from Whitehouse Station, NJ, not from NYC, as the recent populaire did. The start place is not really near the city. Dunno about any trains running nearby.
I can forward the info to you, or ask Laurent Chambard at:
njrando (AT) verizon.net
Tony
Mon, 07/31/2006 - 2:35am
#4
Information about Saturday's ride
"The Whitehouse 200k starts at 7 a.m. this Saturday, August 5, 2006, from Bagel Junction, corner of Routes 22 and 523 in Whitehouse, NJ. The ride starts at 7 a.m., so plan to get there by 6:30 a.m. to check in, get ready, etc. You can still pre-register if you hurry. Contact RBA Laurent Chambard at ""njrando at verizon dot net"" for a registration form and more information about the route. There is a NJ Transit station less than a mile away but, alas, there is no weekend service. I'm afraid driving is the only option from NYC.
The cost is $10 pre-registered, $15 on the line. Those who pre-register will get a preliminary cue sheet. The route is quite hilly, very lightly trafficed and extremely scenic. It closely resembles the middle section of the NJ 300k."
Mon, 07/31/2006 - 3:42am
#5
"""I'm afraid driving is the only option from NYC"""
Almost.
Whitehouse Station is three stops from the end of the Raritan Valley Line.
http://www.njtransit.com/images/railmap06.jpg
There is no Saturday service on that line. Unless you're driving, a realistic option is to stay out there Friday night. The last NYC-Whitehouse train leaves Friday night at 8:44PM.
Getting back is somewhat easier. Pedal 25 more miles to New Brunswick. NYC bound trains run till 1:30 AM. :)
Mon, 07/31/2006 - 10:50am
#6
Whitehouse Station 200
Natalia,
Unfortunately, njrandonneurs.com is out of date. It hasn't been updated since January. Laurent Chambard hopes to create a new website later this year.
There is no weekend service to Whitehouse Station. Even if there were, it wouldn't get you to Whitehouse early enough for a 7:00 a.m. start. (It's highly recommended that you arrive at the start before 7:00 a.m.) One option, if you don't have a car, is to take the train out there on Friday and stay overnight. You can take the train home on Saturday from Raritan, which has hourly service to Penn Station and is less than 10 miles from Whitehouse Station.
I do know of someone driving out there Saturday morning from the NYC area, but I don't know if she has room in her car. I can find out. However, since getting a good night's sleep before a brevet is important, staying in Whitehouse Station on Friday night isn't a bad idea.
I haven't done this brevet, but having done the Princeton 300, I'm familiar with most of the route. Some of the most scenic parts of the Princeton 300 are included in the Whitehouse 200. Here's Laurent's description of the route:
------------------------------------------
This event is the middle – hilly – section of the Princeton Classic 300k Brevet. This tried and tested course has been fine-tuned over the years and offers a variety of climbs, two of them being really steep.
Shortly after leaving the start riders enter a succession of scenic little lanes, and the terrain becomes gradually more hilly including some sharp stretches, the most memorable being Ryan Rd and its 20% gradient.
Somehow terrain eases a bit before Hackettstown, before getting more vertical again as Randonneurs approach Blairstown where a light snack and drink may come handy to revive riders for the few tough miles leading to the main control at the Dark Moon Tavern. Having food there is a good idea just before tackling Jenny Jump State Forest and its famously steep climb.
After that the terrain eases a bit and allows to gain spare time in-between the climbs, but riders will nevertheless be looking forward to the water stop in Hacklebarney State Park to refresh and rest a bit after this long stage.
The last few miles back to Whitehouse Station are nice and easy, and while not quite downhill all the way it’s pretty darn close.
It is strongly recommended to bring very low gears on this event, for coping with the two steepest hills without digging too deep in energy reserves. Some of the climbs will be exposed and steep, so do pay special attention to rehydration. Don’t forget to take the time to enjoy the wonderful scenery on offer on much of the route.
Stage 1: Whitehouse Station – Blairstown (closes 12h56am)
55 miles. Hilly-ish. Refreshments at controle from commercial establishment
Stage 2: Blairstown – Jenny Jump (closes 13h32)
6 miles. Hilly. Refreshments at controle by commercial establishment
Stage 3: Jenny Jump – Hacklebarney State Par (closes 19h00)
52 miles – Hilly-ish. Refreshments at controle from commercial establishment
Stage 4: Hacklebarney - Whitehouse Station (closes 20h32)
14 miles – Rolling. Refreshments at controle from commercial establishment
Tue, 08/01/2006 - 7:43am
#7
Eight hotels/motels within 5 mi. of brevet start
There are eight hotels or motels within 5 miles of the brevet starting location. Cut and paste below link into your browser:
http://www.google.com/maps?hl=en&lr=&q=hotel&near=Whitehouse,+NJ+08888&s...
Plenty of train service to Whitehouse Friday night. Last train arrives 3:08 a.m. Saturday (leaves NYC at 1:41 a.m. with a change in Newark, though). All trips from NYC on the Raritan Valley line involve changing trains at Newark.
Thu, 08/03/2006 - 7:11pm
#8
I'm on.
If anyone wants to hook up, email me.
soupstone-at-mindspring-dot-com
I'm taking the Friday 8:44 PM out to Whitehouse Station and spending the night. Or meet me at the start at 7:00 AM.
Sun, 08/06/2006 - 2:27am
#9
How'd it go?
Any ride reports? It was a pretty nice day for a ride.
Sun, 08/06/2006 - 4:37pm
#10
yesterday's 200k
"I't was better than a pretty nice day, Tony! Started out cool, and even during the midday heat, there was a nice soft breeze. Route was rural, pastoral in parts. Quaint quiet towns. ""Rolling hills"" mainly rolled upwards, while the steep hills were relatively short, but plenty! I don't know what the total elevation gain was, but I'm sure my more experienced and better-equipped co-riders know and I hope they chime in...
"
Sun, 08/06/2006 - 6:20pm
#11
elevation gain
128 miles, 9000 feet
I found this route to be much more challenging than the Princeton 200K.
The route was gorgeous and practically traffic-free. Ellen Jaffe and I rode most of the route together. Other than Grace & Ellen, I don't know if there were any other NYCC members participating.
Sun, 08/06/2006 - 9:04pm
#12
Maybe next time
Had to work late on Friday night so gave it a miss this time. Thanks for the info, though.
Today was gorgeous weather too. Hopefully it'll stay for a while.
Mon, 08/07/2006 - 6:04am
#13
Here's the blow-by-blow from Laurent Chambord, organizer extraordinaire:
It seems that the generous sacrifices we have made to the weather gods last Spring are eventually paying back. For the third time running we enjoyed excellent cycling weather on a NJ/NYC Brevet. We could have done with 10 degrees F lower, but heat was nowhere near as bad as what we had suffered just a few days before.
Unsurprisingly, riders had been watching the sky before deciding to commit to the Brevet. A late rally of entries and a few more entries on the line saw 18 riders at the start, two of them a bit later than others as a result of their 50 miles warm-up ride all the way from Pennsylvania.
Jersey Shore, Central Jersey, NYCC and DC Randonneurs were represented by several riders, and so was the 'Pennsylvania Express' as this trio of Randonneurs is known - their two representatives exbibiting this time superb Fireweed finishers jerseys just back from Alaska. The field included first-time Brevet riders, first-time 200k Randonneurs, three entrants to BMB later this month, five ladies, and a good few survivors of the deluge experienced on the very same route back in April on the Princeton 300.
Len Zawodniak had social duties later on the day preventing him to ride the event, but he nevertheless decided to show up at the start so to meet riders, and then see them again at the mid-point controle. It was nice to see you Len, and we look forward to having you again on your bike.
Randonneurs made short work of the seriously hilly two first stages leading to Jenny Jump. With the route offering a lot of shade, little lanes were truly beautiful and enjoyable and all riders had a large grin as they rolled into Dark Moon Tavern for a meal and rest. By that time Brian Hafner had defeated his smaller chainring by shearing the studs fixing the ring to the plate, but it takes more than that to stop this inventive Randonneur and the faulty ring was promptly secured by way of a few zip-ties. Brian was adamant that the fault comes from lousy studs. We rather think he is just too powerful...
Jenny Jump took its usual toll on the reserves of energy, and a few riders were seen a bit later relaxing those legs with a little walk. While driving the course I missed a turn by jumping an instruction, and half a mile further on could see three riders steaming ahead and well on their way to some troubles! Pass, turn-around, drive-back, and shout got them back on the right way. They spent the rest of the ride wondering how the hell the RBA could have known they were getting off-course precisely there and then! Yes folks, RBAs do enjoy a few supernatural powers...
The instructions to Hacklebarney State Park proved apparently more explicit than on the 300, with nobody struggling to find the place. Much to my surprise I did not even receive any complaint about the last Information Controle just 1.4 miles from the finish - you guys and gals have been good to the organizer. You have been good cyclists too, with all starters finishing on time! You see you don't need this granny chainring, Brian!
Riders commented at the finish that this was a tough ride, with approximately 9000 feet registered on average on altimeters, but everybody was (rightly) full of praises for the beauty of the route. If you want to see it even better, come back next April when all of New Jersey is in full bloom!
Details of the results are as follows. Riders listed by order of registration.
DNS
Joe COPPOLA
Joe's spouse Laury commented that the lure of the kayak had been stronger for Joe than the appeal of the road. We look forward to seeing you on a next Brevet Joe, you may transfer your DNS entry fee to either of the two events we will still be running this year.
DNF
None!
It is the first time this year that we are achieving a 100% finishing rate. Given the demanding nature of the course, this is
