'Biking far with friends': Minnesota Randonneurs take 745-mile ride through France
This weekend, 15 members of a Minnesota cycling group will be in France riding in the oldest long-distance road cycling event in the world: The Paris-Brest-Paris. And it’s not a race — it’s a journey.
It’s about 745 miles from Paris to Brest in Brittany and back again. Cyclists need to complete the course in 80 to 90 hours. It’s a test of endurance held every four years.
Chris Carlson, president of the Minnesota Randonneurs, joined Morning Edition by phone from France, ahead of the Sunday event. He said randonneuring isn’t about competition.
“That’s what’s fun about it, we tend to say it’s biking far with friends,” Carlson said. “It actually goes back to the beginning in the 1890s. A lot of people were biking for a living, if you can believe it. And some people got sick of racing … and they just wanted to do it for fun.”
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And that’s how in 1891 the Paris-Brest-Paris was born.
“That kind of was the beginning of the randonneurs, which is a funny word,” Carlson said. “Some people call us ‘random nerds.’ And it’s just a bunch of people having a good time back and forth.”
While it’s not a competition, the challenge and team spirit of the endeavor is what drew Carlson in for his first Paris-Brest-Paris attempt. Others in his group have completed the event five times.
“I think that it’s pretty amazing what you can do when you’re with people who are rooting with you,” Carlson reflected. “When I started, I could barely do 30 to 40 miles at a time. But the more I rode with the local chapter, the more I was amazed at what I could do — 200 to 300 miles at one go. It’s amazing.”
Training is “just” riding your bike, according to Carlson. But for an hour on weekdays and six-to-eight hours on weekends.
The hundreds of miles through the French countryside are social yet isolating at the same time, Carlson said.
“I think the mental component is one of the biggest factors. There’s obviously a physical threshold that you have to cross. But beyond that, it is dealing with the repetition,” he said. “It’s knowing when to reach out to others just to talk.”
“I was on a ride once when someone said, ‘Hey, I’m falling asleep. Can you talk to me?’ And that’s what we did.”
In addition to conversation, music and audiobooks fill the hours of pedaling.
“It’s a great problem to have, to have so much time,” Carlson said. “The world is so fast-paced, but when you’re on your bike for 90 hours, there’s a lot of thinking to get done.”
Biking back home has also given Carlson a new perspective.
“I have seen more of Minnesota on my rides with our club than I’ve ever in my life and I’ve been a lifelong resident,” Carlson said.
His advice?
“Just to keep your head up and looking around and enjoying things.”
The Minnesota Randonneur members participating in the 2023 Paris-Brest-Paris include: Craig Aamodt, Cottonwood, Minn.; Chris Carlson, Minneapolis; Dan Diehn, Black River Falls, Wisc.; Tim Donahoe, Minneapolis; Tom Garry, St. Paul; Jason Hartfield, Minneapolis; Brian Lewis-Jones, Minneapolis; Aaron Milbank, Eagan, Minn.; Phil Moen, Eden Prairie, Minn.; Keith Morical, Minnetrista, Minn.; Michael Mullery, Rosemount, Minn.; Jonas Nygard, Minneapolis; Steve Polyak, Coralville, Iowa; Rob Welsh, Apple Valley, Minn.; and Andy Williams, Eau Claire, Wisc.