Alex Pope

I started the Bella Coola 1000km Brevet at 6:00am Saturday. Due to the small number of riders, I had changed the route to start by Lougheed Mall and using the south side of the Fraser River between Pitt Meadows and Hope to make up the additional distance due to starting further east. This start location meant that Barb did not have as far to go to when driving me to the start and made it accessible for Gary Sparks who was using Skytrain to get there.

I had motels reserved, and food waiting, in Cache Creek (351km) and Tatla Lake (773km). My goal going into this was to minimize my night riding after Williams Lake, due to the remote nature of the highway, and the concern about Grizzly Bears that have been seen more frequently this year.

My wife, Barb, and the kids were driving up to Bella Coola to meet me. They were going to leave Sunday morning and stay overnight at Williams Lake before arriving in Bella Coola later on Monday. Gary Sparks was starting at 3:00pm – due to work commitments – and Doug and Susan were going to ride the route (starting at the original Vancouver start) as a tour, taking 6 days for their ride plus a few more to return home via ferry and Port Hardy.
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The last time I did the Merritt Loop, the route specified a clockwise direction – eastbound via Hwy 1 through the Fraser Canyon and westbound via the Coquihalla Highway. This time we did the reverse which meant everyone was riding the Coquihalla during the middle of the day and the Fraser Canyon at night. This direction of the route seemed to be better for riding straight through so I started with the intention of not stopping for a sleep stop.

Rick was kind enough to do a long pull at the front along United Blvd. He explained that on this stretch of the 400km, he had a hard time avoiding the pot-holes when he was drafting in the group so he wanted to be on the front “just until the first hill”. I asked him if, by the first hill, he meant the Coquihalla but it turns out he meant the first little bump on the Mary Hill Bypass.

After leaving Rick behind, Keith Fraser and I rode together to the first control in Mission. He needed to spend an extra few minutes at that stop, so I left ahead of him at an easier pace. It wasn’t long before he caught up with me and we rode together as far as Deroche. Once we got onto the small rolling hills after Deroche, I was working harder to stay with Keith so I slowed my pace and let him get ahead.

After passing Agassiz, I stopped for a quick break at the rest stop on the left side of the highway. While I was there getting ready to ride again, the next group of riders on the road went by. I sprinted out of the rest stop and joined their group. I continued to ride with this group until shortly after Hope when we got split up a little bit as the hills started on Othello Rd, and then even more on the Coquihalla Hwy.
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I have sometimes said that stories about a DNF on a brevet are often more interesting than stories about successful brevets. This one is probably the exception that disproves that comment.

The brevet was scheduled to start at 9:00pm Saturday evening so Barb dropped me off early at the start, and then drove off with my water bottles still in the van – I had to phone her to get her to return my bottles. Luckily, she was just around the corner making a quick stop at McDonald’s before heading home so I was still able to start on time.

The sun was just setting as we started. As often happens with longer brevets, the majority of participants started at an easy pace, allowing for a little bit of socializing. I talked briefly with Eric about Super Week 2010 and the high number of hits the new section of the BC Randonneurs web site was receiving: it looks like Super Week may be receiving quite a bit of interest.
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Ian Fillinger has been a BC Randonneur member since 2008, when he completed his first Super Randonneur series and the Rocky 1200. This year, he is tackling something a little bit bigger: he will be competing in Race Across America in order to raise money for MS research.

Ian’s wife Michelle is the reason he is facing this challenge: Michelle Fillinger was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis eight years ago. His goal is to raise $250,000 towards MS research and beat MS.

In the video, Ian’s coach John Tilley says “He could be the first rookie to win RAAM”. The finish line that Ian and Michelle are looking for, though, isn’t in Annapolis at the end of RAAM – it is in the results of the MS research that Ian is raising money for.

You can visit Ian’s web site at http://www.raceacrossamerica.ca/ to get more information and make a donation to the MS Society.

Inspired by “Eau de Hell” Week on Vancouver Island, BC Randonneurs is hosting an event in August 2010 that we are calling “Super Week”. Like “Eau de Hell” Week, this event includes 200km, 300km, 400km, and 600km brevets… but since this will be held late in the season when participants fitness levels have improved, we are also including a 1000km brevet to finish the week.

There will be a special pin awarded for participation in Super Week. The criteria for receiving a Super Week pin is to successfully complete a minimum of 3 of the Super Week brevets with a distance totaling at least 1500km – so if, for example, you finish the 200km, 300km and 1000km brevets (both weekends) you will be awarded a Super Week pin.

There will also be special recognition for participants who successfully complete all 5 Super Week brevets… more information on this later.

In order to run this event smoothly, we are going to need a few volunteers. If you are riding any of the brevets, please encourage family members to show their support for you by volunteering. If you are not riding and wish to be involved, please check the list of Volunteer Assignments and then contact Alex Pope to reserve your spot on the volunteer list.

Link: Super Week Web Site