New England Randonneurs

We are sorry to announce that the remainder of the 2020 season has been canceled due to COVID-19. We had hoped to offer limited events in a revised format but as the pandemic progresses even that is no longer feasible. NER isn’t going away and we look forward to resuming normal Brevets in 2021.

Edit from Sarah: The new Permanents Program has arrived.  There is a $10/year additional cost (payable via PayPal) for joining the program, and then no cost beyond that for individual rides. See the link on the RUSA site for instructions.   Over a dozen routes in New England are already up.  Anyone who was a perm owner in the old system and would like their routes resubmitted for the new program but who doesn’t have the time/energy/know-how to set them up can contact Sarah.

In the meantime, keep an eye on the RUSA website as the Permanent program is expected to be restarted within the next few weeks. Permanents follow similar rules to Brevets but can be ridden solo on the rider’s schedule. One of the big revisions to the Perm program is that routes are stored in RideWithGPS and riders are able to certify the route entirely with GPS data or digital photos if the rider chooses. The new Perm program will be managed centrally by RUSA as opposed to directly with the route owner as in the past. More details are at the RUSA website.

In other good news, NER has a new domain! You can now reach this website by going to NER.bike (yes, that’s a valid site). NER.bike is easier to remember and much quicker to type. You can still find this page at NERandonneurs.org and even BostonBrevets.com if you haven’t updated your bookmarks since 2008.

Keep riding and keep safe. We’ll be back!

Special Social Isolation (and DIY) event on Thursday May 21, 2020 @ 7pm-

NER’s Clerk and longtime rider Emily O’Brien is hosting an online presentation walking riders through the steps needed to create their own handlebar snack bag using materials they probably already have at home. This presentation is being coordinated by CRW but all NER riders and friends are invited. From the CRW Website:

Emily O’Brien will demonstrate how to make a handy little snack bag that mounts to your handlebars and stem. It’s perfect for nibbles you want convenient, one-handed access to while on the bike, or an additional water bottle. It can be mounted in multiple locations to just about any type of bike. The presentation will cover the basics of using a sewing machine or sewing by hand; the process of measuring and cutting; assembling and finishing the bag; and a slightly modified version you can make with less need for specialized hardware. This is a great project for beginners or experienced sewists. You don’t need a special or fancy or industrial sewing machine for this.

If you’re interested in joining Emily, please prepare by visiting her website detail page for the project.

Link to the Zoom presentation and other details are on the CRW Info Page.

In continuing to follow the guidance of health authorities and we’ve made the disappointing but unavoidable decision to cancel/postpone all events in May, include the Fleche & Trace. Our goal is to have a complete Super Randonneur season (200, 300, 400, 600k) and a Fleche/Trace in 2020. The dates and routes for these events won’t be decided until there’s more clarity on COVID-19 so new dates & routes probably won’t be announced until June. Events currently on the schedule for later in the summer will likely be shifted as well so that riders can use shorter distances to train for the longer events, as normal. In the meantime, keep riding solo and stay safe!

NER isn’t going to DNF 2020, we’re just taking a long break at a control.