"Jennifer has that way of achieving a great deal with surprisingly few words." John Lee Ellis photo

It was a dark and stormy night. Through the moist dimness, riders pedaled on, saying, "That's Boston-Montreal-Boston for you: rain, just as Jennifer promised in the brochure!"

For eleven BMBs, spanning 14 years, taking breaks only for Paris-Brest-Paris, Jennifer Wise and Pierce Gafgen have been at BMB's helm. Riders from all over have flocked to "America's Premier 1200 km Randonnée," not the least because of the superb organization, execution, and flair by Jennifer Wise and, as Technical Director, Pierce Gafgen.

BMB paved the way for 1200 kms in North America, and thanks to Jennifer and Pierce, remains the yardstick against which other, younger 1200 kms are measured. A good performance at BMB, with its tougher terrain, rougher roads, and ornerier weather, sets you up nicely for PBP or any other 1200 km. Over the years, Jennifer has attracted "event-appropriate" sponsors such as Advil, DuraCell, WD-40 ("Is that to lubricate my knees after 600k of hills?") and Casio (it is a timed event, after all), and then there's that inspiring sunburst BMB jersey, popping up in the strangest of places.

"Pierce running tech support — competent and helpful as ever and always a friendly face to the tired cyclist." Rick Collette photo

Most 1200 kms of this magnitude are held once in four years. Yet while Jennifer and Pierce were busy three years out of four putting together a BMB, there has been plenty else to juggle. In 1998, Jennifer became founding president of Randonneurs USA, chosen by the acclaim of the founding board.

In the five years she agreed to preside, RUSA re-invigorated randonneuring in the US, heightened its success at all levels, from the local 200 km brevet to PBP, and broadened its appeal to the point where the US is regularly the top country in the world in randonneuring participation.

A major reason I joined the fledgling RUSA, and then agreed to become their Colorado regional brevet administrator in 1998, was Jennifer's involvement and reputation. Maybe this is news to her, but it's true. It is also a big reason I rode their farewell BMB this August. (And yes, after some alluring dry, sunny weather, the rain did arrive as promised.)

John Lee Ellis & Jennifer Wise. "A major reason I joined RUSA and agreed to become their Colorado brevet administrator was Jennifer." Merry Vander Linden photo

Is that enough on your plate? Apparently not, for Jennifer and Pierce. Every event he's not been riding, Pierce has used his photographic acumen, and has brought back great photos from multiple PBPs and other events.

And yet, that's not the whole story. I first met Pierce on the inaugural BMB, running tech support — competent and helpful as ever, and always a friendly face to the tired cyclist.

While Jennifer was RUSA president (and running BMB), she was also managing the RUSA souvenir shop — everything from pins to water bottles to jerseys. She still is. And she was also editing the RUSA newsletter, American Randonneur. Some wit has said: "Want something done? Ask a busy person." They must have had Jennifer in mind.

From the early times of RUSA to this day, Jennifer is the US's acknowledged emissary to France, a little bit because of her fluency in French; a great deal because of her savoir faire and je ne sais quoi.

L - R: Don Hamilton, RUSA Board member and former Secretary, John Lee Ellis, RUSA Vice President, Jennifer Wise, Pierce Gafgen, and Tim Sullivan, RUSA Treasurer. Merry Vander Linden photo

This carries over not just to relationships with the French, but in every endeavor. Whether it's dealing with the Audax Club Parisien or the RUSA board or errant BMB riders, Jennifer has that way of achieving a great deal with surprisingly few words. Both Jennifer and Pierce are on the incisive side, which I have observed this over the years with quiet admiration.

And then there's the other side of ultracycling. Through the 90s Jennifer was Marketing Director for the Race Across America — in a challenging marketing task. She and Pierce have been astute followers of the race over the years. In 1988 and 1990 they were more than that, as coach and crew chief for Nancy Raposo, who won the RAAM.

That was my first encounter with Jennifer and Pierce: when I was preparing for RAAM '91, they were a fount of advice on equipment, clothing, nutrition, training, and the mental race. Since then, Jennifer and Pierce have remained good friends to me, and an inspiration to so many of us.

What's next? You can bet Jennifer and Pierce will find plenty to get involved in — and the cycling world will continue to benefit!