Sunrise near Oberlin, KS John Lee Ellis photo

On a summery, moonless night, fourteen randonneurs headed out from Boulder, CO for the Last Chance 1200K randonnée, an adventure on the vast plains. They came from far and wide. Three-quarters of randonneurs were non-local: from Virginia, Eastern Kansas, Texas, Florida, California, British Columbia, and Saskatchewan (the terrain closest in character to the Last Chance's).

The weather for the September 13-16 1200K was par for the course: balmy breezes off the Rockies wafting the randonneurs out, then stiff crosswinds on the plains of Colorado and Kansas. During the day the randonneurs had arid, sunny conditions and in the evenings faced thunderstorms, tumbleweeds, large hail, and a tornado threat. The cloudless skies allowed highs in the 90s with lows dropping into the 30s on the final night in Colorado.

As in years past, the randonneurs praised the smooth, quiet roads, the friendly drivers and local residents. This helped to balance out the challenging nature of the randonnée - the winds, the storm possibilities, and the treeless expanse. The Last Chance 1200K is set up in four daily stages:

Riders approach Bird City, KS John Lee Ellis photo

The ride organizers take randonneurs' drop bags to Atwood and Byers.

The 1200K started at the edge of the Rocky Mountains in Boulder but soon reached the prairie landscape of rolling hills and few trees. From Byers to Last Chance, CO the randonneurs faced a series of rollers. From the top of each, one could see twenty miles of rollers marching to the horizon like large ocean swells on the sea of prairie. There was a net 400 feet elevation loss to Last Chance, but accumulated climbing of 2,000 feet on the way back, which just adds to the fun for tired legs.

As the randonneurs reached Last Chance, the downslope tailwinds shifted in a flash to stiff NE winds, a crossing headwind. By St. Francis, KS, the temperature was in the low 90's. As the randonneurs transited Bird City, KS the first evening, they faced a looming thunderhead to the east, orange in the sunset. Tuesday, the headwinds were a steady presence but diminishing and nearly dying (of course!) just as the randonneurs reached the turnaround point in Phillipsburg, KS.

The hazy, cloudless skies on the second afternoon belied a storm front bearing down from Colorado, bringing dust, skittering tumbleweeds, and warnings of baseball-sized hail. The main violence missed the randonneurs, but a second wave did succeed in dousing more than one randonneur.

Tuesday night's storm was in advance of a cold front. The randonneurs, who had faced a stiff NE and SE headwind going out, were now faced with an even stiffer NW headwind on the return, at least for a while. More than one rider who had left raingear and warm clothing behind at the Atwood bag drop got wet and then cold. Todd Kalchbrenner found shelter in an open school bus. Mark Metcalfe holed up for a few hours with a rancher family. He had brought along Albertson supermarket grocery bags, and now used them to protect his legs, and the right (north-facing) side of his face from the cold wind.

By Wednesday night, those farthest up the course were riding through temperatures in the 30s in Colorado. John and Nancy Guth pulled into a 24-hour truck stop and bought garbage bags. The clerk helped the Guths cut the bags up and don them as arm and leg warmers.

Todd Kalchbrenner, Nancy Guth, Chris Grealish, John Guth in Idalia, CO John Lee Ellis photo

The home-stretch checkpoint, a service station and store in Kersey, lured more than one rider to stay longer, with the fragrance of homemade burritos.

This year saw our first tandem: Mike and Nancy Myers from Kansas. Touted as a tandem-friendly 1200K, Mike and Nancy partially agreed, but said that the tandem, with its larger surface area, put up quite a fight in the strong crosswinds. As Tuesday night's storm blew in, Mike said he was hard-pressed to keep the tandem on the right side of the road (not just the bike lane!).

Three riders finished the 1200K randonnée, in RAAM-qualifying time: Todd Kalchbrenner, Mark Metcalfe, and Nancy Guth. All of these riders rode unsupported. Making the qualifying limits means riding beyond the recommended stages and bag drops. Given the limited food and shelter on the course, they had to ride strongly and budget their time well.

The original ride concept for the Last Chance was suggested by two-time RAAM winner Bob Fourney, who used this route as a training ride. Ever the enthusiast, he came out to Kansas to cheer on the randonneurs.

Charlie Henderson in Atwood, KS John Lee Ellis photo

The Guths, the Myers, and Ken Knutson all earned points in the John Marino Compeittion by completing the Last Chance, which was worth four difficulty points - certainly hard-earned points!

Big thanks to Dave Buzzee, former Ohio Regional Brevet Administrator who came all the way from Ohio to help staff the Byers bag drop, and to UMCA Director John Hughes, who managed the ride start and drop bags. Above all, we owe a great deal to Charlie Henderson, Rocky Mountain Cycling Club president, for all his help and support, including the taking care of the Atwood bag drop with his rancher ambience!

The consensus for the Last Chance 1200K randonnée, is "that there is no such thing as an easy 1200K" - certainly not this one. The randonneurs did find it an adventure on the prairie and a true randonneuring experience, as you are left to your own wits. In 2005 the Last Chance 1200K randonnée, will reprise the same route, but who knows what the winds will have in store!

Qualifying for RAAM
John Marino Competition
Further information on the Last Chance RMCCwebsite

Last Chance 1200K randonnée Finishers