Randonnuers USA 2003 Yearbook- Paris-Brest-Paris

BC Randonneurs Cycling Club

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Paris-Brest-Paris: 2003 Yearbook
a collection of PBP Stories and Information
Published by Randonneurs USA
Edited by Bill Bryant & Lois Springsteen
82 pages
Available to RUSA members

This is a retrospective of RUSA members' participation in PBP 2003. There are 28 rider stories (one of the contributions is more a survey than a story) sprinkled with a few photos and other images, surrounding a RUSA participants list with finishing times and other rider info.

An interesting feature of this collection is how nicely the stories complement each other. Participants experienced similar sorts of things - encounters with the "British Triple", the overcrowding at Loudeac, and droopy head syndrome ("Shermer's neck") for example, are recurring themes - but the descriptions are always from a slightly different angle. The riders are moving at different speeds, passing through locations at different times and so their observations are out of phase with each other. It all adds up to a vivid portrait of the event that could not have been written by one person. You can think of this as a single story told from multiple points of view.

One thing noticeably absent in this collection is any sort of "view from the front", though it must be said that these voices were heard in the RUSA newsletter following PBP [Fulton, Heine, Lyon]. Still, a ride account by any of these three would have fit nicely into this collection.

RUSA wanted this yearbook to be a benefit for its members and elected not to broadcast an on-line version. Very few (only 4) of the contributors posted web versions of their stories, which is surprising these days, and in sharp contrast to the German PBP 2003 approach. Fortunately, one of my favourites, John Ende's PBP 2003 (ironically placed 1st in the printed collection - get it), is also self published on a web page - linked below. For the other stories, like the wonderful ones by Isabel Brackbill and Judy Isvan, and there are many others, you'll have to invest in a rusa membership. (I'm told that there are still copies of the 2003 yearbook available, and it's well worth pursuing.) Membership information is available on the RUSA web site.

Thanks to Wayne Harrington for passing along his copy of the RUSA 2003 Yearbook.
[Eric F.]

Contents:

INTRODUCTION By Bill Bryant..................................................1
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS By Lois Springsteen & Bill Bryant...........................1
PBP CONTROLS AND DISTANCES...................................................2
PROLOGUE By Charles "Tris" Glanville.........................................2
PBP 2003 By John Ende........................................................4
UNFINISHED BUSINESS By Bob Barday...........................................12
SLEEP DEPRIVATION By Donn King, RBA.........................................13
A PERSONAL ACCOUNT OF PARIS-BREST-PARIS, 2003 By Will Martin................14
CONFESSIONS OF A RELUCTANT RANDONNEUSE By Isabel Brackbill..................16
WHY WE DO IT By David Leonard...............................................18
EIGHT DAYS, SEVEN NIGHTS - A PBP DNF By Martin Clinton......................20
ANOTHER USE FOR AN INNER TUBE By Pauline Lundgren...........................20
THE MOST AMAZING MYSTICAL MIGRATION ACROSS FRANCE By Ford Greene............23
RETURN TO PARIS-BREST-PARIS, 2003 By Don and Phyllis Hamilton...............27
WISE WORDS OF ADVICE By John Lee Ellis, RBA.................................31
PARIS-BREST: THE LAST DITCH EFFORT By Sarah Gallazin........................32
MESSAGE HOME FROM PARIS By Charles "Tris" Glanville.........................33
2003 PBP RUSA MEMBER RESULTS.............................................35-43
MY THIRD PARIS-BREST-PARIS By Jim Solanick, RBA.............................46
AN AMERICAN IN THE FRENCH COUNTRYSIDE By Elizabeth Wicks....................48
PARIS-BREST-PARIS 2003, or RANDONNEUR RISING FROM THE ASHES By Peter Dusel..52
PBP 2003 ON A KANSAS TANDEM By Nancy Myers..................................54
CHARLENE'S EUROPEAN ADVENTURE 2003 By Charlene Barach.......................56
CYCLING IS AN ADVENTURE NOT A DESTINATION By Tom Brane......................57
PBP MEMORIES 2003 By Judy Isvan.............................................58
RANDOM NOTES FROM THE ROAD By Bill Bryant...................................61
PBP 2003: FINI By Adrian Hands..............................................63
CAMARADERIE By Lois Springsteen.............................................68
SIDE-BAR VIEW FROM THE 88 HOUR 51 MINUTE CROWD By Frank Sommers.............69
PARIS-BREST-PARIS By Doug Hiebert...........................................71
PARIS-BREST-PARIS 2003 By Todd Trzcinski....................................72
PBP 2003 MEMORIES By Mark Kaufman...........................................77