Randonneuring

The Davis Bike Club has been involved in randonneuring for decades and is steeped in the history of our sport and its growth in the United States. The DBC was the largest randonneuring club to send riders to Paris Brest Paris in the early 90’s and has been instrumental in supporting the growth of randonneuring nationwide.

The DBC Brevet Series (a ride of each length: 200k, 300, 400k, 600k) is designed to prepare riders for successively longer distance events. Our brevets are for cyclists experienced in riding 100+ mile events and those looking for longer distance challenges, perhaps even joining the ranks of those who have completed Paris-Brest-Paris or other “grand randonnées” of 1200km or longer. Paris Brest Paris is held the third week in August every 4 years and that means that now is the time to start working towards the 2027 “Great Dance”. Up to 7000 of your closest rando-pal’s from around the world will be making the trek to Brest and back. It is an amazing experience and if you have the interest to be at the start of PBP 2027, then we’ll do whatever we can to help you get there.

Every four years or so, the DBC hosts the 1200km Gold Rush Randonnée… one of the longest running 1200ks in the United States. GRR was last held in June 2022, after a complete overhaul of the event. Read about the adventure here. We’ll be hosting the next Gold Rush Randonnee this year on September 3-6, 2025. While also running Gold Rush, we’ll host a 1000k too, and a set of gravel adventures out of Quincy, CA where the Gold Rush is largely based. We’ll have details for the whole host of GRR events later on in the Spring.

Also, Davis Randos will be hosting the NorCal Fleche: a 24 hour ride as a team event, ending on Easter Sunday. The 6th annual Vintage Populaire celebrating “French Fender Day” will be on tap this year once again. Riders from across NorCal come out to enjoy each other’s machines from the Golden Age of steel while riding around our area.

Davis is bringing GRAVEL events into our event schedule and with extra time allotted for kilometers of gravel in a given event, it allows for greater success. Davis will have a set of gravel events for 2025 and one could earn the Gravel version of the Rouleur award. The Super Bowl Populaire, which has been a fun gravel 100k is on the schedule for February and Montezuma’s Gravel has been a hit and is scheduled again for the fall 2025. We’ll be holding a gravel double populaire weekend in the early Spring out of Nevada City. It’s gonna be a great time! #Gravelicious!

We ask that all riders be very aware of their safety and the safety of others. See our guidelines for participating in DBC Randonneuring events. The RBA will hold riders to these requirements and a no tolerance mindset will be in place for those who are non-compliant. Sounds harsh, but the pandemic has certainly changed our thinking about how to safely hold rides of any length. Don’t hesitate to email any questions you might have to: rba@davisbikeclub.org. Sign-up for our newsletter here!

Here’s the line-up for 2025. To participate in a DBC brevet, you must be a member of RUSA. Sign up for events!

Jan. 1	100/200k: First Chance: Bella Bru (100k) + Auburn Xpress w/JCT (200k)
Feb. 9	GRAVEL: Super Bowl Sunday Populaire: 100k
March 1	ACP: 200k: Meadow Vista
March 15	ACP 300k: Grass Valley
March 29-30	GRAVEL Weekend in Nevada City! Routes: Waldo Junction (100k) & TBD (125k)
April 18	NorCal Fleche: 360k
April 26	ACP 400k: Lake Sonoma
May 10-11	ACP 600k: GrassVista
June 7	GRAVEL: Montezuma’s Gravel: 150k
September 3-6	Gold Rush Randonnee: 1200k
September 3-5	Gold Rush Randonnee 1000k
September 4-5	Gold Rush Gravel Routes: TBD
Oct. 25	NorCal GRAVEL Dart 200k
Nov 8	Montezuma’s GRAVEL: 150k.
Dec 31	100/200K: Last Chance. Routes: Pope Valley (200k) & Moskowite Corners (100k)
	Other rides (gravel and otherwise) will be added as time permits!

Ridewithgps for most of the rides can be found here. We are working on new routes, which we’ll update you when we have em. See the tab for 2025 at the bottom of the spreadsheet.

Join our newsletter for the most up to date info on all things Rando from Davis! Shoot me an email: rba@davisbikeclub.org  and we’ll get you into the system.

DBC brevets can be used as qualifiers for 1200km events in the US and around the world. For more information about those rides, and the many brevets being run throughout Northern and Central California, RUSA (Randonneurs USA) has a Rides section that sorts dates, distances, and locations for other brevet series in the region. DBC brevets can also be used toward qualifying for a variety of RUSA awards. Awards can be earned in two ways by riding brevets. If the ride is marked ACP, then that ride is available for Audax Club Parisian and RUSA awards. If it says RUSA only, then it is only available for RUSA distance awards. In order to qualify for any awards, you must be a member of Randonneurs USA.

For any brevets (200k, 300k, 400k, and 600k), rider control/time stations are 30-65 miles apart.  You are expected to be self-sufficient on your bicycle. We expect all riders to be prepared for the weather and for riding in environs with rough roads and riding in the dark. All cyclists must have lights for rides during the early dawn and dusk/night rides. Helmets are required on all rides. Please refer to the RUSA rules for more information and review our rules for riding during the pandemic. Sag support for riders who DNF is minimal at best, so come prepared for all types of terrain and weather and be committed to finish.

Questions? Send em to the Regional Brevet Administrator (RBA), Debra Banks: rba@davisbikeclub.org. We look forward to seeing you on one or more of our brevets this season!
.All photo credit except where noted different: Deb Ford.