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People are often rather bemused when I try to explain about long-distance cycling and the PBP in particular, so here are some FAQs...

 

What is the PBP?

Here's a description from a US cyclists' web site:

First run in 1891, the 1200-kilometer Paris-Brest-Paris, or "PBP" as it is commonly called, is a grueling test of human endurance and cycling ability.

Organised every four years by the host Audax Club Parisien, the Paris-Brest-Paris Randonneurs is the oldest bicycling event still run on a regular basis on the open road. Beginning on the southern side of the French capital, it travels west 600 kilometers to the port city of Brest on the Atlantic Ocean and returns along roughly the same route.

Today's randonneur cyclists, while no longer riding the primitive machines used a hundred years ago over dirt roads or cobblestones, still have to face up to rough weather, endless hills, and pedalling around the clock. A 90-hour time limit ensures that only the hardiest randonneurs earn the prestigious PBP finisher's medal and have their name entered into the event's "Great Book" along with every other finisher going back to the very first PBP.

To become a PBP ancien (or ancienne for the ladies) is to join a very elite group of cyclists who have successfully endured this mighty challenge. No longer a contest for professional racing cyclists (who instead broke away to form a longer ride broken down into a series of one day stages, now called the Tour de France) , PBP evolved into a timed randonnée or brevet for hard-riding amateurs during the middle part of the 20th century. The event is held in August every four years.

There are longer events, but the PBP remains THE event to complete. Wearing the PBP finishers' jersey earns you respect from other cyclists all over the world.

 

How many people do it?

Around 5,000, from all over the world. There's a strict entry limit and participants have to qualify by riding a series of 200-600 km timed events in the six months prior to the PBP itself.  

It's not the longest event (for example, the London-Edinburgh-London, which I rode in 2009, is 1400km) but it is the most prestigious, with the biggest field.

 

Is it a race?

No, although there is an elite group of very fast riders that starts ahead of everyone else and will try to ride the event in around 50 hours.  They literally run in and out of each checkpoint. stuff their jerseys with food and eat as they ride.

 

What do you do about sleep?

Unless you're one of the elite riders, you can't do the event without some sleep but how much you get depends on how fast you can ride. The clock keeps ticking even when you're off the bike so if you're a bit of a plodder, like me, you cat nap when you can.  In 2003, I got round with about 7 hours' sleep but I was not well-prepared and this time I hope to get a bit more.

The checkpoints, which are spaced about 100km apart, are usually in schools and they turn the sports halls into dormitories, so you can rent a camp bed by the hour (not as seedy as it sounds). People cat nap in chairs in the food halls or, in some cases, just stretched out at the side of the road.  It's not uncommon to encounter an upturned bike at the roadside with an exhausted cyclist stretched out next to it!

Riders have been known to fall asleep on their bikes and end up in a ditch, or worse. It's crucial to know your limits and rest when you need to, even if only for an hour. 

What do you do at night?

Keep cycling. Covering 200+ miles per day means that you're going to have to do some night riding.  Audax riders are slightly obsessed with lighting - you need something fairly powerful to ride on unlit country roads, especially if you're going downhill at 40+ mph. I have a very powerful halogen headlight, powered by a hub dynamo, and a couple of LED lights as back up.  Together they are a pretty powerful combination and I find that I can ride as fast in the dark as I do in daylight.  

I actually rather enjoy riding through the night and riding into the dawn, as the world moves from darkness to light, is a fabulous experience -especially if you know you're only 20 miles or so from a mug of coffee.

 

Do you have a backup crew, like in the Tour de France?

No, quite the opposite. You have to be completely self-sufficient. Riders are not allowed to have any support on the road and would be disqualified if they were seen with any. Anything you need, such as tools, a spare inner tube or a change of clothes, has to be carried with you. Some riders do have supporters at the checkpoints, who have food ready for them when they arrive and keep all of their changes of kit, etc., but many traditionalists frown upon this.

 

On the PBP, I will be carrying everything I need in a saddlebag. I will eat at the controls or - more likely - at cafes along the way, I'll carry a few spare inner tubes in case of punctures and I'll keep my fingers crossed that I don't suffer any serious mechanical problems. If I do, then the nearest control will never be more than 35 miles away... in one direction or the other.

 

Doesn't your bottom get sore?

 

OK, now we're getting personal. The short answer is: I hope not. Going into more detail - I have a leather saddle, which may appear unpleasantly hard to the touch but which has actually moulded itself to my - er - physique over several thousand miles and so is probably more comfortable than my favourite armchair. Having said that, 90 hours is a long time to be sitting on an inch wide piece of leather so I have a selection of creams and lotions that make things a little more comfortable.  The bigger problem is with my hands....

 

What's the problem with your hands?

 

On a bike there are three points of contact - the feet, the bottom and the hands.  The feet are fine so long as you wear sturdy cycling shoes and, if you use cleats to fix your shoes to the pedal (as I do), you have your cleats and pedals properly adjusted.  The bottom has been already discussed (above).

The often overlooked point of contact is the hands. They bear a fair bit of body weight and at the same time are also called upon to brake and shift gears.  Padded handlebars and padded gloves help, but over this kind of distance the constant pressure takes its toll. By the end of the London-Edinburgh-London in 2009 my fingers were so tender that I could barely touch the gear changers and, nearly two years later, I still haven't fully recovered the sensation in all of my fingers.  On PBP I will try to reduce the weight on the hands as much as I can, by riding further back on the saddle,  and I have been focusing my training on trying to ride with as few gear changes as possible, but I know it's still going to hurt.

 

What do you do about food?

 

Getting the food right is, in my opinion, the hardest aspect of long-distance cycling.  Everybody is different and I've learned over the years to listen to my body rather than any fixed schedule of what I should be eating at a particular time.  Rice pudding at 4 am?  Bring it on!

On PBP, we have "controls" (or checkpoints) every 70 miles or so. Their main purpose is to check that people are still on the route and keeping to the time limits.  If you arrive at a control too late you will be disqualified. They also serve food and the dilemma for any rider is whether to eat at the controls, which can be slow, or to eat at cafes along the way.  My plan is to graze as I go during the daytime and resort to the controls only when I reach them in the small hours.

Either way, I will consume a lot of pasta, yoghurt and bananas!

 

What kind of training have you been doing?

 

I normally try to keep riding right through the winter and do at least 400 miles a month all year round. However, I got off to a bad start this year by breaking my wrist at Christmas. That kept me off the bike until the end of March, when I began my qualifying events, so I've really used the qualifiers to build my fitness back up and then kept it topped up with my daily commute.  On the latter, I've been riding a fixed wheel bike (no gears and if you stop pedalling the wheels stop moving instantly!), which has helped me to develop a more consistent pedalling style.  

 

I've also been using a rowing machine to help build upper body strength... but not enough as I find it really boring.

 

Having done the London-Edinburgh-London a couple of years ago and the PBP in 2003, I know that I can ride the distance; the big question will be how comfortably.

 

Do you ride a special bike?

 

Yes and no.  The bike I have would look no different to any other to the untrained eye, but over the years it's evolved to become my perfect bike. As mentioned above, the saddle has seen several thousands of miles of use; the gearing is set up to suit my ideal pedalling speed and so reduce the need for constant shifting and the lights are like something out of "Close Encounters".  So that should all make for a more comfortable ride.

 

However, as Lance Armstrong said - it's not about the bike.  Last time I rode PBP it was on a completely unsuitable bike, but I got through (just!) because I had the mental strength to do it.  This time may be physically a little easier, but the truth is that finishing PBP is as much about the mind as it is about the legs.

 

How long do you expect it to take you? 

It's hard to predict since there are so many factors, such as headwinds, heavy rain and mechanical problems that can eat in to your time. Last time around, in 2003, I lost a lot of time at one of the controls because there was an epic queue for food. I should have carried on and found a cafe along the way.  That meant that I spent the following 48 hours right up against the cut-offs until I managed to claw back some time.

 

This time I have planned more carefully, based on my approach to the London-Edinburgh-London, and I have completed each of my qualifiers in a better time than in 2003, so I think I'm a bit fitter.  If all goes well, I will ride straight through to Brest without sleeping, in about 38 hours, grab a nap there, and then ride at a gentler pace back to Paris. I hope to reach the finish in somewhere between 85 and 88 hours, but so long as I am within the 90 hours time limit I'll be happy.

 

You'll be able to follow my progress on line as the PBP web site is automatically updated each time a rider passes through a control. I'll post the link to that nearer the time.  And I'll also be tweeting from time to time (probably incomprehensibly).

 

What are you going to do next?

Good question. After I finished PBP in 2003 I told my partner that if I ever suggested doing it again she should lock all my bikes in the shed and throw away the key. But she forgot that I have a spare key! Next year I plan to do something called the Round the Year Challenge, for which I have to ride a 200km event in each calendar month. If that sounds easy, remember that it tends to be somewhat cold, icy and occasionally snowy in winter and 200km is a long way if you keep falling off!