Willamette Randonneurs

Photo of Lunar 400, July 2018 by Keith Moore
Photo: Keith Moore

Willamette Randonneurs is a group of randonneurs and those interested in randonneuring in the southern Willamette Valley and surrounding areas. Willamette Randonneurs was formed in late 2016, with our first official season in calendar year 2017.

The regional brevet admistrator (RBA) for our region is Michal Young.

Informal news and announcements often appear in our Facebook group Eugene Area Randonneurs or on our Facebook page Willamette Randonneurs. For those who prefer email forums to Facebook, I will do my best to cross post to our will-rando group, and to respond to posts there.

Rando-what?

Randonneuring, also known as audax, is long-distance, mostly unsupported cycling. (more)

2024 Practices

  • You must be a current RUSA member to register for or ride on a Willamette Randonneurs brevet or populaire. This is required by our insurance coverage.
  • We ask riders to register at least a day before the ride. We will provide a personalized waiver to sign at the ride start.
  • Electronic proof of passage (GPX file, RWGPS or Strava link) is encouraged. Photos will also be accepted. If you prefer information controls, let me know to print a brevet card for you. Otherwise you will be given a cue sheet but no brevet card.

Tracking map (Spotwalla)

Susan Otcenas has established a shared Spotwalla event tracking page for Will-Rando events. If you carry a satellite tracker (Spot, Garmin InReach, Zoleo) or a mobile phone running Bubbler GPS or SWTracker, you can add your track to an event.

Coming soon: Protocol for when to add yourself and when a track will be active.

Add your tracker to the upcoming event.

View rider tracks for the current event.

2024 Calendar

ACP-sanctioned events are set in September of the preceding year. RUSA-sanctioned events, including populaires as well as brevets, can be added with relatively short notice. Contact the RBA to volunteer for a scheduled event or to propose and organize an additional event.

Sun Mar 10 Populaire (100k). Lunch in Veneta 100k Populaire. 7:30am 8:30am start in Eugene, at Palace Bakery on Pearl Street. No charge, but you must be a current RUSA member. Register by Friday 8pm.
Sat Mar 23 ACP 200k brevet. Five Rivers. 7:30am start outside Palace (Full City) Coffee, 842 Pearl Street, Eugene. Eugene to Walterville, Sweet Home, Lebanon, Brownsville, Eugene. $5 charge collected at start. Register by noon Friday.
Sat Apr 20 ACP 200k brevet. Alsea Loop. 7:30am start at Market of Choice, 29th and Willamette, Eugene. $5 charge.
Sat May 18 ACP 300k brevet. Cow Creek 300 (pending RUSA approval), designed and organized by James Taylor. This 300k brevet begins and ends in Canyonville and wanders as far south as Gold Hill, Oregon. $5 charge.
Sat Jun 1 ACP 300k brevet, ACP 600k brevet. Smith River Loop or Smith River 600k. This is a week earlier than we have run the Smith River routes in prior years, and hopefully will avoid the shortages and stratospheric pricing of hotel rooms around university commencement. 5:30am start. $10 charge.
Fri Jul 12 ACP 400k brevet, ACP 200k brevet (evening starts). Lunar 400k / Mezza Luna 200k starting Friday evening 8pm in Eugene. Mezza Luna finishes Saturday morning in Forest Grove. The route is the first half of the Lunar 400k. Lunar 400k starts Friday evening in Eugene and finishes Saturday afternoon or evening in Eugene.

2023 Calendar

Sat Mar 18 ACP 200k brevet. Five Rivers 200k (ACP).
Sun Apr 2 ACP 200k brevet. World's Tallest Sugarpine #2, starting and ending in Winston, OR.
Sun May 7 ACP 200k brevet.
Sat May 27 evening start (overnight). ACP 400k and 200k brevets.
Sat Jun 17 Smith River 300k and Smith 600k.

2022 events

Sat Mar 26 Five Rivers< 200k (ACP).
Sat Apr 16 Colliding Rivers ACP 200k brevet from Sutherlin, OR.
Sat Jun 4 Umpqua 300k ACP brevet from Cottage Grove, OR
Sat Jun 11 Smith River 300k ACP brevet and Smith River 600k ACP brevet from Eugene, OR.
Fri Jul 15 Lunar 400 (ACP 400k) and Mezza Luna (200k) evening start brevets from Eugene, OR.
Sat Oct 22 ACP 200km brevet, Alsea Loop, virtually in Lviv, Ukraine.

2021 events

March events were canceled.

Sat Apr 3 Five Rivers 200k (ACP).
Sat Apr 17 RUSA populaire (100k). Lunch in Veneta.
Sat May 22 ACP 200km brevet, Alsea Loop.
Sat Jun 19 Smith River 300k and Smith River 600k.
Fri Aug 20 Lunar 400 (ACP 400k brevet).

2020 events

Due to the Corona virus pandemic, rides in summer 2020 were canceled.

Sat Feb 22 RUSA populaire (100k). Lunch in Veneta.
Sun Mar 8 RUSA populaire (100k). International Women's Day.
Sat Mar 21 Five Rivers 200k (ACP).
Sat Mar 28 Colliding Rivers 200k (ACP). Sutherlin to Glide and return. Route (designed by James Taylor).
Sat May 9 Evening start 100k RUSA populaire. (Fléche tuneup opportunity.)
Fri May 15 Fléche weekend ( Seattle International Randonneurs)
Sun May 24 Alsea Loop 200k (ACP).
Sat Jun 6 Yippee Tyee Ty-yay 200k. (Cottage Grove - Tyee loop)
Sat Jun 20 Smith River 300k (ACP), Smith River 600k (ACP).
Sat Jul 18 ACP 300k, route TBD.
Fri Jul 31 Lunar 400k (ACP).

2019 Events

Sun Feb 24 RUSA populaire (100k). (Canceled due to weather)
Sat Mar 9 Five Rivers ACP 200k brevet.
Sat Mar 30 Cottage Grove — Umpqua Loop ACP 200k. Begins and ends in Cottage Grove and loops south through Drain, Yoncalla, and Tyee, along the Umpqua river, returning north through Sutherlin.
Sat May 25 Evening start 400k (with Monday holiday to recover). Loop north to Forest Grove, beginning and ending in downtown Eugene.
Sat Jun 8 Smith River ACP 600K. Two loops from downtown Eugene. The first loop will be to Florence, along the coast south to Reedsport, back in via Smith River Road and continuing to Lorane and Cottage Grove, then north to Eugene, about 360k. Second loop will be north to Brownsville, Lebanon, Independence, then south through Albany, Harrisburg, Coburg back to Eugene, about 240k. 5am Saturday start from Mandy's 24-hour diner in downtown Eugene.
Sat Jun 22 Smith River ACP 300k. A 300km (187 mile) loop from Eugene to Florence via Triangle Lake, south to Reedsport, returning over Smith River Road and Wolf Creek to Eugene, with a staffed control at Oxbow Summit. 5am Saturday start from Mandy's 24-hour diner in downtown Eugene. Finish is at Falling Sky until it closes at 11pm, then at Mandy's.

2018 Events

2017 Events

Sat Mar 11 Alsea Loop 200k
Sat Jun 24 Smith River Loop 300k ACP brevet.
Sun Aug 20 Dart to Darkness Dart Populaire (team ride), 120km to Willamina for the total eclipse.
 
Photo of Alsea Loop 200k, March 2017 by Jeff Reynolds
Photo: Jeff Reynolds