RULES FOR ORGANIZERS OF SUPER RANDONNÉES (SR)


If you want to ride a Super Randonnée (SR), you must register with the organizer of the SR you want to ride. Please see the SR List.

If you want to create a new SR in your country according to this regulation, please contact Provence Randonneurs.

Provence Randonneurs is the successor of the Audax Club Parisien at the head of the Super Randonnées.

Contact Person : Sophie Matter - mattersophie@gmail.com


INTRODUCTION : A SR IS NOT A BREVET

It is a permanent route, ridden at the initiative of the participant. Riders choose their start date and time, how they get organized, what they put in their bags, how they manage their time, if they sleep at the hotel or in a sleeping bag or not at all. Regarding their own organization, they have no obligation, except to make the overall time limit according to the option chosen (Randonneur or Tourist) and to do the ride without the support of a vehicle. Each of them is responsible for validating his/her passage at the controls. In short, they can and have to handle things all by themselves. The spirit of the Super Randonnée is based on freedom and maturity of the riders.


1. FIRST CONTACT

SR Representatives List

Anyone whising to organize a Super Randonnée according to the regulation of Provence Randonneurs (previously, regulation of the Audax Club Parisien), must contact the SR Representative of his / her country (or, if need be, of his / her geographical area). The SR Representative will then provide guidance, and act as an intermediary with Provence Randonneurs. If there is no SR Representative, he / she must contact directly Provence Randonneurs.

Contact Person : Sophie Matter - mattersophie@gmail.com

Several SR can be organized in the same country. An Organizer can organize several SR. The SR must not take the same roads, or as less as possible. Each SR must be a different experience.

A SR can span several countries. The start place defines the country whose SR Representative must be contacted. It is better to inform the SR Representatives of each country travelled through.

The SR Representative is an unique contact person for all SR in the same country (or, if need be, in the same geographical area). He / she takes over responsibility for pre-approving new routes or modifying old ones, sending the results, ordering the cards, receiving the homologation stickers, and paying the invoice (see details below).

If there is no SR Representative in the country: when submitting the SR project to Provence Randonneurs, the SR Organizer must say who will be the contact person for this SR, and in particular, who will take over responsibility for sending the results, ordering the cards, receiving the homologation stickers, and paying the invoice (see below). Provence Randonneurs will not accept more than one contact person per SR.


2. APPROVAL OF THE SUPER RANDONNÉE

The SR Organizer (or the Representative) must send to Provence Randonneurs following information: 

– Country

– Name of the SR

– Name of the contact person for this SR

– Email and full mailing address of the contact person for this SR

– Name and Email of the contact person which will appear on the SR List (if different fro above)

– The route on openrunner (in one piece), or the GPX file of the route (in one piece).

– The cue sheet (road book) indicating all control places

– A photo for each control place

openrunner

example of document with photos of the control places

Details:

– The length is 600 km (up to 619 km).

– The total amount of climbing is at least of 10,000 meters (measured on openrunner in one piece) but can be higher (no limit). The GPX file of the route (in one piece) can be provided, instead of the route on openrunner (Provence Randonneurs will then privately check the climbing amount).

– The route should not be consisting of doing the same loop multiple times, nor be star-shaped.

– Out-and-backs are admitted, but they should be avoided as much as possible.

– Start and finish location can be in a different place.

– Maximum 21 control places, including start and finish (start control is n°1, etc.).

– The controls are not timed.

– All controls, including start and finish, must be possible with photos. Stamps, receipts and other tickets are not mandatory. The photo control place must be easy to find for the rider, and easy to identify for the Organizer, when he or she will check the riders photos.

– The control place’s unique function is to make sure that the rider has followed the route. The Organizer has no obligation to make the control a refueling place.

– The SR Organizer can define an alternative starting point for riders in the Randonneur option.

When the SR is approved, Provence Randonneurs adds the new Super Randonnée to the SR List.


3. ORGANIZERS DUTIES

The SR Organizer has to make sure that the Rules for Riders are respected.

Super Randonnées are not brevets: The rules are different !

– The Organizer must offer both riding options: Tourist and Randonneur.

– Riders must be self-sufficient. Support vehicules are totally forbidden, on the course and in the control places.

– The Organizer must not set opening or closing times for the controls.

– The Organizer must not classify the riders by performance. The Organizer has to consider all finishers equal. For this reason, the time results should not be published by the Organizer.

– Super Randonnées are permanents. The Organizer has the obligation to offer them throughout the year (provided the roads are open to traffic).

– If the Organizer, in addition, wants to set a date for a Super Randonnée, he may do so, provided that the rules are respected. In particular, he is not allowed to offer motorized assistance, even occasionally, nor to perform control operations instead of the riders. He must offer the two options, Tourist and Randonneur. The Organizer must not impose any time schedule to the riders. The Organizer must not form any group.

– A SR cannot be counted as participation in, or as credit for another event held in conjuntion with the SR. A SR cannot be held both at the same time and on the same course as a brevet of 600 km.

– The Organizer can publish the list of the homologated riders, but in any case, their identities will not be used for commercial purposes and will not be transmitted to third parties for commercial purposes.


4. SR CARDS AND FRAME BADGES

Each rider receives a SR card and a frame badge. Provence Randonneurs provides SR cards and frame badges. The SR Representative (or the SR Organizer) orders those cards and badges from Provence Randonneurs. Provence Randonneurs charges 1 euro per set (SR card+badge) ordered.

SR Representatives (or SR Organizers) who want to fabricate their own cards and badges, must submit their artwork to Provence Randonneurs. In this case, the card and the badge must be faithful to the model produced by Provence Randonneurs, and previously by the Audax Club Parisien, in order to maintain the unity of SRs around the world.

The SR cards have no expiration date. A card remains valid as long as the registered participant did not start. If the participant must delay his or her start, the card remains valid. But if the participant starts and abandons, the card is no valid anymore for another try.

The SR frame badge in 2022

The SR frame badge in 2009

Example of SR card (front), as provided to the rider before the ride :

rider information is noted

entry number is given (each SR has its own numbering)

Example of SR card (back), as provided to the rider before the start :

controls are numbered and named

start control is control n°1

5. DURING THE YEAR

The SR Organizer receives the applications for his or her Super Randonnée. The SR Organizer is free to set the registration period for his or her Super Randonnée. 

The Organizer maintains a list of the registrations and issues an entry number to the riders, chronologically by registration date. There is only one numbering for Randonneurs and Tourists. The entry number must be noted on the SR card.

The Organizer must provide the entrants with a detailed cue sheet (road book) and a document with the photos of all control places. Cue sheet and photo document can be either printed or electronic.

The Organizer gives or sends to each entrant a SR card with the riders information noted in the card, and a SR frame badge.

After each ride, the Organizer must check the riders card, control photos, and (in the Randonneur option), the time of passage noted in the card by the rider for all controls, including start and finish. The start and finish date and time must be noted in the card.

If everything is correct, the Organizer marks the box Randonneur or Tourist, and notes the time, if the SR has been ridden in the Randonneur option.

The Organizer retains the completed cards until the homologation stickers are received.

Example of SR card (front), after the ride, with homologation sticker : rider homologated as Randonneur

Example of SR card (front), after the ride, with homologation sticker : rider homologated as Tourist

Example of SR card (back), after the ride, as filled by the rider

6. RESULTS SUBMISSION

Each year, the SR Representative (or the SR Organizer) sends the results of his / her SR to Provence Randonneurs. Provence Randonneurs requires at least one submission per year, before December 31. A results spreadsheet will be provided (Excel or similar : see model below).

There is one results spreadsheet per SR. In the spreadsheet, one line of text per rider.

In the order of the columns:

A. Anticipated homologation number (to be validated by Provence Randonneurs)

B. Start date (dd/mm/yyyy)

C. FAMILY NAME, Name (ex: « MATTER Sophie »)

D. F (if woman) or M (if man)

E. Riders club (ex: « Audax Club Parisien »), or : « independent »

F. Riders country (ex: « France »)

G. Randonneur / Touriste

H. Special bikes (mountain bike, gravel bike, recumbent, tandem, singlespeed…)

There is no need to return the completed cards to Provence Randonneurs.

Provence Randonneurs retains the right to ask for a digital copy of the completed cards, with the control photos. Irregularities may result in the non homologation of the riders.

In case of a new SR, Provence Randonneurs will always ask for a digital copy of the completed cards, with the control photos.

SR_Model_Results_File.xlsx

7. HOMOLOGATIONS

Anticipated homologation numbers are validated by Provence Randonneurs, in continuation with the system set up by the Audax Club Parisien.

A SR is homologated by Provence Randonneurs once the homologation numbers are published on superrandonnees.org.

Provence Randonneurs sends to the SR Representatives (or to the SR Organizers) homologation stickers with the homologation numbers. The stickers are either printed and sent by letter, either sent in electronic format to be printed by the Organizer. Those stickers will be pasted in the cards. Therefore, the Organizer must retain the riders cards until the stickers are received. When the stickers are pasted in the cards, the cards will be returned to the riders.


8. INVOICE

To participate in covering the expenses incurred by Provence Randonneurs for the maintenance of the Super Randonnées, the Representatives (or the SR Organizers) pay an annual invoice to Provence Randonneurs. 

The invoice includes :

The invoice is sent in January via email. Payment can be made via bank transfer, PayPal or Western Union. Please do not pay before receiving the invoice.


9. ENTRY FEE

The Organizer determines the entry fee for his / her SR, while keeping it moderate. The SR is a non-profit organization, and the Organizer does not provide any support on the ride, so there is no reason to ask for a high fee. A high entry fee is a reason why Provence Randonneurs revokes the SR approval.


10. CHALLENGES AND AWARDS

10 SR Challenge and 20 SR Challenge : organized and awarded by Provence Randonneurs.

Gravel SR Challenge : organized and awarded by Provence Randonneurs.

Applicants may apply directly with Provence Randonneurs, or via their SR Representative.


11. ABOUT THE 2 RIDING OPTIONS

SR are intended to offer a hard challenge that should remain open to a large number of riders. That’s why Provence Randonneurs offers 2 riding options: Randonneurs and Tourists.

Randonneurs have a 60 hour time limit.

The Tourist option should not be neglected. It helps checking out a route carefully in daylight before riding it as a Randonneur. It attracts those who want to get the best of an unknown scenery without the fatigue of sleep deprivation and the stress of the timed schedule. Keeping in mind that participants are fully unsupported, a SR ridden in the Tourist option is still a valuable achievement.

SR ridden in both options will be accepted to validate the 10 SR Challenge, 20 SR Challenge, and Gravel SR Challenge.


Thank You to all Organizers and Representatives for the time and effort they put into promoting the Super Randonnées.

August 08, 2024