NOTE: DUE TO INSURANCE RESTRICTIONS THE ROUTE WAS MODIFIED TO STAY IN THE U.S., GOING UP TO—BUT NOT ACROSS—THE CANADIAN BORDER.
NEW YORK–MONTRÉAL–NEW YORK 1200K
RIDE DETAILS
Boston-Montreal-Boston (BMB) was the first North American 1200 km brevet, founded in 1988 and run every non-PBP year. When it was announced that BMB would no longer be run after 2006, Laurent Chambard, the RBA of New Jersey Randonneurs at the time who had finished BMB twice, came up with the idea for a 1200 km brevet that would also go up to the vicinity of Montreal, but would start and end in the vicinity of NYC rather than Boston. In August 2020, this idea finally came to fruition for the first time. This year, we are running New York-Montreal-New York for the second time.
BMB, at least in its latest versions, started in a suburb west of Boston and turned around in Huntingdon, 47 miles southwest of Montreal. Similarly, the name of our ride, New York-Montreal-New York, does not accurately describe the geography of the route, but rather the spirit in which it was designed. In order to minimize urban riding, maximize scenery, not exceed 1200 km by very much, and avoid insurance problems involved in a border crossing, the ride begins and ends in Paramus, a New Jersey suburb 13 miles northwest of Manhattan, and turns around just south of the Canadian border, at Rouses Point, crossing from New York into Vermont.
In some ways, this ride resembles more recent American 1200 km brevets rather than BMB. First, the field limit is considerably smaller than it was for BMB. Second, sleep stops are at designated motels (included in the entry fee), with two riders sharing each room. Third, riding through the night is discouraged. Fourth, it is not an out-and-back route, but a loop, with only about 25 miles of overlap between outbound and inbound routes. The outbound route is mainly through New York State and the inbound route is mainly through the New England states.
The ride passes through five states: New Jersey, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.
Day 1 (209 miles)
Due to lodging constraints, this day is much shorter than the first day of the average 1200 km brevet. (On the positive side, this allows a later start, 6 a.m. instead of the usual 4 a.m.) You head northeast through the suburbs towards the Hudson River, which you’ll first encounter in Haverstraw. You’ll be riding parallel to the river, if not in sight of it, for most of the day. After crossing to the east side of the river over the Bear Mountain Bridge, you’ll spend most of the day on this side, going north through the Hudson Valley and the Capital District. 182 miles after your first glimpse of the Hudson, you’ll take leave of it in Glens Falls and finish at a motel near Lake George, at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains. There are no long climbs today, but the terrain is rolling and there are very few flat stretches.
Day 2 (238 miles)
The day starts with a climb from Lake George into the Adirondack Mountains, and there is another big climb in the Adirondacks at mile 58, where you’ll reach the highest elevation of the ride, at 1671 feet above sea level. But after mile 100, the route leaves the mountains and the terrain becomes rather flat, and then very flat after reaching Lake Champlain at mile 134. You cross into Vermont and then ride along Lake Champlain through Alburg, North Hero, and Grand Isle (which were also on the BMB route). The terrain becomes rolling for the last 10 miles to the sleep stop south of Burlington. Although there are more miles today than on the other three days, there is considerably less climbing per mile.
Day 3 (155 miles)
Leaving the Burlington area, you’ll ride south along the western edge of the Green Mountains, passing through charming towns and villages on the way, with many spectacular scenic views. Although all the controls are at convenience stores today, to accommodate the wide range of hours riders pass through, you’ll also have opportunities to stop at more interesting places to eat, e.g., Dorset Union Store (which opened in 1816) at about mile 100 of the day. At mile 116 of the day, there’s a 4-mile climb on a smooth dirt road from East Arlington to the day’s highest elevation (1476 feet), and then a paved 6-mile descent into Bennington. You’ll cross into Massachusetts and pass to the west of Mt. Greylock on the way to the motel in Williamstown. This day is the hilliest, in terms of elevation gain per mile. The terrain is mostly rolling, with several longer climbs.
Day 4 (155 miles)
You’ll ride southwest from Williamstown into New York State with great views of the Berkshire Mountains to the east, returning to Massachusetts after bypassing the busier areas of Pittsfield and Great Barrington. Then you’ll continue south through the Taconic Mountains into Connecticut and back into New York State. There’s a climb up to Fahnestock State Park, then a long descent to the Hudson River in Cold Spring. From there, you’ll retrace the route from the first day back to Haverstraw, and finally you’ll ride along the lakes of suburban New York and New Jersey to the finish. Most of the terrain today is gently rolling, punctuated by some steep rollers and a few longer climbs.
BMB, at least in its latest versions, started in a suburb west of Boston and turned around in Huntingdon, 47 miles southwest of Montreal. Similarly, the name of our ride, New York-Montreal-New York, does not accurately describe the geography of the route, but rather the spirit in which it was designed. In order to minimize urban riding, maximize scenery, not exceed 1200 km by very much, and avoid insurance problems involved in a border crossing, the ride begins and ends in Paramus, a New Jersey suburb 13 miles northwest of Manhattan, and turns around just south of the Canadian border, at Rouses Point, crossing from New York into Vermont.
In some ways, this ride resembles more recent American 1200 km brevets rather than BMB. First, the field limit is considerably smaller than it was for BMB. Second, sleep stops are at designated motels (included in the entry fee), with two riders sharing each room. Third, riding through the night is discouraged. Fourth, it is not an out-and-back route, but a loop, with only about 25 miles of overlap between outbound and inbound routes. The outbound route is mainly through New York State and the inbound route is mainly through the New England states.
The ride passes through five states: New Jersey, New York, Vermont, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.
Day 1 (209 miles)
Due to lodging constraints, this day is much shorter than the first day of the average 1200 km brevet. (On the positive side, this allows a later start, 6 a.m. instead of the usual 4 a.m.) You head northeast through the suburbs towards the Hudson River, which you’ll first encounter in Haverstraw. You’ll be riding parallel to the river, if not in sight of it, for most of the day. After crossing to the east side of the river over the Bear Mountain Bridge, you’ll spend most of the day on this side, going north through the Hudson Valley and the Capital District. 182 miles after your first glimpse of the Hudson, you’ll take leave of it in Glens Falls and finish at a motel near Lake George, at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains. There are no long climbs today, but the terrain is rolling and there are very few flat stretches.
Day 2 (238 miles)
The day starts with a climb from Lake George into the Adirondack Mountains, and there is another big climb in the Adirondacks at mile 58, where you’ll reach the highest elevation of the ride, at 1671 feet above sea level. But after mile 100, the route leaves the mountains and the terrain becomes rather flat, and then very flat after reaching Lake Champlain at mile 134. You cross into Vermont and then ride along Lake Champlain through Alburg, North Hero, and Grand Isle (which were also on the BMB route). The terrain becomes rolling for the last 10 miles to the sleep stop south of Burlington. Although there are more miles today than on the other three days, there is considerably less climbing per mile.
Day 3 (155 miles)
Leaving the Burlington area, you’ll ride south along the western edge of the Green Mountains, passing through charming towns and villages on the way, with many spectacular scenic views. Although all the controls are at convenience stores today, to accommodate the wide range of hours riders pass through, you’ll also have opportunities to stop at more interesting places to eat, e.g., Dorset Union Store (which opened in 1816) at about mile 100 of the day. At mile 116 of the day, there’s a 4-mile climb on a smooth dirt road from East Arlington to the day’s highest elevation (1476 feet), and then a paved 6-mile descent into Bennington. You’ll cross into Massachusetts and pass to the west of Mt. Greylock on the way to the motel in Williamstown. This day is the hilliest, in terms of elevation gain per mile. The terrain is mostly rolling, with several longer climbs.
Day 4 (155 miles)
You’ll ride southwest from Williamstown into New York State with great views of the Berkshire Mountains to the east, returning to Massachusetts after bypassing the busier areas of Pittsfield and Great Barrington. Then you’ll continue south through the Taconic Mountains into Connecticut and back into New York State. There’s a climb up to Fahnestock State Park, then a long descent to the Hudson River in Cold Spring. From there, you’ll retrace the route from the first day back to Haverstraw, and finally you’ll ride along the lakes of suburban New York and New Jersey to the finish. Most of the terrain today is gently rolling, punctuated by some steep rollers and a few longer climbs.