Some very ambitious cyclists are on a very long ride.
They’re planning to cover 12-hundred kilometers on Vancouver Island in less than 90 hours.
Most of the riders should be passing through the Nanaimo area in the next couple of hours as they head north.
It’s a type of cycling called Randonneuring, and the Van Isle 1200 will help riders qualify for one of the sport’s premier events in France.
Rider Jim Runkle helped plan the route, and rode it last week (that’s when he took the picture at the top of the story).
Runkle says the cyclists will have to carry their own spares, food and water and any other gear they’ll need between check points.
The heat will be a concern, and Van Isle 1200 organizer Steve Mahovlic says despite the strict rules around doing the ride with limited support, ” Should you or your friends come across a randonneur in need of hydration and you have the means, offering fluids to a rider is permitted.”
