the curious randonneur: 12/25/10

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Zimbabwian bicycle built for...me!

The Singing Cyclist with his Christmas gift for me. It is a handmade bicycle model from Zimbabwe, made with local materials. Very cleverly executed. He bought it at ZimFest, a celebration of Zimbabwean music where he and the band of children he plays with, Shumba, perform their Marimba magic.
Here's a close-up.

Keep it handmade,

CurioRando

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What the heck is a Randonneur?

In General

In general terms, the French word randonneur is what in English we'd call an ambler or a rambler.

In Cycling

In cycling terms, a randonneur is a long distance cyclist who participates in non-competitive, organized cycling events called brevets. Brevets are typically 200k, 300k, 400k or 600k in length with specified time limits. The grandpapa of all is the Paris Brest Paris event which is 1200k in 90 hours. It is held every four years; next up is this August 21 - 25.

In France

Randonneuring began in France when the limits of cycling as a practical form of transportation were being explored and the bicycle was perhaps the central form of transportation for work and leisure for the masses.

As for me...

See my first post (May 31, 2009) for more on why I began this blog, and my personal randonneuring objectives.

Of Interest to the Curious

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Zimbabwian bicycle built for...me!