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The Randonneur 500 and 1000 awards recognized participation in shorter events (relatively speaking.) The Randonneur 500 medal was awarded to riders who completed rides of 50, 100, 150, and 200 km, for a total of 500 km. For the Randonneur 1000 medal a rider must have completed rides of 100, 200, and 300 km plus any combination of other rides adding up to the remaining 400 km. A rider could substitute a longer ride for a required shorter ride. (As with the Super Randonneur pin, Flèche distances could not be used towards these awards.) A rider could receive only one of the three annual awards each year - either the Randonneur 500 medal, the Randonneur 1000 medal, or the Super Randonneur pin. Unlike the Super Randonneur and Super 5000, which are internationally recognized distinctions administered by Audax Club Parisien in France, the Randonneur 500 and 1000 were internal BC Randonneur club distinctions. Both awards were introduced in 1998 by Dan McGuire, and are based on similar awards given out by Audax UK. Dan credits John Hathaway with the idea of introducing awards which would recognize the participation of riders who complete multiple shorter events. In Dan's words, the objective of these awards "is to encourage new cyclists to get started, to encourage participation (thus four rides minimum), and to have activities and challenges for those who don't have the desire or time to go on the longer rides or attain Super Randonneur status." Both awards were discontinued after the 2003 season but were brought back at the last minute before the 2004 season with new more relaxed criteria. For the 2004 season, with both awards, a rider needed to complete at least three BC Randonneur events of 100 km or more with the distance tallying at least 500 or 1000 km. To earn a Randonneur 500 medal, a rider must have completed at least one brevet (i.e. 200+). To earn a Randonneur 1000 medal, a rider must complete at least one brevet of 300 km or more. For either award, a successful Flèche Pacifique could have been used as part of a rider's tally, but counted as the minimum distance, 360 km, regardless of how much distance was actually ridden. Both awards were finally discontinued after the 2004 season. |