Fleche Wrap-up

[Jake Kassen]

Big congratulations to the three Fleche teams and 15 riders who participated in last weekend's Old Saybrook event. As the organizer and a rider, I thought it was a big success. We had one loop route, one route from Provincetown, MA and one from Durham, NH. No DNFs.

As a first, every route featured a bit of dirt with two routes being about 10% unpaved, both with some short gnarly sections. But only one with a rider who didn't know the route was not entirely paved. :)

If you were on a team and would like to write a ride report or post photos, that would be great.

I thought Old Saybrook made for a great destination and about 1/3 of the riders headed home via train. I'm open to suggestions for the 2026 Fleche/Trace destination. The best cities are those with public transportation options to the Boston area, ample hotels, a good brunch location, and safe overnight parking for those who drive to the start. We've had Portland ME, Providence RI, and Medford MA as locations previously. (Medford is the leading contender for 2026 currently.)

There's been a request for a Dart later this year or next year. Dart & Dart Populairs are team events similar to the Fleche but shorter: 200km/120km with 13.5/8h the time limits. We've previously had a Dart ending in Brattleboro, VT which works especially well for teams looking for dirt heavy routes. Brattleboro lets teams have a pancake flat route along the CT river or a challenging hilly route away from the valley. If people would like a Dart added to the schedule, please let me know.

Jake