Three generations of cyclists are hoping they’ll make it into the Guinness World Records having completed a long-distance cycling event.
Gary Baker of Chilliwack, who turns 80 in two months, along with his 50-year-old son Mike Baker and 20-year-old grandson Ben Baker of West Vancouver, completed the Flèche Pacifique randonneuring event on May 23 in Chilliwack.
Randonneuring is a long-distance, non-competitive cycling sport. It comes from the French word randonnée loosely meaning to roam or travel over long distances.
Gary said he and his family “extensively” researched sports and randonneuring literature to see if a three-generation team has taken part in what’s called a “trace” event, and to the best of their knowledge, it has not been done.
“No such record was found for any age span. The research found that there are very few 80-year-olds still entering any randonneuring events (called brevets),” Gary said. “It hadn’t been done before so we thought ‘What the heck?’”
In a trace event, the ride window is within two daylight segments: from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday, and from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday. There is no riding between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. and the total distance must be between 201 and 359 kilometres.
In order to enter the Guinness World Records, the Baker family had three witnesses – two official, and one backup. The witnesses cannot be associated with the riders, nor can they be on the same team.
The witnesses watched as the team left the Coast Hotel on May 22 and returned the following day, marking down the start and finish times. The Bakers rode 204 kilometres.
Since the witnesses were not on the route with the cycling team, the Baker family had to get photographic proof and signatures along the way. Their self-mapped route had five control points. At each point they took photos of the team, plus they had to time stamp a card and get everyone on the team to sign it.
After completing the event and filling in all the paperwork, the team sent it off to Guinness World Records.
“We have no idea whether it’ll happen or not, but it’s been submitted.”
And now they wait.
They’re hoping to find out whether or not they’re record-holders in the next three months.
When asked why people take part in the sport if it’s not a competitive race, Gary smiled.
“If you have to ask the question, you will not understand the answer,” he said with a laugh.
“It’s a passion. It’s very challenging. It’s very multi-dimensional in that you have to be able to ride, you have to manage the process, you have to manage your food, you have to manage your sleep.”
The event saw six teams and 28 riders, who were from throughout B.C. Baker’s team included two other cyclists, Gary Sparks and Maurice Lui. The only other Chilliwack rider was Karen Smith.
“We can’t get any help,” he added. “If your bike breaks down, you have to know how to fix it.”
The riders can help one another, and they can get help from the public if they offer it, but they cannot organize help.
Since it’s not a race, the amount of time it takes to finish does not matter. Baker’s team spent 11.5 hours on their bikes, which included the control-point stops and lunch break.
“Whether you’re first or last, as long as you are within the time limit, you get exactly the same recognition.”
There are some “goofy” rules, he added, like you have to be at the event banquet the following Sunday morning, or you don’t qualify.
“It’s a different world,” he said. “It’s addictive. We love it.”
When the ride was finished, Gary realized the point of the ride was not about the Guinness World Record. His grandson Ben had prepared a speech but was unable to read it at the banquet, so he recorded it from home and sent it to Gary.
“He said ‘I’m sorry I didn’t do it sooner. I got to spend quality time with my grandfather, my father and my uncle (who showed up unannounced), and it was wonderful.’ And he was literally in tears,” Gary recalled.
“It was one of those things that you get an opportunity to do in your life, and it has a really, really wonderful outcome.”