Paris Brest Paris: how to get ready

The Paris Brest Paris randonnée is one of those challenges that remain inside of you. 1,230km of effort, sweat and excitement and just 90 hours to complete the route.

It is certainly not an adventure for rookies and to participate you need to prepare yourself as well as possible, starting from the qualification.

If you like challenges and want to be part of this adventure, you are in the right place. I will explain the main steps that will lead you to face this difficult and fascinating path through the French hills.

If you qualify, you will have a unique experience together with 5999 other participants, equally crazy and in love with this wonderful sport that is cycling.

Paris Brest Paris route

The Paris Brest Paris randonnée starts right in the French capital, where cyclists start in groups. The official website of the competition has not been updated since 2015 and it is not easy to find detailed information on the route.

For several years there have not been many changes and the route has remained the same. What you will see next is an old map of the randonnée, but it can still be considered relevant. In any case, the official route may also include small deviations for organizational reasons.

The starting-point of the Paris Brest Paris is at the Saint Quentin Velodrome, where cyclists are sorted according to the bracket assigned. Here you will find a very warm atmosphere: the tension will be palpable, but the sharing atmosphere and friendship that characterizes this race will give you the energy to get started in the best way.

During the 1230 kilometers you have to face, you will find different controls (more or less one every 60-80 kilometers) and various points to refresh the participants, with showers and dormitories to briefly recover energy. You only have 4 days and 4 nights to complete the entire route and the stops will be short, but the desire to do it will help you get back on your bike and overcome fatigue.

Along the route of the Paris Brest Paris, you touch several municipalities, where are placed some of the controls. The cities that you will find in the itinerary are:

• Paris
• Dreux
• Mortagne-au-Perche
• Villaines-la-Juhel
• Fougères
• Tinténiac
• Quédillac
• Loudéac
• Saint Nicolas du Pélem
• Carhaix
• Brest.

Once you reach the city of Brest, on the Atlantic coast, you have arrived at the turning point. It is one of the most important achievements of the entire randonnée and the view of the spectacular Iroise Bridge will give you a very strong emotion.

There are still many kilometers to go, but here you will find new energy. The second part of the journey will be the most difficult: lack of sleep, some discomfort and sore muscles will be some of the challenges you will face, but the thought of reaching the goal and join the other winners, will make you overcome everything.

How to qualify for Paris Brest Paris

Paris Brest is one of the most beautiful randonnées in the world and cyclists come from all over the globe. You will find yourself cycling alongside Americans, Australians and participants from all over Europe.

To participate in the Paris Brest Paris you must have obtained 4 brevets in the 6 months preceding the event, which will take place between 18 and 22 August 2019. Here is a summary of the 4 brevets required to participate:

• a brevet of 200km to obtain between February 23th and March 13th;
• a brevet of 300km to obtain between April 6th and May 26th;
• a brevet of 400km to obtain between April 20th and June 2nd;
• a brevet of 600km to obtain between May 4th and June 30th.

There are only 6,000 places to allocate and if you want to be sure about your participation, you can take advantage of the brevets obtained in 2018 to pre-register before the others:

• If you have obtained a brevet of 1,000km or more, you can pre-register as of 14 January 2019;
• If you have obtained a 600km brevet, you can pre-register as of 28 January 2019;
• If you have obtained a 400km brevet, you can pre-register as of 11 February 2019;
• If you have obtained a 300km brevet, you can pre-register as of 25 February 2019;
• Those who have obtained a 200km brevet can pre-register from 11 March 2019.

Thus, the 2018 brevet, which provides for the longest distance, offers more opportunities to be counted among the 6,000 participants than a brevet of only 200 kilometers. The Paris Brest Paris is considered as the Olympics of cycling and that is why it is so desired, so it may be useful to play ahead.

Those who have obtained a brevet in 2018 can pre-register from June 1-18, 2019 and can pre-register even before they have obtained all the necessary brevets. The approval numbers for missing brevets will be communicated at a later stage. After June 18, the pre-registration priority is lost.

Enrolments are definitively closed on July 3, 2019, but it is possible by that date all 6,000 available seats have been allocated.

How to train for Paris Brest Paris

Paris Brest Paris is a game of resistance and must be faced as such. To fully grasp the spirit of this randonnée, however, you need to understand that it isn’t a challenge against the others, but against oneself. Although the first to cross the finish line is considered the winner, in reality all the brave people who complete the race within 90 hours can be considered winners and all of them receive the same medal.

The optimal training of the randonnée goes through several stages. Each of these will allow you to get into the ideal physical shape and also the right motivation while waiting for the big event.

A year before

At this stage, physical efforts should be light. You must not stop pedaling, but it is good to give priority to a relaxing rhythm and without excesses. It is the ideal time to take care of your diet and watch out for your small physical issues.

During training, it may be helpful to use a heart rate monitor and a cyclocomputer to monitor the pedaling cadence, like the one in the picture.

Six months before

It is now that aerobic work begins to improve endurance. Group training with cyclists of the same level will keep your motivation high and the ideal pace is between 85 or 90 cycles per minute.

During this period, the brevets for qualification are concentrated, but it is important not to overdo things. If a 1,000km brevet allows you to anticipate your registration, it could also lead to excessive tiredness or a loss of motivation.

One of two months before

Now you can take breaks of a week or more between workouts. Never do not miss sleep and care very well for the food. Avoid long distances, at this stage you only have to maintain the resistance you have acquired in previous months.

Training sessions should last no longer than 2 hours, which will help you work on power and speed. One of the most recommended methods is interval training, with alternating shots and active recovery.

Zero-day

The long-awaited moment has finally arrived. If you have trained properly, you will complete the challenge of Paris Brest Paris. Just one last tip: enjoy every meter you ride along the French hills!