There are three team events in American Randonneuring: the Flèches-USA, the Arrow, and the Dart. All events are for teams of 3 to 5 machines (bicycles) and each team designs their own route that heads to a common destination set by the event organizer. Teams must ride the specified minimum distance in the appropriate time period and finish together to get ride credit. There are also some differences to be aware of too. Below is a brief description of each event. If you click on the name it will show you the regulations for that specific event.
Flèches-USA--A 24-hour event held on or around Easter weekend. This is an ACP-sanctioned event and counts toward the R-5000 medal. No rest stop may be longer than 2 hours. Allowable start times are from noon Thursday through 10 AM on Saturday. A minimum of 360 km must be covered during the event.
Traces-USA --The Trace is the “younger sister” of the Flèche. The Trace is run parallel to the Flèche, on a shorter distance (200 km minimum distance), and with a possible overnight stop. The purpose of the Trace is to choose a tourist route and to ride it in daytime hours. Teams can start and finish on the same day, or they can start on the day before the common meeting with Flèche riders, make an overnight stop, and arrive the next day. Although it is shorter than the Flèche, and does not impose night riding, the Trace remains challenging, especially at Easter, when weather conditions are often rough, and we still lack training. Upon arrival, the participants in both Flèche and Trace meet and celebrate together. Organizing a Trace at the same time as the Flèche brings more riders together, and makes the party even greater. The Trace currently does not give distance credit or credit towards RUSA awards.
Arrow-A 24-hour event is very similar to the ACP event, this is a RUSA-sanctioned event. An Arrow can be run any time of year and be organized for any day of the week. There is no limit as to how long a team can rest in one place. It does not count toward any ACP awards, only RUSA ones. A minimum of 360 km must be covered during the event.
Dart- Dart-A 13½ hour team event with a minimum distance of 200km. Unlike the two longer team events, a Dart could, depending on the time of year, start time, and event time period, be run entirely in daylight.
Dart Populaire- An 8-hour team event with a minimum distance of 120km. Unlike the two longer team events, a Dart Populaire could, depending on the time of year, start time, and event time period, be run entirely in daylight.
Below are some suggestions from RUSA to help the Regional Brevet Administrator (RBA) put on a successful team event, and for teams to have a successful ride. (More guidelines about riding a team randonnée are also in the RUSA Handbook.) A team randonnée has some unusual characteristics and regulations compared to regular brevets; every RBA and team captain should review the appropriate rules before beginning this process. Riders and RBAs should feel free to contact RUSA's Team Randonnée Coordinator with any questions they might have about riding one of these types of events.
