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The Festive 500 Countdown

By Joe Hall • 21st December 2010 10:11am • Posted in Rides

The countdown to the Festive 500km has begun. With only one day to go before the big push, we have been overwhelmed with the response so far. Thanks to everyone who's getting involved and, whilst some weather forecasts are making it an even greater challenge than we first anticipated, we’re looking forward to seeing how many of you can make it to that magic number.

Don’t forget there are several prizes up for grabs: First prize is a Deep Winter Training Bundle featuring Deep Winter Tights, Winter Jersey and Overshoes. Hope Technology have kindly given us a Vision Two light as a prize for second place and 500 competitors registered on www.Rapha.cc will each receive a woven Festive 500 badge. ‘Tis the season!

Just to remind you, we are accepting entries through the following channels:

• Facebook - 'Like us' and post your photos and captions to our page
• Twitter - 'Follow us' (@rapharacing) and #rapha500 your tweet with photo and caption
• Flickr - tagged 'rapha500'
• Vimeo - tagged 'rapha500'
• Youtube - tagged 'rapha500'
• Your blog URL in the comments box of any Festive 500 blog entry

Additionally:

• Garmin/mapmyfitness data counts but will not win the prize alone
• Rollers/turbo trainers are only acceptable in special circumstances
• Please make sure your name and address is registered with us to have a chance of receiving a prize!

We will be compiling a shortlist in the New Year for your delectation and will announce the winners shortly after that.

Good luck.

Comments

Graeme Raeburn

21st December 2010 03:07pm

Best of luck to all + be safe out there.

Mike Papageorge

21st December 2010 03:07pm

Excited! A last minute wedding has thrown a wrench in my plans for the 23rd. The nerve of some people.

Wonkyo Seo

21st December 2010 03:15pm

Burst into laughing to see divorce papers can be a hard copy evidence.

Jan Sotorník

21st December 2010 03:31pm

Winter playlist (http://www.rapha.cc/winter-playlist), mudguards and embocation are ready so I can face everything! :)

Good luck to all.

Peter Devery

21st December 2010 03:37pm

Does snow on the ground count as "special cirmcumstances"?

Jan Sotorník

21st December 2010 03:46pm

Peter Devery: I think snow is not a special cirmcumstances.

As you can see:
Juan Antonio Flecha
http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l2k7x79QfP1qbxnpgo1_500.jpg

Andy Hampsten
http://26.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_l36p7gwXQV1qbxnpgo1_400.jpg

And some true hardman
http://s3.amazonaws.com/data.tumblr.com/tumblr_lcwvlsetFD1qbxnpgo1_1280.jpg?AWSAccessKeyId=0RYTHV9YYQ4W5Q3HQMG2&;Expires=1293032544&Signature=%2BY6hP6o%2F1DzIcqorIc94Jbd5rkQ%3D

Jan Sotorník

21st December 2010 03:50pm

working hardman link - http://www.bigringriding.com/post/2091777025/weather

Wonkyo Seo

21st December 2010 04:24pm

Any handicap to riders in Northern Hemisphere? Have to fight with snow and chill while riders in SH are enjoying sunshine? Forget it. Good luck to everyone and Joyful riding, safe riding(JRSR)~~

Jan Sotorník

21st December 2010 04:28pm

Oh c'mon guys it's winter - cold and snow what makes this Festive challenging :)

SH cyclists are for sure envious about ours white snow hell ;-)

Stefan Rohner

21st December 2010 04:36pm

295h from 01.10.2010, will go for the 7500km badge, please prepare it ;)

here

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog/ and in flickr.

Peter Devery

21st December 2010 05:12pm

Ok Jan S - you have shamed me enough!

Dave Wyman

21st December 2010 05:59pm

The amount rain in the City of Angeles over the past six days has approached near biblical biblical proportions. I stayed off my bike for two days and made sure we had emergency food, flashlights, snorkels and swim fins at the ready.

Rather than allowing the precipitation to put a damper on my Festive 500 training any longer, I pulled out my road bike and my rollers late yesterday afternoon. Going nowhere fast, I spun my wheels under the protection the front porch. After 30 minutes I was deluged with sweat, yet I was warmed both in body and in soul.

As darkness fell, I climbed on my fixed gear bike (easier to clean than my road bike), and circled clockwise around my quiet neighborhood. My bike was quiet, too; the only sound it produced came from its wheels, parting the waters flowing over the pavement.

In the beam of my handlebar-mounted bike light, I watched drops of water, like little spheres of sparkling jewels, fly off my front wheel, while raindrops fell on me out of the black sky above. Back in my house, I stripped off the wet lycra and stepped into the shower's hot water, baptizing myself a third time.

Bring on the Flood. Bring on the Festive 500.

Dirk Maertins

21st December 2010 06:18pm

Batteries for lights and electric feet warmers are charged, insulated bidons and embrocation are prepared.
Waiting for the starting shot…

Peter Magnusson

21st December 2010 08:31pm

Count me in! This is fun.
I will do my km's in Mallorca so i will not have any problems with snow anyway.

Chris Boulton

21st December 2010 09:11pm

Will be giving it a go but the weather looks a real worry in the uk though!

Will be posting on Twitter @chrisgboulton

Stefan Rohner

21st December 2010 09:13pm

Peter, having a bridge between Ibiza and Mallorca I would visit you ;)

Cole Harden

22nd December 2010 12:19am

I'm in. http://coleharden.blogspot.com/

Chris Thomas

22nd December 2010 03:59am

I already had about 320km planned for that week (starting with 60km or so in Death Valley on Thursday), so I'll enter here just in case I get overzealous and actually get close to the full 500km.

http://ridewithchris.org

Michael Hodgson

22nd December 2010 04:06am

Looks like the rain here in LA may let up just in time. Looking forward to this a lot

Rett Longmore

22nd December 2010 05:47am

So much for a nice relaxing holiday. Damn you Rapha. I'm in. I'll be post in on Vimeo sending links along as upload them.

Errin Vasquez

22nd December 2010 07:04am

I'll be logging miles for the Festive 500. I'll post to my twitter @Area45 and to my blog at www.frontageroads.com.

Florian Goessmann

22nd December 2010 07:47am

I am in. http://ratsastaakovaa.posterous.com/ and @flogoessmann

Chris Spinks

22nd December 2010 10:11am

I am in with Garmin data, posts of twitter ("staffylegs") and strava. Even working on a "Rapha Style" video to go with it….

I am in Australia, so no snow plenty of sun, but a 2m King Brown snake came out to say hi as i rode past today.

Malcolm Bracken

22nd December 2010 11:00am

My road bike is Hors de combat thanks to a psychopathic motorist with road-rage. I cycled into work on my brompton this morning. Do I get extra mileage for using a folding bike with fat, small wheels?

Henrik Öijer

22nd December 2010 11:07am

Snow is easy, cold weather like today ( -26C ) is not that easy. Follow my way to the Rapha Festive 500 in my blog where I also will post my Garmin data:
http://aswedishcyclist.blogspot.com/search/label/Rapha%20500

Seth Pelletier

22nd December 2010 12:14pm

I shouldn't complain as I head to Miami in two days to start this little adventure with temps around 24C all week.

Peter Lunt

22nd December 2010 12:50pm

Hey, what's this? changing the rules with a day to go?
Garmin Connect not good enough? If I send you the ride number you can see it, and its unfakeable. Straight from the Garmin GPS. I'm not going to become a social network geek on Facebook or whatever Twitter is ..
Twitter, YouTube etc is just a claim, anyone can say what they like

Stick with the rules Sunshine, as originally promised. Show some honour…

Tim Simmons

22nd December 2010 01:04pm

I'll be starting tomorrow! Bring it on!

Ben Brown

22nd December 2010 02:48pm

Hi Peter, we are not changing the rules – "The most visually engaging or inspirational submission will win our Deep Winter Training Bundle". Basically, supplying Garmin data will not be shortlisted for winning on its own, though it helps prove you did do it. Good luck!

Stefan Rohner

22nd December 2010 04:06pm

rules please! we need rules, also somebody who tells us when to cycle ;)

Matthew Jones

22nd December 2010 04:19pm

I'm in -- follow my progress on my blog:
http://jackrabbitracing.blogspot.com/

Glenn Girtman

22nd December 2010 05:30pm

What are the special circumstances for trainers? Due to my work schedule, I've been doing my training around midnight. I would probably sign up if I can use the Fluid+.The loose 10 pounds by Christmas ends 12/23 and l could use the additional challenge. Tx. afatty

James Fairbank

22nd December 2010 05:55pm

@ Stefan, for those that don't have the luxury of 6 hours a day to toddle round bucolic, temperate countryside extra motivation might be required. ;)

Peter Lunt

22nd December 2010 06:14pm

Ben,
So therefore you are saying "The first 100 to prove (somehow) they have completed the 500km will receive a limited edition 500km woven badge" still applies then. Its a pretty clear statement
I must admit, the prize of a Deep Winter Training Bundle never really registered in my mind, as living in the tropics, it would be completely useless to me. Like most of the participants, I am in this for the fun, not material gain. Also as most of my weekday riding is in the dark before work it is more than a challenge to get any visually engaging material - me in my uber-dark Rapha gear going up a beautiful but totally unlit country road before dawn?

Ben Brown

22nd December 2010 06:39pm

I will give special consideration to anyone who can do good flash photography.

Troy Coleman

22nd December 2010 08:34pm

STRAVA is setting up a special event page for the Festive 500. Join the public club: <http://app.strava.com/clubs/rapha-festive-500>; Upload your GPS data and easily share it with the facebooks, twitters, or whatever. Should be able to upload images with your data as well.

Eric Ruffing

22nd December 2010 10:55pm

Great idea I'll try it. Confused (as always) though. Stated above "500 competitors registered on www.Rapha.cc will each receive a woven Festive 500 badge." Stated on the first post about this event you said "The first 100 to prove (somehow) they have completed the 500km will receive a limited edition 500km woven badge featured above." First 100 or 500 for a patch? Good luck to all.

Peter Lunt

22nd December 2010 11:52pm

The first miles are in. Ride (70 kms in Malaysia) at http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60382006 and I am trying to get some photos in the dark. There are a couple at http://gallery.me.com/plunt#100008
I'll try and work on the photos, but it is not going to be easy -plus it cuts down on cycling or breakfast time!

simon ferris

23rd December 2010 12:25am

loading up the camera with film as we speak. its been holding in the high 20's here and the chances of snow just got downgraded. needless to say, a little bummed. BUT, here is ye old blog where im gonna keep track of everything via posts, pictures, and prose. http://milesofvile.tumblr.com/

Jeremy McDaniel

23rd December 2010 04:11am

let the fun begin tomorrow. this will also be my first attempt at blogging, it seems much more intimate than Facebook. Got the Camera charged, Got the Garmin Charged. Got the tires aired up and the thermal bib tights ready to roll!!!! Got a great group of friends to ride with as well. School is out for break. time to reward myself with a weeks worth of riding before heading back to the books and the remainder of the cyclocross season.
http://ridingbikesrule.blogspot.com/

Lars Kattge

23rd December 2010 10:10am

I'm in. I will try to do 500km in my basement. I know should ride outside to win the prize…maybe i can get a badge ;-)

Stefan Rohner

23rd December 2010 11:41am

today +160km or 7h

total since 01.10.2010 = 310h 10min

Stefan Rohner

23rd December 2010 11:51am

http://www.bikemap.net/route/457580

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog/

Stefan Rohner

23rd December 2010 01:13pm

@ James, I am getting tired, maybe some snow would motivate me ;)

Daniel Carruthers

23rd December 2010 04:04pm

Riding in China, photos tell most of the story http://tinyurl.com/2e46dwg

Sioux Geonz

23rd December 2010 04:07pm

Okay, I'm in! 24 degrees (F) with 5 mph winds… awfully nice! Roads clear in town of ice and snow; don't know about the outskirts so I'll have to see. Might be lots of in-town laps but I've got my routes… (patch would be nice but the other side effects are much better).

Theodore Paul

23rd December 2010 05:36pm

It's been a while since I've gotten on my road bike. Today is the first day. We'll see if I can make it 500km. Just stopped snowing - sign from the gods?
www.tpauldesigns.com

Michael Festa

23rd December 2010 05:42pm

Entering Via Blog.
http://www.mikefesta.blogspot.com

Brian Palmer

23rd December 2010 08:39pm

is there a smaller badge for those of us who manage 500 metres?

gregory heath

23rd December 2010 09:19pm

First ride in the books. Nothing crazy, since the weather was. http://donkelopebikes.blogspot.com/

Mark Gregory

23rd December 2010 09:33pm

I'm in, managed a chilly 80km today
http://myrapha500.blogspot.com/

Henrik Öijer

23rd December 2010 11:09pm

Temperatures between -13 C and -23 C on todays rides: http://aswedishcyclist.blogspot.com/2010/12/rapha-festive-500-day-1.html
Managed to get 51.77 km today, it will be very hard to get to the magic 500.

Aaron Hulme

24th December 2010 12:32am

Day one. 160k something. Cold clear day, 13+C. Post and photos will be here:
http://www.suppenkuche.com/new.html

Steve Taylor

24th December 2010 03:10am

Great first day with 72km in the books here in Philadelphia, PA. I'll be posting photos on my Facebook profile: http://www.facebook.com/#!/steve.derive

My Festive 500 album: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=100461&;id=1390370769

Greg Descargar

24th December 2010 03:34am

Day 1 in the books: 51 miles / 2,114 ft. of climbing
I rode fixed, (my only bike) with 2 buddies. One rode a fixed gear and another a cervello road bike.
I will post pics on my tumblr when I get a chance: http://gregdescargar.tumblr.com/
My ride stats are at my RideWithGps: http://ridewithgps.com/users/17816/routes

Daniel Geber

24th December 2010 06:17am

Dark early morning skies? Check.

Freezing temperatures with roads coated in ice and salt? Check.

Bombed-out New York City streets? Check.

Hitting the road before sunrise, logging in 124.8 km riding around Manhattan? It must be day one of the Rapha Festive 500.

The wind was howling all day, the sun never quite came out so it felt much colder than the temperature reading suggested. Managed to flat a new Conti GP 4 Season tire. Ever tried to fix a flat while loosing feeling in your fingertips? It was a beautiful day.

Now if I can only find my USB cable to upload my pictures…

Dave Wyman

24th December 2010 08:07am

Pics and story for Day 1: http://www.icyclist.blogspot.com - a fine day in Los Angeles, from Hollywood to the Pacific shores.

David Christenson

24th December 2010 09:30am

Since I do some work for Rapha from time to time I'm not in the running to win the contest…nonetheless I'll be out logging miles and I'm hyped to see how everyone else is getting on and reading about your rides…I'll be sharing at this link…day 1 is up now:

http://festive500withdc.tumblr.com/

good luck…have fun and be safe…

Patrik Andreasson

24th December 2010 10:44am

I'm officially out of this event. Is there a prize for the first one to admit he failed? An honorary badge of some sort, maybe?
In fact I was never really in. The thought of doing it was challenging and I gave it a lot of thought. I also prepared the bike. It's ready but I'm not. The fact is that there simply isn't enough time for me to do this. Also it's freezing out there and the bike-able roads are very few. I regularly commute to work in conditions like this so I'm used to the suffering, but then I only do 15 + 15 k each day. I'm making excuses here, I know and it is pretty sad. I will try to get on the bike a few times before the 30th but my goal will be a hundred or so kilometres. Along with some cross country skiing it will be more than enough to make amends for the food and booze I'll stuff myself with during the weekends.

Bottom line is: there simply is not enough Graeme in me.

Thanks Rapha for this great idea. And good luck to each and everyone out there!

Michael Ross

24th December 2010 12:53pm

Day 1 in the books. Wet, Rain, Cold, Fun, Festive and hoping I can do the 500km.

121.6km, Single Speed (42 x 18: 63 Gear inches). Total climb from sea level: 893m, Total descent: 893m



Sunny here today for Day 2.

Mick

Blog here
http://www.spokesand.com/?p=328

Photos here http://www.flickr.com/photos/33113301@N05/sets/72157625536403719/

Stefan Rohner

24th December 2010 01:58pm

day 2 = + 120km

total= 280km

this picture is for James Fairbank

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/IMG_4642.jpg

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog

Stefan Rohner

24th December 2010 02:01pm

@ James, you have to copy and paste the first link, if you click it you will not land on your picture ;)

by the way…

@ suppenkueche! Aaron, great blog, I enjoyed! and I want the world champ t-shirt! please! find one ;)

Joseph Orellana

24th December 2010 09:56pm

Day 1 in the books: 51 miles / 2,114 ft. of climbing
I rode my buddies cervelo dual, (my bike is wreaked) with 2 friends, both on fixed geared bikes (felt brougham and a bianchi pista).
I will post updates on my facebook page via checks ins and pictures.
My buddy greg descargar will be updating the our ride stats at my RideWithGps: http://ridewithgps.com/users/17816/routes


Sent from my iPad

gregory heath

25th December 2010 01:20am

Day 2 wasn't very long, but I will make up for lost time tomorrow. 119km down, 381km to go.
http://donkelopebikes.blogspot.com/2010/12/day-2-of-challenge.html

Aaron Hulme

25th December 2010 02:18am

Day two complete. New photos and post here every day or so:
http://www.suppenkuche.com/new.html

Aaron Hulme

25th December 2010 02:29am

Stefan R… Thank you, your blog and photos are great as well. Sadly, no world championship shirts remain, but stop by for a beer if you find yourself in SF. Who knows, the next shirt may be even better.

Gerard Smith

25th December 2010 03:23am

Day 1

Wake up at 9.55am….. realise I am driving friends to the airport and they will be turning up at 10am…. bugger

10.30 drop off friends at airport

11am $2 lard breakfast at Ikea

12pm Attempt to change pedals on wife's bike…. manage to slip and lacerate thumb on the front chainring… much blood, ouch!

2.30pm Finally set off in the rain… and rode a total of 17.74 miles…. maybe more tomorrow

http://taiaha.wordpress.com/2010/12/24/rapha-festive-500-day-1/

David Christenson

25th December 2010 05:11am

day 2:

http://festive500withdc.tumblr.com/page/2

David Christenson

25th December 2010 05:18am

video of day 2:

http://festive500withdc.tumblr.com/page/1

Greg Descargar

25th December 2010 09:40am

Day2 of my fixedgear festive500 done! 90.5 miles / 145.6 km - 3,706 ft of climbing!!!!
me and my 2 buddies went to the camarillo outlets and back. I feel good, knees hurt, rest of body fatigued, belly is full now (thanks mom) and now ready for bed. Oh and my fiance made us xmas tree shaped cookies! What a welcoming treat to say the least!

My bike computer crapped out for 3 miles so it reads at 87 miles for this trip.

Ride stats are here:
RideWithGps: http://ridewithgps.com/users/17816/routes

I will post more pics on my blog in the morning:
Gregdescargar.tumblr.com


Sent from my iPad

Stefan Rohner

25th December 2010 01:27pm

Aaron, if you send me a mail I will give you a tip about your "German" on your site, see email in the Rapha app. your "festive installment two".


day 3: + 115km, 105km to go.

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog/

Henrik Öijer

25th December 2010 11:17pm

Day 3:
http://aswedishcyclist.blogspot.com/2010/12/rapha-festive-500-day-3.html
Need some sleep now so I can make it through day 4…

Robbie Parras

26th December 2010 12:57am

Day 3 done. Im riding with Greg Descargar & Joseph Orellana.
Total so far is over 260+ Km. Merry Xmas!

Greg is blogging and mapping ride statistics here:

http://ridewithgps.com/users/17816/routes
http://gregdescargar.tumblr.com

What a way to start 2011! Thanks Rapha!

Never never

26th December 2010 02:05am

Does 1300km in 6 days count?

Michael Hodgson

26th December 2010 03:58am

2nd day was a write off, but clocked 62 miles today. 112 miles total so far. how do I register my address etc?

Aaron Hulme

26th December 2010 06:18am

120k day three is done. A very wet, but merry Christmas in the Bay Area.

more photos posted here:
http://www.suppenkuche.com/new.html

gregory heath

26th December 2010 08:43am

Great x-mas ride! 3rd day down. 310km ridden, 190km to go.
http://donkelopebikes.blogspot.com/2010/12/what-day-we-were-treated-to-great.html

Rory Berry

26th December 2010 12:06pm

Hi,

I posted on the original Festive 500 post just to let you know all tagged into a category now!
http://www.deathstare.net/category/rapha-festive-500/

P E A C E and merry munching.

Stefan Rohner

26th December 2010 03:39pm

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog/

on the picture you see Jens, custom bike builder from Germany, www.neueck-custombikes.de thinks he is cool ;) cycling on +5º with bib shorts! ;) I wanted to finish the Rapha 500 in 4 days, but today we started very late and also my 9 year old daughter wanted to come. so only 69km.

total 464km

Victoria Armstrong

26th December 2010 05:23pm

I was pretty keen to do it in 4 days too… Lucky the legs wanted to keep pedalling today :)

http://orphic.couchblip.com

Ian Winfield

26th December 2010 09:01pm

Christmas Day- bike from under the mantlepiece to the bike shed. Apparently where it should have been for the last 9 months.
Distance - 15 metres
Boxing Day - cycled from Woodford to Sawbridgeworth to see the parents, whilst the wife took the kids and bikerack. Wife ask's why we cannot have one day where cycling is encroaching on family life?
Distance - 44 kilometres
The horses are on the track!

Henrik Öijer

26th December 2010 09:18pm

Day four: http://aswedishcyclist.blogspot.com/2010/12/rapha-festive-500-day-4.html
More slow and snowy kilometers in Sweden. Where we like to ride our bikes hela tiden.

Lukasz Chelminski

26th December 2010 10:43pm

I thought that I had posted my entry a few days ago but I don't see it now. At the risk of looking foolish by posting twice, here it is (again?):

http://nyctoli.wordpress.com/2010/12/24/500km-challenge-day-one-escape-from-new-york/

I've only got part one of my journey down so far, but I sort of created my own goal for the challenge: to chronicle a route from the East River in NYC to Orient Point on the North Fork of Long Island. Despite all this holiday stuff (and the enormous blizzard), I managed to get there early this morning. You'll have to make do with day one of my trip for the moment. Hey, I took so many photos that I had to split it into two posts!

David Christenson

27th December 2010 03:54am

Days 3 and 4 are up:

http://festive500withdc.tumblr.com/page/1

gregory heath

27th December 2010 04:47am

Day 4 was uneventful for me. Just got on the bike to run my errands, and spin my legs. Commuting counts right? Also in this post, is a great ride description that Ryan wrote about our xmas day ride.
http://donkelopebikes.blogspot.com/2010/12/day-4-of-challenge.html

Joseph Orellana

27th December 2010 05:03am

Happy Holidays everyone! :)
I'm about to start a "late" Day 4 ride.
All my progress so far can be seen here: http://www.facebook.com/#!/joseph.k.orellana

and my blogg

eatsleepbike.tumblr.com

Ride safe guize!

Joseph Orellana

27th December 2010 08:59am

I obviously need to proofread my comments before i hit GO.
The last link on this comment is an edit to view other stats AND VIDEO.
Previous link only provided "Other Stats" and no video.

Day 4: DONE.
An easy 19 miles in 45 degree weather. I couldn't feel my toes two miles into the ride, but besides that it was a great ride.
Ride stats are here: http://ridewithgps.com/users/26488 for day 4 ONLY.
Other Stats and video available here http://eatsleepbike.tumblr.com/
Stay Warm guize.

Stefan Rohner

27th December 2010 02:36pm

day 5 + 91km

makes 555km

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog/

Autumn Cup 328h 30min

Delage Baptiste

27th December 2010 03:33pm

It's Done!
a few photos here :
http://baptiste.delage.free.fr/Slip2Bain_album/index_slip2bain.html

and GPS Tracks :
D1 "riding to the beach" 271 kms
http://www.visugpx.com/?i=1293462853

D2 125 kms "back to Angoulême"
http://www.visugpx.com/?i=1293463298

D3 47 kms "back home for ChristMas"
http://www.visugpx.com/?i=1293463612

Epilogue 75 kms "New Passport from Groland"
http://www.visugpx.com/?i=1293463928

Jan Sotorník

27th December 2010 03:54pm

216 km to go :) http://vjednomkole.posterous.com/

Kurt Cornell

27th December 2010 08:43pm

So I posted my rides from Mapmyride yesterday on this blog. This post does not seem to exist today.

So I try a different route and create a facebook page. I am not sure how this will work - here is the page.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?id=100001902175312&;pid=112741#!/

Henrik Öijer

27th December 2010 09:15pm

Going slow over here…
http://aswedishcyclist.blogspot.com/2010/12/rapha-festive-500-day-5.html
If I make it, it would be a miracle.

Lukasz Chelminski

27th December 2010 11:44pm

Finally got Day Two posted: http://nyctoli.wordpress.com/2010/12/27/500km-challenge-december-24-day-two-briermere-farms/

gregory heath

28th December 2010 01:44am

Day 5 is done. More exploring, all for not. I ended up with a broken cleat out of the deal. There was just enough there to finish the ride. As long as I didn't have to give a "sprint" effort to avoid any canines! 409.6km down, 90.4km to go.
http://donkelopebikes.blogspot.com/2010/12/day-5-of-challenge.html

Aaron Hulme

28th December 2010 06:09am

Thank you Rapha. Our Festive 500 is in the bag! Well over 500K complete with a final 200K push on the fourth day of riding. (Sunday rest) Photos and words here soon:
http://www.suppenkuche.com/new.html

Stefan Rohner

28th December 2010 02:00pm

day 6: + 76km

total 631km

http://www.stefan-rohner.net/blog/

James Fairbank

28th December 2010 05:24pm

@Jan that biscuit looks amazing, as does the carp…

Lukasz Chelminski

28th December 2010 05:27pm

Well this 500km has just become a challenge for those of us in the northeast of the US:

http://nyctoli.wordpress.com/2010/12/28/500km-challenge-december-28-commute/

I've still not posted two rides from this weekend, but I wanted to get this post online as soon as possible.

Victoria Armstrong

29th December 2010 01:40am

Has a pretty spectacular day yesterday…

http://orphic.couchblip.com/?p=148

gregory heath

29th December 2010 03:53am

Day 6. 2 rides today, one with my dog, and then a real ride. And I noticed my routes weren't viewable to the public. Well they are now, sorry about that. A detour, due to construction, forced me off my intended route. And I ended up 12km shy today! Tomorrow.
http://donkelopebikes.blogspot.com/2010/12/day-6-of-challenge.html

Michael Hodgson

29th December 2010 06:45am

how do we register our name and address?

Matthew Shaw

29th December 2010 02:36pm

Well, the Trois V managed a Festive 5: http://www.troisv.cc/2010/12/troisv-festive-5.html

Well done to those who persevered.

Dirk Maertins

29th December 2010 03:16pm

Already posted my rides on your facebook page, but I will do it here again to be on the safe side ;-)

- Trip 1 (prologue) 190,07km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60437652
- Night Ride 65,85km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60463152
- Silent Night Ride 31,18km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60541209
- Cyclocross-Tour 44,41km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60582304
- Ice Speedway 34,15km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60612455
- Mountainbike on Ice 35,54km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60679135
- Ice Age 51,32km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60786059
- Spooky Night Ride 30,58km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60829932
- Finish 17,31km http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60900827

You can find my pictures in the flickr album:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/heimlichtrainierer/sets/72157625534236453/

Thanks Rapha for initiating that fabulous challenge and bon courage to the cyclists out there in the snow and ice. Keep pedaling!

Ben Brown

29th December 2010 03:22pm

@ Michael Hodgson - you have already registered your name and address with your Rapha account, so no worries.

Greg Descargar

29th December 2010 07:31pm

We are done! Can we paalease get our badges. :)
Greg Descargar
Robbie Parras
Joseph Orellano

Documented here:
Gregdescargar.tumblr.com
http://ridewithgps.com/users/17816/routes

Lukasz Chelminski

29th December 2010 08:35pm

It's been a hell of a week. Here's a recap:

http://nyctoli.wordpress.com/2010/12/29/rapha-500km-challenge-recap/

I had a nice narrative set up for you guys and then mother nature added something else entirely. Enjoy the carnage!

Lukasz Chelminski

29th December 2010 08:46pm

Since I can't edit the previous comment, I have to post again. Sorry! You can find each day of the challenge currently displayed on the home page of my blog: http://nyctoli.wordpress.com/

You can see New York City pre, and post-snowpocalypse, and get a glimpse of riding on (through) Long Island.

David Christenson

29th December 2010 10:46pm

day 5 is up:

http://festive500withdc.tumblr.com/

Joseph Orellana

29th December 2010 11:35pm

Challenge COMPLETED on DAY 6.
Full Recap available here:
http://eatsleepbike.tumblr.com/
Check in's available here:
www.facebook.com/joseph.k.orellana

Frank Yeager

30th December 2010 01:26am

I love in cycling how you make something out of nothing with each ride you complete. That has attracted me to the sport since I was a teen. Thank you to Rapha for encouraging us to create something substantial even during the cold of winter. Congratulations to all the participants!

Below are links to my ride tracks from Garmin. They were also posted to the Rapha facebook page earlier today. I have no photos, but a few stories to share.

Day 1 was one of the windiest rides I have ever done. Rode with a friend who is on winter break from college and aspires to be a pro mountain biker. He kills me on the mountain bike, but I'm always fresher than him at the end of rides like these.

Day 2 was an uneventful group ride on the south side of Richmond. Normally, I'm too lazy to make the long commute to do their 8AM rides, but with their late start to avoid the bitter cold (by U.S. southern standards), I made the trip.

Day 3 was Christmas and I got away for a couple hours. I had Richmond city streets all to myself. I saw a homeless lady in a Santa suit riding an adult tricycle. Would have really liked to have a camera with me for that.

Day 4, we had snow all day, so I just spent 90 minutes on the trainer, and I am not trying to count that distance in this.

Day 5 was difficult with several miles (er, kilometers) of ice left from the prior day's snow. A smooth pedal stroke and some luck kept me upright until I slipped at the end in my neighborhood. I slid about 15 meters on the ice and got nothing but a skinned knee. Back at home, I think I broke a rib when I yanked on my left brake lever to put it back in position. Ouch.

Day 6, I decided to break my last 200 km into two days, and did over 100 km. Nothing really exciting today except being happy that most of the ice was gone and that my rib wasn't bothering me.

Day 7, I rode with a friend who was admittedly in much worse shape than when we last rode. I didn't complain because I was pretty tired at this point from the week's challenge from Rapha. Also, my rib is now making it painful for me to get a full breath. Squeezed in some junk distance after parting ways with my friend to eek out my last km.

day 1 (81.3km) - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60445632
day 2 (79.3km) - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60524820
day 3 (64.8km) - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60600477
day 5 (80.5km) - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60821527
day 6 (101.2km) - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/60940959
day 7 (93.7km) - http://connect.garmin.com/activity/61061532

gregory heath

30th December 2010 02:50am

Day 7 of challenge. I only "needed" 12km to finish out the challenge, but it turned out to be a great day to ride. So I ended up riding 53.4km, to be at 541.4km. That might be it for me. I think I'll head up to Mt Baker to shred the snow with some friends. Thanks Rapha for giving me a boost of motivation to ride longer, more this time of year.
http://donkelopebikes.blogspot.com/2010/12/day-7-of-challenge.html

Daniel Carruthers

30th December 2010 03:20am

Hi Rapha500! The final day is upon us… I have compiled a daily showcase of photos and short reports on the challenge here in China http://danielcarruthers.com/

wes bevan

30th December 2010 05:43am

Well, 500 done!

Data on garmin if needed. I surely will not be one of the first 500

Dave Wyman

30th December 2010 07:35am

One more day for me - 81km to go.

Photos and reports of my rides up to now: http://www.icyclist.blogspot.com

Mike Daly

30th December 2010 07:51am

The Festive 500 is finished and I have only just registered. Living in New Zealand I guess it is not such a challenge as it is for all you people in the Northern Hemishere. I gave it a go anyway and managed to complete the 500km (508.1 actually). My shortest day was Xmas day - 26.5km, and the longest 85.7 0n the 29th. I dont have any photos or own a garmin but I know I have done it. My challenge was having done very little cycling recently, being 72 years old and not in perfect health.
Congratulations to all you people who have completed it in terrible conditions, I have enjoyed reading all your posts

pietro ghidelli

30th December 2010 01:30pm

anch'io mi sono registrato ora,ho fatto solo 125 km in 6 gg ma3/4di mattino!!(ho lavorato)bravi a tutti,solo x averci provato.fantastico l'amico svedese!!!ciao a tutti e buon anno .Piè.

Clive Pursehouse

30th December 2010 09:52pm

So I just saw that I had to sign in over here as well, I am done. Finished 1:11pm PST on 12/30/10. My various updates were done via twitter… http://twitter.com/#!/clivity

Jens Voigt

1st January 2011 09:57pm

629 kilometers http://www.tourofcalifornia.org/2010/12/festive-500.html

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