Events: Planning the 2023 Rapha Festive 500

Cover photo is lifted from rapha.cc. We do not own the rights to it.

I have lost count how many attempts have been made at the Festive 500, a cycling challenge where riders attempt to cover 500 kilometers between December 24 to 31st. What I do know is that the distance has been covered three times total, with varying appearances. There have also been failures, but not of any dramatic type. Every year there is the hope to add to the success totals, but it’s not an easy endeavor. This year a route along the Delaware River may be just the thing to pull it off.

There have been several reasons for creakybottombracket.com’s existence, but one of those reasons was to prove I had covered the 500 kilometer distance despite not having a cycling tracking app. The eight day challenge covered as many haunts of a Revolutionary War band of Tory outlaws as possible. There was hope the site would earn a strong consideration to winning a road bike, the grand prize at the time. Months later a miniscule patch arrived in the mail with a drink coaster. Yearly success seemed a foregone conclusion after the initial effort. How hard could it be to average approximately 63 kilometers per day? 

In more years than successes, there have been failures. One year the challenge was hardly attempted after two impossibly frigid opening days. While it is alluring to ride through inhospitable weather, it’s important to inventory what matters. That year the 500 was abandoned and the winter break was enjoyed on account of no stress. The hard years are when the distance is ticking off nicely before something suddenly derails the effort. Difficult math comes into play and everything loses its luster. Often the 500 has been abandoned with a surmountable balance remaining, but, again, the importance inventory.

Each year a theme is chosen. One year many of George Washington’s houses were visited. Another year the plan was to circle the three county reservoirs. A successful year followed the Underground Railroad through Bucks County. Two years ago vintage schoolhouses were explored. A place that has not been explored, but hopefully will be this year is the Delaware Canal Park. This park is a gravel path wedged between the Delaware River and the Delaware Canal. It spans some sixty miles in length from its southern point in Bristol, PA, up to Easton, PA. It passes through chic New Hope as well as Washington’s Crossing State Park. And should the Pennsylvania side get sloppy, New Jersey has a parallel path in the form of an old Rails to Trail. With the idea of staying off roads, it could be a possibility to add miles in the dark. There’s also been talk introduced to explore whether a canal path leads farther north to consider a summer effort into the Catskills.

Several years ago a lesson was not lost on me. A tragic fire tore through a home early Christmas morning, and several family members lost their lives. At that point the Festive 500 had ceased to matter. There was the constant question of, “What am I doing out here?” One lesson is necessary to show younger family members that accomplishing a goal, especially later in life, keeps us moving forward. As I get older though, if there’s a choice between the bike or time with the younger family members, these days the bike - and ultimately the 500 - stay shelved.