Pickup at départ
The brevet card is issued at the start, usually 30 minutes before départ. Bring photo ID. Equipment check happens at the same desk — lights tested, vest inspected, helmet present.
Photo: pedalnorth.com
Audax Romania · Brevet de Randonneur Mondial
Randonneurs Transylvania Transfagarasan Endurance Challenge 2026
BRM 200 km13 h 30
Long-distance cycling under ACP homologation. The in-time finish is the only podium.
15 August 2026 · Sibiu, Sibiu
A brevet is not a race. You depart at a fixed hour, collect a stamp at every control, and finish within the time limit set by the Audax Club Parisien in 1921 — 13 h 30 for 200 km, 90 h for 1200 km, computed at a base 15 km/h average. You ride at your own pace, alone or in company, day and night, on roads chosen by the organiser. The reward is your stamped brevet card, sent to ACP for homologation. There is no podium, no prize money, no team kit. Steel frames, mudguards, dynamo hubs, a printed roadbook in a waterproof pouch — this is the form long-distance cycling has taken in Romania since the first SR series was completed in the Carpathians, and the form it will keep.
Read this first
This is not a race
A brevet de randonneur is a homologated long-distance ride. You sign up to finish within a time limit set by the Audax Club Parisien — not to beat anyone else. There is no podium, no prize, no general classification. Three short rules carry the entire format.
Finish in time, or it does not count
The time limit is the only result that matters. For BRM 200 km the limit is 13 h 30, computed at a base 15 km/h average minus stoppage allowance. Arrive after the close time and your brevet is not homologated — you can still ride to the finish, but ACP will not validate the result.
Collect every control stamp
Every control on the brevet card must be stamped — manned stops at gas stations or cafés, plus one or two contrôles secrets announced on the day so riders cannot shortcut the route. A missing stamp ends the brevet, even if you finish under the time limit.
Ride at allure libre — your own pace
You are free to ride alone, in a group, day or night, fast or slow, taking long stops or none at all. Drafting other randonneurs is allowed but no draft cars, no team tactics, no support vehicles outside declared controls. Self-sufficiency is the format.
Choose your brevet
Four distances to the Super Randonneur badge
BRM 200, 300, 400 and 600 km are the four homologated distances of the Audax Club Parisien BRM series. Complete all four in the same calendar year and you earn the Super Randonneur title — and qualify for Paris-Brest-Paris in the year that follows. Riders typically build through the season: 200 in early spring, 300 in May, 400 around the longest day, 600 mid-summer. The 1000 and 1200 km brevets sit beyond the SR ladder for riders chasing longer formats.
- This brevet
First brevet of the year
200 km
Limite13 h 30Wakes the legs after winter. The most ridden distance on the calendar — most randonneurs ride two or three 200s a year.
Sign up First long day
300 km
Limite20 hDeparts at dawn, finishes around midnight. The brevet that turns a Sunday ride into something else.
Across one short summer night
400 km
Limite27 hTests whether the dynamo light works at 3 AM on a descent. The first brevet that requires real sleep strategy.
Two-day brevet
600 km
Limite40 hCompletes the Super Randonneur ladder. A four-hour bivouac at a lay-by is part of the format, not a failure of it.
Time limits are ACP standard and never change between editions. Open and close times for individual controls are computed from these limits at a 15 km/h base average.
Contrôles
Where you collect the stamps
Each control window opens at the earliest a rider can plausibly arrive (computed at 30 km/h) and closes at the latest a rider can arrive and still finish in time. Arrive within the window, collect the stamp, keep moving. A contrôle secret may appear anywhere on the route — announced only on the day so riders cannot shortcut between manned stops.
| Km | Location | Opens | Closes | Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Départ · brevet card pickup | — | Start time | Start |
| ~75 | Contrôle 1 · gas station or café | 08:30 | 11:00 | Manned |
| ~125 | Contrôle 2 · village square | 10:30 | 14:20 | Manned |
| Variable | Contrôle secret · announced on day | — | — | Secret |
| ~175 | Contrôle 3 · roadside stop | 13:00 | 18:00 | Manned |
| Finish | Arrivée · brevet card drop-off | — | Time limit | Finish |
Locations and exact times are published in the route brief 7–10 days before départ. Controls listed above are representative for a 200 km brevet — longer brevets carry six to nine controls.
Feuille de route
Route, GPX and roadbook
ACP accepts any navigation method as long as every control is stamped. Most randonneurs run the GPX on a Garmin or Wahoo and carry the printed roadbook as backup. The route is fixed but minor deviation is not penalised — what matters is the stamps, including the contrôle secret.
Distances
- BRM 200 - Transfagarasan Challenge200 km↗ 2970 m D+
Équipement obligatoire
Mandatory ACP equipment
ACP rules are short and inflexible. Most homologation rejections come from lighting — a flashing rear LED is not a valid rear light for a brevet. Lights must be fixed beam, visible at the distances below, and powered for the entire ride. Battery lights run out at 3 AM; dynamo hubs do not.
Mandatory
Front light visible from at least 100 m (fixed beam, not flashing)
Rear red light visible from at least 150 m (fixed beam — flashing rear lights are not permitted)
High-visibility reflective vest worn from dusk to dawn and in poor visibility
Reflective ankle bands (recommended in addition to vest)
Helmet (mandatory under ACP rules; head injury is the most common DNF cause)
Brevet card (carte de route) in a waterproof pouch — your only proof of homologation
Cue sheet / roadbook in a holder accessible without dismounting
Recommended
Dynamo hub powering the front light — battery lights die at 3 AM
Two or three spare inner tubes plus tubeless plug kit and patch glue
Multi-tool with chain breaker and a quick-link spare
Mudguards (full-length, not clip-on — long-standing audax cultural marker)
Saddle bag, frame bag, or top-tube bag for layered clothing and food
Printed roadbook as backup to the GPX track on Garmin or Wahoo
Cash in small denominations for village shops and gas-station controls
Foil emergency blanket and basic first aid
Equipment check happens at départ. A missing mandatory item means no départ stamp.
Carnet de brevet
The brevet card is the only result
Your carte de route is the artefact of the entire ride. Picked up at départ, folded and carried in a waterproof pouch, stamped at every control with a date and time. At the finish you hand it back — folded, dog-eared, smudged with rain — and the organiser submits it to the Audax Club Parisien in Paris for homologation. Six to eight weeks later your name appears on the ACP register with a homologation number. That number does not change. It is the only finish that exists.
Drop-off at arrivée
Hand the stamped card to the organiser at the finish before the time limit closes. Late drop-offs cannot be homologated even if every stamp is correct. Take a photo of the card before you hand it over — it is the only proof until ACP publishes the homologation.
ACP homologation arrives six to eight weeks after the brevet. Your name appears on the official register with a homologation number tied to the BRM distance and the year. The number stays on record permanently.
Sample stamps from a typical 200 km card — Sebeș gas station, Mediaș café, contrôle secret in a village square.
Super Randonneur
Where this brevet fits the year
A Super Randonneur is a rider who has completed BRM 200, 300, 400 and 600 km in the same calendar year. Earning the SR title in 2026 makes you eligible to enter Paris-Brest-Paris 2027 — the original 1200 km brevet, run every four years since 1891. The four distances stack through the season: a March 200 to wake the legs, a May 300 as the first long day, a June 400 across the shortest night of the year, a July 600 that crosses into a second day. The SR badge is the long arc that the four short rides serve.
BRM 200 km
First brevet of the year. Wakes the legs after winter. Earliest a rider can begin building toward the SR title.
BRM 300 km
First long day. The midnight finish that turns a Sunday ride into something else.
BRM 400 km
Across one short summer night. Tests whether the dynamo light setup works at 3 AM on a Carpathian descent.
BRM 600 km
Two-day brevet. The four-hour bivouac at a roadside lay-by is part of the format, not a failure of it.
Super Randonneur title
All four in one calendar year. Sent to ACP at season end. Qualifies you for Paris-Brest-Paris the following year.
Paris-Brest-Paris qualifier
PBP runs every four years (next 2027). Romanian SR completion in 2026 is the qualifying path; entry priority by SR completion date.
Départ et arrivée
Schedule
A brevet is shaped by départ and the closing of the time limit, not by waves or transitions. The schedule below is the standard cadence — exact times for this edition are published in the route brief 7–10 days before the start.
Saturday
- 05:30
Brevet card pickup · equipment check
Carte de route issued. Front and rear lights tested. Reflective vest inspected. Photo ID required.
- 05:50
Briefing · contrôle secret hint
Organiser confirms the day's route, weather, and the geographic window in which the contrôle secret will sit. No specific location given.
- 06:00
Départ
Mass départ. Stamp on the card. Time starts. From here the brevet is in your hands.
- Throughout the day
Contrôles
Collect a stamp at each manned control and the contrôle secret. Stay within each control's open and close window.
- Until 19:30
Arrivée · brevet card drop-off
Hand the stamped card to the organiser before the time limit closes. Late returns cannot be homologated.
Six to eight weeks later
- —
ACP homologation
Your card is submitted to the Audax Club Parisien in Paris. Homologation number appears on the official register. Permanent record.
Frequently asked
What randonneurs actually ask
What happens if I miss a control?
Arrive after a control's close time and your brevet is not homologated. You can still ride to the finish for your own satisfaction, but the Audax Club Parisien will not validate the result. A missing stamp — including the contrôle secret — has the same effect. Three late arrivals across a calendar year is grounds for disqualification from future ACP events.
Is GPS required, or do I have to use the cue sheet?
Neither is required exclusively. ACP rules accept any navigation method as long as every stamp is collected. Most randonneurs run the GPX on a Garmin or Wahoo and carry the printed roadbook as backup. The route is fixed but minor deviation is not penalised — only the stamps count, including the contrôle secret announced on the day.
Can I have a support car following me?
Generally no. Support is permitted only at declared controls and within a 5 km radius of those controls, and the support vehicle must be registered with the organiser at départ. Unregistered support is grounds for a time penalty or disqualification. The audax ethos is self-sufficiency — village shops, gas stations, café terraces, and other riders are the support network.
How do I qualify for Paris-Brest-Paris?
Complete the full Super Randonneur series — BRM 200, 300, 400 and 600 km — in the calendar year before PBP. For PBP 2027 that means SR completed in 2027 before the August event. Registration goes through ACP and entry priority is determined by SR completion date — the earlier you finish your 600, the earlier you enter.
Why are flashing rear lights banned?
ACP requires fixed-beam rear lights for one reason: a flashing LED is harder for following drivers to judge distance against, especially at night on twisting country roads. The 150 m visibility rule assumes a steady reference point. A flashing rear LED at départ will not pass equipment check.
Stamp the card. Finish in time.
Sign up, pick up the carte de route at départ, collect the stamps, return before the limit closes. The Audax Club Parisien has been homologating brevets on this format since 1921 — it works because the rules are short and the riders are patient. There is no podium because there does not need to be one.