The solution is simple: to implement a mandatory exclusion of those riders that have successfully completed PBP on two or more occasions - thus giving others a chance a participate, making it a ride for the many, not the few
meanwhile on facebook I see the opposite suggested, from someone who had ridden it 5 times before and feels he deserves a place more than people who are not french that did a longer BRM than him last year..
For those who are working towards their ACP Randonneur 5000 or Randonneur 10000 medals, missing out on a PBP can mean having to wait 4 years, and starting again on all the other requirements.
With something like PBP which is run only every 4 years, and has such a finite number of spaces, what is the best way of allocating spaces?
The current system is not perfect, but it's pretty clear. It favours those who have been riding long distances already.
There's something romantic about the going from zero to PBP in a year, but I think given the popularity increase of long distance cycling, it doesn't seem wrong to have the prequalifiers.
Maybe they could have a pool of 300 places allocated by lottery for those who didn't have a prequalifier BRM, but have completed the SR series in the year of the event.
Oh, and if they could accept an alternative 1200 instead of PBP for the Randonneur 5000/10000 awards, it might take some of the pressure off the event[1]
J
[1]I'm guessing those chasing these medals are in a minority tho... It's the only reason I want to do PBP