The RUSA board elected its officers for 2018 at its January meeting on the 10th:

• President - John Lee Ellis
• Vice President - Debra Banks
• Treasurer - Dave Thompson
• Secretary - Lois Springsteen

In addition to these, our 2018 board consists of John Cap'n Ende, Nigel Greene, and Jake Kassen (RBA Liaison).

The board extends its sincere appreciation to departing board members Susan Otcenas and Paul Rozelle.

We're now collecting a group order for some new, super nice, wool RUSA short sleeve jerseys direct from Spain. In a nutshell, we're accepting orders via the RUSA Store to submit to Cima Coppi on Jan 14th for expected delivery around Feb 28th. By grouping the orders, we're able to save about $35 per jersey. 

Order now on the RUSA Store (under apparel, scroll down): 

We think the jerseys are really snappy -- the colors are bold and the graphics are subtle. (See images below.)

Two short sleeve jerseys are being offered:

• Light Weight ("Ultralight"): This is a 97% merino wool jersey cut like a synthetic -- full zip front, three pockets on the back, elastic waistband, snug fit. Many people say this is their favorite jersey. 
• Mid Weight: A more traditional 100% merino wool jersey with 1/4 zip front and three pockets back but not heavy and thick like some "classic" jerseys.

Both are available in Women's and Men's cut in a variety of sizes. Pay close attention to the sizing chart -- we've been told they run snug so consider going a size up if you prefer a looser jersey.  

Fine Print:

• For each fabric type (light and midweight), we need to collect at least 25 orders or the order will be canceled and riders refunded in full.  
• After the cut-off date of Jan 14th you can still order direct from Cima Coppi but you'll need to pay the retail price of approx. $175 / $150 with shipping and use a credit card that handles Euro payments.
• Postage directly from Spain is included in the RUSA store price. 
• RUSA is using its store to simplify collecting the orders and payment in US Dollars. Otherwise the order is being handled directly by Cima Coppi. RUSA won't be able to offer exchanges, refunds, etc. 
• There are no plans to organize another group purchase. If you want to order with a big discount, now's the time. 

Finally, huge thanks to RUSA's treasurer Dave Thompson who's doing the hard part of working with Cima Coppi, processing the group order, etc. 

Vote tallies for the 2018 RUSA Board elections are as follows:

Regular Board Positions (from 468 members voting):

242  Pete Dusel
277  John "Capn" Ende
309  Lois Springsteen

RBA Liaison (from 30 RBAs voting):

30   Jake Kassen

So John Ende and Lois Springsteen will be filling three-year terms for the two available normal board positions, while Jake Kassen will be filling the one-year RBA Liaison position.

Many thanks to Pete, John, Lois, and Jake for being willing to stand for election and serve RUSA. 

The RUSA Board has approved allowing electronic devices to be used to provide proof of passage on RUSA Permanent rides, subject to certain requirements, and so long as both the perm owner and the rider agree.

Traditional validation - receipts, info controls, etc. - are always acceptable. Details in the Rules for Permanent Riders and Rules for Permanent Route Owners. We hope this will provide a convenient alternative for those riders and route owners interested in using it. 

If you have questions after reading the rules, you can submit them to EPP@RUSA.org.

The RUSA Board has approved events submitted thus far for 2018. This includes ACP- and RM-sanctioned events, for which the deadline to submit was 9/30. View the 2018 schedule (and remaining 2017 events) via Search for Rides.

A big thanks to our Regional Brevet Administrators for providing us a wealth of events to ride in 2018!

Voting for the 2018 Board including RBA Liaison is now closed. The voting period extended through November 15. Please see the 2018 Election page for candidates' statements, which are still online, if you are interested.

Two positions on the RUSA Board of Directors will become available at the end of the year.  The term of Susan Otcenas (eligible for re-election) is expiring.   The term of Lois Springsteen (appointed to serve the last year of a three year term vacated by a prior Director) is also expiring.  Lois is eligible for election.

Members may nominate up to two current RUSA members to run for those two positions.

Additionally, RBAs may nominate an RBA for the position of RBA Liaison.   Central FL RBA Paul Rozelle currently holds this position and is eligible for re-election.

A nomination form can be found on-line here.  

Email nominations to president@rusa.org or mail the form to:

John Lee Ellis
3936 Dale Drive
Lafayette, CO 80026

Nominations must be received by Sept 15, 2017

RUSA has a new jersey!  Check out ordering details and sizing information here. You order directly from Voler, and they ship directly to you.

Voler -- who produced our 2015 PBP jersey and the jerseys for many 1200s -- makes these items on-demand so you can be kitted out in the latest randonneuring style about two weeks after ordering from their website. Choose from either a short-sleeve or long-sleeve style, and stay tuned as we continue to roll out new and redesigned RUSA apparel offerings!

The Audax Club Parisien has increased the time limit for Super Randonnée 600k Permanents (Randonneur option) to 60 hours, this regardless of extra climbing in excess of the 10,000m minimum. (The time limit had been 50 hours.)

SR 600 program chair Sophie Matter tells us, "We hope that more riders will try, and achieve the challenge. Now the Randonneur option opens up to a wider audience. The challenge is still very difficult, especially since self-sufficiency is required."

Bill Beck is the US representative for the SR 600 program, in case you have any questions (see Search for Officials).

We give our heartfelt condolences for the loss yesterday of Audax Japan president Mitsuaki "Micky" Inagaki in a crash while riding the New Zealand 1200.

Micky was known to a number of RUSA members from the four RUSA 1200k's he completed, plus others around the world. He was an inspiring rider to us all and a friend to many.

Our thoughts are with his family and friends.