Colorado Last Chance – the third US 1200k to be created, debuting in September, 2001. (Boston-Montreal-Boston originated in 1988; the Gold Rush Randonnée was first held in July, 2001).

The Last Chance is a peculiar concept for a Colorado 1200k. It starts near the mountains and then heads in the other direction: east from Boulder County near the foothills of the Colorado Front Range, across the Colorado Eastern Plains, into the rolling hills of western Kansas and back. 

Editions - Last Chance was first offered in 2001, and from 2001 to 2013 was held every non-PBP year. (Until 2011, Les Randonneurs Mondiaux only allowed organizers to schedule grand randonnées in non-PBP years.) Thereafter it has been held on a more sporadic basis, alternating with the Colorado High Country 1200, which debuted in 2011, and now the Colorado Front Range 1200.  

Origins – In late 2000, local ultracyclist and randonneur Bob Fourney proposed a 1200k event heading out US Highway 36 from Boulder, CO into Kansas and back. Bob had used US-36 as a training route for the Race Across AMerica (RAAM), which he won multiple times in the solo division. Bob described caching food in the ceilings of small-town post office lobbies along the way to fuel his training rides.

Charlie Henderson, president of the Rocky Mountain Cycling Club at the time, had his own connections to the route, as he had travelled on US-36 from Dartmouth College to go skiing in Colorado, and because of his ranching interests in Eastern Colorado. Charlie was the “trail boss” out on the course for most of the Last Chance’s history.

Event Name – Bob Fourney originally proposed “Venture to Kansas” as the name for the event. It remains the subtitle, but “Last Chance” was chosen because (1) it was for some years the latest 1200k on the RUSA calendar, (2) it passes through Last Chance, CO, and (3) because it’s evocative of the sparsely settled, open landscape of the Eastern Plains. 

Last Chance, CO is now just a crossroads of two highways in a shallow valley, with a rest area with trees on the southwest corner, and the now shuttered Dairy King, which may still have been open in earlier editions of the event.

Scheduling and Weather – The Last Chance has always been scheduled in September, because that’s usually a tranquil month in Colorado (62°-82° statistical average, 16° - 27°C), with less of the heat and thunderstorms that the Eastern Plains can get in July - August. But the Last Chance has also encountered temps into the 90’s in Kansas, thunderstorms and even tornado threats, and frosts in Eastern Colorado. On the first day of Last Chance 2022, temps exceeded 100°. In 2013, a flood hit the Front Range in the course of the event. Flooding spread out from the canyons and foothills eastward onto the plains. Riders were at first unaffected, but on the final day, had to contend with detours to avoid flooded roads as they neared the finish.

Terrain – Most of the route is rolling, with a few strongly rolling sections. Relatively little of the route is dead flat. Eastern Colorado is wide open and exposed, so wind can be an issue.  Elevation descends from 5,300 ft. (Louisville) to 1,800 ft. at the turnaround in Kansas.  Routes have around 22,000 ft. of climbing (per RideWithGPS).

Services and Traffic – US-36 is fairly quiet in Eastern Colorado. Most traffic takes I-70 which parallels it. As a result, many of the small towns have been drying up for decades, and services are sparse. This has been an issue since the inception of the event. Kansas is more bustling by comparison, with towns featuring stores and restaurants about every 30 miles. 

Route and Variants – The Last Chance starts in Louisville, CO, with overnights in Atwood, KS (2 nights) and Byers, CO (except in 2022).  The turnaround point has most often been Kensington, sometimes Phillipsburg (the next town to the west), and in the initial year in Athol (east of Kensington). Earlier editions featured a 200 km segment from the final overnight (Byers), which later was trimmed to 110-115 miles. In 2017, the route headed NE from Norton to Alma, NE, then back via Phillipsburg, in order to add a third state for riders. In 2022, that jaunt into Nebraska was removed, but the return leg headed NW from St. Francis to Ft. Morgan for the third overnight, clipping a corner of Nebraska. This because US-34 has more services than US-36.

Qualifying – Like other “classic” grand randonnées, such as PBP, BMB, and the Gold Rush, a Super Randonneur series or a 1,000k+ randonnée in the twelve months prior to the event qualifies the rider, but permanents and other rides can be used, too, with the organizer’s permission.

Interest List and Registration – The interest list gets riders advanced notification of when registration will open, and lets everyone sees who’s interested. Registration is first come / first served, except for the first day. On the first day, it doesn’t matter when riders register: that can alleviate some anxiety. If there are more first-day registrants than the rider limit, a lottery is held. There is a Waiting list: riders move up the Waiting list and automatically onto the Confirmed list when confirmed riders cancel. Cancelation refunds get smaller the closer to the event.

1000k – The Last Chance offers a 1000k brevet option, in keeping with events such as BMB. Riders take the same course as 1200k riders, and finish near the third overnight. Initially, an optional 200k brevet was provided to get riders back to the start, but later, a RUSA Permanent was available instead.

Start Time - The Last Chance historically started at 3:00 am. (This has been relaxed to 4:00 in recent years.) This because stores and restaurants can close early out on the Eastern Plains. Thus, the advice was to start early each morning, 2:30-3:30 am, stop for a rancher breakfast when cafes opened at 5:00am, and reach the overnight (or ride the final few hours) while restaurants were still open.

Personal Support – Vehicles of those who are giving personal support to rider(s) are allowed on the course (but personal support is allowed only at checkpoints), owing to the sparsity of roads along much of the route. Those motorists are to keep and eye out for and come to the aid of other Last Chance cyclists if they find themselves in an emergency situation, again owing to the sparse services.

Lodging – Lodging in Atwood, KS has always been an issue, because of Atwood’s having only one motel: initially the Crest Motel, up the ridge leaving town, later succeeded by the It’ll Do Motel. For that reason, the event manages the rooming in Atwood, so that there are enough rooms to go around for all riders who want them.

Logo and Medals – Beverly Diaz created the logo (featuring JLE in the saddle, photo taken in a parking lot).  It shows the rider heading west on the plains, towards the Front Range. In early years, the 1200k+ medal from Les Randonneurs Mondiaux was included for finishers. Later, a medal based on the logo was included.

Jerseys/Vests – The event has offered short-sleeved and sleeveless jerseys, wind vests, and thermal vests from Voler. Barbara Harvie was the graphic artist, based on the logo concept. The front shows a rider heading away from the mountains (viewer facing the rider). The back shows the rider heading back towards the mountains, in more evening light (viewer following the rider.
Website –

RAAM Qualifier – For some years in the early 2000’s, riders who declared their intention to try to qualify for the Race Across America (RAAM) using Last Chance and who finished in under 65 hours became qualified to ride RAAM. This was a RAAM policy for all 1200k’s who agreed to be part of this option.

Resources

Website – The Last Chance web pages are hosted with the other pages for the CO: Boulder region. Aside from general information, registration and cancelation policies, rider tips, etc., the pages contain, for each edition, the rider results, route map and cue sheet, and rider photos and stories, plus a table of consolidated results for all editions.  Rider results include arrival/departure at overnights and for some editions, for other intermediate checkpoints. There are also a blog and a chatlist.

CREATED: 21-JAN-2025 - JLE
 

Last Chance logo

American Randonneur article, 2005

Charlie Henderson (RUSA #6) from AR article

Last Chance jersey front

Last Chance jersey back

Last Chance medal

JLE + Charlie Henderson at Byers

Vernon Smith and Paul Foley approaching Byers