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EXCLUSIVE: Behind the scenes VIP visit to the GRAN FONDO NJ with BILL and MARTY

 

Gran Fondo NJ

In just 4 short years, Gran Fondo NJ has become one of the premier one-day cycling events in the US offering challenging routes of 18, 42, 62 and 107 miles for its 2000+ participants.  

The event has raised over $600,000 for local and national charities, and is consistently highly rated by its participants.  For the past 3 years consistently over 38% of its participants have rated it as “The best one-day cycling event I have ever done.” and 98% of the participants would recommend the event to a friend.  

It is this passion, and the amazing support of the volunteer teams that helps create “The Gran Fondo NJ Experience” and is the reason cyclists from across the US come back year over year to participate in the event.

The Gran Fondo New Jersey is taking place on 13th September 2015.


 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Bill Ruddick, as Executive Director of the GRAN FONDO NJ, could you give us a little bit of background about yourself?

BILL RUDDICK: "After a 30-year career in Corporate America, I decided to focus my energies on my true passion in life – cycling!

Some of my more memorable cycling adventures have included a 425 mile ride across Alaska in 2000, and a 10-week 5,346 mile ride across Canada in 2010.  I’ve also ridden countless one-day events including the 212 mile NJ Y-Axis ride in 2013, and most recently in February 2015, a 19 mile Fat Bike ride across a frozen lake in northern Canada.  ­­

Since its inception in 2011, I’ve been the Executive Director of Gran Fondo NJ, responsible for all aspects of production & marketing."

 

 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Marty Epstein, you’re the founder, creator and driving force behind Gran Fondo NJ. What’s your background too?

MARTY EPSTEIN: "I started Marty's Reliable Cycle in March, 1978, and grew the business from a small store to a three store chain which is consistently rated by the bicycle industry as one of "America's Best Bike shops."  

I have ridden RAGBRAI too many times to count and countless one-day cycling events including the 212 mile NJ Y-axis ride for the past two years running. I’m a strong proponent of Cycling Advocacy both through the shops and my advocacy as both a board and lifetime member of the NJ Bike & Walk Coalition, and a founding board member of Bike Walk Morristown and Sustainable Morristown."

MARTY EPSTEIN, left. Gran Fondo NJ King of the Mountains Winner 2014 Middle. BILL RUDDICK, Right.

PHOTO: LEFT - MARTY EPSTEIN, GFNJ Founder. MIDDLE - GF NJ KOM Winner 2014. RIGHT - BILL RUDDICK, Executive Director, GF NJ.

 

 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Marty, what do you think makes GRAN FONDO NJ undoubtedly one of “the most popular cycling events in America”?

MARTY EPSTEIN: "Every decision around the event, starting with registration and packet pick-up to the rest stop food, the routes, the signage, the free photos and the finish line and post-ride experience is driven Bill and my cumulative years of experience in what we like, and just as importantly what we don’t like in riding one-day endurance events – including how it feels to be 15 miles from the finish line and running on fumes.  

Our goal is to have you complete the event, exhausted, but having an amazing sense of fun and accomplishment, such that you can’t wait to do it again next year!"



GRAN FONDO GUIDE: What do you do, to try and encourage new riders to come and experience the GRAN FONDO NJ?

BILL RUDDICK: "Gran Fondo NJ is more than a one-day event - registered riders get a chance to learn about riding in groups and scout out the routes of the event through our training ride series throughout the summer.   Our goal is to have Gran Fondo NJ be the best day ever on a bike. Our routes are incredibly beautiful, and amazingly well marked – whether you ride the 18-mile Breve route or the 107-mile Gran, every intersection has signage so you will never have to look at a cue sheet if you don’t want to.

In our raffle, open to all riders who register for the event during on-line registration, we are giving away 12 bikes worth approximately $20,000 in total and an additional $10,000 in other prizes (Giro helmets, Hutchinson tires etc).

Our bike sponsors, Trek, Scott and Jamis are each providing four bikes for our raffle, targeted at cyclists registering in each of the four distances.

For the approximately 100 cyclists who will register for our Breve Route that’s a 1 in 30 chance of winning a $900 bike…"

 
The organization and encouragement that seasoned and novice cyclists experience on the GF NJ is truely astounding.

PHOTO: The organization and encouragement that seasoned and novice cyclists experience on the GF NJ is truely astounding.

 

 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: What happens if you’re not feeling “so good” on the day?

BILL RUDDICK:  "All four of our routes “overlap” for the most part, so riders signed up for the Gran have the option to drop down to the Medio at mile 33 or the Piccolo at mile 22 during the ride – Medio riders can drop down to the Piccolo at mile 22.  Rather than getting a “DNF” for results, our timing company will drop them down to the distance they end up riding and still get a time recorded for bragging rights.  If for some reason you cannot complete the ride we have SAG services to get you back to the start or to the next rest stop if you have a mechanical issue we can repair.

Similarly, if they are feeling good and want to ride a longer route they can do so, but there is a $40 administrative fee for them to get their results."


 

 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: What’s one of the “most popular” features of your event?

BILL RUDDICK:  "That’s a tough one, we always hear from our riders that our rest stops are amazing, and in 2014 we added a beer garden at the finish which was greatly appreciated.  I’d have to say that the most popular feature of the event for 2014 (and back again for 2015) was offering over 10,000 high-res photos of our participants (searchable by bib-number) and downloadable for free, as part of the benefits."

 

 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Bill, The list of things riders get included in their entry fee is truly astounding and ground breaking, from timed climbs to route signage. Is this your reflection of your cumulative years of experience of riding one-day endurance events?

BILL RUDDICK:  "We basically try to deliver what we ourselves would like to see, or find lacking in the events that we have ridden. Welcoming and friendly rest stops with the usual endurance event foods plus some surprises, excellent mechanical support, well marked routes (we paint over 900 arrows on the roads, have over 250 directional signs at intersections, and police control at key intersections), amazing scenery (our 62 mile Medio route was named by the editors of Bicycling Magazine to their list of “The 50 Best Rides in the States”) and a celebration and free meal at the finish.  We know what it is like to be running on fumes with 15% of the ride to go, and want to provide the incentive to finish, exhausted but wanting to do it again the next year!"


Some Very Happy Cyclists, Sporting Their Medals, Having Completed the 2014 Gran Fondo New Jersey

 


GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Marty, The Gran Fondo NJ supports local charities and in 4 years of the event has raised over $600,000 for local and national charities. Can you tell us more about the charities that you’ll be supporting in 2015?

MARTY EPSTEIN: "We choose to support charities that we like and that align with our views on social responsibility. 

The Seeing Eye, providing guide dogs to the visually impaired is headquartered in Morristown and the ride goes right by their main campus.  They also provide an amazing team of volunteers for our busiest rest stop. 

Homeless Solutions has been serving the needs of homeless families and children in Morristown and operates under the credo “providing a hand up not a hand out”. They support the last rest stop on the course, providing the energy and encouragement for our riders to slog out the last 15 miles to the finish.  

Grow it Green builds community through collaborative projects centered around food, education, and shared outdoor space. They are the force and vision behind the Lafayette Urban Farm and the Early Street Community garden and educational opportunities to the 5,200 school children in the Morris School District.  

Sustainable Morristown’s mission is to promote and support a sustainable future for the Morristown community through education, leadership, and action.  They provided us great support in helping us take Gran Fondo NJ from just another cycling event to the first cycling event in the world to earn a Gold Level Accreditation from The Council for Responsible Sport.  

The NJ Bike and Walk Coalition supports and promotes cycling and pedestrian advocacy throughout the state and on routes to bordering states, including the George Washington Bridge to New York City. They have been instrumental in getting communities to follow and implement a complete streets program and promote safe cycling at the local state and national level."

"Part of our efforts in Sustainability is to “do good for our community” and we realize that our participants may have different charities that they would like to support through the event, and other charities may see the event as an opportunity to raise funds for their causes – we strongly encourage this. Since our start, The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society’s “Team in Training” has added Gran Fondo NJ as an event to their ride calendar and last year the NJ Sharing Network fielded a fundraising team."




GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Bill, Gran Fondo Guide recently rated the Gran Fondo NJ as one of the “Top 3 Gran Fondos in America” in its recent article. What’s your opinion on the growth of Gran Fondos in North America over the last 5 years?

BILL RUDDICK: "Everybody seems to be offering a “Gran Fondo” these days, and it is very encouraging to see the growth of cycling as a result of the Gran Fondo phenomenon.  Our event has more than doubled in size since 2011 and we are continuing to experience strong year over year growth.  We believe that the force behind this growth is our commitment to offer what we feel is a true Gran Fondo experience – starting early in the morning in a sea of other cyclists, riding a route that will test your endurance, and reward you with lavish rest stops, the “cruelty” of timing the toughest climbs of the route, and finishing the day with a celebration at our post finish festival."


Superb Feed Stops, catering for all Cyclists

 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Gran Fondo NJ 2014 is the first Cycling Event in the USA to earn Gold Certification from the Council for Responsible Sport for its implementation of Sustainability practices. Can you tell us more about this?

BILL RUDDICK: "We achieved Gold Level Certification from the Council for Responsible Sport. Organizers earned credit on 51 out of the 61 best practice standards offered in the Council’s certification program for social and environmental responsibility at sporting events. With help from Sustainable Morristown, the 2,000-­-plus participant event diverted 92 percent of the waste generated through composting and recycling facilities. For 2014, the Gran Fondo NJ directly donated $12,500 to each of its five beneficiaries: New  Jersey Bike & Walk Coalition, Sustainable Morristown, the Seeing  Eye  Inc., Homeless Solutions  Inc., and Grow it Green Morristown, and in total the event raised over $200,000 for charities."


 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Bill, as the event director, what’s the most fun part of the event for you and the most satisfying?

BILL RUDDICK: "I think the most fun part of the event for me is seeing the thousands of cyclists lined up at the start ready for an amazing day, and thinking of the team at the first rest stop, having no idea of the horde that is about to descend upon them.  The most satisfying part is seeing the cyclists coming through the finish chute and cross the finish line at the end of the day totally drained and physically exhausted, and watching the smiles return to their faces when they realize what they have accomplished."

 

GRAN FONDO GUIDE: Marty as founder and driving force behind such an amazing event, what’s the most fun part of the event for you and the most satisfying?

MARTY EPSTEIN: "The most fun part for me is seeing the event grow each year from an idea in 2010 to one of the most highly rated Gran Fondos in the USA – we put a lot of hard work into making it happen and it is great to see the results.  The most satisfying part is when we have our Volunteer and Beneficiary wrap-up party and get to thank everyone for their hard work and hand out the checks to support these great organizations."

 

The Team from Martys Reliable Ride

 

Gran Fondo NJ 2015

Gran Fondo NJ 2015, taking place on 13th September 2015 offers four challenging routes of 107, 62, 42 and 18 miles, with timed hill climbs on the Gran, Medio and Piccolo routes. Our 63-mile Medio Fondo route was selected by the editors of Bicycling Magazine as one of "The 50 Best Rides in America."  All routes begin and end in historic Morristown, New Jersey.

Click here to register - http://granfondonj.eventbrite.com

Click here for full details - http://granfondonj.com/

The Gran Fondo NJ was voted one of the top 11 Gran Fondo's in North America in 2014.