The GFNY 3x FINISHER Medal

Each year, a formidable group of GFNY riders gather on podiums throughout the Globe to celebrate the achievement of finishing 3 GFNY races in a single year. The accomplishment represents more than just the finishes, however. Those that become GFNY 3x Finishers share a commitment to training, travel, adventure, and accomplishment. There is no other event series that celebrates these traits quite like GFNY does. 

How to become a GFNY 3x Finisher

Becoming a 3x GFNY Finisher is fairly simple:

Step 1: At the start of the season, look at the GFNY Race calendar and make a list of your top 5 GFNY races that fit your life calendar, travel budget, and cycling style.
Step 2: Choose a backup GFNY race for each, for example a race that is in a similar time or place.
Step 3: Check race requirements for each race, such as doctor’s notes/health forms, international licenses, or other prerequisites. All available on the GFNY website for each race. If in doubt, contact the organization via the contact form on the website with any questions.
Step 4: Register and book your travel.
Step 5: Train, travel, race. Repeat. Repeat.
Step 6: Step up on the podium with other GFNY 3x Finishers after your third race, and collect your GFNY 3x Finisher medal.

Here’s just a few ways to figure out your GFNY 3x Finisher race calendar – and remember, any distance counts toward your 3x achievement, so be bold with choices with the knowledge that you can always decide to take the shorter route on race day if the terrain is too challenging. 

• Travel logistics: Is it a long weekend kind of trip, or are you looking for a once-in-a-lifetime experience and willing to make a significant trip?
• Time of year: When do you have time to travel? When do you have more time in your schedule to get in the trailing miles? When is training and travel taking a 2nd place to other things happening in your life.
• Season & temperatures: Both at home and at the race. For example: getting out of the cold at home to combine cycling with a warm weather vacation.
• The race destination: Have you been and loved it and craving to come back for more fun, or the destination has been on your bucket list and this is the year to make the dream a reality.
• Race doubles – are there two GFNY races on back-to-back weekends that support your travel logistics? 
• The course: Are the course topography or features the determining factors as to which GFNY you do? Do you seek out epic climbs and mountains, or a flat and fast course, or maybe rolling hills?

What Kind of GFNY 3x Finisher Will You Be? 

If you can’t decide which races you should choose, here are some ideas, but the possibilities for adventure are endless. 

• The Bold Climber – Taking on the long and steep climbs of GFNY races in Europe, South America, and North America, bold climbers search for those GFNY races that take them to the top! The descents are as technical and challenging as the climbs, but the views make the work worthwhile! 
• • • The French Ranger – Lourdes Tourmalet, Grand Ballon, Alpes Vaujany,  (Pyrenees, Vosges, Alpes)
    • The Calendar Climber – La Vaujany, Grand Ballon, Orcieres
    • The Intercontinental – NYC World Championship, Villard de Lans, Pittsburgh
    • The Western – Punta del Este, NYC World Championship, Pittsburgh or Puerto Rico

• The Fast and Fabulous – How long can you hang with the front groups to maintain a furious pace, and stay out of some of the infamous headwinds on the flatter GFNY courses. Climbers please note – the flats don’t take away the challenge, just change it to a constant battle that emphasizes bike handling and a constant effort.
• • • The Wind Surfer – Cambridge, Bahamas, Cozumel 
    • The Beach Comber – Bali, Cannes, Republica Dominicana, Paracas
    • The Yankee Doodle Dandy – Miami, NYC Championship, Pittsburgh

• The Adventurer – Adventurers seek the unexpected, in the courses they ride, the foods they try, and the histories they seek out. Where will you travel and what new experiences will you have as part of your cycling journey? 
• • The Great Stories – Toscana, Zapopan, Bremen
  • The Bold and Beautiful – Paracas, Bento, Colonia

The combinations are limitless and can be driven by anything that excites the adventurous cyclist in you. No matter how you achieve it, creating your GFNY 3x Finisher race calendar is a chance to build your adventure your way, so that you can maximize your training, travel budget, and desire to see new places and experience new things.