Richard Sanderson

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Between the 15th and 19th of June 2025, the cycling club Randonneurs Laponia hosted the forth edition of Midnight Sun Randonnée. Written reports, photos and videos from cyclists who participated in the event will be added to this page during 2025. [Last update 2025-06-25]

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Mark Holmes

Umeå 🇸🇪 > Hattfjelldal 🇳🇴 – 470.41km / 4,882m ascent / 19hrs 8min moving time / 24hrs 42mins total time

Simply have to split this video in to two as it was such a long day! After a day of waiting around to start, at 23:03 the MSR 2025 got underway at sunset, although this far north it doesn’t get dark. The roads were rolling and going was good with checkpoints at Granö, Lycksele and a Secret Checkpoint all visited in the dry and in reasonable time. The rain hit before the fourth checkpoint at Vilhelmina and I arrived at the checkpoint there just before the heavens opened up. They would stay open in various intensities for much of the next few days.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DLKt000Iv1n

Boy did it rain after Vilhelmina! Water got in everywhere and kit got soaked very quickly. My waterproof socks were so good at not letting water through that the water that had run down my skin into the sock couldn’t get out and they just filled up. We know our rain in North Yorkshire and this was proper stuff!

We had entered the Scandi Mountains proper and the views, especially into Norway, provided some motivation. Hattfjelldal and bed seemed a long way away, even after crossing the border into Norway. I don’t know what the Norwegians do with their oil money but it sure isn’t spent on road surfaces!

Reindeer made an appearance to lift spirits, along with a fox and an owl, plus some suicidal sheep (although you could argue most sheep are). A very welcome fish soup and a decent sleep at Hattfjelldal saw the end of my longest day.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DLKwixdI_2t

Hattfjelldal 🇳🇴 > Vuoggatjålme 🇸🇪- 286.44km / 3,669m ascent / 12hrs 52mins moving time / 15hrs 50mins total time (day) / 45hrs 14mins overall

Another day that needs splitting in two so the Arctic Circle seemed like the perfect place to do that. So, after a good sleep at Hattfjelldal I set off aiming to arrive at Mo i Rana before the cut off. Norway continued to be stunning despite more wet weather, although the road quality was again poor and the main road into Mo i Rana was heavy with traffic. That meant time trial, get-it-done mode, which was vital as I made the checkpoint exactly on closing time! A refill and short rest and it was time to start the long cold ascent to the next checkpoint at the Arctic Circle Centre. This was a bit of a drag but the scenery kept revealing more of itself and we entered the exposed and barren landscape of the Arctic.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DLMeMDoIjh5

North of the Arctic Circle things got a bit cold. I wasn’t expecting to see frozen lakes! A long descent tested my powers of rewarming (bib shorts and knee warmers probably the wrong choice but just about kept me from freezing!) and I was grateful for the 8% average tunnel-avoiding climb that got the blood flowing again and offered some of the best views on the route. I was very pleased to reach Vuoggatjålme with the opportunity to get some proper food in and have a bit of a rest.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DLMkzXjMpYG

Vuoggatjålme 🇸🇪 > Sorsele 🇸🇪 – 197.75km / 1,337m ascent / 8hrs 19mins moving time / 13hrs 12mins total time (day) / 62hrs 7mins overall

Felt pretty rough over the first part of the day and the drag to Arjeplog. Bad guts and not really being able to eat anything in any quantity put strain on already low resources. A rest in Arjeplog and a call with @egmorrish back at home who dragged me out of a hole and a plan was hatched to get to Sorsele and have a proper rest in a guesthouse found by Emma. That ended up saving my ride really. The sun was out as I stepped out of the checkpoint to see the Finns putting suncream on which I’m certain directly resulted in 3 hours of heavy rain…
https://www.instagram.com/p/DLNUUQ4ofFo

Sorsele 🇸🇪 > Umeå 🇸🇪 – 265.19km / 1,727m ascent / 9hrs 38mins moving time / 11hrs 31mins total time (day) / 87hrs 32mins overall

After a good 7 hours sleep in Sorsele, I was rolling again at 3am to a very cool but dry morning. The illness of the previous day was gone and I was able to make some good progress. So much so I caught Andy, the Aussie I hadn’t seen since the first 10km or so of the whole ride! It was great to catch up and roll to the amazing secret checkpoint after 75km or so. Hot dogs and coffee fuelled the next leg as I left Andy to ‘enjoy the scenery’ and time-trialled towards the next checkpoint at Åmsele. For a section the road became a runway (massive, wide and seemingly never-ending) before I arrived to a roaring fire and two big portions of Palt!

With only 105km to Umeå, it was time to get it done. I was also conscious of the fact the Finns had been putting sunscreen on again, so rain was definitely imminent (even on a day where chance of rain was 0%). A little up the road I was joined by Daniel and Sara, who were riding the final 100km or so having scratched earlier in the ride. This allowed me to push the pace whilst chatting away and also having a bit of fun on the bike. Time passed quickly and before long we were within striking distance of the end. Then the rain started (remember the Finns and their sunscreen?!) and didn’t really stop. Heavy downpours followed but with only a handful of kilometres to go it was time to push the pedals hard and get it done.

And get it done I did. I rolled into Umeå and off the bike after 87 hours and 32 minutes. An incredibly tough but rewarding 3.5 days, crossing this amazing landscape twice, burning countless calories and having a lifetime of experiences in the process. A really well organised event staffed by some incredible volunteers.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DLPDZgJsJkr