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Machka has given plenty of good advice already, it's hard to add on to that.
Originally Posted by
whele
I have another suggestion, make it easy for yourself and just provide the location of checkpoints. Allow the riders to pick their own routes.
I do most of my rides on my own or with a small group of friends, but what attracts me to organized rides such as brevets are mainly 2 points:
1) The opportunity to ride with other people and measure myself against them and
2) The discovery of new and interesting routes.
In my opinion, asking people to pick their own route would remove much of the value of an organized ride that comes from local knowledge. If you have a chance to highlight great local routes, by all means use it!
The fees we pay for participation in randonnees are pretty moderate, typically less than $20. For that I expect very little in support. I get all my food in convenience stores. The real value for me is that the rides have shown me new routes, which I have subsequently incorporated into my rides. Many times, to get from A to B I will pull up a course of a brevet on my GPS that partly covers this route, either directly or in reverse direction.
So if I were to plan a century ride, my main emphasis would be on sharing great routes: Routes that you love going back to, that are scenic, low traffic, get you away from summer heat or winter cold, that have great views, that pass interesting locations, etc. Everything else is secondary :-)
Start from your local favourite rides: Where do you go when you can't make up your mind where to go to or what place do you go back to at least every season?