Jo Routens History: A Timeline of Key Competitive and Corporate Events

Joseph “Jo” Routens ranked among the greatest makers of randonneur, cyclotouring and cyclosportif bicycles in cycling history, distinct from contemporaries René Herse and Alex Singer for his unwavering commitment to the everyday cyclist. Beginning at the Brevet de Randonneur Alpin in the 1930s and continuing through a fruitful partnership with Roger Hugonnier and then his own eponymous marque, Routens built a competitive and manufacturing legacy anchored in Grenoble, France.

Here is a chronological timeline of key competitive and corporate events at Jo Routens, spanning from 1913 to 2014, based on the sources used for an accompanying Ebykr article on its history, “Jo Routens: Randonneur de l’Excellence.”

13 events

1913

Founder’s Birth

Joseph “Jo” Routens was born in Grenoble, France, a city with roots as an early source of bicycle innovation dating back to A. Favre in 1867.

1936–1938

Racing Debut

Routens first became known as a competitive cyclist at the Brevet de Randonneur Alpin (BRA), an event established by journalist Gustave Darchieux with Routens’ own help, noted for its traversal of the 2,645-meter Col du Galibier.

1938–1939

Racing Victory

Routens rode professionally for builder and promoter Lionel Brans, winning the 1938 Critérium Cyclotouristique des Alpes and the 1939 Grand Prix Duralumin, a four-stage, 553km contest through the Vosges Mountains contested against Alex Singer and sixty three other entrants.

1942–1944

Market Disruption

Bicycle racing largely paused across Europe during the Nazi occupation, with the Nazis attempting a series of races despite a lack of trained, high-caliber racing cyclists; competitive racing resumed only slowly in 1946 into 1947.

late 1945

Corporate Partnership

Routens met Roger Hugonnier, a former motorcycle racer for the Grenoble marque Libéria, just after the War; the two shared a passion for their craft and went into business together.

1946–1952

Product Innovation

The Hugonnier-Routens partnership produced some of the most admired tandem and single bicycles of the era, distinguished by impeccable fillet brazing, wrap-around seat stays, twin plate fork crowns, reinforced joint tangs for stronger riders, rear cable routing through the seat tube, inward-facing rear cantilever brakes and a twin cable front derailleur.

1948

Grand Tour Victory

Routens piloted his own tandem to victory at Paris-Brest-Paris (PBP), the 1,200 km out-and-back cyclotouring event first held in 1891 and considered the sport’s premier test of self sufficiency.

1949

Brand Storytelling

Routens penned a lengthy, humble article reviewing his first PBP win, published across the October and December issues of French cyclotouring magazine Le Cycliste.

1951

Grand Tour Victory

Riding with René Fourmy, Routens won PBP again, racing against a competing Rene Herse tandem and establishing a course record. In the same year’s Le Cycliste, Routens wrote, “Without team spirit, it is useless to think of the tandem.”

1952

Corporate Reorganization

The Routens-Hugonnier partnership ended after five fruitful years, and the first Routens-branded bicycles began selling that same year, with premium models retaining the exotic touches of the Hugonnier era alongside more economical offerings.

1956

Grand Tour Victory

Routens piloted his own tandem to a third PBP victory, part of an unmatched run in which the men’s tandem team he entered outran the winning solo rider to arrive back in Paris first on all three occasions.

1988

Founder’s Death

Jo Routens passed away at age 74, having compiled an unmatched 33 finishes at the BRA, the event that launched his career, including a strong finish just months before his death. Historian Raymond Henry called him an “Artisan Specialiste du Cycle de Cyclotourisme.”

2014

Corporate Leadership

Jean-Paul Routens, son of Jo, retired after continuing to produce world-class tandems under the Routens name for decades; Cycles Routens today continues as a bicycle shop serving Grenoble locals.

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