Anyone done a ton??

katozdad

Starting to think about challenges for next year. I'm on target to hit my 2500mile target for the end of the year. I am also planning on holding off buying a new bike until I have lost another stone (16 to be precise). Once I get the bike I want to set myself a massive goal. My max mileage in one day has been 43 miles to date. Frankly it killed me, but the recover was surprising, so I want to do a fifty miler as my first target hopefully around March/April time when the weather should warm up a bit.

Anyway, my question is, has anyone out there done a ton (100 miles) and if so how did you prepare for it? Also, is the bike important? I have a mountain bike with road tyres, which is good for my ten mile commute twice a day, but I guess I'm loosing pace and efficiency which will be important for clocking up the miles. I'm tending towards a cyclocross, as I think this is more robust at handling the crap roads around Sheffield (pot holes galore!!), which should take me further than a mountain bike, but will it serve me well for the ton? Whatever I choose, it will be my new regular commute.

Looking forward to your responses.

Carl

katozdad

Sorry, but also is the lay of the land important for a newbie. To my west is the peak district, lots of pleasure pain theory in them hills, and to my east is Doncaster, Humberside and York which are a lot flatter.

I don't mind hills, especially when you come down the other side, but is maintain a good rhythm, at least until you get used to it better?

FatDadSlim

Started road biking in January 2012 & did a 206k sportive in June. Was averaging 100k rides on a Sunday & commuting 80k a day in the lead up to it. Suffered from bad cramp around half way around the sportive, something i'd not experienced prior. Other than that I really enjoyed. I think being around +4k other riders saw me through. Have entered the same sportive again nxt yr (Wiggle Dragon Ride) working on my stretches hoping it will eliminate the cramp this time around.

"Free the mind & the legs will follow"

TheBigYin

If I were you, I'd hop a train across to Doncaster and head north towards Selby, then when you get to somewhere like Eggborough, go into some variation on this loop... http://connect.garmin.com/activity/244435782 (when you get to Castleford, head back to knottingley and eggborough - make a big "lollypop" route... Relatively flat route, all great riding roads - not much traffic on weekends especially and a fair few places to call in for provisions en-route... Even 5 stone ago, I was happy enough rolling around a shorter variation of this at a decent 16-17mph pace, only slowing up at the hilly bits nearer my home

Most longer rides are as much in the head as in the legs tbh... if you can ride 40 miles 2 days back to back, you can ride a 100 - it's all about pacing yourself and not going off like a scalded dog.

I have to say, the loop I linked to was probably the longest i've ridden for maybe 20 years - ever since getting knocked off the bike, breaking my pelvis in 3 places and smashing my thighbone. Took me 18 months to get walking, and another 5 years to get the nerve back to ride a bike again, by which time I was desperately trying to rebuild my career after losing 2 years to getting myself rebuilt. Only came back to riding properly maybe 4 years ago, by which time I was pushing 400lb!

But before all that, I used to ride pretty seriously - even did a few 100mile time-trials, and a couple of 12hour and 24 hour rides... Started with long-distance stuff back at school - riding from home to the coast and back in the day - a 155mile round trip - at the age of 15, on "restricted gears" - 46t chainset and 14-22 block iirc.

A 'cross bike would be fine for pretty much anything from riding sunday club-rides through to light touring (provided you get one with rack and mudguard mounts) - indeed some of the modern non-race oriented 'crossers are probably the most versatile bikes out there. Stick good road slicks on it rather than knobblies and bob's your aunties significant other.

katozdad

Good luck FatDadSlim, thank you for the response. Seems like 6 months is an achievable target to build up to 100miles + ride.

katozdad

Cheers Big Yin, I was hoping you'd reply, good practical advice as always. Encouraging to see that you did that loop only a couple of weeks ago. I hadn't dreamed of doing a big ride at this time of year. I'm thinking a trip to York and back in the day will be close to my target and was also thinking of Cleethorpes when the weather gets a lot warmer.

TheBigYin

...Encouraging to see that you did that loop only a couple of weeks ago. I hadn't dreamed of doing a big ride at this time of year. I'm thinking a trip to York and back in the day will be close to my target and was also thinking of Cleethorpes when the weather gets a lot warmer.

Well, traditionally, this is the time when most of the roadies get their "long steady distance" riding in - base level conditioning rides at a nice steady pace, for 4-6 hours at a time - so a long ride at this time of year is eminently "do-able" provided you've got decent clothing, and preferably someone else to ride with (makes it more sociable if you're going to be out for 5-6 hours at a time, and there's also someone to watch the bikes while the other calls into a shop for supplies... It also stops you looking like "billy no mates" at the cafe stop

KitTheRoadie

Well I've posted two rides of over a century this year, for the first time ever! :bigsmile:

I guess my preparation was regular rides of 30+ miles and a few audaxes of 60+ miles. I don't really think the bike is too important, but I suppose the lighter the better, because that will make it easier. On the two sportives I did (on an alloy road bike), you see guys n gals on all sorts of bikes, from full blown racers, time trial bikes right through to guys on MTB/Hybrids and even a couple of peeps on tandems! Nutrition and 'mind control' are a big part of it, if you start to feel weak because of hunger/thirst your mind will play some horrible tricks on you convincing you can't do it, when in fact you can, you just have to stay suitably fed and watered.

I was pretty nervous doing my first one back in may (http://connect.garmin.com/activity/175503266) and that was 112 miles! Apart from feeling the 'bonk' a bit towards the end (the extra 12 miles I think) it really wasn't that bad!

Once I had that in the bank, I now don't fear doing that distance at all, so much so that I did it again at the end of October with the Exmoor Beast (http://connect.garmin.com/activity/237990804), that one although 12 miles shorter than the first was a bit lumpier and Exmoor has it's own weather system!

I'm not really great at giving advice (I leave that to TBY! ;-)) or taking it for that matter but this is my two cents. You can do it, get out there and ride, I'm sure you'll surprise yourself!

Chris

Frannybobs

I'm still considering myself a novice cyclist at the very most, but did my first metric century in an event this year - the Manchester 100 where you can do 100KM or 100 miles. To be honest it was round the hills of Cheshire so was pretty tough and not sure I'd like 100 miles of that as there were no flat bits whatsoever.

I'll be looking for new challenges next year and am really hoping I might be able to get myself a road bike too - currently ride a Specialized hybrid or commute on the MTB in the winter with suspension locked out as I'm not bothered about times so much now it's so cold and wet, more about keeping my legs in. If I do get the road bike I'll challenge myself by signing up to a 100 miler I reckon- just not the Cheshire one

Good luck with it - it's a great journey to be on isn't it?!

katozdad

Thank you Christophenes and Frannybobs, it certainly is a great journey to be on. I enjoyed looking at your route, it certainly looks like you are not afraid of them hills. Definitely up for the challenge now. When I get my new bike, I think I will start by getting used to two 40mile routes I have done this year, one is easy and the other is very hilly and then think of a way to link them both up as one goes east and the other west. That should push me close to that magic ton.

Cant wait, got the bit between the teeth now!!

TheBigYin

I have to be honest, I'd LOVE to get a seriously long ride in sometime, but family constraints (looking after my dad) generally mean I'm tied to not being away from the house more than 3 or so hours. The only way I manage a longer ride is to tell him to "have a lie in" and get up late, leave him some breakfast and a flask of tea before I go out, and make an early start. That way, I can be out until say 2pm. Sadly, this approach rules out pretty much any "group rides" or "sportifs" - not many people are prepared to go out from 6am just to get a century ride in - even in summer. Of course, at this time of year, starting much before 8am is pretty much out of the question - the combination of it being Dark, Icy Roads AND Sunday Morning is a singularly unappealing prospect for most people...

So, for me, it's a 5 1/2 hour window of opportunity on Sunday Mornings, weather permitting - hence the best I've managed this year is 80miles... I was SOOOO tempted to call in at home, see if my dad was OK, grab a fresh bottle, and hit the road for another 20+ miles, but when I got home, he was so happy to see me back home for a bit of company, I didn't have the heart to go back out!