Lessons Learned from my First Century
 

Hey All,

I've been cycling for a pretty short period of time (~2 months) and yesterday completed my first 100 mile ride. As I'm a pretty hefty guy (300 lbs), the ride wasn't quick, but the point is I managed to do it. However, learned lots of lessons that I figured I'd share here to get your advice and input on as well as additional stuff to watch out for on my next century.

1) Hydration & Calories: This is my biggest lesson learned, that I need to be more deliberate about how/when I eat and drink. My strategy yesterday was to stop every few hours at a gas station, chug a Gatorade, eat some powdered doughnuts, and be on my way. This presented two problems. First, immediately after chugging a Gatorade I was left feeling bloated and second, the calories were too few/poor quality to actually make much of a difference. On my next ride I need to plan to eat/drink every hour in smaller amounts to keep myself energized and hydrated through the entire ride.
2) Bike Pump: I had a small hand pump that I used to pump up my rear tire (2.1 lesson learned is to check tires before a long ride) and it was an incredible pain to get it to 100 PSI with the little pump. Next time I'm going to bring CO2 cartridges and be done with it. I spent 15 minutes struggling to get the last few PSI in the tire.
3) Clothing: Being new to cycling I've been attempting to do things on the cheap. I cycled with Amazon sourced $40 bibs and $20 jerseys. The jersey was just fine. The bib? Eh, left me wondering if there's something better out there. Going to buy a nice Pearl Izumi and see if it makes a difference. What do you think?
4) Sunscreen: Put it on before you need it. Got fried.
5) Sleeves: My arms were cold in the morning (left at 4 AM) but then it got to the 80's during the daylight hours, so it would have been too hot for a long sleeve jersey. Sleeves would have solved this problem.
6) Saddle: My LBS mocked my broken in Brookes saddle that I had on my road bike and recommended I switch to a different one. Since I'm new I did and it was pure misery. I cursed the LBS employee with the fury of a thousand suns for his recommendation. Should have gone with a known factor vs trying out something new on my long ride.

These were my lessons learned. What else have you learned that can help a noob like me avoid some mistakes in the future? Any thoughts on these?

Hydration seems to be one of the biggest overlooked things for long rides.

My first long ride like such, I brought too much hydration.

You seem to have learned many of them. Anything else might be just arguing. But in typical BF fashion, we like to argue and just like your first century, sometimes there is stuff to be learned in the arguing around here. But mostly the differences for why we argue is that it's not one size fits all.

1) Carry water with you. Always! I take two bottles for all but the shortest of my rides. And even that ride gets one bottle. But most of my rides are 90 minutes or more in hot weather. Any over 2 hours and I'm taking a 3rd bottle or will know where I can stop and get more. I take a gulp or two of water every ten minutes. Though many probably go fifteen minutes between sips. It's hot and I sweat a lot where I ride. I also put Calories in my bottle. Essentially sugar. It keeps me from having to deal with things that are in wrappers and fiddly to undo on the bike. Though some make a little bottle you can keep in your pocket that holds gel you can buy to get your carb's. Though some grape jelly or strawberry jam will probably work almost as well.

2) I too saw the benefit of CO2 for getting the tire aired up quick. Frame pumps on the top tube take up space and hinder getting bottles in and out on some bikes. Mini pumps just take too long. I seldom flat unless my tire is worn out and I can see the air inside is about to show. So I've wondered why I even carry the CO2 inflator and cartridges along with the patch kit. I've seen mini pumps laying near the trail that I assume someone got frustrated with. So they have litter potential too.

3) I wear cheap jersey's too. A $18 dollar jersey I bought 8 years ago is my favorite. Held up better than some of the more expensive ones. But spend some money to get some decent bibs or shorts. I use Pearl Izumi. The middle tier price range is worth the extra cost from their bottom line bibs and shorts. But some don't like PI or get good use from them, so there are plenty of others brands out there.

4) I use sun sleeves. But I still have to put some sunscreen on the back of my neck and ears. And the tops of my knees as well. For some reason my shins don't get much sun. I guess its the sun being high when I ride.

5) see #4.

6) There is a difference between how a hammock saddle works and the other saddles more typical for a road bike. So if you got a more typical saddle, then you need two to three weeks to get use to it. Even today, if I don't ride for awhile or I do a bunch of short rides and then a really long ride, my butt won't be use to the time in the saddle. And it'll hurt for a good week or so. But only when I mount the bike. Once I get to pedaling all is good.

Reading this line here reminds of those twisted college challenges to "run 2 miles down a hill to the krispy kreme shoppe at the bottom, crush a half-dozen of those bad boys, then run back up without puking your guts out".

Good job! Your instinct to drink and eat more frequently is good, but once an hour is not enough. You should be eating and drinking continuously. Learn to do so as you ride. So instead of waiting an hour to drink, try to finish a bottle every hour as you ride.

to increase that challenge, order a 20oz frozen original glazed latte.... orrr order a 20oz doing half frozen original glazed latte & half frozen caramel mocha specialty latte...

If the challenge is conquered, the winner might end up with diabeetus.

NQ,

Congrats on your first century ride. I admire your self-analysis and desire to build upon it.

Re: Hydration and food, the old rule is drink before you're thirsty, eat before you're hungry. It's a good idea.

Re: Airing your tires, were they not properly inflated before you set out, or did you have an issue on the ride? Best practice is to air them up at home, even the night before the ride, so if they lose air overnight you may notice it and can act before the ride begins. At 300lbs, you want to be sure you have enough pressure to avoid a pinch flat.

Re: clothing, never go with the low bidder on shorts and bibs! You don't want to be crackin' a smile. I like Bouré bibs, but they are pricy. But you really do get what you pay for.

Re: the new saddle, it's a mistake to try any new equipment on a critical ride. You know that now.

Again, congrats, keep at it.

Applying the lessons learned is the challenge I face on centuries...

Eat? Nah, I'm still feeling strong.

Drink? Not feeling thirsty yet.

It's overcast out, I won't need sunscreen.

Et cetera. I find that I just have to force myself to check all the boxes and eat/drink on something of a schedule to keep myself out of trouble.

You rode 100 miles shortly after starting to ride and learned some things. Sounds like a success story to me. Congratulations. I've been riding for years and attempted one organized century about a year ago and only completed 85% of it after cutting a tire so kudos for doing it self supported.

My favorite run I do in the fall is a four mile pub run where we drink three cups of Guinness. The first time I did it, it was four cups and I had sushi for lunch first.

This is learning #7. I didn't check pressure right before the ride and the rear was low, so I attempted to top it off mid ride but bungled getting the mini-pump latched and accidentally let all the air out first. So a couple learnings there.

This is really good advice. I was just playing with my new toy (Garmin 840) and it actually has the ability to have built in reminders on some stuff, so I think I'll for sure utilize that.

to be fair, I did exactly 100.0 miles and promptly sat on the ground and called the wifey to come rescue me. I was bonking hard and don't think I could have gone even one more mile.

Bull butter! You did 100 unsupported miles after two months of riding. You did well.

Congrats on the ride. Riding a self-supported century after riding for only 2 months, is quite impressive...you should feel proud of yourself.

As far as fueling, I take on carbs every 1/2 hour. IMO, the ability to take in enough carbs is something you need to train for, just like any other part of riding. I suffer from gastric distress early in the season, so my part of my training is just being able to take in enough calories without feeling ill. People like different things, but I'm a big fan of gels, particularly the SIS gels. As already said, water is important. Not only just to stay hydrated, but being properly hydrated will allow your stomach to function better on the bike.

Bibs are very much a personal preference. I've had low, mid, and high level bibs...some of the cheap ones have been pretty good and some of the expensive ones have been only "meh." You just gotta try different ones until you're happy. On a side note, no bib will mask pain caused by a bike fit issue.

Saddles are kinda like bibs, very much a personal preference. Find a shape you like and stick with it.

Congratulations, well done.

re: CO2. It's quick and thus handy.

You've demonstrated a strong desire to finish, so you don't want something like running out of CO2 to end a ride. Carry a good mini pump. Something like a Topeak Road Morph that's essentially a small floor pump.

Congrats! Hopefully this isn't the last one you do. It's quite the accomplishment to brag about, especially to non cyclists.

I'll expand on #6 in that I don't make any changes to my bike before a big ride. I'm doing a the 6 Gap Century in 2 weeks and needed new break pads and chain. I made the swap last week so that everything would "bed in" before the big day. Changing a touchpoint on a bike (saddle, handlebars, pedals/shoes) is something that should be "eased" into.

BTW...thanks for sharing your experience, hopefully it will help someone in the future.

Keep up the good work!

Was this on a Harley?...

If you had asked me on Saturday if I would do another I would have expressed doubt. But then Sunday came and I was like "hey, I feel okay actually" and then today rolls around and I'm like "yeah, I could do that again". I must have the memory of an ant. But really, if I get the nutrition and saddle fixed, I think I could do it again but maybe not take so long. Thanks for the support!

? My Scott CR1 Pro.

Hydration, hydration, hydration and hydration! We're all built differently, but we surely need H2O and electrolytes after a few hours on the saddle.

Nutrition is as important, but not as much (to me at least). I'm able to ride a century (metric) fasted without bunking, but my performance and after-ride feeling will be impacted. I now aim for 50g of carbs per hour, and shoud probably increase that up to 100g.

Quality bibs are huge for me. Some dont care what bibs they have, but others really notice a difference. I am in that second group. I have been given a few pairs of PI bibs as gifts and have returned all three because I dont like them nearly as much as what I use(Voler Black Label). There are a ton of bibs, and the cost is so wide ranging its tough to figure out what the sweetspot is between quality and cost. And that sweetspot varies between people, which makes it even more difficult to assess.
If you can, buy 4 pairs of bibs from various brands, try them on, and see which is better. You wont be able to actually test them on a bike for 2 or more hours, but even trying them on can help determine if you like or dislike any of the bibs. Features like having straps that go around the nips instead of over the nips, or a low front cut instead of a high front cut(peeing is easier), or how the leg band is made(thick cheap silicone band or quality 4" compression band), etc. It will cost $600 in the short term, but you can then return what you dont like and keep what you like(if you like any of them).
Pearl Izumi, OrNot, Eliel, Voler, Gore, Rapha, etc- there are a lot of quality brands that offer bibs in varying cuts since we are all different shapes.

Hydration is obviously important. If you can, add something to your water to help replace what you lose thru sweating and exercise. nuun tabs or any of the similar products, for example.

Nutrition can be tough to care about since it seems like my brain doesnt send hungry signals while exercising hard or for a long time. But as soon as I stop, my brain is like 'why didnt you feed me?!'. Having Cliff blocks while riding helps- its some calories and it is something to do during a long stretch of nothingness on the road. Other small prepackaged energy foods are similar- try to have one every hour or whatever you think is needed. Heck, a small bag of cashews from home works well too.

Sleeves are helpful. Amazon off brand sun sleeves like these Aegend branded ones are, for me, just as quality and lasting as any cycling branded sleeves. https://www.amazon.com/aegend-Pairs-...04&sr=8-1&th=1

Good suggestion. Not everyone makes bibs for fat people, but went ahead and ordered a few anyway. Perhaps I'll make a post detailing the comparison when they arrive.


Wish there was a way to do this with saddles to find the best one. I suppose if a company offers a 30 day guarantee on their saddles it's possible to do something roughly similar...just a bit more complicated since saddles can have a break in period. Gotta think about this one.

In the randonneuring world where rides are 200km (125 miles) and up, we call this randonesia. Two days is about right.

Cycling for 2 months at 300lbs and you did a century. That's not just impressive. It's stunning.

Interested in a bridge?...

If you think the OP is lying, tell him, not me.

well done! I remember my 1st Century. after a few days I re-did my math & discovered I only rode 88 miles, ugh. never tried again, tho I have done other very long & all day rides on the road bike & MTB

always good to get reminders, like those you shared :thumb:

thank you