seypat

I do both. I ran a half last weekend. Have a climbing century next weekend. The main issue with a marathon is committing to a training program. I will run a marathon in November. The training for it will begin June 2nd. During that time I will ride 3 or 4 centuries. My fitness level will be high enough that I can jump on the bike and reel off a century on a whim. The century is very dependent on course/rider. The hardest part is being acclimated to the bike. Even if you have the fitness, your body must be ready to be on that bike for 5+ hours. What is going to stop you from the finish point will be something besides your legs. Even with the SAGs, something will give out. It could be your shoulders, lower back, elbows, etc. For me, it is holding up my head for that long. I ride a lot in the drops. The trapezious muscles really ache after a while. At some point, you want to quit pedaling and get off the bike. When that happens during the marathon you just slow down/start walking. You will still be making progress towards the finish. Then you start running again. Comparing the 2, I would say running is physically harder. For me, finishing the century is mentally harder. When running, once I get within 3 miles I know I will make it. I will actually pick up the pace then. That last 3 will mentally go by fast as I count down the miles. Not so on the bike. The last 5 seems to take forever. I am scanning the horizon thinking, "Where is that #*+?!@ finish line? Please, finish line, show up! I am tired of having this saddle up my @ss. I want to get off."