sanmateoclimber

So, I've been good about getting in the saddle about three times per week since the Spring (less consistent during the darker months, but I try to compensate on an indoor trainer.) My weekday rides (twice per week) are usually in the low twenties mileage-wise, with some decent climbing that usually brings them to around 1600 feet of gain. Then I've generally been getting a longer third ride on the weekend. Two of the recent ones were basically the big middle portion of this longer ride (the middle 40 miles, with both the major climbs for 4300 ft gain.) Others have been all over the map but probably averaging 40 miles, with the longest being 51 miles and 4000 ft back in early August.

This was obviously a notable leap, but after I finished that "middle 40 miles" ride again last weekend, I could tell I had more gas in the tank. So I figured I could survive adding the 30 less hilly miles that would make it an out and back from my garage. And I mean I did make it, if not so gracefully. But I don't feel overly sore now 36 hours later and I'll probably do a moderate ride this afternoon.

Any advice from how someone got from here to comfortably handling longer endurance rides would be appreciated. I'm 34, not a particularly athletic guy, and I've got some extra pounds on me for sure. But I'm pretty capable of pushing myself, and my climbing times have been getting consistently faster (current Old La Honda PR 28:56 as a benchmark.) I know the biggest advice people are going to give me is TITS and expanding those weeknight rides to longer distances, but I only have so much time to spend on the road (and my schedule is undoubtedly going to falter as we tilt into the Winter months, too.) And I don't think 70 mile rides are only for wiry guys who ride 50 miles a day... I envy all the older dudes I meet out there who seem to have locked in the ability to go for a nice long Saturday morning ride at a nice reasonable pace without completely arranging their lives around cycling.