TXsailor

I started out in July riding less than a mile and thanks to the support from this form I made 51 miles today! I was all in when I got home but I made it. I have also lost 17 lbs and feel better. Thanks everyone!

2 wheeler

Wow, that's quite an accomplishment considering you just started in July!!

TXsailor

Thanks! I bought my Giant Escape on my birthday July 23. I had been riding a old 10 speed a couple of weeks prior to that. I now have 850 miles behind me. When I got home I thought "wow to make a century I would have to turn around and do it again" I would have been lucky to make another 10 miles. But I felt the same way the first time I did 20 miles and now I do that before work a lot of days.

donalson

two things...

great job... and way to make me feel like a schlub... but still great work

Ursa Minor

Congratulations 50 miles is a significant ride.

Charlie

PhotoJoe 

Congratulations. And THANK YOU for posting! How many new members post here saying they rode 3 miles and thought they were going to die? We all try to encourage them, but this is proof. Nice job! Can't wait to hear about your first metric....then your first 100!

mrodgers

Since you are about where I am other than the type of bike, I have a question about your Escape since I will probably be getting one next spring. I too started around when you did but the bike I ride I can't easily do 20 miles. About an hour and a half is all I can stand on my Walmart bike, so I am wondering how long it takes you to do that 20 miles you do often?

I'm sure I could do longer on a better bike, but 2 hours on my junk bike leaves me with a completely numb arm. Also I'm limited to about 14 mph, it's all I can get out of mine over a longer period of time over an hour, so I am just gathering more information for when I get a bike in the spring. Wanting a hybrid and not a road bike, a Giant Escape is about the only bike local to me as the shop would be close to work. All other shops and thus bike brands would be 30-40 miles away, so I will probably be getting an Escape.

A coworker wanted me to ride yesterday with him, 34 miles out for lunch and 34 miles back. I'm pretty confident that by this point I'd be able to do it on a decent bike, but because of the bike I have I am not riding as far as distances as I would on a better bike. I'm not ready for that kind of distance just because of the bike. Wanting your opinion on the Escape such as how comfortable it is vs. time riding and how fast you are riding it. Other feedback I get from the forum isn't as relevant from the folks who've been doing this for much longer than I have been. An opinion from someone who started late in the summer as I have would give me a more accurate opinion I would think.

Oh, for the record of the info I am seeking, I do about 16 miles in under an hour and a half and that's about all I can stand with arm and hand numbness on my badly sized and heavy dual suspension junk $100 Walmart bike.

TXsailor

I may not be able to give you as good a answer as you would like because I don't have much to compare too. The escape and my old 10 speed are the only bikes I have rode in 30 years. Here is my opinion for what its worth.

I work second shift and am gone from home 12 hours so I don't have a lot of time during the week to ride. The ride I have made the most is to the boat ramp and back www.mapmyride.com/workout/411188369 ( I don't know if this link will work or not). This ride is nearly 18 miles and there is very little that is flat. The hills are not huge like some people ride but there is one leaving the ramp that I had to use next to the lowest gear on the low ring so I get a good workout in the time I have. Now I can climb it in the 4th gear. When I first tried it I was completely worn out when I got back and it took me 1:23 and I averaged 12.8mph. My best time is 1:09.

Now for my bike. I have found I can do 18-26 on a slight downgrade ( there are no flats around here). I have got up to 40 on one downgrade but my cadence was maxed out. I sometimes use a speed app on my phone to see how fast I am going.

I am pretty comfortable most of the time, at first the saddle really bothered me but I switched it to one I had bought for my wife and she didn't like. It was better but pushed in places that made me numb so I switched it back and seem to do better with it this time. My hands do get a little numb after while but I have learned to ride with one hand every once in a while and they recover. My neck and shoulders also bother me after a while but am getting so I go further and further until they do. I found out yesterday that as long as I have my speed up I can ride without hands and sit up really straight and relieve them. The bike feels really nimble and responds well but again I don't have anything modern to compare it to. I have had no problems with the wheels and so far they are still true. I hope this helps.

10 Wheels

Great Effort.......

CommuteCommando

0-50 in three months is impressive. It took me over a year.

mrodgers

TXsailor, no, that is perfectly what I want to hear. I looked at your route you posted. I'm riding a perfectly flat trail along the river. It's either that, or non-stop hills, no hill for a bit then a break, it would be constant up and down up and down. It takes me behind my house 20 minutes just to ride the final half mile. My hills are literally coasting down (can't pedal fast enough) for about 5 seconds and climb at 4 mph in my lowest gear for 10-15 minutes. I gave up on them after a few rides and went to the flat bike trail ever since. I would love to ride hills, I just don't want my entire riding to be at 4 mph constantly. So, you stating that you ride 18 miles with the hills your link shows and the time you say and show is exactly the info I am wanting to know. I want to ride 18-20 miles, but with my current bike, it's just not possible for me. I've ridden 18, 20, 25 miles but I've suffered for even longer than that evening for it mostly because my bike doesn't fit. I still want to get a daily around hour to hour and a half every day and I also want to ride further than I currently do in 1-1.5 hours. So, your information is perfect for what I want to know. I wanted to hear from someone with a couple months under their belt as opposed to those who've been doing this for quite some time, so thank you for the reply.

WonderMonkey

Nice! Keep going! Starting from about a 20 mile base at the beginning of 2013 I did a painful 100 miles on October 5th. I only tell you that to encourage you to keep going, and if you take a base of miles into next year maybe you can get that 100 miles.

Gnosis

Congratulations on your 51 mile distance and 17 pound weight loss! Keep up the good work and you’ll continue to reap the benefits via the effort you put into bicycling.

MikeRides

Congratulations on your first half century! I started riding a cheap, mountain bike from Walmart last year but could only go max 15 miles before feeling tired. Because of that, I didn't dedicate myself to riding much until this year when I bought a Hybrid bike in late April. I started out with a 15 mile ride, increased the mileage gradually since and rode my first half century back in July. The ride back was tough, but I survived and got back on the following day for a quarter of a century ride. My goal was to ride out a full imperial century (100 miles) by the end of the season but with the cooler weather my motivation to just get on and ride has dropped dramatically in the past month and a half. Maybe a metric century by the end of October if I can find something warm to wear that's not too heavy to ride in.

Roosterbird

Great Job

donalson

next time if you do a just an extra 11 miles you'll have done a full metric century (longest I've ever gone myself)... keep at it

Jarrett2

Awesome man! I started in May and ready for my first 50. Just finding that chunk of free time and good weather now is the trick.

Jimbosays

Good Going . . . Only had my Giant Escape 2 since mid-July and am up to about 25 miles on good days (12 - 17 miles is my typical after work bike run two-three times per week.)

And down to 302 lbs. from 330 . . . More though, I am amazed at the physical stamina that grows much faster than I might have anticipated.

Keep up the good work!

expatbrit

That's awesome! I tried to push 40 after starting the same time and it was a bit much for me.

Congrats!

RIvmage

Congrats! Keep up the good work.

Scott

dbikingman

Great job, sounds like both of your numbers are going in the right direction.

tjax

Did I read that right, you lost 17 pounds from your ride, how the hell did you do that?

mrodgers

I think he means 17 lb. since July when he started. Heck, I'd go ride 51 miles right now if I could lose 17 lb in that one ride. That would bring me out of the Clydes category, LOL.

lesdunham

Congrats, keep it up. Shoot for bigger and better every year.

TXsailor

That is correct! I have now lost 20 lbs. and just got back from seeing the Doc for a checkup. He was really proud of me and was very pleased with the blood work. He said he was prescribing for me to keep riding as it was adding years to my life.