mtalinm

Following a metric century this weekend, where I felt like I had plenty left in the tank, I am wondering how big of a jump it will be to a 100-mile century.

I commute about 60 miles per week and then am doing another 50 on the weekend, so pretty much z100 miles per week. Normally I would think I'm on a clear path to a century, but I'm fairly hefty sand so am wondering whether big guys like me have particular concerns in jumping to high mileage.

Looked through the triathlon thread but didn't find much...should I be doing a lot of metric centuries, 75- and 80-milers first? The training guides that pop up on a google search seem to suggest jumping from 65 to 100 though this seems odd.

The next supported century I can schedule is 6weeks away, so I have plenty of time I think. Or, if I'm ready sooner, I guess I could assemble my own route...

10 Wheels

Do a 75 mile ride.
If you can ride 75 miles you can ride the 100.
Pace your ride is the key.
The last 10 miles is tuff.

mtalinm

Seems wise. Best to do a flat century first time out? I'm real slow on the hills...

10 Wheels

The trick for hills is do not look at the top.
See how Slow you can go up, not how fast.

Neil_B

10 Wheels nailed it. If you can ride 75-80 miles and not feel like you were dying, then you can do a century.

txvintage

Yep, if you can get to 75 miles you can physically do 100 in all probability. It becomes a mental chalenge after that. Somewhere around the 80 mile mark your mind will be telling you that you are done. The key is to push on and some where around mile 90 to 95 the realization you have done it will carry across the line.

Approximately 10 feet after that you will fall over and lay there for a while.

Make mental notes of the points where you seem to suffer. Remember to have plenty of nutrition with you and stay hydrated. when you review the ride afterward you probably find you went too long between drinks or eating. If you need to stop and rest, do so. There isn't a trophy and it's not a time trial.

Once you have done it the feat becomes a bit easier because you know what to expect and how to better manage both the physical and mental peaks and lows.

Wylde06

this pretty much sums it up

10 Wheels

How does one look after a 300 mile day, when you did 272 miles the day before that.
2000+ miles in 8 days.

Take a look .
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?...12656082084820

mtalinm

great advice, thanks. sounds like I should go for 75 and see how it goes. I'm pretty good on hydrating and eating - I failed to do that on a half-century and learned my lesson.

mkadam68

Only thing I would add: try to do this 75-80 mile ride as many times as you can before the century, although only once a week (maybe do a 40-50 mile ride mid-week, too, but not much more than that). This will help prep your body to not only finish the century, but to actually enjoy it. That'll be much better than just "surviving" it.

In my experience (and some friends), the hardest part of the 100 is around 70-80 or so. My body just seems to think that it's done. But I push through and get a second wind, finishing strong.

DanteB

The biggest thing I can stress is to eat and drink, please stay hydrated!

DoubleTap

I just finished two 75 mile days of the MS150 Colorado. After finishing Saturday, my riding partner and I both agreed we could have pushed through to 100 miles without too much effort, but no way we could have then ridden the second day. The first day included 2,500 feet of climbing in the foothills outside Boulder and Fort Collins.

So, you can definitely do it. I'm 315 lbs. right now, and I prepared for it over several months, but my biggest days before the ride were two weeks of 63 miles each. I also rode some shorter 30-ish mile rides in between. I deifnitely stayed hydrated, drinking about 200 ozs. of fluids per day including water, Hammer Nutrition Perpetuem and also some water with Electrolyte tablets added. I didn't eat much, because the Perpetuem provided most of my calories. During the ride, I ate a banana, a PBJ sandwich, and a turkey and swiss sandwich.

I plan to train for a full century now, scheduled in August. Good luck and let us know how it goes, both the training and the ride. It's helpful to hear of other's experiences.

CPFITNESS

Doubletap, how does your body feel today?

CliftonGK1

The nutritional concerns for Clydes/Athenas aren't going to be any different than for other riders attempting the same distance. If you're trained up for it, then keeping properly hydrated and keeping the calories going in at a steady rate are a similar concern for riders of all sizes. Hydration rates will vary extensively on a person-by-person basis, but caloric processing rates are pretty standard: 275 (+/- 25) calories per hour is what an average person can process.
Bike fit is the same concern as well. No one, no matter what size, will complete a century with a smile on their face if they're on a poorly fitted bicycle.

Funny this thread should come up just as I'm working on an article for the very same topic.

Mr. Beanz

Best to choose a flat century for the first time out but guess what, ther is a hill somewhwere on every ride even if it's advertised as a flat century.

I'd suggest doing long flat miles to develope the distance but also do some hills. Maybe once or twice during the week do a 10-20 mile ride involving some sort of climbing. I'm not talking about huge hills, 10 mile 3,000 ft climbs. I'm talking about one mile 5% climbs thrown in once or twice during the training ride. Even if you make your way up slowly, it will greatly aid you on any of the hills thrown in on the century.

Mr. Beanz

No problem at all. I've done back to bak 65 mile days on MS rides. The feeling you have in the legs/body on the second day during the first 20 miles is much harder than the feeling experienced than ridign through a straight century. You wil have an easier time on teh century cause your legs are already warmed up. Second day is tougher IMO. Again, just remember to eat that turkey sandwich at mile 60.


Excellent! Do the same on the century, you'll skate through it!

mwchandler21

If at possible do it with a friend. You can take turns pulling and help each other by drafting and it also helps with motivation.

mtalinm

wow, this is fantastic advice! def will do with a friend though I am sort of in between the "newbies" and the "speedies" these days so it's hard to find someone to ride at my pace.

this is my thought for the flat century: https://ridewithgps.com/routes/107103. muchly along the Cape Cod Rail Trail so there are lots of stores if I need to stop. Maybe I'll leave out the jaunt to the Chatham airport for a 75 miler.

what worked for me on the metric century was PBJ sandwiches and mini Clif bars.

scrming

Agreed.. I once did a solo century, just so I could say I did it... Lot easier with my cycling buddy or a group, especially from the motivation standpoint..

chasmm

I did the Long Island Tour de Cure Century 2 weeks ago. It was my first Century in over 20 years. I was in great position to do it until I crashed on the Babylon to Montauk Century in early May (quite possibly the easiest century on the East Coast). Three weeks off the bike recovering left me with just two weeks before the Tour de Cure. What worked for me was to do as much riding during the week with some "hard" days, and then some distance on the weekend.

The first weekend back on the bike I did 50 miles, the second 70 miles. +1 to those who said if you can do 70, you can do 100. I'm not sure what your weather is like in Mass. but here on Long Island we have generally prevailing winds that blow West to East. (That's why that Babylon to Montauk ride is considered so easy, it's flat and heads 100 mile west to east.) For the Tour de Cure, our last 30 miles were heading west back into a 15-20 mph headwind, which made it much more difficult.

Another thing to prepare for is the chance of heat. The weekend before the century, my 70 mile ride was very hot (this route included many of the same roads I'd ride a week later on my century). I ended up drinking about twice as much fluids as I did the following week since the day of the century was cooler AND overcast. I had to remind myself to hydrate since I wasn't sweating nearly as much.

Something else is that you'll probably be on the bike for 2-3 hours longer than any previous ride. If you're uncomfortable in the saddle, or your hands hurt, etc at the end of 70 miles, then those last 30 are going to be much harder. Be prepared to deal with that mental AND physical obstacle.

Take your time, hydrate, refuel, and enjoy. As one of the local clubs likes to say; "Sit, sip, snack, and spin". Good luck!

Charles

CliftonGK1

Definitely! I did a lot of 200km solo rides over the winter while working on my last R-12 attempt. It's less of a physical test and more of a mental endurance feat to intentionally spend 11 hours riding your bike in 40 degree rain by yourself.

DoubleTap

Hey, CP, so as not to hijack this thread, I posted a full ride report thread. Thanks for asking.