khearn

I've been off the bike for two years but started commuting about a month ago, but now I've got the urge to do some randonneuring. I did some centuries around 20 years ago (I'm 45 years old), and was back up to 50-60 mile rides a couple of years ago before stopping due to a new job and moving. I haven't really challenged myself physically since I was out of college, and randonneuring really appeals to me. I first heard about randonneuring a few years ago when I read about PBP, and I decided I wanted to do it. I started working out, but then switched jobs and moved and haven't been on the bike since then. So I missed PBP 2007, but hopefully I won't miss 2011.

So I'm going to try to do a full brevet series (200k, 300k, 400k & 600k) this year. I live in San Carlos, CA, so I'm fortunate enough to have 3 local clubs that put on full series (San Francisco, Santa Cruz, and Davis). But I know I'm starting training way late. SF's 200k is 1/24, so there's no way I can be ready for that. Santa Cruz's is 3/1, and Davis' is 3/7. That just gives me 7 weeks and 5 days to go from basically zero to 200k. My mind says it's not nearly enough time and I'm crazy to try, but my gut says go for it.

So does anyone think I have any hope of surviving a 200k on March 7th?

I spent Saturday getting my old touring bike back in shape, and got up early to go on a short ride on Sunday. Only 14.3 miles, but it was a hilly loop and I had time constraints, so I only did one time around. I felt like I could have gone again if I'd had more time. My legs felt strong enough on the climbs, but it was my cardiovascular system that was holding me back.

I've always gotten into shape pretty quickly in the past. My sophomore year in high school I joined the cross-country team and went from out of shape in August to completing a 20 mile run in early November. I'm three times as old now though...

My plan is to use Mondays as rest days, then on Tuesdays & Wednesdays I'll come home from work, walk & feed the dogs, then grab a couple of Clif Bars and hop on the bike for an hour or two of night riding/dinner. Thursdays will also be rest days. On Fridays I'm thinking of commuting with my road bike (I normally commute on a folder because I ride CalTrain part of the way), and then do a long ride on the way home from work. Saturday would be a short workout, with a longer ride on Sunday morning (eventually into the afternoon as I get in shape).

I've told my wife what I'm trying to do, and she thinks having me spend lot of time on the bike is better than spending it playing games on the computer. I don't think she realizes yet how much time this will involve.

I think I'm mainly posting this to commit myself, since now I'll (hopefully) have some of you pushing me. I'm not really sure if I can make it, but the more people who know that I'm trying, the less likely I'll be to give up. So please let me know what you think. Am I crazy and doomed to failure, or is this possible? Any advice, other than Fausto Coppi's advice on how to become a champion cyclist, "Ride your bike, ride your bike, ride your bike"?

mattm

i think given your history of distance riding, you can probably pull it off, but it will take some training (as if you didn't know that..)

but luckily for you, you don't need to qualify for '11 just yet - so even if you don't do any brevets this season, i'd think all the training will at least pay off later on in '09 or '10. just don't give up!

supcom

Good luck.

I'm curious though. After years of inactivity, why the hurry all of a sudden? Why not set your goal to do a couple 200K and perhaps a 300K and see how you progress? You can always add to your goal should you find your old form coming back quickly.

Setting an unrealistic goal could lead to dropping the sport altogether if you find yourself not advancing as quickly as required or lead to injury from pushing to hard too quickly.

I started randonneuring after have ridden numerous centuries. My original goal was to do a 300K. When I achieved that, I reset my goal to 400K. It wasn't until my second year that I even attempted a 600K.

Bacciagalupe

You will certainly "survive," but there is a decent chance you'll get some sort of overuse injury.

I agree with the above, in that there's no major rush. For example, you could very likely do the Davis Double in May without any problems. I'm sure there are rides in the 600k range later in the year.

khearn

The problem is that the brevets are put on in distance order, so if I'm not ready for a 200k by the time Davis does theirs, then I've missed them for the year. I can certainly be ready for the 200k brevets by next year, but that gives me no motivation now. Setting a goal that's too far in the distance is likely to cause me to loose sight of it and drift off course. Or have my wife get fed up with me being away from home on the bike for too many hours every week for too many months.

There are a few 200ks later in the year, SF has two on 4/26 and 6/13 and Santa Cruz has one on 6/27. But if I aim for those, there aren't any brevets after them until next year. Well, all three 600k brevets are after the 4/26 200k, but I doubt I'll be able to do them at that point if I've only gotten up to 200k. So I guess I could set my sights lower and just do a few 200ks this year, but at that point a 300k wouldn't be be possible. I'll keep that in mind as a fallback plan if it looks like I'm not going to be ready for a 200k by March 7th.

I have the feeling that if I can be in shape for the 200k in March, I'll be OK for the 300k, and if I get through the 300k, then the 400k should be doable, and hopefully the 600k after that. But if I can't do a 200k by 3/7, then any of the longer brevets are out of the question for this year.

If I'm not able to do a 40 mile ride by the end of January, I'll know I'm not going to make it for a 3/7 200k. But if I can do that, I should be able to add 5 miles a week to my Sunday ride and be up to 60 miles the Sunday before the Davis 200k. I've read advice that if you can do 50 mile training rides, you should be able to do a 200k brevet. We'll see if it holds true for me. And if I'm just not able to build up that fast, I'll have to change my target to the later 200k brevets and maybe a double century or two. The Davis Double is 5/17, which ought to be doable. Plus, it's the weekend after my birthday.

10 Wheels

You need to ride your bike everywhere.
Rest one day each week.
You can do it.

Randochap

You're crazy ... but who am I to criricize your plan?

In 2007, I rode my 200k qualifying brevet for PBP 3 weeks after major oral cancer surgery.

However, I had 10,000 km in my legs from the year before and several thousand more from spring training. I was already a Super Randonneur with many years of experience.

In my experience, one can't look back to one's youth and extrapolate anything to middle age. You lose fitness faster and it's harder to build back. Most importantly, sinews seem more prone to injury.

I returned in 2005 from complete emasculation, due to my first major battle w/ cancer, in 2003.

That year, I built back enough fitness by training carefully through the winter of '04 and tackled a 200 in June. That year, I managed through to a 400, with the final 300 and 400 being extremely hilly brevets.

Last year, I began the year with a serious neck complaint (due to muscle/nerve damage). It was extremely frustrating to miss the spring brevets, but patience saw me ready again by the summer series, and by doing a bit of travelling, I was able to get my third ACP medal in a row.

My advice would be to use common sense and not push through the kind of pain that says "injury."

My point is that extraordinary things can be achieved in training if approached with restraint. You have plenty of time to prepare for PBP '11. But you can cut into that time nursing injuries.

Have look around the new Rando Hub at VeloWeb.

bobbycorno

Yes, you're crazy. Welcome to the club.

SP
Bend, OR

ConstantRider

FYI, the Santa Rosa Randonneurs will also be putting on a 200K on February 28.

I rode an SRR 200K in August, and while I don't think this is the exact same route (turnaround point sounds different), the bulk of it probably is. And I'm betting that terrainwise, it's the most forgiving of any of the local 200Ks. It starts in Healdsburg, goes to Napa, then back, and it's about as flat a 200K as you can get in the Bay Area. For the August one, there were only a dozen or so of us riding -- it was some kind of last-minute event that the new RBA needed to put on to be sanctioned by RUSA, or something like that -- but the lunch control was the best stocked of any brevet I've done so far. It was like a stop at an organized century....and then the ending control was at a brew-pub in Healdsburg. A great 200K, and I'm planning to do the February one this year (along with the San Francisco one, two weeks from now.)

chill123

you are indeed crazy but why the hell not? just as long as you listen to your body and know when to stop if you are doing yourself harm then go for it.

i have done some crazy things in terms of endurance sports that many around me thought i could never do. being mentally strong can take you a long way.....maybe even 200k. good luck brother.

khearn

Thanks for the encouragement. I seem to be doing OK after the first week. Last Sunday I did a 14 mile ride in 1:20, Tuesday night I did the same route in 1:19. Yesterday afternoon I did it in 1:12, and felt a lot better afterwards. Today I did 27 miles and felt like I could have gone a good ways farther. My total for this week is 72 miles. I could have done more, but I'm being as conservative as I can, given my target.

My legs are aching, but it's an "Oh, that feels good" ache, not a "uh-oh, that feels bad" ache, if you know what I mean.

I've put together a training plan that add 5 miles per week to my longest ride, and ramps the weekly total up to ~150 miles per week by the end of February with a 60 mile ride at that point. I'm still not sure if my body will let me do it, or if it will be enough to have me ready for a 200k on 3/7, but I'm still going to go for it. The progress is encouraging so far, but I'm paying close attention for any signs that I'm overdoing it. I'm also giving myself two days of complete rest every week (well, I'm still going to commute on the bike those days, but that's just 10 low effort miles).

Richard Cranium

I kind of doubt it. (knowing what you mean)

You'll be alright, until you get into a tough situation, bad weather, or miss a turn - then you'll just keep going until you really hurt yourself - good for you.....then you'll know how it feels to be forty-five.

khearn

Well, it's been a bit over a month since my last progress report. Things were going well until I caught a cold a couple of weeks ago and ended up losing a week, so I'm way behind my mileage plan. I was feeling like there was no way I'd be ready for a 200k on March 7. But I got back on the bike last Monday (President's Day) and did 55 miles in the rain and felt pretty decent.

Then I bought myself a "new" bike on Friday. It's a sweet '86 Miyata 610 that I spotted on craigslist (my old bike is an '84 Miyata 210). I had just received a new Brooks B-17 (my Team Pro was feeling a bit narrow, or maybe just too round on top.), so I put the new B-17 on the 610 and went out for a 20 mile tuneup ride Saturday and had the inner chainring fall off because they'd used bolts that were too short. grrr

After putting the bike back together Saturday night, I went out for a 100k ride on Sunday, again in the rain. We're having a drought here in California, I know that because it says so in the papers. The bike feels so nice. The old bike was too small for me, both the stem and the seatpost had at least 6" showing. The new one is a 63cm, and I just have a "fistful of seatpost". This was my longest ride in the last 20 years, and on a brand new Brooks, but when I was done I felt great. Hands, feet and butt all felt fine (well, the feet were wet and kinda cool, but wool socks saved the day there). The old bike was an "ok" fit, but this one feels so much better. I did 100k in the rain with about 2,000 feet of climbing at an average pace of 12.9mph, and I was taking it pretty easy. I knew I could have gone a lot farther when I finished. Now I'm feeling pretty good about that 200k brevet 12 days from now.

10 Wheels

You can do it if you hold your speed down.
Pace yourself the entire ride.

wirehead

I'm in the same neck of the woods and situation as you are. I'm not ready for a 200k just yet, but I am getting progressively better.

I'm trying not to let myself be limited by what other people are planning on offering. So I'm figuring that if I'm not ready for any of the 200k options later this year, I'll just do the 200k permanent in SF. Actually, I'm not even sure if I'll bike the 200k permanent officially. I may just print out the route sheet and do it on my own.

thebulls

I agree with the advice to "pace yourself the entire ride". Keep in mind, you get no extra credit for finishing in less than 13-1/2 hours. That said, it's smart to try to finish with half an hour or more to spare in case of mechanicals. And be prepared for more climbing than you did on your 100K (I don't just mean double, but maybe triple or quadruple). By the look of the route (I assume this is the Davis 200K), the middle half will include some challenging terrain. In the Washington, DC area, the average climbing across all of our 200K's is just under ten thousand feet. Your area may differ. But if you can ride 100K with some gas left in the tank, then you can almost certainly ride 200K. Ride within your own capabilities -- don't try to keep up with a pack of faster riders. Don't get worried if you have a really long climb that brings your average speed way below where you think it needs to be. You'll pick it up again on the downside. I often find that if I'm feeling discouraged, it is because I'm running low on fuel and need to eat something.

khearn

Yes, this will be the Davis 200K (is anyone else on here going to be doing it?) I've plotted it on mapmyride.com (https://www.mapmyride.com/route/us/ca/davis/528995490823). According to that, it's ~4000 feet of climbing, so about twice what my 100k had.

It's pretty flat for ~50km, then has a couple of steep climbs, then nothing appears too bad (1%-4%) out to the turnaround. Coming back it repeats the rollers, and then has what looks like there is one last hill at around 145km, then it's all downhill or flat back to Davis. I'm sure there will be a few surprises that don't show up on the elevation profile, but it does look like it's pretty front-loaded. If I get to the turnaround, I should be able to get back.

I appreciate the warnings to pace myself. It'd be easy to get excited at the start and head out too fast. I've got a heart rate monitor and I've got a pretty good idea of what I need to stay below. So I'll keep an eye on it and back off if the numbers are higher than they should be.

ConstantRider

Be prepared for occasionally aggressive traffic on 128, especially on the return trip. Lots of trucks pulling boats....

khearn

Thanks for the warning. I'll try to avoid becoming roadkill.

khearn

Well, I did it. Je suis une randonneur. I did the Davis 200km brevet on Saturday. My time was 10:11, which is much faster than I was expecting. I was thinking more like 12 hours, and would have been happy with 13:29. I was trying not to push too hard, but I guess I still went faster than I should have. I was feeling pretty tired the last 50km or so.

I also had trouble eating during the last 100km. It's not like I had an upset stomach, I just didn't feel like eating. It seemed like too much effort. I knew I was going to bonk if I didn't eat, so at one point I saw a picnic table by the road and stopped so I could eat and drink at the same time. The lack of food in the second half probably contributed to the tiredness. I wasn't really bonked, but just didn't feel like I had a whole lot of energy. My heart rate is usually above 135 when I'm riding, but for that last 50km, it was below 130, sometimes down below 120. I've never seen it that low when I was riding before this. I was still keeping a fairly steady 15-16mph though.

During that last 50km, I was glad this was only a 200km. I don't think I had another 100km left in me when I finished. I'm not sure if I'll try for a 300km this year or not. I've got less than 2 weeks until the Santa Cruz 300k, and 3 weeks until Davis'. Since SC require preregistration, that one's out.

Right now my legs are still pretty sore, and I'm feeling some aches around my knees. They felt fine during the ride, but the left knee started aching after the ride. I'll go for a light ride one evening this week and then something longer on the weekend and see how I feel. At this point I'm happy I did the 200km, and I'd like to do a 300km, but I'm just not sure if I should do it.

Maybe if I really work on starting out slow I'd feel better later on. It's just not easy for me to slow down much more. Maybe I'll try doing a few club rides with a slower group and see if I can get used to it if I'm with other people.

Richard Cranium

Well. good for you.

You might be on to something. But understand this, for brevet riding, speed isn't needed, just a deliberate mindset to keep yourself on the bike and out of the rest stops.

khearn

I know speed isn't needed. I had over 3 hours to spare, and I don't think I'm very fast. I think my problem is that I don't know how to go slower than my "cruising" pace, and that pace is too fast for long distances (at least for me). If I shift to a lower gear, I end up spinning at 110-120 rpm instead of just going 90-100rpm in the lower gear. I don't seem to know how to push lighter on the pedals, and I think it's something I really need to learn.

I'm the same way walking, I tend to walk at 3mph or so, and I feel like I'm walking in slow motion when I'm behind slower people and can't get around them. I can walk slower with someone else, but by myself I just need to go at my pace. That's why I think that maybe riding with a slower group on training rides might help me learn to ride slower.

Heh, I wonder what kind of response I'd get in the road forum if I posted saying that I need to train for going slower?

mattm

congrats on the finish!

evblazer

First off Congrats on the 200k!

I'm pretty slow myself although I definately know the feeling of walking in slow motion. Argh when I used to go from the train station to my office in NYC my head was screaming c'mon people move it along even if they were tourists and not workers.

I sometimes wonder if it is better to just spin a little slower with less effort then try and push nothing in a higher gear?