Thinking about a century
#51
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Sheesh, that seems a bit harsh...particularly for nothing more than a difference of opinion.
In addition to calling names (twice) you're now inferring meaning that I did not expressly state. Perhaps, in light of your calling me names in 2 different posts, your ability to communicate effectively might be somewhat degraded based on your lower level of understanding 7th grade levels of written word?
The OP originally said he "was thinking about a century". He seemed to be a bit leery and said he "might enjoy" the 68 mile ride instead of "struggling to complete" the 100.
Which is why I replied with basically "do the length of ride you enjoy" and that you don't need to do the Century. In light of his reticence in going for the 100 mile ride (and indicating he'd enjoy the 68'er much better) my advice (and he asked for advice) was to not even bother with it since he appeared apprehensive. His question was "should I go for it?" My reply is that Centuries are overrated and to just ride what you're comfortable riding. I also added that "If it's a personal goal...have at it". Meaning if it means something to him then he should just do it.
Anyway...the OP came back and stated that this was a personal goal and he would view it as a major accomplishment. Which is of course a worthy endeavor, for him. And as you can see he has my full encouragement and well wishes for success.
In addition to calling names (twice) you're now inferring meaning that I did not expressly state. Perhaps, in light of your calling me names in 2 different posts, your ability to communicate effectively might be somewhat degraded based on your lower level of understanding 7th grade levels of written word?
The OP originally said he "was thinking about a century". He seemed to be a bit leery and said he "might enjoy" the 68 mile ride instead of "struggling to complete" the 100.
Which is why I replied with basically "do the length of ride you enjoy" and that you don't need to do the Century. In light of his reticence in going for the 100 mile ride (and indicating he'd enjoy the 68'er much better) my advice (and he asked for advice) was to not even bother with it since he appeared apprehensive. His question was "should I go for it?" My reply is that Centuries are overrated and to just ride what you're comfortable riding. I also added that "If it's a personal goal...have at it". Meaning if it means something to him then he should just do it.
Anyway...the OP came back and stated that this was a personal goal and he would view it as a major accomplishment. Which is of course a worthy endeavor, for him. And as you can see he has my full encouragement and well wishes for success.
The other guy's name calling was over the top nasty to you, but I think "overrated" and "why would you" were some pretty poorly chosen words if the above was what you were trying to convey.
But, yeah, when you rewrote the thing into the above, I pretty much agree with everything you wrote there. And I read and like a lot of your posts, and I think you're neither a ***** face or an ass hat. I'm pretty sure, on the other and, that I'm a hat face.
#52
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I usually stop for lunch half-way. Had a lot of great meals. I just don't see the point in posting about nasty comments somebody might make, but nobody has.
My main way of motivating myself is to give myself a destination 50 miles from home that I'm going to enjoy stopping at. I can do nonstop centuries (I did a lot last year, nowhere to stop), they're just nowhere near as fun.
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^^Thing is I could see that meaning in his post before he explained himself. I could also see other meanings .... I have to say, the guy isn't excellent at unambiguous posts (neither am I as the "Cycling Bag" thread shows) but also, we are really ready to attack here .... I see us as a bunch of chickens looking or the slightest spot on one another so we can start a pecking frenzy ... and no, that is not a complimentary image.
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#54
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^^Thing is I could see that meaning in his post before he explained himself. I could also see other meanings .... I have to say, the guy isn't excellent at unambiguous posts (neither am I as the "Cycling Bag" thread shows) but also, we are really ready to attack here .... I see us as a bunch of chickens looking or the slightest spot on one another so we can start a pecking frenzy ... and no, that is not a complimentary image.
I guess, but the last sentence of the first post really was a mess. I'm of the "summing up" school of writing where that's often the where the impression is made. I caught the ambiguity you're describing, it's the last sentence that tipped it over for me, as I said.
I don't think there's a pecking frenzy brewing. I think the explanation was needed and cleared it up. I like ChamoisDavisJr posts a lot generally.
I won't get into the position of defending the name calling, however. That was definitely over the top. I assume somebody must have flagged it by now.
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I'll try to word my posts a bit better in the future so I don't ruffle so many feathers with my opinions. For what it's worth the OP didn't seem to take offense just that lady who called me names.
Still not a fan of centuries
Edit: I have never, and never will, "flag" a post. My "outrage" was faux and for snark.
Last edited by ChamoisDavisJr; 09-17-21 at 03:29 PM.
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Like the OP, I had this idea that someday I'd like to do a century. I thought of it as a "bucket list" item. Then somebody posted on these forums that rule of thumb that you should be able to ride in a day as far as you usually ride in a week. I was riding a bit more than 100 miles a week, mostly in 15-20 mile daily rides, and that rule of thumb made me think I could actually accomplish that goal. I'm not passing judgment on that rule of thumb, but I rode a flat easy course and stopped every 15 miles or so, and I did it! That was last year, when I was 70 years old. I plan to do another easy century within the next month, when the weather cools down a bit.
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Like the OP, I had this idea that someday I'd like to do a century. I thought of it as a "bucket list" item. Then somebody posted on these forums that rule of thumb that you should be able to ride in a day as far as you usually ride in a week. I was riding a bit more than 100 miles a week, mostly in 15-20 mile daily rides, and that rule of thumb made me think I could actually accomplish that goal. I'm not passing judgment on that rule of thumb, but I rode a flat easy course and stopped every 15 miles or so, and I did it! That was last year, when I was 70 years old. I plan to do another easy century within the next month, when the weather cools down a bit.
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Like the OP, I had this idea that someday I'd like to do a century. I thought of it as a "bucket list" item. Then somebody posted on these forums that rule of thumb that you should be able to ride in a day as far as you usually ride in a week. I was riding a bit more than 100 miles a week, mostly in 15-20 mile daily rides, and that rule of thumb made me think I could actually accomplish that goal. I'm not passing judgment on that rule of thumb, but I rode a flat easy course and stopped every 15 miles or so, and I did it! That was last year, when I was 70 years old. I plan to do another easy century within the next month, when the weather cools down a bit.
That's great! Definitely, willingness to stop increases the mileage you can do. Most I've done in a day is 168 miles. I broke the 84 miles back into about 3 segments with significant breaks.
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#60
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If you can average 15 miles per hour for 6 hours then a century is not a big deal. But if you try to keep up with more fit riders then your body may "crash" before the end is reached. Keeping up your blood sugar is important and I love the small boxes of raisins and a banana is another option. Special brownies with lots of peanut butter as a prime ingredient also keep the body fueled and there are lots of good recipes online.
Wind is another factor as the force goes up with the square of the speed of an object/cyclist and so at 30mph the energy needed is 4x that at 15mph. If pedaling at 15 mph and there is a 10 mph headwind (or 15 mph cross wind) then your body is working against 25 mph of air in terms of drag to overcome. That is why I find it crazy when people bicycle the California coast going south to north as the prevailing winds are from the Northwest.
Another factor with longer rides is the amount of sun and heat, both direct heat and reflected heat off the asphalt. I was used to running cross country in the southern deserts in California but the first time I bicycled in the summer from Altadena to Cabezon, a distance of roughly 100 miles, I found myself dealing with near heat stroke the last 20 miles. The UV hitting the asphalt for hours was now reflecting up and the relative temperature was far higher than if I was off on some dirt road in the area. It was a low humidity situation which helped a little bit but it was still too hot to be out in that area in the middle of the afternoon cycling along the pavement. I was used to going 100 plus miles day after day along the coast but not out in the desert and I underestimated the severity of the conditions.
Wind is another factor as the force goes up with the square of the speed of an object/cyclist and so at 30mph the energy needed is 4x that at 15mph. If pedaling at 15 mph and there is a 10 mph headwind (or 15 mph cross wind) then your body is working against 25 mph of air in terms of drag to overcome. That is why I find it crazy when people bicycle the California coast going south to north as the prevailing winds are from the Northwest.
Another factor with longer rides is the amount of sun and heat, both direct heat and reflected heat off the asphalt. I was used to running cross country in the southern deserts in California but the first time I bicycled in the summer from Altadena to Cabezon, a distance of roughly 100 miles, I found myself dealing with near heat stroke the last 20 miles. The UV hitting the asphalt for hours was now reflecting up and the relative temperature was far higher than if I was off on some dirt road in the area. It was a low humidity situation which helped a little bit but it was still too hot to be out in that area in the middle of the afternoon cycling along the pavement. I was used to going 100 plus miles day after day along the coast but not out in the desert and I underestimated the severity of the conditions.
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People who manage 100 miles in five hours usually figure out a couple things. One, mostly nobody cares. Two, others can do it in four.
Same thing for 100 miles, and 200. Same thing for 200 and 300. For 300 and 400. And yes, if you do 400 someone else will do 500. Again nobody cares, and it doesn't really matter. Then some dude writes an article saying 30 miles is the perfect ride distance.
It's all good.
Same thing for 100 miles, and 200. Same thing for 200 and 300. For 300 and 400. And yes, if you do 400 someone else will do 500. Again nobody cares, and it doesn't really matter. Then some dude writes an article saying 30 miles is the perfect ride distance.
It's all good.
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#62
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What works well for many riders is a group ride there one can alter the route for "loop" and go from 100 miles to 65 miles or to 35 miles and still end up at the parking lot with everyone else.
#63
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Thanks all for the advice and encouragement.
Yesterday we planned on riding 60 miles. My friend mapped a route that was actually 65. We took our time, drank and ate frequently, made a few short stops for bathroom and snacks. With a wrong turn at the end we ended up doing 70 miles with 2500' ascent at an avg of 14.3 mph. Where was some decent wind and several difficult (for us) 8-9% hills. At end we were tired but generally felt pretty good. We plan on tackling the 100 miles.
The ride is in 2 weeks. Any advice for next weekend and the week prior to the ride? Do we take it easy, maybe a 30-40 mile ride next weekend, and few short rides during the week?
Yesterday we planned on riding 60 miles. My friend mapped a route that was actually 65. We took our time, drank and ate frequently, made a few short stops for bathroom and snacks. With a wrong turn at the end we ended up doing 70 miles with 2500' ascent at an avg of 14.3 mph. Where was some decent wind and several difficult (for us) 8-9% hills. At end we were tired but generally felt pretty good. We plan on tackling the 100 miles.
The ride is in 2 weeks. Any advice for next weekend and the week prior to the ride? Do we take it easy, maybe a 30-40 mile ride next weekend, and few short rides during the week?
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Thanks all for the advice and encouragement.
Yesterday we planned on riding 60 miles. My friend mapped a route that was actually 65. We took our time, drank and ate frequently, made a few short stops for bathroom and snacks. With a wrong turn at the end we ended up doing 70 miles with 2500' ascent at an avg of 14.3 mph. Where was some decent wind and several difficult (for us) 8-9% hills. At end we were tired but generally felt pretty good. We plan on tackling the 100 miles.
The ride is in 2 weeks. Any advice for next weekend and the week prior to the ride? Do we take it easy, maybe a 30-40 mile ride next weekend, and few short rides during the week?
Yesterday we planned on riding 60 miles. My friend mapped a route that was actually 65. We took our time, drank and ate frequently, made a few short stops for bathroom and snacks. With a wrong turn at the end we ended up doing 70 miles with 2500' ascent at an avg of 14.3 mph. Where was some decent wind and several difficult (for us) 8-9% hills. At end we were tired but generally felt pretty good. We plan on tackling the 100 miles.
The ride is in 2 weeks. Any advice for next weekend and the week prior to the ride? Do we take it easy, maybe a 30-40 mile ride next weekend, and few short rides during the week?
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Thanks all for the advice and encouragement.
Yesterday we planned on riding 60 miles. My friend mapped a route that was actually 65. We took our time, drank and ate frequently, made a few short stops for bathroom and snacks. With a wrong turn at the end we ended up doing 70 miles with 2500' ascent at an avg of 14.3 mph. Where was some decent wind and several difficult (for us) 8-9% hills. At end we were tired but generally felt pretty good. We plan on tackling the 100 miles.
The ride is in 2 weeks. Any advice for next weekend and the week prior to the ride? Do we take it easy, maybe a 30-40 mile ride next weekend, and few short rides during the week?
Yesterday we planned on riding 60 miles. My friend mapped a route that was actually 65. We took our time, drank and ate frequently, made a few short stops for bathroom and snacks. With a wrong turn at the end we ended up doing 70 miles with 2500' ascent at an avg of 14.3 mph. Where was some decent wind and several difficult (for us) 8-9% hills. At end we were tired but generally felt pretty good. We plan on tackling the 100 miles.
The ride is in 2 weeks. Any advice for next weekend and the week prior to the ride? Do we take it easy, maybe a 30-40 mile ride next weekend, and few short rides during the week?
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Keep in mind you have ,by definition, the whole day, you do not have to grind it all out.
My last century came in at 6 hrs plus moving time but I was out for just over 8 hours,
I was crashing big time at just under 80 miles (lots of wind) and I found a place to grab a vanilla milk shake and a coffee, sat around for a while and I was a new man. Finished the 100, with energy to spare.
My last century came in at 6 hrs plus moving time but I was out for just over 8 hours,
I was crashing big time at just under 80 miles (lots of wind) and I found a place to grab a vanilla milk shake and a coffee, sat around for a while and I was a new man. Finished the 100, with energy to spare.
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I just mean whether you ride or don't ride much in the next two weeks won't matter a lot as long as you don't completely overdo it in the last few days leading up to the century. . I wouldn't stop riding completely in the next two weeks, but if you went from 50 miles to 70 without any ill effects, you've already done the hard work of building up your endurance abilities, so any kind of riding in the next two weeks will serve the purposes of keeping your legs ready to go. Don't overthink this, just do whatever kind of riding you like the most for the next two weeks. Your body will tell you if it's too much, and I don't think you're going to lose your powers by "underdoing" it at this point.
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Keep in mind you have ,by definition, the whole day, you do not have to grind it all out.
My last century came in at 6 hrs plus moving time but I was out for just over 8 hours,
I was crashing big time at just under 80 miles (lots of wind) and I found a place to grab a vanilla milk shake and a coffee, sat around for a while and I was a new man. Finished the 100, with energy to spare.
My last century came in at 6 hrs plus moving time but I was out for just over 8 hours,
I was crashing big time at just under 80 miles (lots of wind) and I found a place to grab a vanilla milk shake and a coffee, sat around for a while and I was a new man. Finished the 100, with energy to spare.
I can and have done my centuries non-stop at about 6 hours, but it's a whole hell of a lot more fun for me to treat it as two 50 mile rides, going out for 50 miles, taking a break, and return ride for 50 miles. Turns the day into an outing rather than a minor ordeal, and honestly, I think the fitness outcome is pretty much the same. The issue for me is not physical exhaustion, but that doing it all at once is mentally tedious.
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People who manage 100 miles in five hours usually figure out a couple things. One, mostly nobody cares. Two, others can do it in four.
Same thing for 100 miles, and 200. Same thing for 200 and 300. For 300 and 400. And yes, if you do 400 someone else will do 500. Again nobody cares, and it doesn't really matter. Then some dude writes an article saying 30 miles is the perfect ride distance.
It's all good.
Same thing for 100 miles, and 200. Same thing for 200 and 300. For 300 and 400. And yes, if you do 400 someone else will do 500. Again nobody cares, and it doesn't really matter. Then some dude writes an article saying 30 miles is the perfect ride distance.
It's all good.
Yeah, I think it's absurd for us to try to set ideals and goals for each other. Main thing is doing what you enjoy that motivates you to keep riding. Lots of people can ride a solo century faster than I can, I just use the number 100 to motivate myself because it sounds better than 75 or whatever. Like you say, nobody else cares how far I go.
That 30 mile ride thing was a brilliant piece of clickbait, btw.
#71
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Whichever you choose, take your time. Stop at every rest stop, eat a snack, get off the bike and stretch or put your feet up.
When you overhear the folks talking about blowing past the first rest stop because it's "only at mile 12" or whatever, ignore them. You'll last a lot longer, and (particularly if anything on your fit is off at all) your back will thank you.
I did my first century back when I was 46. At that time, my longest ride had been 40 or 45 miles on super-flat terrain, and 30 miles of hilly terrain (my one organized ride at that point). I just wanted to say I'd done a century, so I signed up and pushed through. Elevation was pretty middle-of-the-road for WA (4100 feet), but compared to SoCal, where I could ride 40 miles and come back with 300 feet of elevation, it seemed endless.
I felt great for 50 miles, a little creaky for the first 5 minutes back on the bike at every stop after that, and around 65 or 70 miles, my back started to kill me. Cleared up around 90--but that was a long 25 miles.
A couple centuries in, the pain started hitting later and later, and now I'm fine all the way through, even in years where I start with a century. I probably should have started slower and done the 50-mile route first, but getting one under my belt made me want to do more, and now I'm aiming at a Super Randonneur series next year, and hopefully a 1200k at PBP the following. Will I make it? No idea, but it's fun, and it's another stretch goal like my first century. There's no wrong answer for you. Just take it slow and trust your body at that rest stop where you have to make the call.
And have fun!
When you overhear the folks talking about blowing past the first rest stop because it's "only at mile 12" or whatever, ignore them. You'll last a lot longer, and (particularly if anything on your fit is off at all) your back will thank you.
I did my first century back when I was 46. At that time, my longest ride had been 40 or 45 miles on super-flat terrain, and 30 miles of hilly terrain (my one organized ride at that point). I just wanted to say I'd done a century, so I signed up and pushed through. Elevation was pretty middle-of-the-road for WA (4100 feet), but compared to SoCal, where I could ride 40 miles and come back with 300 feet of elevation, it seemed endless.
I felt great for 50 miles, a little creaky for the first 5 minutes back on the bike at every stop after that, and around 65 or 70 miles, my back started to kill me. Cleared up around 90--but that was a long 25 miles.
A couple centuries in, the pain started hitting later and later, and now I'm fine all the way through, even in years where I start with a century. I probably should have started slower and done the 50-mile route first, but getting one under my belt made me want to do more, and now I'm aiming at a Super Randonneur series next year, and hopefully a 1200k at PBP the following. Will I make it? No idea, but it's fun, and it's another stretch goal like my first century. There's no wrong answer for you. Just take it slow and trust your body at that rest stop where you have to make the call.
And have fun!
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I imagine my first 5 hour century but the only way I could pull that off is a one way, downwind route with a pick up at the mark. Plus I would want a nice stiff breeze. A1A along the ocean fits the route requirements, all I need is the forecast and someone to come and get me.
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I was talked into my first Century years ago by a biking friend. It was in May in Eastern Washington. I was mainly a hiker and cross-country skier and biking was a fill in activity. I had not been on the bike since the previous Oct. It was an incredibly painful experience with the butt and shoulders taking the brunt of that pain. My legs were okay. We did it again the next year but this time I trained and biked in the months before and it was much more pleasant.
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People who manage 100 miles in five hours usually figure out a couple things. One, mostly nobody cares. Two, others can do it in four.
Same thing for 100 miles, and 200. Same thing for 200 and 300. For 300 and 400. And yes, if you do 400 someone else will do 500. Again nobody cares, and it doesn't really matter. Then some dude writes an article saying 30 miles is the perfect ride distance.
It's all good.
Same thing for 100 miles, and 200. Same thing for 200 and 300. For 300 and 400. And yes, if you do 400 someone else will do 500. Again nobody cares, and it doesn't really matter. Then some dude writes an article saying 30 miles is the perfect ride distance.
It's all good.
However, if your peers are cyclists with similar ability who aspire, or know how difficult a century can be for someone who typically rides in the 30-60 miles range, 100 is considered a good reach and a real attainment. I know when my friends and I did our first century, it was a big deal to us and those who only dreamed of doing one. When I did my first one day double and others were achieving their first single, I was still happy for their achievement. In other words I cared because I had been there and knew what a big deal it was.
As a former runner, (never competitive) stretching to do a 10K in the low 7s was a big goal. My friends who were not gifted runners either, saw it as a big deal when I did it. Friends who didn’t run either thought I was a wacko or thought it was a real attainment since they could never conceive of running that far. However the ‘real runners’ who ran marathons, or could run a 10K in the 5s, could care less and that was fine since they were in a different league which I had zero interest in achieving.
So it all depends on the audience and your peers.
To make a broad generalization, broad generalizations in life rarely hold up under examination.
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Other than the time limit, I don't think this is too far off base. The 100 mile century has been part of cycling culture in the US since before I started in the '70s. Most events/ t shirt rides offer a 100 mile option. Clubs usually have at least one organized century a year. Most of us can't do 500K in a day but 100 miles is achievable by almost anyone who rides a significant amount. Even as a septuagenarian I feel obliged to complete at least one a year, though obviously nobody else cares if I do or not. What's aggravating is that folks in my cycling group who like to do centuries are faster, closer to 20mph than my 15mph. Most of my friends who ride my speed have abandoned centuries as they've aged. Being slow also discourages me from doing the 100 mile option on t shirt rides. Nobody wants to be the crazy old coot still out there after everyone else has finished and the workers are ready to go home. I prefer the term "cycling enthusiast." Will I still claim the label when I can't do a century? Who can say, but self delusion isn't something we outgrow.
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