Training for 1st Century Ride in 2014

[jrenaut]

I did my first century last year, and my previous long ride was about 45 miles, so you should be in pretty good shape. The Seagull Century out in Salisbury MD is a great first century – well supported and almost entirely flat (perhaps TOO flat – I got a little bored).

[consularrider]

Come out the Second Annual Megabeth Hains Point 100 on Sunday. There’s no requirement that you ride, but you can talk to lots of other riders who ride centuries (this should be my 18th in 2013). Plus it may be even flater than the Seagull Century.

[Tim Kelley]

@BikenRound 72151 wrote:

have tips on training plans and what race would be good for the first ride.

Drink more than you think you need to drink and eat more than you think you need to eat. Go slower than you think you need to go for the first 75 miles–if you’re still feeling frisky at mile 75 then hammer out the last 25!

[pfunkallstar]

Second the Seagull Century as a good first century – smooth, flat, and plenty of support. It sounds like you are almost there with fitness, I would hit 60 miles at a reasonable pace to see how you would fair on a century. Your bike fit needs to be dialed in and after four hours you are going to need to consider food/hydration. Very few things are as satisfying as a brisk century followed by beer.

[jrenaut]

@consularrider 72167 wrote:

Plus it may be even flater than the Seagull Century.

I’m not sure that’s possible. According to Strava, there’s more total climbing on my 3.5 mile ride home than there is in the Seagull Metric.

[jabberwocky]

Seagull is flat, but it tends to be windy. I think I prefer hills to a stiff headwind. Its still a very easy route, and thousands of people do it so its easy to get into a group going your speed.

[Dirt]

@Tim Kelley 72170 wrote:

Drink more than you think you need to drink and eat more than you think you need to eat. Go slower than you think you need to go for the first 75 miles–if you’re still feeling frisky at mile 75 then hammer out the last 25!

Tim has it right. I’d also add this… Start your drinking and eating for the ride early…. eat something and drink in the first 30 minutes. Keep eating and drinking steadily. MOST OF ALL: Practice this on your training rides. If you practice it in training, then it becomes second nature for the big event.

[Subby]

Eat a shitton of donuts. That’s what I did leading up to the Backroads Century and I had one of the best rides of my life. No, it isn’t faulty causation…it’s SCIENCE.

Also – try doing an unofficial/unsupported century first. Ride out to Purcellville and back, or out to Sugarloaf and back. The unsupported rides are harder and then when you do the supported ones it will be EASY.

[creadinger]

The Seagull is a great place to start but it should be mentioned that it can be well crowded – a few years ago the rider numbers were around 10,000, so make sure you’re comfortable riding in groups. Also, the area’s motels book up quickly and the drive from DC gets bogged down with traffic, which is annoying at 5am on a Saturday. It’s not until October though, so you have plenty of time to figure it out.

It is really fun though, especially if the weather cooperates.

There are tons of centuries in the area though throughout the year. My wife’s first century was the St. Mary’s Century down near Leonardtown, MD. It’s a much smaller ride and has a bit more topography than the eastern shore. We had a good time on that. Like everyone else said, you’re well on your way and once you can do an 80 mile training ride without feeling like you’re going to die, you can definitely do 100. Make good use of the rest stops making sure to eat and drink, and if you can eat and drink on the bike it’s even better.

If you haven’t discovered it yet, the W&OD is a great training ground. I would be most people here have used it at some point to train for a long goal ride.

[vvill]

Second the stuff about drinking and eating. I usually hydrate enough nowadays but eating can still be tough.

I would “train up” to a point so that a solo 50 mi ride feels like no problem. Doesn’t have to be continuous; take breaks as you need them. Start with a 20-30mi loop/route that you’re familiar with and just add on some miles. Take a rest day before the 100 ride, and don’t ride too hard for a few days before.

[Arlingtonrider]

+1 on the HP 100. Also Hains Point on New Year’s Day, and of course, Freezing Saddles!

[mstone]

Find a nice day and go on a bike ride, and don’t stop.

[mikoglaces]

If you use google, you’ll find lots of advice on doing a century. Here’s one, for example, that is pretty good: http://www.blayleys.com/articles/firstcentury/

There are lots of centuries in the area. Most are in August, September or October. I’d say start riding longer rides on weekends. Gradually work up to 60-70 mile rides, then do an 80 miler or so a week or two ahead of the century. (You can do less but the issue is do you want the century to be incredibly difficult or just let’s say challenging.) Longer rides are more fun if you are with a group, and they are easier too. You could join a local club, like Potomac Pedalers, or find rides through social media.

[TwoWheelsDC]

Even if you pick a “flat” century to ride, ride as many hills as you can when you’re training.

[Tim Kelley]

@TwoWheelsDC 72190 wrote:

Even if you pick a “flat” century to ride, ride as many hills as you can when you’re training.

Hills can make you stronger, but there is something to be said about training for what you’re racing. The downside to doing hills for a flat course is that you tend to coast on the downhill. There is no coasting in a flat course. If you stop pedaling then you stop moving, especially with a headwind. So yes, do some hill riding, but if you’re doing a flat course, then focus on the consistent and constant grind of pedaling.

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