Originally Posted by
BikEthan
I'm thinking I can do this but I am definitely feeling a little intimidated by the concept. The first ride I've linked to below is
HARD 10K' of climbing, mostly on dirt roads it should be a lot of fun (and kinda painful) and my Atlantis would be well suited for it, big tires, low geared triple etc... My only concern is the engine!
! I've been working out quite a bit (2-4x weekly) but not riding as much as I would like but I've been ramping up lately. The longest ride I've been on so far was 60 miles, just short of a metric century.
I feel like the 3 weeks between events should give me time to recover. Thoughts?
http://www.franklinlandtrust.org/randonee.htm
http://www.boston2portland.com/index.html
A century is certainly do-able for you.
But, there is a difference between a "century", and a "century with a hard 10k of climbing", especially in dirt which amplifies the climbing effort.
I don't want to dissuade you, but unless you've been specifically training in the hills & mountains (tough in the Boston area, no? Better in Western Mass.), this sounds like it would be very difficult. Your training needs to mimic the climbing-to-distance ratio. For example, 100 miles and 10,000 feet? That's what I call a 1-point ride. (To round this out... 100-miles and 20,000 feet would be a 2-point ride, and a 100-miles with 5,000 feet would be a half-point ride.) A 1-point or higher ride is extremely difficult. You need to be training on 1-point rides or better: 50-miles & 5,000 feet, 60-miles and 6,000 feet, etc...
I also would recommend that you begin riding
every single day to increase your endurance. 3 weeks between should be fine if you're riding every day.