Fifty Plus (50+) - What's your favorite distance?

Just got to wondering what people's favorite distance is when you're out for a ride. Sure, it's all good. But if the weather is right, and the time is available, and the road is calling you, what would be a good distance?

Of course you could go longer, and often have to go shorter, but I'm just wondering what people see as the right distance for a good, regular ride.

For me, it's something between 20-25 miles. I often can't ride that far because time won't permit it, and I sometimes go longer, but I would say my weekend rides of 20-25 miles are just about perfect in length. For me.

What about you?

25 miles / 40 km sounds very good to me, as well, and is my typical recreational distance. I did 30 mi / 50 km of utility/transportation cycling today, on-road but on the mountain bike, in three separate stages: 25% to the office (Carlsbad Airport Centre business park), 50% office to father-in-law's house (Solana Beach, for his 85th birthday luncheon), 25% back home.

Where I live there is a straight, flat (well, this is FL) run of 10 miles of bike path each way which is used by a lot of paceline riders, including myself. I really enjoy doing this 20 mi blast at speed a couple times per week.

My favorite distance is being 10' from the fridge. And I really need to change this!

As far as rides go, it depends on the weather and surface. Most of my riding is on rail trails. When they are soft, then I really don't enjoy riding that far, only 6 to 8 miles. When dry, about 12-15 miles. Hope to up that this summer.

Don't know what it is for pavement, I rarely have an opportunity to ride more than about 5 miles on paved trails.

My rides are usually in the 10 - 15 mile range because of time but do enjoy the 20-25 too as an ideal ride for fun...don't really have much of a chance for the longer ones. Even though Kansas is not as flat as Florida, where I am don't have too many hills to climb. Bike ride is a chance to get away from the work for a while.

Fifty and up. My shortest ride is 30 miles. It takes me about 20 miles just to warm up (especially since winter roared back into Northern CA). Today I rode 54 miles under threatening gray skies, the last 8 in rain. Had it not rained I was game for tacking another 20 onto my ride.

Any day I can get out on the road is a great day.:D

If the weather is nice, I like rides in the 30 to 50 mile range. Less than 30 seems a little wimpy and I'm pretty much ready to get off of the bike and do something else at around 50.

If the weather is nice, I like rides in the 30 to 50 mile range. Less than 30 seems a little wimpy and I'm pretty much ready to get off of the bike and do something else at around 50.

+1:)

30 miles is perfect for pure fun. My mood is always at its peak at 30 miles. But, I like to ride 50 to 100 miles because I really need the work, health-wise, and long rides are very satisfying.

50 is about right for me if I am just out enjoying myself.

For me the various lengths each have their own purpose. Right now a 100k with a group is a really good ride. It only takes a few hours, there's no need to stop, you get in an excellent workout and you don't feel all beat up afterwards. The legs and body recover very quickly as well.

DG, I was expecting a poll! Okay, I'll say 30 miles. Longer if the weather is really nice.

During the week, 11-12 miles but on weekends I clock in with a 15-20 mile ride.
When I get back home, I always feel like I want more.

I'm working my way up. Ultimately, I'd feel pretty good with a 25-30 mile ride.

If I had good weather, I'd ride about 8 or 9 hours including stops, which would translate to about 100 miles.
Mileage of less than 30 miles on a day off feels like a waste.

My weekday rides are always 25 miles or less. On the weekend, I'm wanting a 50 mile ride, and I plan on doing quite a few rides long than that this year.

I'm all over the lot. The ideal ride usually gets longer as the season progresses. I've learned that even a short ride is much better than no ride.

25-30 miles is the range my training rides usually fall into. Can get that in after work from early spring to late fall, and the guys I ride with generally do these lengths, too. I enjoy doing metrics, but too many time constraints make them infrequent unless planned well in advance.

20 to 25 seems near perfect to me with my current set up. I hope when somebody asks this question next year, I have a different answer with larger numbers involved in it. Time does limit what I'm able to do more than getting tired does these days. That seems to be a good sign.

Being retired, time is usually not any consideration for me, so I would have to say that about 30-35 miles several times a week is about right. That distance takes me to some of my favorite destinations. Weather permitting, I try to ride everyday.

Through the week when I don't have much time I like to ride 20 miles at a good pace. On the weekends 30 is a nice ride. Still being new at this I can see it getting easier to ride farther as I get in better shape.

My rides are usually in the 10 - 15 mile range because of time but do enjoy the 20-25 too as an ideal ride for fun...don't really have much of a chance for the longer ones.

+ 1

After work during the week about 21mi is all I have time for. On the weekend when time is not a limt 40-60miles.

I'm all over the lot. The ideal ride usually gets longer as the season progresses. I've learned that even a short ride is much better than no ride.

How true. At this time of year with fitness lacking, I do not wish to do much- 30 miles offroad is about my limit or 40 on the road- less If I can get away with it. Problem is that it takes me about 10 miles to settle into a ride, but when I do- I could keep going for a higher milage- but as I say- my fitness wil make me pay for it the next day. Today I did not want to have a hard ride so took it steady all the way and still did not enjoy it. Then from about Easter- the Fun begins starting with a 40 miler that I take as a sprint. From then on it is metric and imperial centuries every month till October. Then it is "Just a short ride today lads"

Heck I'm happy anytime I can "Go the Distance"

My morning exercise rides are almost 16 miles, but on weekends when I have time I like to ride between 30-40 miles. In season when I'm in better shape I extend that to 50. I do ride longer for a few times a year, but I view those as atypical requiring real planning on food water etc.

I guess my favorite ride would be 50 to 70 mile range. This time of year my log shows a great deal of 25 to 40 mile rides, having more to do with shorter days and rain patterns.

I like the short distances -- a half mile up to perhaps six miles. There's such a great feeling of freedom to be able to make these trips without having to back out of the garage at the start or searching for a parking space at the end. Just get on the bike and go -- no hassles or crap. Since the bike is faster than driving on the shorter trips in this range, there is an additional sense of satisfaction that comes from doing them quickly.

Paul

I like the short distances -- a half mile up to perhaps six miles. There's such a great feeling of freedom to be able to make these trips without having to back out of the garage at the start or searching for a parking space at the end. Just get on the bike and go -- no hassles or crap. Since the bike is faster than driving on the shorter trips in this range, there is an additional sense of satisfaction that comes from doing them quickly.

Paul

I keep an old mountain bike at work--a widely spread out university campus--for just such trips. If I have a meeting a mile or so away, it's nothing to hop on the bike, whereas taking a car would be an enourmous hassle. I also use the bike for short spins instead of coffee breaks, for errands, etc. It's an enjoyable practical way of navigating a busy college town. Naturally, many of my co-workers just view the bike in my office as additional evidence of my eccentricity.

Naturally, many of my co-workers just view the bike in my office as additional evidence of my eccentricity.

Kind of like all the evidence of that we've seen here? :D

Naturally, many of my co-workers just view the bike in my office as additional evidence of my eccentricity.
Yeah, like this crazy old coot, who kept a bike in his office too!

Kind of like all the evidence of that we've seen here? :D

All I can say is spikey-headed weasels would do well to stay in California. It's their natural habitat.

I mostly ride 30-35 mile daily rides, but my favorite event distance is about 100K. Much longer than that, and it becomes a lot like work. Less than that isn't worth
paying and going to an event.

I usually like the short distance rides...about 10 miles or so. Takes me about 40 minutes and I'm quite satisfied at the end especially after a long day at the office.

Favorite ride...100+ mi. What do I do regularly? 30-40 mi during the week, 50+ on weekends.

The trail I decide to ride pretty much dictates the distance I ride. There are numerous ways to go...I enjoy mixing them up on the weeknights...most will average about 22 miles. A weekend trip maybe 35 to 75...would like to do a century this year.

50 to 65 miles. Less than 50 usually doesn't feel like enough, and over 65 is more of a workout than it is relaxation.

depending on how i feel depends on the length of the ride.
I favor 50 mile rides but any ride makes a great day.

Weekday after work rides 25-30 miles is my most common ride and is a very pleasant distance. Weekends I like to go farther. How much farther depends on weather, time available, and my mood. It could be anything from 30-100 miles.

much under 25-30 miles I ask myself if it worth the trouble. Up to 50 miles does not tire me out for the rest of the days activities. When I want a more strenous ride, I'd say I favor from 60-100 depending upon the terrain.

On Saturday I like 75-80 miles,and there are always hills. If it's mountainous, 65 is plenty, although there is the occaisional death march with big miles and big climbing.

30 to 60 for me. That's for a normal ride. I really like longer ones if time and condition allow. If life were perfect, all my rides would be in the 70-125 mile range, and I would be in great shape all the time. But that's not for this world.

Distance is less a consideration that destination. When I want to watch wildlife, my favorite ride is a 25-mile loop along a little river valley. I often ride to a reservoir, 20 miles roundtrip. My favorite forest service road is a 10-mile ride. When seeking pie, my favorite cafe is now about 26 miles (one way) from home, although I have "settled" for my mom's pie about 6 miles away :D

A couple of years ago, 5-10 mile rides were the norm and I struggled to enjoy distances beyond 25-20 miles. Now I am comfortable with longer distances and have greatly expanded my list of things I want to ride to

On a nice day with plenty of time available, 50 miles is about ideal. 30-40 is better if I need to be useful for anything later that day. 60-100 if I'm free to vegetate the rest of the day.

I usually enjoy 30 - 40 miles, 50 is flattish. Long enough I get in a good ride but short enough I can push and finish feeling good. If really hilly than around 25 miles.

As to long distances I can pretty much do 75 - 80 miles without issue but after that I always start to feel not so good. Usually the last 20 - 30 miles of any century is a push for me but like the fool I am push I do.

I feel the best about rides longer than 25-30 miles. These distances are generally reserved for the weekends however. I have a "guilt-relief" minimum distance of 10 miles per day. My program actually calls for an average of 20 miles per day. Across the seasons though, I try for a minimum of 300 per month or 3600 per year. This is a realistic set of goals for me. Within that set of goals though, the 30 mile ride is the best.

Hey webist, what's that avatar?

And speaking of avatars, the one you are using Bluesdawg would be taken as a pro-Macintosh statement on our campus. We still have a lot of Macs being used, and those people are anti-PC. As in all of the Mac vs PC advertisements. I don't know if that is the message you are expressing.

What's my favorite distance? From work to home :-)

And speaking of avatars, the one you are using Bluesdawg would be taken as a pro-Macintosh statement on our campus. We still have a lot of Macs being used, and those people are anti-PC. As in all of the Mac vs PC advertisements. I don't know if that is the message you are expressing.

No, I'm against purple cows.

Funny, just last week at work some guys were spouting a bunch of baloney about how awful PCs were (I think to justify the price they paid for a Mac) and I asked them what they planned to do when Jobs holds a press conference and tells them to put on the new Nikes, drink the kool-aid and prepare for the arrival of the mothership.

To quote a line from "We're Not Gonna Take It" from Tommy by The Who, "don't want no religion, as far as we can tell".

My favorite recreational ride is about 40 more-or-less flat miles. Around here that takes you east on a gradual uphill into the San Gabriel Valley, then you pretty much coast back to the start.

This sounds wimpy as I type it though. If a ride has "challenges" (hills; I suck on hills) I prefer a thirty-miler.