Clydesdales/Athenas (200+ lb / 91+ kg) - How many miles for your longest one day ride as a Clydesdale?

I'm planning on doing the Seattle-to-Portland in one day this summer. It's a 204 mile ride. I'm hoping that this is an attainable goal for a clydesdale. I'm sure that there are other under 6' and 200+ lbs riders that have done this. I'm interested in what your training program was, what type of equipment you were on, how far you went, and were you so miserable that you vowed never to do anything like it again?

Interested in your opinions on what the ideal equipment would be for such a ride. Remember, for me, speed is not critical... I just want to finish the ride before it gets dark.

I'm 5'10 220lbs and did a century last October for the Tour de Cure. It was tough but I made it so I was pretty pumped about that. I have a Giant OCR with some strong FSA RD-400 wheels. The bike held up very well and body didn't do all that bad. I will definitely ride it again this year.

As far as training - I just rode as many miles as I could. My biggest issue was and still is - staying in the saddle and not getting too sore. I think time in the saddle is the only way to cure that. I live in NW Arkansas where there are lots of hills and after getting used to my normal terrain the Tour was much easier on me.

6' and 270 here. I'll do my first Metric Century this weekend in Reedley, CA.

For a link of the route, see here - http://www.bikely.com/maps/bike-path/Blossom-Bike-Ride-100K

I'm working with the Team in Training of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society for the Century around Lake Tahoe this June 3rd.

I anyone is interested in contributing - http://www.active.com/donate/tntccal/tntccalBBaker

Have you done any centuries? If you finish 100 without too much pain you can do 200.

I'm 6-1 and 260 and I've done 2 200k rides this year and 1 300k (191 miles). They were brevets (see www.rusa.org for more info) Gets lots of training in, get used to long rides and you can do it. I find that as long as it isn't a real hilly ride it's OK. Gravity is just too tough for a ride with lots of hills.

I've done lots of metrics, centuries (a few off-road on a mountain bike) and double metrics. It's just a matter of time in the saddle. Don't worry about being big, that's not really a deciding factor. Training before the event is, however. For that I use this schedule (http://www.diablocyclists.com/RiderTips/StrenghtCenturyTrainingProgram.htm). Look at the tips for doing double century while there. It's just ridin';)

One of the best tricks I ever learned was to break the ride into managable sections -10 miles for a century. A 10 mile ride is easy and a century is just a series of 10 mile rides. Really not that hard.

6'1" 320#

I decided last April to do the Montauk Century. I started riding to work (~14 miles) one way every other day, then one way every day, then round trip every day. I also tried to get in a longer ride on the weekend. Usually every other/every third weekend I'd do about 25-40 miles. I did two organized centuries this summer and both were fine. But I don't know that I would have wanted to do 200 miles without some more long ride experience.

My plan is to do the long version of the Montauk Cent this May, 145 miles. By the end of the summer, I'm gonna ride to Rhode Island.

Labor Day Weekend:
11 1/2 hours-167 miles

Labor Day Weekend:
11 1/2 hours-167 milesThat sure puts the labor in Labor Day Weekend.

That sure puts the labor in Labor Day Weekend.
a labor of love though! http://user.chollian.net/~boonstra/gif/fiets870.gif

I've done lots of metrics, centuries (a few off-road on a mountain bike) and double metrics. It's just a matter of time in the saddle. Don't worry about being big, that's not really a deciding factor. Training before the event is, however. For that I use this schedule (http://www.diablocyclists.com/RiderTips/StrenghtCenturyTrainingProgram.htm). Look at the tips for doing double century while there. It's just ridin';)

One of the best tricks I ever learned was to break the ride into managable sections -10 miles for a century. A 10 mile ride is easy and a century is just a series of 10 mile rides. Really not that hard.

+1

I just want to add that the fit of your bike and your riding position are important too...as the miles go by those little minor annoyances can turn into major PIAs that sap your will to continue and get you thinking of excuses not to.

a labor of love though! http://user.chollian.net/~boonstra/gif/fiets870.gif

Tom has hit on the key ingredient...as my old HS football coach used to say, 'You gotta love it'. ;)

70 miles on the Kal-Haven trail, on my Giant Boulder SE, last summer. I now have my road bike (Giant OCR 1 sitting in my living room) waiting for the snow to go away.

45 miles on the Withlacooche Trail. I felt good, except my ars kinda hurt. Had to keep switching cheeks.

For that I use this schedule (http://www.diablocyclists.com/RiderTips/StrenghtCenturyTrainingProgram.htm). Look at the tips for doing double century while there.

This is a great tip sheet. I think I am going to start using that next week. One of my goals was to do a Metric and this would help do that plus put me on the course to do a century.

My longest so far is 45 miles just beating around the local area near my house. Basic circuit that I mapped out.

My longest so far is 45 miles just beating around the local area near my house. Basic circuit that I mapped out.

If you can do 45 miles, you can do a metric. If you can do a metric, you can do a century. If you can do a century you can do a double metric, if you can do a double metric, you can probably manage a double century. :D

6'2", 240 lbs. Longest one day ride for me was RAIN (Ride Across Indiana) on two occasions. Distance was 162 miles, 8:20 & 9:15 ride times. No special training, but both times it was app. 3 weeks after a week long tour (370 - 420 miles), plus several metrics and/or centuries in the months leading up to the ride in mid July. For the better timed ride, I did a double metric distance the weekend before. Key is keeping enough fluids and food in you, especially if it's hot. In the 2006 edition of RAIN, the heat index was something like 115 degrees. We were so sick of food and gatorade at the end of the ride, we no longer wanted to eat or drink anything.

6'2", 240 lbs. Longest one day ride for me was RAIN (Ride Across Indiana) on two occasions. Distance was 162 miles, 8:20 & 9:15 ride times. No special training, but both times it was app. 3 weeks after a week long tour (370 - 420 miles), plus several metrics and/or centuries in the months leading up to the ride in mid July. For the better timed ride, I did a double metric distance the weekend before. Key is keeping enough fluids and food in you, especially if it's hot. In the 2006 edition of RAIN, the heat index was something like 115 degrees. We were so sick of food and gatorade at the end of the ride, we no longer wanted to eat or drink anything.

Hope to see you there this year. ;)

OK.. thanks for the tips. I think I have about 17 hours to complete the ride (5 am to 10 pm.) I figure I'll be out of the saddle for 2-3 hours taking breaks, eating, going to the bathroom, hopefully not fixing flats. So I think I have to keep about a 15mph pace for the duration. Is that a difficult pace to maintain? I haven't ridden in groups before, but I plan to do 5-10 rides in groups before the Seattle-to-Portland. How much, if any speed/time am I going to pick up by tagging along with a few pacelines? I assume they will pull away from me all day long... and by the time I finish I'm pretty sure there won't be any pacelines left on the road.

Another question? when most of you ride these long distances, do you adjust your bars so that you are more upright? my bars are a few inches below the saddle. This is ok for my commute (15 miles round trip) and even for rides up to 30-40 miles. But much beyond that, I start to feel tightness in my neck and shoulders. I'm just thinking that bein a little more upright might help for a 200 mile ride. Do any of you make this kind of an adjustment for a long ride?

Don't hang around any pacelines with folks you don't know. If they are a good group, they will not appreciate someone tagging along who may not know how to work safely in a paceline and if they are a bad group (folks who really don't know what they are doing) you may end up getting tangled up in a crash.

If you want to join a paceline I recommend that you join a local club and get some experience doing so, but again, be careful who you join up with on the ride and ask permission to join. They may just have you hang on the back end until they get a feel for you, which means you get a pass, at least for a while, on taking pulls. You might want to venture over to the roadie forums to get some tips from folks who know far more than I.

I've done lots of metrics, centuries (a few off-road on a mountain bike) and double metrics. It's just a matter of time in the saddle. Don't worry about being big, that's not really a deciding factor. Training before the event is, however. For that I use this schedule (http://www.diablocyclists.com/RiderTips/StrenghtCenturyTrainingProgram.htm). Look at the tips for doing double century while there. It's just ridin';)

One of the best tricks I ever learned was to break the ride into managable sections -10 miles for a century. A 10 mile ride is easy and a century is just a series of 10 mile rides. Really not that hard.

Wow! I looked at that schedule. It looks pretty tough! 5 rides over 100 miles in 5 consecutive weeks building up to the double century? I think my body would be hammered. Take a look at the suggested training schedule for the one-day riders for the STP (on page 8):

http://cascade.org/EandR/stp/pdf/stp_seminar_book_2007.pdf

That was the schedule I was planning on doing, plus my daily commute of 15 miles 4-5 days a week. What do you think? That first schedule seems to suggest that I need more training.

My 6' 230# and have done 14 double centuries, 2 triple centuries and a bunch of centuries in the last 3 years. The triples take 20 hours and I'm on the road 22 hours, lonnnng day. As far as training most of my training rides are 2 hours or less with a few centuries thrown in. I've never been miserable on one of my rides, even in the rain. The biggest thing is to stay hydrated and eat, you need to start as soon as you leave. Also, you need to get comfortable with riding at night with lights.

A mere 40, but I am in the 300 lbs+ category.

A 109 mile self-supported ride. I was to meet the family out of town for a camping trip, only to find my car wouldn't start that morning, and the repair wasn't a quick fix. So I saddled up, and headed to Santee on my Cannondale. I carried my Camelback, two water bottles, some cash, and a few bars. The traffic was a bit harrowing leaving Beaufort, but wasn't so bad once I got off US 17. The only town of size was Walterboro, which was surprising nice to cyclists. Took me almost 9 hours, but I did stop for two hours in St. George to rest.

Last year's Ride Across INdiana (RAINride.org). 162.5 miles in about 12 hours. I was riding a Giant OCR2 and I was pretty tired, but it went well. I'm planning on doing it again this year.

I just want to add that the fit of your bike and your riding position are important too...as the miles go by those little minor annoyances can turn into major PIAs that sap your will to continue and get you thinking of excuses not to.Very true dat!

I think chipcom and I disagree on this but I would add, a good pair of cycling shorts, too. I guess if you have a comfy enough seat that may not be necessary I just don't have that seat. (I've never owned a Brooks.)

I would also add, Don't do anything new (other than the distance) that day. If it is an organized ride and they are serving free bottles of High Energy Laxative Water (like it seemed to me they did at the Montauk Century last year) pass on that. (Pun intended.) I hit every porta-potty on the eastern end of Long Island that day.

Wow! I looked at that schedule. It looks pretty tough! 5 rides over 100 miles in 5 consecutive weeks building up to the double century? I think my body would be hammered. Take a look at the suggested training schedule for the one-day riders for the STP (on page 8):

http://cascade.org/EandR/stp/pdf/stp_seminar_book_2007.pdf

That was the schedule I was planning on doing, plus my daily commute of 15 miles 4-5 days a week. What do you think? That first schedule seems to suggest that I need more training.

The first schedule for a century works. I've used it many times. I don't doubt that the Cascade clubs schedule would also works. It tapers more after the century point. I'd use the first schedule to get me to the century and then maybe switch to the Cascade schedule for preparing for the double.

thanks cyccocommute... that seems like an excellent training schedule for the 204 mile STP. I'v got a double metric planned for May 20 - it should be a good measuring stick for how far along I am in being ready for the double century in mid-July.

6' 225#

Did STP in one day in 05. Prior to that, had done one century as my longest ride.
Make sure your saddle is comfortable. I rolled on a road bike with 23mm tires, and was fine. Yeah, my butt was sore from being in the saddle all day, but my neck and back pains in my warm-up century were worse. Just get time in the saddle on the bike you'll ride, and you'll do fine.

I did a one day STP last year, in my first year of road riding. I'm not quite 6' tall, 230lb (215lb by the time I hit STP). I used the one day STP rider training schedule from the Cascade Bicycle Club website and did the one day with no problems - it was fun! It seemed like a lot of the one dayers were older and often bigger guys - we're built for heavy lifting and long hauls.

So yeah, you can do it!

A mere 40, but I am in the 300 lbs+ category.


Well 51, I think that is great! I need a mtn. bike to carry my arss in any comfort. But 40 miles is a good ride for us clydes. Hey that rhymes! Good ride for us clydes! I am going to patent that phrase. You all might just start sending your royalties now. :D

I've done centuries back in my youthful clyde days, and now I do 30 milers on the weekend after 4 days of a 15 mile r/t commute. I'm doing the 45 mile distance on the Tour de Cure in May with some friends from work, and next year I'm planning on doing the STP.

There's a guy in the SS/FG forum doing the STP on a fixed gear, so I'm sure you'll have no problems with it. Pace yourself and have fun. I'll see you there next year. :)

40 miles sounds like a lot for a 300+ lbs. guy. I'm not sure if I'd be able to go that far at that weight.

But uh, I've also only been able to do about 40 (I don't know exactly how many miles because I'm too cheap to buy a cyclo-computer). I'm 5'8.5" (in bare feet) and weigh in at 216 lbs. That's still technically a Clyde, right?

It's not from lack of trying. My bike is just a low quality gas-pipe thing from the 10-speed '70's bicycle boom that I acquired at a garage sale. It just has so many mechanical problems with it that I can't go much more than 40 at a time before it decides not to like me anymore :(

I really need a new bike.

Edit: Hey, CliftonGK1, I think I might be seein' ya next year! I plan on doin' the 2008 STP myself, once I get a new bike.

2008 STP? c'mon guys... you still have time to train for this year's STP! I'm thinkin' I'm gonna need a couple of slow riders in my paceline. The goal is to finish by 10 pm or earlier... that's with a 4:45 am start. I'm hoping that "Team Clyde" will be well represented in the one-day finishers!

2008 STP? c'mon guys... you still have time to train for this year's STP! I'm thinkin' I'm gonna need a couple of slow riders in my paceline. The goal is to finish by 10 pm or earlier... that's with a 4:45 am start. I'm hoping that "Team Clyde" will be well represented in the one-day finishers!

I'd love to do this year's STP, but I don't have a bike right now. Sorry, trace22clawson :o :( :o

I heartily endorse raising your bars for a long ride. But, do it well before the actual ride so you can get used to the change, and make any other adjustments, possibly to the seat or the levers. I've used a Look Ergo-stem, it's adjustable (got mine off Ebay) so "on the ride" tweeks are possible. Sitting a bit more upright makes the scenery much easier to enjoy, and you tend to look around more which reduces the stress in shoulders and neck. A good trade off for long rides.
Cheers

Another question? when most of you ride these long distances, do you adjust your bars so that you are more upright? my bars are a few inches below the saddle. This is ok for my commute (15 miles round trip) and even for rides up to 30-40 miles. But much beyond that, I start to feel tightness in my neck and shoulders. I'm just thinking that bein a little more upright might help for a 200 mile ride. Do any of you make this kind of an adjustment for a long ride?

Your Sherpa (assuming that's what you'll ride) should have a fairly high stem already. If not look at it and see if you can turn it over. That will raise it some. My stems are set rather high but then I old and rickety;)

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/cyccommute/IMG_0168.jpg

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/cyccommute/IMG_0181.jpg

I've done several centurys but never any doubles. About 110 is my all time longest. That was/is enough.

Setting the bars up high is great! I felt like I could go farther on my old bike when I had the bars level with the saddle; when I raised the saddle to make pedaling easier on the legs, I didn't move the handlebar (leaving it at 2" below saddle height as an experiment), and my nads and back started complaining :(

I never did understand the appeal of low-set bars, except for aerodynamics. But that's what the "drop" portion of bars are for, aren't they? The rest of the time, I prefer to be seated hunched at a 45 degree angle in the hoods.

Grant Peterson may be a retro-grouch, but some of his points are right on, as far as experience has shown this 22-year-old.

Your Sherpa (assuming that's what you'll ride) should have a fairly high stem already. If not look at it and see if you can turn it over. That will raise it some. My stems are set rather high but then I old and rickety;)

I'm no gymnast myself!

There's the Sherpa. As you can see the stem could be raised a bit by turning it over. I'm going give it a try. The LBS here said they have all kinds of stems that I can try and when I get the right fit I can buy the right one. Or... i could try an adjustable stem and play around with the angles on it. The LBS didn't have much selection in adjustable stems. I had an accident last fall so it's just one shoulder that starts to give me a bit of trouble after about 45-60 minutes. The position would be fine based on how the other shoulder feels. I'm hoping that raising the stem will take some pressure of the injured shoulder.

http://i156.photobucket.com/albums/t2/trace22clawson/02-22-07_0805.jpg

You can also try this:

http://www.deltacycle.com/product.php?g=9

which might set the bars up really high :D

did an "unofficial" metric 2 years ago -- three of us got lost on a poorly marked 35-mile charity ride, and boy did that turn out to be a day! the organizers were packed up and gone when we got back! but it was too much fun to raise a fuss -- we did it for the ride, and we got what we paid for. last year, did an official 46.5 miles in a small afternoon w/ a bud -- he had a computer on his ride. oh, yeah -- both of these were on fat tires! full suss! 30+ #'s of bike! looking forward to this summer to do both again in the same year!

A mere 40, but I am in the 300 lbs+ category.

51 and I must be twins! I am good for 40 if I try (I am also over 300 pounds). I am a masher though and am just now learning to pedal at a proper cadence. Can you believe that at 41 years old, I'm learning to ride a bike the right way?

Matty in Brooklyn

A couple of years ago my friend and his wife rode STP in one day. He is 6'1" and about 240ish. The best advice they gave me when I thought about doing the "double" is not to spend too much time at the rest stops. Also, make sure you keep those water bottles filled and keep your pockets full of food. You should never reley on the rest stops to keep you hydrated and feed.

Good luck, and have fun!

Oh, my longest day on the bike was 122 mi.

You people that did the STP in one day... I'd be interested in what kind of bikes, wheels, tires you were riding.

I'm planning on doing the Seattle-to-Portland in one day this summer. It's a 204 mile ride. I'm hoping that this is an attainable goal for a clydesdale. I'm sure that there are other under 6' and 200+ lbs riders that have done this. I'm interested in what your training program was, what type of equipment you were on, how far you went, and were you so miserable that you vowed never to do anything like it again?

Interested in your opinions on what the ideal equipment would be for such a ride. Remember, for me, speed is not critical... I just want to finish the ride before it gets dark.

I've never done the STP but as I stated before in the last three years I've done 14 doubles and 2 triples. I'm 6', 230# and 55 years old. I ride a Waterford 2200 with Campy Record triple. My wheels are Campy 32 hole hubs with straight 14 gauge spokes, three cross. I use Conti 4-Seasons 700-25 tires and run them at 95-100 psi.

The most climbing I've done on a double was the Heartbreak Double last year with 16,600'. I did the Grand Tour Highland Triple last year, it had 11,500' of climbing. The triple took me 20 hours on the bike and 22 hours overall. It had 10 rest stops and I averaged 12 minutes per stop. I was a little slow in some of the rest stops with taking off and putting on clothes and one stop being a lunch stop. As mentioned about try not to get hung up in the rest stops, very easy to do as the day goes on and you get tired.

I’ve found that I can’t eat much more than 350 calories per hour, if I do I get full and bloat. You need to stay hydrated, drink at least one large bottle per hour. I use Accelerade in my bottles which gives me 250 calories per hour. For me I need to eat some solid food or I get very hungry. You need to start eating and drinking as soon as you leave the start line, don’t wait. At rest stops I try to eat stuff that I can get down easily, PBJ sandwiches, muffins, pound cake, fresh fruit, etc. I try to keep an even steady pace and try not to accelerate hard out of corners or on hills, you don’t want to burn up in the first 100 miles. If you’re going to experiment with food and drink for the STP start doing it now, don’t wait for the day of the ride to use something new. Good luck with the STP, let us know how you did.

I've done the STP several times, couple of times in one day; all as a Clydesdale (varying degrees if you get my drift, 6'1", 225-270)). First one-day was on a Trek 700 I think, Phil Wood hub (I was bending everything prior to it). Second time was on a Klein Ultima <?>. As you can see, I'm not much into brands/models. Just looking for something to get me there without much incident. Despite having my bike sized correctly at my LBS, my left hand became very numb and it lasted for several weeks after. Probably due to too much weight on the handle bars and the high school injury where I had broke my humerous bone (the doc warned that I'd feel this when I got older). I made a third one-day attempt, but had not prepared well (didn't get the miles in, was pretty heavy). Anyway, I got to Centrailia/Chehalis (1/2 way point) and threw in the towel. Yup, called my wife as she was driving back down to PDX. I was so ashamed of myself. And I won't let that happen again.

Just get the miles in, get good rest, eat and hydrate. There are several centuries in the area prior to the STP you could use for training. Use pace lines with discretion. One year I got on one that I had no business being on. Sure the first 100 miles were a piece of cake, that second hundred was tough. Good luck.

+ 1 I use one of those on my 62 cm LHT to make it a "68 cm LHT" ...:)

A 56-miler for a ride-my-53rd-birthday ride last July & a 34-miler on the River Bend Classic ride last fall. Both were surprisingly easy considering my average rides are +/- 15 miles.

So, would getting the miles in be a large factor in having the ability to do it? Like trace22clawson, I'm interested in doing the double century thing in one day as well (but for the 2008 STP, not the upcoming 2007 STP), and I don't exactly have the budget or feel the need for a lightweight, fast-accelerating Trek Madone :p

Do you think a cyclocross-style bike would be okay, if I use the right tires (like Continental Grand Prix 4-Seasons) and a 48/11 high gear (and a 38/34 granny gear)? It's certainly a higher gear ratio than the 52/12 I see on most road-racing bikes sold at the LBS. I can get up most hills at 36", but of course these are Orange County hills, not Seattle hills :o