Long Distance Cycling - Question for The Hardcore LD Riders

I have been riding most of my life. From touring to racing, to Bike Patrol for my dept. I have done century's (just did a century this past saturday) and have done 4 - 100 mile days in a row and know how much it takes out of you.

Well my sister in law has this new boyfriend. He's a real nice guy and have no reason not to believe anything he says, but when the conversation came around to cycling, he started talking about some touring he did. He said he rode from here in Ohio to Maine, and way up into Canada for a total of 2100 miles in 14 days. Now being a police officer, I have a good nose for BS. This guy seems to be a really good guy and not a BS'er, but I have a hard time believing this. So heres my question: Is riding 2100 miles in 14 days on a loaded touring bike a doable event?

Paul B

The TDF this year was 2,208 miles (21 days).
Without a peloton, and a fully loaded touring bike.......

My introduction to long distance riding, aside from 30 mile round trip commuting every day, was riding from Colorado Springs to Dallas, Tex. I had eight days of vacation and a weekend, so 10 days off in a row (with four of those to spend with my kids). I averaged 60 miles a day, and did 76 and 77 miles on days one and two. The trip is 750 miles one way, and I was only able to squeeze in 338 miles. My original plan was to do seven straight centuries, followed by a 50 at the end. I'm sure it's possible, and I will do it some day, but it's going to take much more training and prep. 2,100 miles in 14 days? I'm not sure what he would have a chance to see. Doesn't sound as if he'd see anything but road and the backs of his eyelids during the whole 'tour.'

Thats 150 miles a day, Randonneur pace for that distance is 200km a day so around 125 miles it would be doable for a really fit rider travelling light.
But wouldn't be much of a tour in my opinion, more of a bloody hard challenge, I certainly couldn't do it.

What is the terrain like hilly flat ??

What's the guy like? While 2100 miles in 14 days on a loaded bike is beyond what most people can do (and certainly out of my league), there are some people out there who are both incredibly strong and incredibly motivated. Also, fibbing about a touring pace is a strange thing to do.

It depends how "loaded" he was.

Kent Peterson has done some rides (as he calls them) from Seattle to Minnesota in about 10-14 days. But his idea of fully loaded means about 10-15 lb of gear and his idea of a full cycling day means 250-300 km. Well, I need much more load and I'll do 300 km... in 2 or 3 days.

Yeah, I was just reading one of Kent Peterson's ride reports - about 200 km (sometimes 200 MILES) a day on a fixed gear.

:eek:

I'm happy averaging 80 km/day!

----- edit -----
So, is this guy really scrawny but with huge calves?

So heres my question: Is riding 2100 miles in 14 days on a loaded touring bike a doable event? No your question is: "Is this guy a liar?"

Why not use your "detective skills?" If you are good at observation, then you should have the young man tell you some stories about his trip. Anyone who actually pulled off 2100 mile in 14 days would have a LOT to talk about - not to mention "where are all the pictures?"

No your question is: "Is this guy a liar?"

Why not use your "detective skills?" If you are good at observation, then you should have the young man tell you some stories about his trip. Anyone who actually pulled off 2100 mile in 14 days would have a LOT to talk about - not to mention "where are all the pictures?"


I just met him so I have not really had the chance to pick his brain very much about the trip. I did ask him if he wanted to go for a ride though. I think after 60 or 70 miles that should at least give me a clue.

Like I said, he seems like a real good guy and normally a BS'er will BS about everything, and there was nothing else that even gave me a clue that he is a BS'er. I get a fair amount of seat time and 3 - 150 mile days in a row would about kill me. I have just never met anyone in all the cycling I have ever done over the last 27 years that is capable of doing 150 miles a day for 14 days in a row. He doesnt even look like an avid cyclist (about 6'1, 210lbs), not that I do, but...

We will soon see though.
Paul B

I think it is doubtful. Doing 150 miles/day for two weeks would be difficult enough unloaded, on flat terrain. Doing multiple 150 mile days(loaded) through the Poconos, Catskills, Adirondacks, Berkshires and the White Mountains? That's Lance territory.

I've noticed some of those supported tours advertise the trip as being the total miles between the beginning and end of the ride, instead of how far the people on the tour really rode. In short, to make the customers feel better, they also include the miles covered sitting in a van in the brochures. There is also a chance that he is verbally dyslexic.

My dad often throws out erroneous numbers in conversation, that are not BS but brain farts. If you ask him later, he often does not remember the conversation at all, or is sure that he said something else. I remember once he thought that he said "4 hours", when he actually said out loud "14 hours". Those that know him well are used to it. You just have to ask him about numbers and similar specific details twice. He will stop, really think about it, and then tell you the "real" number. There is just some sort of disconnect between hard, cold facts and what he is talking about when he is trying to get the information out there the first time.

In short...don't be such a police officer. I know that you see a lot of BS and all out there, but I think that brain farts happen a lot more often than people trying to pull one over on you. It is going to be interesting to see how hard you guys push each other on that bike ride. ;)

RAAM is a little over 3000 miles over all kinds of terrain and climates and the top finishers do it in around 9 days. That's elite riders fully supported so hardly the same thing, but I think it means 2100 miles in 14 days is doable. Whether or not Boyfriend did it of course I don't know.

Yes, this very doable. Elite Pac Tour did 2,800 miles in 17 days for an average of 177 miles per day. However, we were heavily supported, with rest stops every 30-40 miles.

Yes, this very doable. Elite Pac Tour did 2,800 miles in 17 days for an average of 177 miles per day. However, we were heavily supported, with rest stops every 30-40 miles.

"Doable" for a motivated, focused, experienced long-distance rider.

Readers of this thread should keep in mind that official finishers of Elite Pac Tour gain RAAM qualification, and the event had a very high DNF rate this year. Riders who I know to be certified rando-heroes were pushed to their outer limits.

So, as exhibits in the "possible" column we have Kent Peterson and the Elite Pac Tour studs. Hmmm . . . possible but highly unlikely for someone "we haven't heard of".

Make it three weeks and very minimal gear, and it starts to look a lot more plausible.

The next time you see him, break out the 'rubber hose' and get some answers!

And ask him what bike he was on? perhaps it was a Kawasaki 1100cc :)

And ask him what bike he was on? perhaps it was a Kawasaki 1100cc :)

most riders (motorcycle) would have a hard time completing that kind of trip.

However, it is possible to accomplish 14 days and 2100 miles.

most riders (motorcycle) would have a hard time completing that kind of trip.


150 miles a day for 21 days? That's only 2.5 hours of ride time each day at 60mph. I don't think I know any motorcyclists who COULDN'T do that... and I know some fairly old riders.

Are you sure he said MILES? Many Americans automatically hear the word "miles" when people talk about distance. Could he have said "kilometers"? After all part of his trip was up into Canada, and we don't have miles up here.

2100 kilometers would be 150 kilometers a day, or just shy of a century a day for two weeks ... and that would be do-able.

Also, did he state "14 days" or did he say "about 2 weeks"? A 2 week vacation is usually a minimum of 16 days when you count the first Saturday and the last Sunday, and often a day or two longer if you include the fact that a lot of people plan their vacations around long weekends.

Was it a solo event, or was it organized like a Habitat for Humanity ride, for example? If it was organized, he wouldn't have had much luggage on the bicycle, and many of those organized rides drive their participants over certain sections if the participants feel the need for a rest day, or just to get them through a tough section of road.

However, I will say, yes it is possible ... I have actually met someone who has covered distances like that ... and he did it on a combination of a fixed gear and a single speed (flip-flop hub).

Sure, it is doable. Back when I was mileage statistician for the Ultra Marathon Cycling Association I had a month-long series of verification letters from a guy riding east through the AZ-NM-TX-OK-MO area. He was cranking out 151 to 175 miles a day. I got verification responses back from all the people he used as witnesses along the route. I recall reading a story about two guys attempting to set a speed record for cycling around the World doing mileage like that. If I heard someone making claims like that I'd smile and ask if they knew about the Race Across AMerica. If they didn't I'd privately doubt their claims.

It is doable for an average fit cyclist who has 10 pounds or less of gear and wants to ride 10-12 hours a day at a leisurely 12-13 mph pace. Or for a tour that was supported and riders only have a pound or two of gear. Maybe carrying nothing more than water bottles and a wind breaker. Some of us more experienced riders might have a hard time with this because we would want to ride at a faster pace than we could sustain and we would bonk and not recover for the next day.

However, my guess is that if he's telling the truth it's kilometers and a supported or credit card tour with little weight.

I have been riding most of my life. From touring to racing, to Bike Patrol for my dept. I have done century's (just did a century this past saturday) and have done 4 - 100 mile days in a row and know how much it takes out of you.

Well my sister in law has this new boyfriend. He's a real nice guy and have no reason not to believe anything he says, but when the conversation came around to cycling, he started talking about some touring he did. He said he rode from here in Ohio to Maine, and way up into Canada for a total of 2100 miles in 14 days. Now being a police officer, I have a good nose for BS. This guy seems to be a really good guy and not a BS'er, but I have a hard time believing this. So heres my question: Is riding 2100 miles in 14 days on a loaded touring bike a doable event?

Paul B

Why are police officers always compelled to tell everyone that they're police officers? I can't tell you how many posts I've read where the poster suddenly feels the need to blurt out they're a policeman, and it is never relevant to the subject being discussed. Seriously Chief, nobody cares that you're on "Bike Patrol" or your amazing "nose for BS". Cops seem to have an irresistible need to continually mention their occupation at all times, never failing to work it into a conversation, which you did rather clumsily.

Maybe you've been so busy gloating or seeking praise that you missed the pained looks on people's faces when you do this, but it gives us the uneasy feeling that you are compensating for an inferiority complex or something.

Honestly, you have no idea how annoying this is.

No problem.
But you have to be a bit wierd. (http://www.pittsburghcitypaper.ws/gyrobase/Content?oid=oid%3A30212)

Here is another guy (http://stats.raceacrossamerica.org/2006/reports/rider/133.html)that could do it. I dont think that he slept much, rode with no extranious items, likely did not stop for ones or twos, and had a $30K budget for support.


2092.5 miles in 6 days 11:49

BTW I am a net eng and can smell BS as well, as could my mom.

Why don't you ask him to go for a ride? Does he have aspergers?

It would be much easier to lie about that feat than to accomplish it.