Fifty Plus (50+) - I Finished my (half) Century!!

I did it!! I rode the Strawberry Century on Saturday. The route took me from the town of Lebanon, OR through the foothills of the Cascades and up around Foster Lake and back down to Lebanon. 54.4 miles in all. It went really well. The weather was great; around 50 when I started and only 64 when I finished. I rode with a friend. Kept an easy pace..around 15 mph for most of it. It was well supported with well stocked SAG stops at about 10/25/40 miles. The hills were hard but do-able. There was a good brisk wind to ride into the last half. The wind kept the flat stretches a little harder than they should have been. The last 10 miles my neck was sore from the angle; my butt was talking to me; my thighs were aching and wanting to cramp; my knees were talking to me...BUT IT WAS GREAT!!

I kept drinking water as I was riding..and gaterade at the stops..plus munching some of the goodies (banannas, PB & J sandwiches, potatoe chips)

All in all an excellent day! I'm planning to ride the Covered Bridge ride this August in Linn County. (I'm planning on doing the 68 mile ride..a little further than a metric century) It should be another good day. It'll be a lot hotter I'm guessing.

We knew you could do it.

Great job,,,keep up the good work. and...continue to enjoy..

Well done.

BTW, I wish "you folks" would quit saying stuff like "Kept an easy pace..around 15 mph for most of it". Unless you're riding on a MUP in Florida, I don't consider that pace all that easy.

Well done.

BTW, I wish "you folks" would quit saying stuff like "Kept an easy pace..around 15 mph for most of it". Unless you're riding on a MUP in Florida, I don't consider that pace all that easy.

Have to agree about the pace. I do a short 22 mile ride and if I can get an average of over 15mph- I have had a tailwind all the way. Sunday did a 54 miler in 4 hours 10 minutes. That is only 13.5 mph. But I did have a bit of traffic on the way.

For your first ride- you had a good one. Weather not too bad- No strong headwind- good company and plenty of Backup if things did go wrong. All depended on the rider though so Your training did you proud. So a metric is your next target. Keep riding in between now and the metrric- but you have found your weakness. Hills. Get some practice in on them. Won't make the metric any easier- but might as well let you know what it is to suffer while you are doing them.

Well done.

Having just recently completed my first half century, myself (and unsupported, at that. I didn't know...) I can really understand your joy and sense of accomplishment. Ain't it great?

Let's see if I have this right:
1. The hills were hard.
2. There was a headwind.
3. Your neck was sore.
4. Your butt was talking.
5. Your thighs were aching and cramping.
6. You also had talking knees.

And you thought it was an exellent day?

Ain't cycling great? :)

:D Gotta love the pain !!! :D
Every time I ride I curse to myself, "Why the hell am I doing this ??"
Then a few days later I do it again.
Good Job Mikey !!!!!!:thumb:

Good job on the ride! Thanks for the report.

Congrats on the ride....looking forward to hearing the ride report on the 68 miler.

Talking butts are NEVER a good thing!

Sounds like quite a nice ride. Did you ever think that you'd be able to do such a thing?

Congratulations:thumb: The 68 miler will be just as easy.

Congratulations! By this time next year, you'll think 50 mile rides are great training for centuries; i.e. no worries, no talking body parts, and all fun!

Rick / OCRR

Congratulations! I'm sure the riding you'll do between now and August will contribute to that 68-miler ending up an easier (or faster) ride than the milestone you just attained :D


Persevering with the pain and attaining the milestone is such a wonderful buzz. I'm looking forward to the end of winter here, so I can again be out and about for hours on end seeing how far I can get just for the hell of doing so!

Mikey,

Greetings from near you in Corvallis! Congrats on your first half century. I do the club rides in the Willamette valley with the Santiam Spokes on Saturday mornings and the Mid-Valley Bicycle Club on Wednesday mornings. For the Strawberry last weekend, I did not ride but was a volunteer at the Roaring River Park stop (the first stop on the 100 mile route) making sure the riders had enough snacks, water, gatorade etc. The club did a Pre-Strawberry ride the week before.

I have done the Covered Bridge ride in August a couple of times before. If you want to do some more rides in preparation for it, feel free to join the Saturday morning group rides. Most are 50+ riders. You can see the schedule at: www.santiamspokes.org