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05-26-09, 08:37 AM
Only 1000 feet of climbing in my first century...hope it still counts:). Pulled a solo loop around Petenwell/Castle Rock Flowages in central Wisconsin.
It's the flattest area I've ever ridden. The 1000 feet is basically a 90 foot hill at mile 18, and twenty 50 foot mini-rollers in the last 15 miles. There was a stretch of about 35 miles where I never shifted once, and only used 3 gears for the whole ride. I really think that "too flat" is not helpful after a while, and certainly most boring.
Sorry, no pics, but I wanted to stop only when needed, so I could get an accurate ride time. I camp out there every Memorial/Labor Day, so I will be repeating the loop each time. I'd like to see some progress, and there is only one way to go but up. Total time was 6 hrs, 45 minutes, 104 miles. (6 hrs 23 min actual ride time).
My three tips:
- I'm glad I did it alone this first time. It's nice to be able to ride at your own pace. I believe it would have been more difficult to ride it with someone else, even if they were slower.
- Obviously, the saddle. I'm 216 lbs, and still have not found the perfect saddle for me. Zero pain after the ride, but it was torture there for the last 35 miles on the bike. That was what killed my time. On any little descent, I was standing up, giving my arse a break, instead of pedaling. I still had some legs left, but that pain just wore on me.
-Pace: I could have pushed myself harder in the beginning. I was not riding at my most efficient power output. I forced myself to go slower to conserve, but that was not the best approach.
It's the flattest area I've ever ridden. The 1000 feet is basically a 90 foot hill at mile 18, and twenty 50 foot mini-rollers in the last 15 miles. There was a stretch of about 35 miles where I never shifted once, and only used 3 gears for the whole ride. I really think that "too flat" is not helpful after a while, and certainly most boring.
Sorry, no pics, but I wanted to stop only when needed, so I could get an accurate ride time. I camp out there every Memorial/Labor Day, so I will be repeating the loop each time. I'd like to see some progress, and there is only one way to go but up. Total time was 6 hrs, 45 minutes, 104 miles. (6 hrs 23 min actual ride time).
My three tips:
- I'm glad I did it alone this first time. It's nice to be able to ride at your own pace. I believe it would have been more difficult to ride it with someone else, even if they were slower.
- Obviously, the saddle. I'm 216 lbs, and still have not found the perfect saddle for me. Zero pain after the ride, but it was torture there for the last 35 miles on the bike. That was what killed my time. On any little descent, I was standing up, giving my arse a break, instead of pedaling. I still had some legs left, but that pain just wore on me.
-Pace: I could have pushed myself harder in the beginning. I was not riding at my most efficient power output. I forced myself to go slower to conserve, but that was not the best approach.