Long Distance Competition/Ultracycling, Randonneuring and Endurance Cycling - my first ever century

well i dont know if i can call it a century....i want you guys to be the judges here and let me know if i did ok or not......

basically, heres all the information necessary:

i bought this bike
http://www.amazon.com/Ladies-92-Schwinn-700C-Trail-Hybrid/dp/B000KZ4MI6

and did about 3 miles a day on it before i went on my long ride....the bike had about 80 miles on it...and yes i only had 80 miles on my legs too is what this means...


on monday of this week i drove from santa barbara to riverside to sell a van; however, i decided that i should ride my bike back because im about 5'11 and weigh around 220 lbs and told myself that i needed excercise.....i took the bike with me and an instep bike trailer....i had about 50-70 pounds of stuff in the trailer and an 8 lb backpack on my back with a laptop in it when i went on my journey...

i left at around 10 pm monday night, and about 24 hours later i was 76 miles away in beverly hills, then 24 hours later, i believe that i was about 30 miles away from there in malibu somewhere, then 24 hours later i was about 40 miles away in ventura then on my last 24 hours i made it to santa barbara about 190 miles away from where i left


i was wearing jeans and a shirt; however, i do believe i could have done it in 72 hours if it wasnt for a day and a half of 30-40 mph headwinds that made it impossible to go down hills....


so all in all, can i really call this a century? or an accomplishment? or is this just a long ride that anyone of you guys could easily do?

Century 100 miles in 24 hours

i took the bike with me and an instep bike trailer....i had about 50-70 pounds of stuff in the trailer and an 8 lb backpack on my back with a laptop in it when i went on my journey...

i left at around 10 pm monday night, and about 24 hours later i was 76 miles away in beverly hills, then 24 hours later, i believe that i was about 30 miles away from there in malibu somewhere, then 24 hours later i was about 40 miles away in ventura then on my last 24 hours i made it to santa barbara about 190 miles away from where i left

so all in all, can i really call this a century? or an accomplishment? or is this just a long ride that anyone of you guys could easily do?


As 10 Wheels states, a century is 100 miles in 24 hours ... done as one ride.

What you did would be considered a tour ... especially if you stopped and slept along the way, which I'm guessing you must have done if you only covered 30 miles, and 40 miles in two 24-hour periods of time. And yes, it sounds like that would be an accomplishment for you.

You rode 76 miles in the first 24 hours.
Then you took 3 days to finish the remaining 124 miles.
Correct?

You had a Great Ride.
You learned that bike riding is both mental and physical.

why the heck did you have all that stuff with you? 70lbs and a trailer! Plus a backpack! That's hardcore. I would have opted for NOT taking all that stuff but hey congrats on your first long ride. Not sure I would have done it myself but keep up the good riding. Just get out there and ride more! (and maybe leave the computer and trailer at home next time.)

You turned over a lot of energy. Quite a strange trip. OK, call it an adventure.

In any case, if you ever get a modern bike and set up properly for a Century ride, you'll have no problems finishing it.

Usually a "century" implies in one ride, and that's usually 4-12 hours. But people also do 600 and 1200k rides which are still considered "one ride" even though they're multi-day events, so there's not a strict time limit on it.

As 10 Wheels states, a century is 100 miles in 24 hours ... done as one ride.
That's only 4.2 mph! (If it takes you that long, you aren't ready!)

Generally, practically, it's a 100 miles in much less than 24 hours! Few organizations running a "century" are going to have the patience to wait around so long!

That's only 4.2 mph! (If it takes you that long, you aren't ready!)

Generally, practically, it's a 100 miles in much less than 24 hours! Few organizations running a "century" are going to have the patience to wait around so long!

Tell that to the people who ride this event:
http://www.susitna100.com/

That's only 4.2 mph! (If it takes you that long, you aren't ready!)

Generally, practically, it's a 100 miles in much less than 24 hours! Few organizations running a "century" are going to have the patience to wait around so long!

you have to take into account the variables....i had the wrong bike, the wrong clothes, too much weight, a trailer that acted like a parachute for about a day and a half, and not to mention i left at 10 pm on a weekday, i had no sleep during the day time on that day and did take a sleep in those 24 hours....i think if i was on a decent road bike with barely any gear, then this would have been no problem....the only reason i did 76 miles on the first day was because i got sleepy, not tired...i had the strength to keep going but i was just plain sleepy, i slept at a park next to the santa anita racetrack, which was quite nice actually....i am going to do a real century really soon.....im going from santa barbara to oxnard then straight back....50 miles each way; i wont be using a road bike, ill still use my hybrid and see if i can pull off a 7 hour ride.

I figure if you finish, you're ready. Riding for 24 hours is an accomplishment no matter how far you go.

you have to take into account the variables....i had the wrong bike, the wrong clothes, too much weight, a trailer that acted like a parachute for about a day and a half, and not to mention i left at 10 pm on a weekday, i had no sleep during the day time on that day and did take a sleep in those 24 hours....i think if i was on a decent road bike with barely any gear, then this would have been no problem....the only reason i did 76 miles on the first day was because i got sleepy, not tired...i had the strength to keep going but i was just plain sleepy, i slept at a park next to the santa anita racetrack, which was quite nice actually....i am going to do a real century really soon.....im going from santa barbara to oxnard then straight back....50 miles each way; i wont be using a road bike, ill still use my hybrid and see if i can pull off a 7 hour ride.

There is nothing wrong with the ride you did! What you did wasn't trivial at all. It just isn't what people are talking about when they are talking about "centuries".


Tell that to the people who ride this event:
http://www.susitna100.com/

That's an exception. Exceptions don't disprove the typical situation. (And I allowed for the existence of exceptions.)

There is nothing wrong with the ride you did! What you did wasn't trivial at all. It just isn't what people are talking about when they are talking about "centuries".

+1. Kudos for taking on that kind of challenge! :thumb:

That's an exception. Exceptions don't disprove the typical situation. (And I allowed for the existence of exceptions.)

So did I ... by saying that cyclists were allowed 24 hours for a century.

My longest century took just over 15 hours of pretty much steady riding with a few short breaks for nutrition, etc.

Hmmm, there haven't been 40 mph winds arond here for a few weeks.:innocent:

So did I ... by saying that cyclists were allowed 24 hours for a century.
This doesn't make sense. Why do people try to "disprove" the general case by exceptions?

Anyway, this isn't common. It's unusual. Which is what I said. (Note that "allowed" means "still supported".)

Please explain how helpful it is to the OP by mentioning a weird peculiar exception of a century being run in the middle of winter in Alaska for preparing for any century she is likely to do? Note too, that the Alaska event is also supporting other activities like running and snowshoeing (not just bicycling). It's not even clear that the bicyclists need the 24 hours!

If you need 24h to do a typically-run organized century and want support, then you aren't ready to do the century. Generally.

I don't know what you'd call it, but the victory you scored over fear and trepidation is more than just commendable. It's inspiring.

Granted, there are risks to blindly taking off on a new activity like this, but you first envisioned and then did a thing that most people would worry over for months.

To the OP: I salute you!

Granted, what you did doesn't fit the definition of a "century ride" but so what? You did something else that is, in my opinion, just as cool--a short, self-contained bike tour. Keep your spirit of adventure!

lol thanks for that...it was a tough ride indeed....but now my bike is all beat up...making noises when i shift, making noises when i brake, not shifting to the correct gears...ill have to do some maintenance.