Long Distance Competition/Ultracycling, Randonneuring and Endurance Cycling - 120 miles a day for roughly 40 days, doable?

Hi there, a friend recently proposed a challenge of cycling roughly 120 miles a day for about 40 days straight at beginning early June, there is no particular speed that we have to go at however as long as we complete the mileage. One catch though, I am a complete novice at cycling! I have a very good level of fitness already as I do alot of all types of running both interval and endurance. I know this is doable however could anybody give me some guidance as to if this is enough time to train for it?

Any feed back would be gratefully received!

Regards

What's the longest distance you've cycled so far recently? If it's zero ... the go out and do some cycling this weekend and report back here as to how it went.

You might have enough time to train for it, but it's kind of hard to tell when we don't know what distance you're comfortable with now.

Cheers for the quick response! Its very much in its early stages as I dont have a bike yet however have just been into a cycle shop and they say it would be a touring or cyclo cross bike I would be looking at, any suggestions?

Is this a tour or particular event? Or is it just a friendly challenge to ride 120 miles a day around the same area? This is absolutely doable but certainly a big challenge, especially if you really can't take rest days. 40 days is a long haul. For the total novice, I would say this isn't a great idea. I definitely echo the advice to go out and ride and see how you feel. If you are worn out at 40 miles, well, things will be difficult indeed.

Certainly doable.

It looks very different, though, especially depending on whether you're touring and carrying provisions with you (in which case, it's a monster effort), what terrain you're riding through, whether you have any other obligations during this time period, etc.

Pretty much anywhere in the world, you're going to get some lousy weather over any 40-day time period. Riding 120 miles into a 40mph wind, or when its 100F outside (and conceivably both!) looks very different than riding 120 miles a day 40 days in a row when it's 68F, overcast, with no wind and no precipitation.

If you're starting off now in good shape and you gradually get some cycling under your belt over then next few months, if you tackle what could be some significant logistics problems, and if you properly prepare your mind and manage your expectations (there will be times when this is no fun and there will be times when you have to ride when you'd rather do anything else), then there's no reason you can't pull something like this off. It would be an experience of a lifetime.

No.

Sure it's possible if you're already in good shape but I echo what's been said: you're going to hit bad weather days and if the goal is really 40 consecutive days that ups the ante considerably.

Also, there's a fair amount of "cumulative effect" - it really does get harder as the miles and days pile up with no rest. The most consecutive 100+ days I've ridden (and I've been riding a long time) is 11 and although I could have ridden more I was glad I didn't have to :D

I will say that when I first started riding, from a "standing start" - no prior serious riding at all - in September I rode 8 consecutive 100+ mile days the following March. It's the only time in my life I've ever had what you'd call a training program. I had fixed goals for each week that included consecutive days and weeks of increased mileage e.g., in one week I'd ride 30-50-30 during the week, the next week I'd ride 40-65-40, the next 60-85-60, ...

I think you'd be wise to have a plan with specific goals of how you're going to work up to riding consecutive 100+ mile days. You might be in good shape but exercise is very sports specific (I could go out the door and ride 100 miles today, an hour of full court basketball and I'd be laid up for a week) and ramping up to that kind of mileage without injury is going to be a challenge.

Good luck and report back on how you're doing!

Off hand I'd say -no. No matter your current status, its not likely you can successfully maintain this type of physical demand for 40 days straight. If you mean to just ride any mix of mileage to accumulate 4800 miles across a 40 day period - that would make it slightly easier.

But just out of curiosity - I'd like to see you log 500 miles in 5 days - then your shovel-filled post won't smell nearly as bad.

If each of the 120 miles/day also involve some good hills then it's going to be extremely difficult.

Hmm, I set and completed a similar, though shorter distance, challenge for myself this past May. 30 consecutive rides of 60 miles - half the distance you are shooting for. My experience was that the challenge was mostly physical for the first 5 days as I was out of riding shape to start with. I was also reacting to pollen in the air, riding in high humidity conditions and recovering from bronchitis. The next 20 days or so were simply routine riding - get out the door and do it. The last five days were the most difficult. I could "see the end" of the challenge, my knees had begun to wear/tire a bit and it was no longer "fun" like it had been when I started out. It was enjoyable, but no longer "fun" if you get my drift. I was lucky in that the weather cooperated for the most part - except for the Southeastern Louisiana increasingly high heat & humidity that is normal for May.

I think that your time and distance is defnitely doable IF you take your time each day. Averaging 10mph for 12 hours completes the challenge with minimal "major pain" BUT it seems like it takes all day (because it does). Choosing your route or routes carefully will have a big effect on your attitude and probability of completion. Some people get bored riding the same route over and over; others don't. Riding a 120 mile route with lots of steep or even rolling hills is quite different than riding a flat 120 mile route. Speed is also a consideration. Are you going to try to "set a land sped record" each day or merely complete the distance - or vary your plan each day? To be honest, wind was such a variable for me that I decided to just complete my routes at a comfortable but not dawdling pace most days. I never tried to ride at "impressive" speeds.

One other thing - repetitive motion/stress injury can rear it's nasty head if you aren't prepared to deal with it. Without hot showers, putting my legs "up" for an hour or two each day after the rides, and without a few friendly leg massages, it would have been more difficult for me to finish my self-challenge than it was.

Then again, more than a few people complete cross-continent tours averaging 80-100 miles/day over 30-60 days each year. so my own little challenge pales in comparison.

Good luck.

Added: Afterwards, in thinking about the effect on my mind & body, even taking a single day off, a rest day, in the middle of the challenge would have done wonders for me. YMMV.
The best advice I can give is:
1) Get a good bike fit! and find a seat that you can sit on for hours without regretting it.
2) Carry more water than you think you need - unless there are convenience stores every 5-10 miles.
3) Learn what food you can tolerate while riding.
4) Start riding now - work your distances up each week. (Do a search for "training for 100 mile/century rides.)
5) Riding a diamond frame bike is different than riding a recumbent. This challenge might be easier on a recumbent than on a diamond frame.
6) Learn to pace yourself. Take a break before you need it. Drink before you need it. Snack constantly while riding. Use sunscreen lliberally. Wear sunglasses and a hat/helmet with a brim. Find comfortable and easy to maintain riding clothes - whatever works for you, not just what someone else recommends (duplicate sets of clothes means you don't have to wash every night).
7) Put together a basic on-bike emergency kit - tools, first aid, pump, phone/cash/identity card, etc. Learn to do basic, side of the road, emergency repairs - fix rear wheel flat comes to mind. Carry it on the bike all the time/every ride. Though you are riding with a partner, you each need to carry a certain amount of your own personal emergency spares - but can share/split other items between you. BTW, 2 spare tubes and a repair kit made each daily ride "faster" than just carrying a repair kit; I fixed my flats at night after completing the day's ride.
8) Do a pre-ride bike check daily. Lube your chain every 2-3 days at the distances you are riding, possibly more depending on the road conditions.
9) Learn the signs, symptoms and treatment of heat stress, heat exhaustion and dehydration. This is both for yourself and your riding partner - watch out for each other and be "physically self-aware". Consider a basic first aid course and CPR certification --- never know if/when any of these might come in handy.
10) If there's a chance you will ride in low-light, rainy or dark conditions, get a "proven" light system - battery or dynamo-powered doesn't matter. Find something that works. Carry a spare bulb and a couple spare batteries (if you don't have a dynamo hub). At least once, go out in a low light/dark condition and remove&re-mount your rear wheel, tire and tube as if you were repairing a flat. That practice is worth its weight in gold under some circumstances on the road.

11) Remember, there's no "shame" in not actually completing your self-challenge. It's YOUR challenge, after all. You have nothing to prove. There's no reason to hurt yourself though riding through discomfort or low emotional points is something that will surely be necessary at some point. Just keep on pedalling. Take a break - eat and drink something - then ride on. You said you aren't racing the clock.

If each of the 120 miles/day also involve some good hills then it's going to be extremely difficult.

If each day is FLAT, then it is going to be even more difficult.

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Mostly I agree with the sentiment behind Cranium's comment. But I'll clean it up a bit:

How about you get a bike and start riding ... say 20 miles a day for 4 times a week.
Then up it to 35 miles 4 days a week.
Then ...

Let us know when you've discovered the reason for chamois cream (or its alternatives).

Riding regular 60 milers will teach you some things.

But complications arise, not on a linear projection, probably more like an exponential function.
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Above noted, however, also note that PacTour frequently averages 113 miles a day for about 30 days, to cross the continent.

So ... 120 miles a day is do-able.
But only if you've trained your body and brain for it.

Is from now until June enough time to train for it?

You decide.

maybe if you put an easy day in there every 5th day or so

I hope the OP gets to do it so we can read his report. I'm sure it's going to be awesome.

FWIW, my commute is 60 miles round trip East-West direction. On those days when I'm fighting the constant headwind for 30 miles on the way back, I'm tired the next day. The same thing happens when my weekend ride involves climbs several miles long (heck even pros need rest for major climbs). I can't imagine doing what you plan to do days in and days out. But I have no talent and am getting old. Good luck.

nope, have a job

maybe if you put an easy day in there every 5th day or so

+1. I'd try to get in some 180-200 mile days so I could get in a couple of 10-20 mile days.

A number of years ago I averaged aproximately 115/day for 30 days for a most miles in a month contest (I didn't win). The riding wasn't horrible but the whole thing is a lot more difficult than you are imagining. I was leaving work at 4:30 and riding a century after work then riding home. It made for long days and we were doing sub 6hr centuries every day and double centuries + on the weekends. If you are riding slow you're going to have some very long days and it's not going to be too much fun. It's kind of fun to say we did it but it really wasn't a whole lot of fun. In retrospect, too much time spent doing just one thing goes from fun to sucky pretty quick. Unless you are extremely determined your chances of being succesful in this endevor are not the best.

8) Do a pre-ride bike check daily. Lube your chain every 2-3 days at the distances you are riding, possibly more depending on the road conditions.
9) Learn the signs, symptoms and treatment of heat stress, heat exhaustion and dehydration. This is both for yourself and your riding partner - watch out for each other and be "physically self-aware". Consider a basic first aid course and CPR certification --- never know if/when any of these might come in handy.


I'd suggest doing the bike check when you get off the bike every night. That'll give you a bit of time to fix things before the next day.

And do worry about heat exhaustion. Drink lots, and eat plenty of salt.

Cheers for the quick response! Its very much in its early stages as I dont have a bike yet however have just been into a cycle shop and they say it would be a touring or cyclo cross bike I would be looking at, any suggestions?

The longer you delay getting the bicycle ... and the longer you delay getting out there and riding ... the less doable this adventure becomes.

The beginning of June is only 6 months away. You don't have much time to build up to that kind of distance, and especially to build up to that kind of distance several days in a row.

Several others have asked so I will too ...

1) Is this an organised event?

2) Are the 120 mile routes your choice, or will they be decided for you by the ride organiser?

3) What will the terrain be like ... hilly? Flat? A mix of the two?

4) Will you be riding the same route every day or a different route each day?

5) Are you starting and finishing each ride at home ... or is this a tour where you'll end each night in a different location?

6) If it is a tour, will you be carrying a lot of stuff on your bicycle? Or will you have a support vehicle?

7) Do you currently have a physical job where you go to work 5+ days each week and work hard physically ... lifting, walking, moving, etc. ... or is your current job quite sedentary? If you have a physical job where you're "working out" 8 hours a day 5 days a week, and if you don't feel overly tired by the weekend, you might have a shot at doing this challenge because that's something like what it will be like ... only you won't get weekends off, and you might be required to put in overtime ... maybe 10 hours a day.

At 20 even though I had never ridden as an adult such a goal would ahve been reasonable. But I was a competitive swimmer and was used to 2 hour workouts every day and 3 hours on Saturday. And often after the saturday workout we would go the the beach to get in some body surfing.

At 40 I did back to back doubles without a single 100 mile ride for the 3 months before, but back to back rides most weekends. This would likely have been doable then.

Depending on verticle feet climbed, enough hills could have done me in, esp if unsupported.

What plans do you have for sleeping? camping or hotel/motel? If not used to camping that part can do you in.

Who is planning the routes? If unsupported if the route is not planned by someone who is good at it a surprise or 2 can do you in.

I'd strongly suggest at least a 3 day trip with 140 plus miles each day, learn what yuo are getting into before you are far from home.

Personally I'd advise against such a schedule, it may be doable, but for the inexperienced it is not apt to be fun. Better a less ambitious goal that is more apt to be fun.

I think the OP has left the building :D

Seriously though, this is one of those things that sounds like "fun" when you're sitting around over a few beers. The reality is quite different as a number of responders have noted.

As I said earlier in this thread, it's certainly possible, but the reality is the OP doesn't even own a bike yet and to get in shape for, much less pull off, that kind of mileage takes a serious commitment. I've ridden more than 100k miles and am in reasonable good shape and I think I could do it but I'm fairly sure I don't want to. For a noob who doesn't even own a bike to take this on I'd put his chances as iffy, at best.

More power to him though!

My thought is that it's doable, but it's highly unlikely that you actually would WANT to do it. But what you need to do is start riding now, work your way up to some 120-mile days, and see what it's like. I think if you'll ride back-to-back 120-mile days, you won't need to be asking anyone else. You'll be thinking "Whee, that's fun, let's go another 38 days!" or "That's okay, but enough is enough" or "That sucks, what was I thinking?"

Riding in the heat in the summer is a challenge. One of my online friends had big plans to ride Route 66 a summer or two back, and he nearly had heatstroke the first day out, thus ended that ride. If you're touring across country, you can have days when you're riding into a headwind all day long. If you're carrying camping stuff, that slows you down. If you're depending on riding with a friend, then if either one of you backs out, that'll likely kill it for the other. If you're riding in the heat, you sort of need to know where water is ahead of time, so it could be awkward to just take off across country. And, if it was me, I would mix up some longer and shorter days so I had at least one "rest day" a week.

I think it's way too much time to place the body in any one position. The aches and pains from the limited range of motion and saddle sores will be unbearable.

Actually, as was pointed out a while back on these very forums, there exist records of "most miles bicycled in a year" where quite a few more days than 40, actually 320-365 depending on the person, involved riding an average of over 150 miles per day during one calendar year. So, it's definitely possible.

I think the OP has left the building :D


I'm guessing that the OP is from somewhere in Europe ... he probably won't be back on until later this evening.

nope, have a job

What in the world does that have to do with the OP doing 120 miles a day over 40 days?

Actually, as was pointed out a while back on these very forums, there exist records of "most miles bicycled in a year" where quite a few more days than 40, actually 320-365 depending on the person, involved riding an average of over 150 miles per day during one calendar year. So, it's definitely possible.

I suspect that these "most miles bicycled in a year" records are attempted and set by people who have spent many years cycling and building up to it ... not by someone who hasn't set butt on a bicycle since ??? and who doesn't even have a bicycle yet.

Sure, it could be doable by someone who has done some cycling ... and it might even be doable by the OP. But we don't know yet because the OP doesn't have a bicycle yet, and can't tell us how his current cycling endeavours are going.

I am awaiting his next post where he responds to the questions I asked above ... so we can see what this challenge will involve, and the next post where he tells us he bought a bicycle and went for his first ride. :)

Most of the issues have been covered. But the one that sticks out for me is that the ride is proposed for two people who are currently friends. I get this feeling that unless the dynamics are almost perfect right the way through the adventure, they may not be friends afterwards.

No.

N + 1 Amtrak can't do what you are thinking. Not having cycled much you will have a good chance of an injury, weather will be a factor t storms, tornado, and wind
When i started riding in 2010 I rode 100 k and thought that was easy the next weekend i tried 100 miles and put myself in what i call "Great Danger"

If you want to try a mission like that, as a suggestion, use a trainer, a closed track or a loop that doesnt take you more than 6 miles from a base.

When i started riding in 2010 I rode 100 k and thought that was easy the next weekend i tried 100 miles and put myself in what i call "Great Danger"


Have you never successfully ridden a century (100 miles)?? You can ride one without being in any great danger.

Have you never successfully ridden a century (100 miles)?? You can ride one without being in any great danger.

Yes! i have ridden a 100 mile ride. The " Great Danger" thing was me riding around Lake Livingston. You would be able to find that post faster then I.
I cant ride 30 miles here without someone buzzing me. Thursday it was a tandem axle dump truck (10 yard bed) had his front right tire over the white line taking up half of the berm. I was just getting clipped in with guardrails on my right. He was doing at least 55 Then he had to come after me again further down the road. If i have the camera running I can capture a buzz or horn blast about every 30 miles of riding

One thing here I don't have a car. When/where i ride is limited to where i can get to from home. Sunday, if i take the car i have no back up to call, Hence the lesson I learned at Lake Livingston. No I don't have friends to ride with.

I'm guessing that the OP is from somewhere in Europe ... he probably won't be back on until later this evening.

Nope, then he'd be asking about riding 200km a day!

My guess: He's somewhere like, say, Georgia, and thinking "Wonder if we could ride to California and back next summer?" Or, he's thinking "Wonder if we could ride across Russia in one summer?" In either case, spinning the pedals would probably be the easy part of it.

No.

Big no....
My butt got sore just reading this thread.

Sure its possible, I'd recommend against it however. I'd think this challenge would turn the simple act of riding a bike into a chore/work. To each his own however.

there was a time in my life when I could have done this, and actually came close to doing it. The thing is that you can't get there from a state of not riding in any reasonable amount of time. And if you can do it, it's still a really bad idea. One day off a week is probably enough to make it almost reasonable. I assume this was really a touring question, in which case it is an incredibly bad idea.

i'm guessing that the op is from somewhere in europe ... He probably won't be back on until later this evening.

uk

Tommy did it.

229295

Nope, then he'd be asking about riding 200km a day!


They still use miles in the UK.

I cant ride 30 miles here without someone buzzing me. ... If i have the camera running I can capture a buzz or horn blast about every 30 miles of riding


Fortunately, there are parts of the world where a person can ride quite lengthy distances and hardly see any cars at all. Many of the centuries Rowan and I have done in our current part of the world have been like that. One particular route we like has a couple small sections on a main highway (with a wide shoulder so we're well out of the way of traffic) but the rest of the route is on quiet country roads. In Canada, there are many options where you could ride for hours and hardly see anyone.

If the OP is from the UK, and if the challenge he is undertaking will be entirely within the UK, it will be a bit more challenging to find long stretches of quiet country roads (unless he heads into Wales) ... it will also be a bit more challenging to find routes without challenging climbs.

My thought is actually that he might be planning to do the North Sea Route. Approx. 120 miles per day for 40 days is 4800 miles. The North Sea Route is approx. 6000 km (3700 miles) ... but there are lots of places to add distance along the way.

Buy the bike. Ride the bike.
Ride your first 100 miler. Then another one the next day. Another the next day.
Then decide.
Have ridden well over a hundred centuries, back to back centuries, back-to-back-to back centuries and half dozen double centuries.
Never wanted to ride 40 of them in a row.
Do-able? Give it a try . . . but am betting against you.

Tommy did it.

229295

In days of old, when Knights were bold, when Fixies were the speed ( someone help me out here, Please.)

Fortunately, there are parts of the world where a person can ride quite lengthy distances and hardly see any cars at all. Many of the centuries Rowan and I have done in our current part of the world have been like that. One particular route we like has a couple small sections on a main highway (with a wide shoulder so we're well out of the way of traffic) but the rest of the route is on quiet country roads.

I agree with being able to ride lengthy section in parts of the world. Wyoming, Utah and Arizona come to my mind. Even here in my area I have found quiet roads. But i still ride as far right as i can. Because i know i haven't seen all the ways following and oncoming traffic can take me out. And yes I have been taken out by someone who had a open lane to his left.
I get a grin every time I envision riding in Canada One of the stories that has me interested in long distance riding was from http://vimeo.com/3451015.
I am finding a key element in long distance riding is staying in the moment. Not thinking very far ahead. A steady state and breathing. A zen state is helpful

In days of old, when Knights were bold, when Fixies were the speed ( someone help me out here, Please.)

I think he's running a 3 or 4 speed SA in that pic.

In my opinion, the fitness part of it may be the easy part, and that will still be really tough. The harder part will be winning the bike fit lottery, and having a bike fit and saddle that eliminates overuse injuries with so little time to work out the kinks.

I've only been riding 15 months or so, and after 4,000 miles, dozens of hours of educational reading, and several hours with the best bike fitters in the country, I'm not happy with my bike fit, and don't think I could do what you're wanting to do for four days, let alone 40. Saddle sores, knee problems, tight muscles, etc., and I'm 26 and healthy.

I've done 116 miles a day for 30 days. I was riding 80-90 hours a month for the 3 months leading up to it. The mental aspect is the toughest part of it. but the body take a beating as well, that type of mileage means you never fully recover, there's always a bit of pain in the legs when you go hard.

I've done 116 miles a day for 30 days. I was riding 80-90 hours a month for the 3 months leading up to it. The mental aspect is the toughest part of it. but the body take a beating as well, that type of mileage means you never fully recover, there's always a bit of pain in the legs when you go hard.

This is what I was going to say. There certainly are physical things that could rear up and stop you, but then again they may not. The mental challenge will definitely be there. After 10 days, 15 days, 20 days, you'll begin to find out how much you really want to do this thing. When a voice in your head says "why am I doing this exactly?", you'd better have a good convincing answer.

Cheers for the info people really useful, especially those believers! - to be honest this is the first time iv used a forum like this so didnt expect so many answers back, to try and answer some of your questions, it doesnt necessarily have to be a hard ride - some days obviously will be and some days be easier - but 120 miles is an average of what we want to achieve. As regards to my current fitness though not cycling related I currently work six days/50 hours a week in a bar so always on my feet - in fact its a very famous pub in Nottingham, England called the Olde trip to Jerusulem, which is supposed to be the oldest in England so as you can expect very busy, also the reason why I am unable to reply so quickly so apologies for that! In regards to exercise I do cardio 4 times a week for over and hour a session at high intensity and also endurance running, and body weight body strength training 3 times a week. The reason for all this is that I am going for the Royal Marines Officers, of which i have already passed though due to the cuts this year they had a lesser intake then usual years and therefore I was not selected, only two marks off - sickening! So this is the reason I want to do this - firstly to give me a good aim for the year, secondly to kill time through means of fitness and thirdly I have never done anything cycling related and of this measure and something that I dont know that many have done and give challenge myself as what do know about ourselves if we have not been truely challenged, I did not want to do something that I would be sure in my head that I could complete because that would not be a challenge.

Unable to quote everybody but will try and answer some furthers questions!

In terms of loosing friends with my mate that shouldnt be a probably as I went to boarding school and lived with the same 11 people for 5 years and then took a gap and traveled with the same two for 9 months solid and didnt have any major fallout and still my best friends today.

In terms of mentally I think I am up for it as I have trained solidly for the Royal Marines and the tests to go with with it (though completly different, the mental strength is similar).

Some of you mentioned the bike fit and being in the same position constantly for probably over 8 hours day would probably the biggest problem due the constant strain!

In terms of dehydration and sleep we will have a safety van with us carrying all our stuff and will be sleeping mostly in motels/hostels and occupationally camping. The challenge set, was one originally by another Brit cycling from North to South america then west to east of which he did in 44 days, so would kinda like to beat him! This would entail starting on the US/Canadian border town of Blaine (N-W) cycling down to the oposite side of the border of Tijuana, then back up to LA across to New York.

Also sorry again for the late reply!

Also sorry again for the late reply!

Good luck...Wishing you safe and fast riding.

Couple of additional thoughts:

1. I don’t have an opinion about whether YOU can do this. I don’t know you, so I think it would be pretty silly for me to opine on your abilities or aptitudes for doing this, or on whether you’d likely have any fun at it or be successful.

2. On the question of whether the project you have in mind is doable, I say absolutely it is. No question in my mind that I could go out and do this, starting today. I’m no one special. If I can do this, lots of other people can, too.

3. But then… I ride a heckuva lot. That counts for something. But I don’t think it counts for as much as others might suggest. This is, of course, a cycling forum and you’ll find that there’s a lot of emphasis on bikes and cycling. No surprise there.

4. There is, though, another way to look at your sort of project. It’s an adventure. It’s a big logistics problem. Some people are good at adventure, others aren’t. Some people are good at planning and executing plans and others aren’t. Some people are good at, and enjoy, venturing into the unknown, and to some people – even some very experienced long-distance cyclists -- the unknown is terrifying. Even without a lick of cycling experience, you probably know – much better than anyone else here on BikeForums – whether you’re the kind of guy who likes adventures, pushes his limits, makes good decisions (especially under difficult circumstances), and is successful at what he sets out to do. Past performance really is indicative of future returns. To my mind, it doesn’t matter a damn whether your past performance is on a bike. Adding a bike into the equation is the easy part. All this other mental/intangible stuff really can’t be taught or trained, at least not very easily and probably not before June 2012!

5. I wouldn’t be worried too much about a big mileage training program. I wouldn’t ever ride longer than 120 miles in your “training.” I would want to make sure that I did lots of back-to-back rides, though I wouldn’t worry about doing lots of long, back-to-back rides. I would want to get started “training” for this very soon so that you can gain experience on the bike. When should you shift? Can you ride close to your friend without hitting him? Is the bike comfortable and fit correctly? What do I like to eat? Drink? What kind of sunscreen keeps me from getting burned but doesn’t run into my eyes? Also, even if you’re in spectacular physical shape, the act of cycling will be new to your body. Ramping up quickly risks over-use injuries (and burn-out). Start now and go gradually.

6. Here in the U.S., one of our more legendary hiking experiences is to do the entire Appalachian Trail, which pretty much runs the length of the East Coast in the mountains. Lots of people with almost no hiking experience set out on the AT every spring, and lots of them are successful. You can gain experience and discipline-specific fitness through doing the “event” itself, if you’re smart about it. Being “smart” usually means being patient, disciplined, and conscious about your effort, nutrition, hydration, and mental status. I think the project you’re talking about is more akin to hiking the AT than to any other cycling-related activity you usually see discussed around here in the LD forum.

7. 120 miles in a day isn’t a big deal. Keep moving forward and you don’t have to move all that fast. Use your time stopped wisely. If you're not trying to hammer, you shouldn't be so wrecked that you're progressively breaking down over the course of the 40 days. A nice, even, aerobic effort on a bike that fits while tending to your hydration and nutrition.... that's totally doable. And learn about and practice good recovery. Stretching. Massage. Some protein and carbs soon after your effort is over. Some light activity a few hours after your ride (walking around town is the best). Get it all dialed in.

8. If it were me, I’d also be pretty focused on planning when in the day I did each ride. I’d get really into micro forecasting and try to figure when the most opportune time of the day to ride the 120 miles is (even breaking it up into sections with long breaks, if conditions warranted). Plenty of times I’ve been out and seen that, had I waited 30 minutes or started 2 hours earlier, I’d have had totally different (read: better) weather. On long rides, conditions are everything. If there’s any chance at all you’re going to ride at night, practice that. It’s a different skill than daylight riding.

Tommy did it.

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He was a professional cyclist with a great deal of experience... not someone who has yet to get a bicycle that will need to be a near perfect fit and only has 6 months to work up to doing consecutive 120 mile days.

When Tommy finished his record setting ride (75,000 miles in a year) he had to learn how to walk again... because breaking this record comes with such a high degree of risk it is no longer recognized to discourage anyone who might consider the attempt.

Riding at a 120 mile per day level is something that might take years to work up to and even then there is probably a high risk of failure die to the mileage involved... my partner used to tour at a 100 mile a day pace for over a month at a time but he has logged over half a million miles in his lifetime, rode as a professional, and trained for these kinds of distances.