NDspd

I don't have the mouth sores myself, but I nearly had to pull out of a 10mile TT race because of it. My whole throat clogged up and I was hacking at the end of the race barely able to breath. Maybe a diluted solution would work better.

bbbean 

It takes time to develop endurance. You've only been at it 3 months, and you have nearly 6 months before the road season starts. Go ahead and take breaks, do at least one interval ride and one base miles ride a week, and you'll be killing the long fast miles in another 3 months.

BB

Machka 

I don't get the mouth sores until I've been riding (and drinking Gatorade) for several hours.

Astrozombie

Gatorade? I get the stuff made for cyclists...

NDspd

You make a good point, I may have been pushing too hard too quick. I'm going to do a bunch of training on a trainer this winter, so that will help a bit.

NDspd

Ok, so I've put more rest time between rides and have introduced more stretching on my breaks during rides. I've also started eating Honey Stinger wafers every hour with water and that seems to do the trick on the longer rides. I did a 54.6 mile ride the other day, and other than a little fatigue at the end I was still good to go.

The butt though was saying something different, I still can't find a solution to my saddle sores. So I think I'm going to try out a couple different saddles and see if that's a fix.

bbbean 

Yup = rest + carbs will do wonders!

FWIW, I had a saddle sore prob last summer. What took care of it for me was a combination of cream, 4-5 days off the bike, and I got much more vigorous about washing my bibs after every ride (previously I just rinsed them out and hung up to dry). 5500+ miles later, I've only had one saddle sore, and it went away with 1 rest day and 3-4 days of using chamois cream before and after rides. Lots of soap and water in the shower, too.

Leebo

Can you bike commute to work? Do you mountain bike? Do any cross training/running/ gym stuff? I bike a lot and find yoga great for stretching out and relaxing. Seems like you need more calories for your longer rides. Real food is better for me. Oatmeal with raisins are a great start.Mid ride stuff like bananas, apples, PBJ on wheat bread. Did a 49 mile/ 8hr mt bike ride with 2 PBJ's and lots of bacon. No bonking or cramps, YRMV.

berner

As has been said, there is no substitute for time on the bike and the corollary is there is no substitute for experience. Many issues will be resolved with time.

Saddle fit is a difficult issue. I thought my saddle issues were resolved, after a long and painful beginning. The last club ride, only 37 miles, again was painful on a saddle that has been very comfortable. One thing that has changed is I've lost about 10 pounds in the last 3 months. So 15,000 miles after beginning to cycle, I'm back to working on saddle fit.

NDspd

I've been trying to add in some 3-4 mile trail runs, but want to add in some crossfit like training as well.

NDspd

Huh... Well, I'm going to go visit some LBS and see about their "try out" programs and see if I can find a good one for short and long rides. I don't have the cash to buy 3-4 different saddles to have none of them work.

Gallo

I do not know if you have a performance bike near you but if you do they have a no questions asked return policy they also have an online site with the same return policy. This gives you the ability to try several saddles until you find the on you like. You are never really down with the online thing as you have your current saddle

Given your newness to the sport and the amount you are already logging I would also ask some of the locals who the best professional fiteer is in your area and pay the money and get fitted properly.

Gatorade has always soured my stomach if I drank too much one bottle would be fine but more than that a problem. I drink water only on 50 or less unless it is very hot. I use nuun tablets for my electrolytes and cliff bars for my food

good luck

NDspd

Cool, thanks for the tips and hints man.

Well guys, I tried out a Fizik Tundra, which is a mountain bike variant of the Arione. The shape was perfect, but how it was constructed just ripped me apart. The narrow profile felt right, but the Tundra had no padding and the edges were designed for no flex at all.

I'm now trying a Nashbar GR2 from a buddy of mine and I'm finding that it is a lot better fit. It's basically a knock off of the Arione, but a little different. I still think I need more wing flex since I still run into the issue of the saddle rubbing wrong where the buttock joins the back of the leg. That whole area is where I've been having most of my issues including some of the main tendons underneath. I'm having no issues with the "boys" or the middle area, so at least I'm comfy there. (Sorry for the details)

I think I finally have hydration and nutrition down pat, but I guess we'll see when I try to do another long ride past 50 miles. I did a 25 miler in the mountains using gravel trails recently and I felt good.