tariquesani

Hello from Nagpur in central India. Aiming for a SR this year. Done with 200km and 300km. Training for 400. Stumbled here looking for ultra distance cycling forums. Seems like a nice friendly place.

lonesomesteve

I didn't post anything here, but my goals for last year were:
- Complete all four SR series brevets at R60 pace or better (60% of allowed time)
- Join La Société Charly Miller

I achieved the first goal. I had done 200k, 300k and 400k at R60 pace before, but last year I did my first sub 24 hour 600k. That was quite possibly the hardest thing I've ever done on a bike.

I didn't make Charly Miller time at PBP, but I had a fantastic time, finished feeling good, and rode most of the ride with good friends. Nothing to complain about there.

In 2016 I'm taking a far different approach to cycling. I have no performance oriented goals. I do have a long list of places I want to go on a bike. Essentially the list boils down to this: Less pavement, more dirt.

GravelMN

Complete a gravel century

Log more than 3,000 miles

Break my old century record of 5 hrs 52 minutes

carpbum

I'm going to beat the sun this year at DK200. Either that, or I'll crawl into town with a completely expended Niterider.

YogaKat

I lived in Port Isabel for a brief period of time. Fun area. (and well done!)

I've only been cycling since August of last year so this is my first time to post my goals here.

I've already registered for the Hotter N' Hell100 - my goal is to survive without getting run over. This is a ride that has sentimental value attached to it for me.

I want to complete as many centuries as time and finances allow.

I strive to get stronger and most of all enjoy the ride and meet new people that share the love of cycling.

Happy Feet

My main goal for 2016 is a 2300km tour in September but I'm also becoming curious about the whole randonnee thing as a training/challenge thing.

My immediate smaller goals are to do several metric centuries in preparation for hopefully the Cowichan 161 populaire and then a 200 brevet by summer. Already did one (metric century) last weekend in just over 7hr's up and down a canyon route. I think this is a pretty fair goal as, while I could do the century, my butt was sore and I couldn't think of doing a second in succession that day. Something to work towards.

I do about 75km a week commuting and may try to bump that up to 100km a week (weekdays) by adding an evening run and then some of the longer runs on the weekend.

joewein

The leap from a metric century to an Imperial one is not a big one. Primarily it's about pacing yourself and eating and drinking regularly. From an Imperial century to a 200 km brevet the difference is mostly the time limits you need to observe.

Almost any saddle is good for a 50 km ride, but beyond that your mileage may vary. Soft saddles are comfortable for short rides only. This is a very personal subject - what works for one person may not work for the next. Many long distance cyclists (myself included) swear by their Brooks saddle, but it doesn't work for everybody.

What you wear can also make a difference. I find cycling-specific shorts with chamois less important with a leather saddle, but when I do long distance rides in regular clothes I make sure I wear underwear with a smooth texture and flat-stitched seams and I prefer materials other than cotton that wick sweat and dry quickly.

Regardless of what you sit on and what you wear, you should make it a habit to stand up regularly to give your bottom some relief (circulation, pressure on nerves). I often do this a bit when coasting downhill after a climb. Don't wait on giving your bottom relief until it's become unbearable.

Happy Feet + Happy Bottom = Happy Cyclist :-)

Drew Eckhardt 

What cycling shorts you wear can be important too - chamois padding firmness, thickness, and distribution varies a lot between brands and even models.

Soft squishy chamois don't work for me for more than a few hours; although flat synthetic leather is fine for 200km. With my current saddle I like the EIT Comp HP pad with 120kg/m^3 foam beneath the sit bones.

Happy Feet

Thanks

Funny about the chamois/padding thing. I used my commuting saddle, which is fine just with street clothes, but wore some cycling shorts with a rather thick gel chamois in them. My thought was that the slightly wider seat and wide padding pushed out against my quadratus femoris directly or indirectly caused my gluteus medius to overstretch. I felt I got an IT band irritation on the outer edge of the knee from it.

I have a pair of shorts with much better (thinner) padding for the next try and three saddles (including a Brooks) to work with.

joewein

So far the 2016 plans are going well. I managed to repeat my unexpected success at the 400 km brevet, so 200-300-400 km is in the bag. To finish 600 km in 40h was always going to be a long shot, but after two years in a row of finishing 400s and very satisfying rides of 200 and 300 km on the new Elephant NFE I wouldn't be totally surprised if I did actually manage the 600, though I still think the odds are against it. We'll see in 4 weeks.

sevenmag

Pretty modest goals for 2016.

Do the local Metric here in town. Done
Do the metric at my son's college. Done.
Coming later in the year. A local century which would be the first one for me. It's not until the fall, so plenty of time to get ready.

A couple of friends are asking me to travel and do a century with them. It's wasn't planned but I'm considering it. I have 2.5 months to get ready, and I've already done a pair of metrics recently so I'm riding well. Just not sure doing my first century during July in the deep south is a great idea. I ride all summer in the heat anyway, but I tend to do fewer miles in July and August, and even ride some after dark. Last summer It was triple digits for 3 weeks with high humidity. That was a rough stretch. Caused me to postpone a century I wanted to do in September.