BruceHankins

This spring/summer I am planning on riding the C&O Canal Townpath from neary house in Shepardstown WV to the Whites Ferry crossing in Leesburg VA and back. It would be close to 80 miles all said and down and I'd like to do it in about 8 hours with a stop for lunch. Now for the questions...

The longest ride I have under my belt before this is only 30 miles. I plan to do some training and do some 20-40 mile rides at different paces but is there anything else I should do to prepare?I have 2 options of bikes to ride, a Roadmaster Glacier Point (please, no grief about the walmart special) with rack, panniers, and 26x1.75 city tires I use to pull the trailer and ride with the kids....or an older 12 speed drop bar with 700x28s. I'd like to use my roadie and just backpack all my gear, but is that a bad idea even for a day trip? I usually ride with a backpack anyway with a few tools, spare tube, and to carry my phone for music/emergencies. It does have dropouts that will support a rear rack but the panniers I have interfere with my feet when I'm clipped into the pedals. Is there any other planning I should do or for a short(ish) trip like this just grab my stuff, hope on the bike and go?

Thanks for all the help!
Bruce

Ridefreemc

I usually don't carry enough to warrant a set of panniers for a one day 80 mile trip. The backpack is a convenient way to carry what you stated and some snacks, as long as it isn't much heavier than what you are used to. As far as training, I would use what you have and enjoy the ride. It will be more difficult than had you gotten up around 50 or 60 miles a few times, but I wouldn't worry too much about it.

One last thing. When I started doing long rides many years ago I tended to ride too slowly. That puts you on the bike for a long time. If you keep a lively pace you'll often actually be less tired because you might be off the bike an hour earlier. Then again, too fast can wear you out too so you just need to balance.

On last last thing - I break the trip up in my mind. In your case I'd do one 20 mile ride. The when you are done with that you do 15, and 15 and 15. I find it works very well in keeping me mentally fresh. Don't even think about the next "phase" of the ride. Just the one you are in.

Oh, and have fun!

tarwheel 

You can ride the C&O Canal with 28 mm tires, but 32s would be much more enjoyable -- particularly if it has been rainy and there is mud. The C&O is very flat, so riding 80 miles in a day should not be too challenging from that standpoint. However, your hands and rear can take a pounding from the rough surface at times. You also don't get a break from coasting downhills like you would if riding on rolling terrain. I would definitely do some longer rides in the 40-60 mile range to see how your bike and body handle the extra distance. I rode about 45 miles on the C&O with my brother a couple of years ago while we were riding in Bike Virginia, and it was a nice diversion from the roads. My bike is all-arounder and I swapped my 25mm road tires for 32 mm cross tires on the day we rode the C&O Canal, and I'm glad that I did it. The ride would not have been pleasant with narrow tires.

Leebo

Start early, like sunrise and bring enough clothes to be comfortable for the day. Eat early and often, snacks as well, you will be burning lots of fuel.

FrenchFit 

I don't know about that.... for 80 miles I would not be pre-fueling and wouldn't take much more than a power bar and water. Especially if there was a store I could stop at if I got hungry. I would be riding light, no backpack. You should be able to get most of what you need into a medium to large sized saddle bag. If I was 'touring', taking pictures and dawdling, I'd use panniers. 80 is entirely doable without much training.

cplager

Jumping from 30 to 80 miles without building up isn't trivial for most people. And for somebody who isn't used to the distance, fuel becomes a much bigger concern.

I'd build up to longer rides with the same bike/luggage that you are thinking of touring with (if you want to start without the panniers and add them later to training, that's fine). Some people tour happily on unicycles, so pick whatever bike you want to use and ride it.

(I don't have a choice with my bike, but even if I did, I'd always take panniers over a backpack. But that's just me.)

Leebo

I think the surface is crushed stone, so for me that would mean at least 6-8 hours, ie real meals. YRMV. The OP is not going to traveling at paved road speeds.

BruceHankins

Thanks for the replies! I have taken the drop bar out on the C&O once and it was a little squirrelly, but that was with the trailer in tow. I was worried the tires/tubes wouldn't be able to take the abuse on the rocks but I've seen plenty of people on the trail with skinny tires. Also I don't know that it will accommodate 32s. I hope to keep a steady, but not record setting, pace of 12-15mph. Comfortable and so I can enjoy the views. I don't have a saddlebag to use, but I'm used I riding with a pack on.

I've never road long distances on the cheap-o, just 10ish miles or so with the kids and trailer when we ride and picnic. But I do know its more of a workout than my other bike with its mtb gearing and weight.

fietsbob

rather than Hammer it .. I'd take 2 days and enjoy where I was riding through much more ..

reserve a place to stay in Leesburg. return the next day..

cplager

I very much did not enjoy riding on crushed limestone with 28s. I'm unfortunately willing to believe you can't really go wider, but if you can, I'd definitely do it.

hyhuu

Those people with skinny tires on the Towpath don't ride very far. 80 miles on 28 tires will make it feels like a very very long day.

indyfabz

The C&O is dirt with a hump in the middle in places. It can become a morass after a period of heavy rain. The GAP is mostly cruhsed stone, but even that is dirt in places.

ursle

Thinking 26 x 2.125 tires(? if they fit) and you're good to go, don't pump 'em up to much, get a rear rack and put the weight on it, take it off your back , much safer and less fatigue.

BruceHankins

26x1.95 knobbies were bad enough on that tank, 2.125s and it would be like trying to pedal a Cadillac DeVille!

bradtx

Bruce, I've rode with a back pack and while it's not a problem when walking it's annoying to me on a bicycle. If you have a rear rack fitted on the drop bar bike, pick up a top bag.

Jumping from a couple of 30 mile rides to an 80 mile ride is a big jump. Not impossible, but I suggest a couple of ~50 mile rides before your trip because you may discover a fitment issue that will only crop up with extended saddle time.

I always plan for a 10 MPH average speed to cover mechanical issues that can occur. I don't know if where you want to ride has access to any place you can stop and buy drinks and food so plan for the worst if you're unable to find out. I generally don't eat much the night before a long distance ride and only snack on grain style energy bars as they'll expand a bit in the stomach. I do like a peanut butter/banana at mid point.

I've used 25 mm tires on groomed paths and it wasn't too bad. If the trail is soupy/puddingish muddy there's not much other than a full on mountain bike tire that'll work well. If the trail is no worst than moist your 28 mm tires will be fine.

Brad

JimF22003

C&O surface is variable, but it's not crushed limestone. The section in question is largely double-track dirt, with mud puddles after any sort of rain. I did pretty much that exact stretch in question last fall (Point of Rocks up past Falling Waters and back.) This was on a mountain bike with front suspension. I was glad to have it. The longest I've ridden on a cross bike, with 700c/32 tires was about 60 miles, and I felt pretty beat up afterward. I would not recommend riding it on skinny tires, unless it's been dry for at least a week.

Have fun though, and don't try to make any major leaps in mileage. Train up to it, and make it fun, not a painful deathmarch!

BruceHankins

Which would be better to have, a 12-25 rear or 14-28 rear? The 12-25 is much higher quality although that shouldn't make much of a difference.

JimF22003

No matter what type of bike you ride on the C&O you do NOT need low gearing When I did a century ride on my mountain bike last fall on the C&O I think I only used two gears the whole time. The only "hills" are at the locks.

Roosterbird

I wouldn't pack too much, water is available from the picnic/camping areas, there is a snack bar in Harpers Ferrry, Brunswick has a train station with a snack machine near the trail, a convience store in Point of Rocks and a snack bar @ whites ferry. The trail is very easy to ride, no hills and the trail is doable in day for the section you mentioned. just train up, increase your distances gradually and enjoy the very scienc ride along the potomac. A road bike could do it, but CX or a Mtn bikes are very abundant on the trail.

fietsbob

+1 no waterfalls on Navigation canals , by definition ..

a system of locks is how you get Boats to go up and down hills ..

Jim Kukula

Ha! That shows how variable fitness is! My 80 mile ride last year was the longest I've ridden since college, just about 40 years ago. It tired me out plenty, but less than some of my earlier 60 mile rides. I've been riding about 3000 miles a year - it does feel like I am getting stronger. Maybe this year I will try a century.

Probably at age 25 a person can plunge ahead on an 80 mile ride, but at 55 I think a person will want to be quite fit before that kind of ride. Especially on a surface that is going to create significant rolling resistance. I don't know where along that spectrum the OP presently resides!

BruceHankins

30 and getting back into cycling! I plan to do a couple of longer rides on the trail with the bike....as soon as I put it back together. It's winter, that means tear down and service time. My rear freehweeel had some wobble to it, hope I can straighten it out, if not I have others.

TheReal Houdini

If your Walmart special is fully rigid and not likely to break down over the course of 80 roughish miles, I'd take that one. Consider putting 1.5" slicks at 50-60 psi on for the ride. In fact, you'll like these much more around town as well. No point in knobbies unless you're carving turns in dirt - which probably wouldn't work out too well on that bike anyway. Maybe wait for a dry stretch in the weather before heading out. The mud will slow you down and wear you out - not good conditions for personal record distance.

Enjoy the ride!

DCwom

30 miles to 80 miles is a big leap, I'd really want to get some longer rides in first, especially on less than ideal equipment & terrain. I assume you want to do this for fun, not penance. I remember my first 25 mile group ride, it was an out & back on a canal trail with an undersized Walmart bike, I had done 20 miles on the road before so going an extra 5 seemed like a no-brainer, but it was embarrassingly painful at the end as the last of the 50 mile folks were passing me, I had to keep stopping every 1/2 mile due to burning leg pain. Shortly after that I bought a better bike that fit me.

overbyte

RE: "...wouldn't take much more than a power bar and water".

Exercise physiologists say that you burn about 200 Calories per hour when doing serious bike riding, so to avoid running out of energy you need to eat about that much per hour. One Snickers or power bar is about that much (check the nutrition label). If you watch videos of competitive bike races, you'll see that the riders consume energy foods all along the way. You also need to drink at least a couple of big gulps of water per hour, more in hot weather.