Originally Posted by Speedie95

This was a solo ride, yes. I spend all week around other people, and riding is my escape from that haha

The gearing question that you both posed is a good one. My small chainring is 39T and my large cog is 32T which gives a ratio of 1.22 and a speed of 7.25 MPH @ 75 RPM if I've done the math right. Gears were definitely something that I struggled with as I've completed my previous (much flatter) rides without ever needing the small chainring. I was caught out having to change between large and small, frequently losing momentum in the process. Practice, practice, practice will solve that!




I love your idea of pre-ride nutrition! Perhaps the couple of beers would have put me over the top. Hmmmm.

Having bonked on my first half-century when I was really new and left my fig bars on the kitchen counter, I've resolved never to run out of food or water again. I had a CamelBak with 2.5L of an electrolyte drink, 3 x 24oz bottles of chocolate milk for carbs, and 6 packs of fig bars at 220 calories each. I was stopping for food regularly and biting down on the CamelBak every couple of miles, but that couldn't overcome my body just not being conditioned for the climbs.



Thanks! I'm going to take that saying to heart and make hills a regular part of my training. Several of the climbs are in the first 10 miles or so from my house with a nice flat section leading to and from them, so a couple of times a week I plan to head there and ride up and down them, practicing my gear shifts and cadence, and getting my body more accustomed to the different stresses that climbing imposes. It will be good for my overall fitness anyway, and I'm going to master than hilly route one way or another.