Metric Century - advice?
 

So it looks as if I'll be going on my first Metric Century (does that even really count as anything, or does it make us feel better about riding ~62 miles?) this Saturday. I haven't been riding much lately, and the longest rides I've gone on were 30 miles.

I've got a nice 3 - 4 hour break in the middle, so that should help me.

Any advice on what I should prepare for? Diet the night before, breakfast before I go, fuel while on the ride?

Thanks in advance!

First off, if you can ride 30 miles you can ride 62. It's all in your head. My best advice is to keep the rubber side down and move the cranks clockwise.

Make sure you stay hydrated, this is very important when on a longer ride. Take a drink every 10 minutes or so. If you wait until you are thirsty then you are too late. You should probably take a bottle of gatoraide mixed 50/50 with water. Straight gatoraide is just too much for me when on a long hot ride but YMMV.

Food wise try and have a 150-200 calorie snack every 15 miles or so. I wouldn't eat anything too heavy or something new to you. Stick with what works best for you. Personally I like cliff bars and fig newtons.

Rest well and have a healthy meal the night before. A simple breakfast of whole grain cereal and fruit works for me. Bring your favorite sports drink, you will need to replace salt and other minerals that are lost while sweating. Drink 20 to 30 oz of fluids every hour. Eat fruit and/or trail mix bars every hour. Stay ahead of the curve, it takes food and fluids consumed up to an hour to reach working muscles.

Ride your pace, don't try to keep up with a faster group unless the end is near.

Have fun.

Michael

A 3 or 4 hour break in the middle of what?:eek:

Just make sure you drink and eat. At least one bottle per hour. I eat (drink?) a Hammer Gel every 30-45 minutes, and grab some solid food halfway through.

I also eat breakfast 3 hours before the ride starts. Occasionally that requires waking up way before dawn, eating, and then going back to bed. But the 3 hours allows time for everything to be digested. Then a gel when the ride starts.

But, yeah, if you can do 30, you can do 60. Just resist the urge to push too hard at the beginning. I always try to average a higher speed over the second half of the ride than the first half. It doesn't always work out like that, but that's my goal.

In the middle of the ride. So it's more like 2-30 milers. But it's all in the same day, so I figure it counts :D

That sounds wonderful, I'll give that a try.

I'll be riding solo, so there won't be a group to keep pace with ... although that may be a bad thing. I'm always pushing myself to go faster and faster, even when I know I need to conserve myself.

Thanks for the advice, guys. I'll definitely be getting some gatorade and doing some rummaging around in the cupboard for some clif bars. I'm pretty sure we've got a few sitting around.

With that break, it sounds like you are basically going on two 30ish mile rides in the same day.

My general suggestion for anyone based on my limited experience may apply for you (especially on the second half), and that is to be sure to pace yourself, and don't ride fast based on the excitement of going on a great ride. If you start out a little slow, you will enjoy the end of the ride a lot more.

If you haven't spent much time on the bike recently, follow the above suggestions on food/water, take your time, and you will only have one more issue... your body not being used to spending 3+ hours in the saddle in one day. Be sure to stand occasionally, and wear some good shorts that won't chafe.

And also, at this point, you can not get your body in any better shape at the last minute for the endurance, but do take some nice easy spins between now and then.

Good advice when looking at the bike from the drive side. :innocent:

Carbo load before the ride (pasta) and re-fuel w/ electrolytes (coca cola and potato chips) during the ride. Recover w/ chocolate milk after the ride. No, I'm not kidding.

Nevermind! All I can say is that with breaks included, I did a 520 mile ride this month!:D

Before or after the 4 hour break?

During the ride. During the 4 hr. break, just eat a normal meal of ribs, beer and ribs.

You should be fine. I wouldn't worry about a pre-ride meal. You should have a great time.

Yes, it counts as a new accomplishment for you. That is something that you can be proud of.

Good advice above on diet so I won't repeat it. Just read Barrettsvc's post as it contains all you need to know and do.

I guess this is a 'roll your own' event. I daresay most organized centuries dpn't have a three-four hour rest period in the middle. Too much time to let muscles stiffen. When I was touring on 60 mile days I didn't spend any more than an hour tops at a stop, and usually much less than that.

If you've done a 30 miler before, then don't sweat doing 2 of them in one day.

Keep your routine same as you have for any previous 30 mile ride. Have a sandwich during the 3 hour break (is this some scheduled event you're stopping for, or have you really just planned for a 3 hour break in the middle of a metric?)

If you've planned a 3 - 4 hour break, I suggest you back that down to 1h max. Your legs will thank you for it when you get back on the bike. Too much time and you'll cool down and it will take longer to warm things back up again when you start riding.
When I'm doing long rides (200k - 300k) I try and max out my lunch break at 20 minutes and keep all other stops around 7 minutes.