Black wallnut 

June 30 is the prologue for Le Tour de France. I propose that we challenge ourselves to not only exceed 100 miles this month but to ride on every single day that the pros are racing in Le Tour. They take one day off a week. Rules as follows:

1. Any distance in excess of a mile counts as ride
2. On a sprinters course your ride should include one sprint
3. On a climbers course day your ride needs to have one climb
4. On a time trial day ride as much in the drops (if you've got them) as possible
5. Ride at least 100 miles over the duration of the race

Whose in? Post daily or weekly updates, your choice.

Mithrandir

Interesting proposal. I'm not sure I can ride 6 days a week unless I make some really slow recovery ride days. But I'm in. I'm not going to be able to ride in the drops though; I tried that today going downhill, trying to finally hit 40mph... but I was not stable at all and felt like I was about to make the bike fall over... at 38mph. So I stopped.


Incidentally MapMyRide.com has a Tour de France challenge:

https://www.mapmyfitness.com/tdf/


Ride 100 (4.6%), 544 (25%), 1,087 (50%), and 2,173 (100%) miles in 23 days.

I signed up for 544.

Black wallnut 

Yessir, I'm in that for the 544 miles, saw taht right after i posted this challenge lol.

Cyclist0084

Ride every day the pros are racing the Tour? Sounds like a challenge I can handle. Count me in.

Black wallnut 

Prologue stage today, short time trail. I rode 40.14 miles which included a Cat 1 climb 7.05 miles average grade 6.5%. Spent a good part of the ride in the drops and rode hard on the way back after it leveled out.

chefisaac

Black: I would love to sign up but it will not happen this month until I am clear.... if you know what I mean!

jeneralist 

Would stationary bikes count? I'll be out of town for a few days without my trusty steed, but if riding the "bike" at the hotel's gym would count, I might be able to do it.

Black wallnut 

It's the honor system. If that is all that is available I say sure why not.

Isaac do what you can bud. Hope you recover soon.

Mithrandir

https://app.strava.com/rides/12133935
https://connect.garmin.com/activity/194366918

First metric of the year. Very nearly gave up. Woke up late due to being tired from last night's climbing extravaganza. Couldn't get started so I started watching the TdF. Time flew, pretty soon it was after noon, but I went anyway. Crazy wind, 30-40mph. Put everything I had into it, reasoning I'd have the worlds most awesome tailwind on the way home.

Nope. Wind shifted. When I turned around expecting a nice 30 mile tailwind I got blasted in the face, then screamed at the wind, as if that might change its mind. Really wanted to do it with no breaks today, but I lost it by mile 55, and took 30 minutes on a park bench, lying down. It was nearly impossible to get going again. Was pretty disappointed in my time...

Until I uploaded the data to Garmin. I did 2 metrics last year. 9 hours and 13 minutes, then 7 hours and 59 minutes. Today was 5 hours and 47 minutes, so I cut more than 2 hours off of last years time. Plus I did about 2x more climbing too.

Now I'm happy again. But there's a 90% chance I'm not biking tomorrow. My right leg is really cramping.

Black wallnut 

Great story Mithrandir. Only a mile plus a foot........that's almost all it takes to stay in the challenge. heck if it is windy tomorrow ride walk into it for a mile and sprint with it home.

Mithrandir

Hmm tell you what. I don't like getting on the bike for small distances anymore, seems pointless when I know I can do so much more. But lately I've been making exceptions for climbing; ie "I can cut 10 miles off this ride if I double the elevation". So tomorrow I'll do 5 miles @ 500ft, ie one hill, then wheeeeee my way back home (for a total of 10)

Mithrandir

https://app.strava.com/activities/12185149
https://connect.garmin.com/activity/194565054#


Only made it 1.5 miles before the legs mutinied, so I turned back for 3.

Black wallnut 

Stage 1 seems to be ideally suited to sprinters with only 5 category climbs and each one only a cat 4. However the final climb is also the finish.

CJ C

this is a good idea, me likey.

Sadly i dont follow the tour de france or even understand it. I missed yesterdays ride but i rode today and threw in a sprint. dont know if todays tour stage had a sprint but i will count it

ddmann

By a stroke of luck I rode yesterday for the first time in nearly three years, (the result of a pretty ugly fall on my head). I have gained nearly 50 more pounds due to inactivity, so now I am clocking just under 300. After watching the prologue I decided I simply had to get back on the bike. Despite pleading with my physical therapist she still has not cleared me for riding again, but sometimes you just got to to, what you got to do.

This challenge is a perfect choice for me right now. My job disappeared last week so riding every day will not be an issue, (kind of looking forward to it actually). Tonight I am riding to a friend's house for a BBQ it's about three miles uphill and sweet, sweet downhill on the way home.

So I say "Challenge Accepted".

Black wallnut 

I went a total of 32 miles today. Mostly just to get out there and put some time in. There was a strong headwind to just past the half way point. My one sprint also happened to be a climb segment on Strava that I moved up the leader board on. Yesterday I think I was faster but by that point in my ride yesterday my phone's battery had already died. Even so I gave it all I had.

jeneralist 

Yesterday: 23.8 miles, 1728 feet elevation
Today: 18.9 miles, 1690 feet elevation

Black wallnut 

Monday Stage 2 loks like a pure sprinters stage. With only one categorized climb and that being only a cat 4 all the sprinters should be poised at the end of a long flat race.

Black wallnut 

Rode 21.43 miles total in three rides: regular commute morning, lunchtime short ride, and a longer afternoon commute. Since it was a sprinters stage I put in ne short sprint, about a city block long.

Black wallnut 

Tuesday Stage 3 should be an interesting stage, mostly flat but then 6 climbs in the last third. The finish is a .7 km climb @7.4%.

Ride at least a mile and in that climb at least one hill. If you live in Florida yes overpasses count.

jeneralist 

Yesterday: forgot about the TdF until after I got home from a friend's birthday party after work -- I wound up riding the stationary bike 1.6 miles in my basement.

Today I made sure that on the way home from work, I went looking for a hill instead of just riding along the river. 15.6 miles, 796 feet.

Black wallnut 

Today was another very windy day. Only managed 7.12 miles but I did climb a block long steep hill.

BionicChris

I have started late but I intend on doing a 10% Tour distance, I will keep going 2 days after the finish in order to complete the 2 days I missed.

2/7: 5 miles
3/7: 15 miles
4/7: 13.5 miles

Total: 33.5 miles

szewczykm

I have to admit, I wasn't going to ride this morning. It's freaking hot, I had no clean bike shorts, I was up late the night before, and a few other excuses. I thought about this challenge then dragged my ass out of bed, packed my water, put on regular shorts, and inflated my tires and went.

Black wallnut 

Way to go! Today's stage is a sprinters stage with a few small hills thrown in to keep it interesting. After getting up a bit early and watching today's stage I am stoked to go for my ride.