Jtmav

So as a relative newbie(2 years of cycling) I was curious as to how many stops you take during a 20,30,40 miles and up to a 100. I did 30 miles today, beautiful day here in New England, and I usually stop midway no matter how long the ride. I stop for some water and a brief, 1-2 mins, of rest. I am just curious.
Thanks
JTMav

caloso

I try not to stop at all if I can help it. Usually depends on how much coffee I've had before the ride.

OldRailfan

Depends on the course and how I feel, but as short and little as possible.

Cougrrcj 

I stop at all stop signs and red traffic lights.

Now rest breaks are a different matter. Generally, every hour- to hour-and-a-half (16-25 miles), and only for five- to ten minutes. Eat an apple or granola bar, wash it down with plenty of water or sport drink, refill water bottle...

Biological function breaks - whenever, but I try to combine that with a rest break...

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Moisture

Only if something is physically stopping me from continuing to move safely.

Hit Factor

Really depends on how far I'm going. Riding a century, I'll plan 2 or 3 stops. Metric Century, one stop. 40 miles or less, not likely to stop.

Weather extremes and nature calls might change my plan.

Jtmav

I should have been more specific but I was asking about rest/water breaks.

Gravel Rider

I stop a lot. Whether to hydrate, take pictures or smell the roses. It''s all about the journey for me. I'm riding gravel and mountains but if I was riding road I'd probably stop less. ymmv

Nachoman

Under 50, usually no stops.

davester

I usually ride with friends on enjoyment rides and we typically stop to regroup, often at the top of a long climb. Since it is really hilly around here I would guess that the stopping interval is10 or 20 miles (i.e. once every 1,000 or 2,000 feet of climbing). On the other hand, if we're doing a century or greater ride it's important to keep on moving in order to be able to finish, so stops are at about 30 mile intervals.

downtube42

Usually I carry 2 water bottles, so I'll stop when I'm out of water. Usually that's 35 miles or so, less if hot more if cool.

Sometimes I'll carry 3 bottles, and extend appropriately.

Carbonfiberboy 

On long rides, about every 50 miles. Riding with friends there's always a mid-ride social stop, whatever the ride length, usually just coffee for me because I eat on the bike. Riding with my wife, I try to plan routes which include a social stop. We usually get Dove bars. Our usual ride length is 40-60 miles.

canklecat

Depends on how my neck feels and type of ride.

An old C1-C2 neck injury flares up occasionally and I'll need to stop more often to stretch and massage the muscle cramps along the neck and shoulder. On good days I might stop every couple of hours. On bad days, either more often or I'll cut the ride short.

For planned longer rides on good days without significant neck pain, I carry enough water and food that I don't need to stop to refuel anywhere. Depending on weather I might stop every couple of hours for a few minutes, but not too long. My legs stiffen up and feel dead if I stop too long. But an occasional short break, or soft pedaling for a few minutes, can feel refreshing.

For interval sessions I don't stop completely but soft pedal as appropriate for the workout plans. Same with running sessions. Those are usually about an hour, including warm up and cool down, so neck pain usually isn't much of an issue.

On fast group rides, I go by the ride leader's preferences. Those are usually 4-6 hours, with one planned rest stop for 15-20 minutes. There are regroup points, usually after long climbs, but the last straggler rarely gets a real rest break -- as soon as the last straggler catches up the group goes again. If I can't hang with the group, I'll drop off and go my own way. Often I'll finish the same distance but a little slower. That happens more often now, as I'm 63 and most folks in the faster groups are well under age 50. If the group are mostly 20s-40s, I know I'll be dropped within an hour. But that's how it goes with those rides.

On casual group rides we stop and regroup or rest as needed for the slowest or least fit participant. That's the whole purpose of some rides, to encourage newbies to keep coming back, get fitter and faster. If other folks are too impatient for that, there are other rides they can join.

andrewclaus

A typical day for me is 60 miles and I make it a point to stop once, even if I don't feel like it. I don't like doing anything for over two hours without a break. Alertness tends to wane, and if anything is important on a road bike it's being alert. Same with driving, any kind of labor, hiking, skiing, sitting at the computer, etc.

CAT7RDR

I can ride further if I take brief 5 minute breaks every hour to hydrate, eat, stretch, walk, take pics or plot a change in course.
Makes my rides more enjoyable.

If I am riding 60 miles+, I will take one longer break in the shade to cool down, pour water over me and eat a small meal.

Most of my rides are over 100' feet of ascent per mile so I am working harder for a Clyde.

BobbyG

I like to stop briefly every couple of hours.

For the last 4 years I've been on medication to diminish with the urgent need to pee. But before that I was having trouble making the 45-minute bike commute home without peeing at least once, and sometimes twice in the winter. Riding in to work in the morning was usually okay.

Mtl01

I generally take a five to 10 minute break per 30 kms. Also tend to plan my breaks around pee stops, lol.

Clyde1820

It's been years since I rode longer than 20mi on one ride. (Old injuries.)

Generally, a 10-15mi ride will involve a handful of stops at traffic signs. Aside from that, I might stop for a brief rest once, though often not.

Used to do a 40mi ride, to and from a spot where I'd be swimming for a couple of hours. Was a 20mi ride each direction, with no rest stops and only occasional stops for traffic signs. Didn't need rest stops, back then, for rides as short as 20mi.

Once did a 65mi (round-trip, out-and-back route) ride with a solid amateur competitive cyclist buddy of mine. We stopped for a 30min refuel and breather mid-way, before returning along the same route. Averaged 25mph on the ride. Other than a handful of stops for traffic signs, there were no stops for each of those two ~32mi legs. At that speed, I only needed two days of recovery following the ride, due to the aches and pains of pushing that hard to keep up with the guy. But didn't need any rest stops during the route, except the one mid-way before turning back.

wolfchild

I stop every time I feel like taking a drink or eating something. Sometimes I also stop to enjoy the scenery or just to relax and observe what is happening around. There is nothing wrong with stopping for whatever personal reasons you may have.

Chuck M 

I try to stop every 15 to 20 miles depending on a few things. If it is particularly hot and humid I will try to be smarter than tougher. If there is something particularly interesting I will stop and check it out.

As you can see from some of the replies, everyone stops or doesn't stop for different reasons. There are a lot of things in cycling, running and other activities where people try to gauge their success of performance by comparing to others. That is not how I like to enjoy my hobbies and I hope you are not trying to measure your enjoyment based off of others.

OldRailfan

Yep!
As a solo rider the only thing to measure "performance" .... how often does one get passed, how often does one pass others. At least that's how I see it.

And then there's the data of one's gizmo(s).

Chuckles1

Twice to drink on 20 mile or less rides, unless I need to pee, in which case I race home as fast as possible with no stops. Of course in extreme cases I'll find a place to go, but if I'm five miles or less from home, I'll just grind it out. Hope it doesn't cause urinisitisis!

BCAC

It depends. If I’m doing a 30-40 mile ride with others, no stops. If we are doing much further than that, every 25 miles or so. I ride for the fun of the ride and to socialize. My favorite kind of ride is around 50-65 miles, with an ice tea and energy bar break at an outdoor cafe, for conversation, at the halfway mark. Pace is between 20 - 25 mph, depending on who’s pulling. And how hot it is.

skidder

Well, this is the 'Fifty Plus' forum.

skidder

I haven't done a ride over 35 miles in over a year, so only short stops at turn around points (out-and-back rides), hot days when I need more water, flat tires & other mechanicals, and bathroom breaks.