I haven't dont a century. One day. But I always wanted to ride cross country.

After my first century I didnt even want to look at my road bike for the next 4-5 days. I did manage to putter about town with my Motobecane Super Mirage just for fun, though.

I did the same century the following year, did a couple of others, then started in on randonneuring, and did a 200k for that.

If you finished the century and felt pretty good, you could probably do the 200k okay. Or if you felt wiped out, but also did it fast, you could probably back off on the speed and do a 200k okay. You're allowed 13.5 hours on the 200k.

If you've been picking out flat courses, try picking out hillier courses for training.

Don't forget to have fun along in there, too.

Maybe you should try different metrics then. I recommend this one.

http://www.tourdecashiers.com/toour-...etric-century/

It has only 7200' of climbing in the short 62 miles. I doubt you would get bored with it. lol (BTW, the mapmyride elevations are whack)

I did my first organized century in 1988 and a bunch more since then. For a few years I did a club century every Saturday. I toured 3000 miles once.
I have never been concerned about time or speed, just having a good ride with friends is the best thing.
Last Saturday they talked me into 90 miles in the hills but if it had been 100 it wouldn't have made much difference.

Or you could become a Mad Dog.

I wasnt totally wiped out but there was considerable discomfort (read: pain) from all the miles. I did two 81mi rides building up to it but what really made the ride slow was having a 15-25mph headwind most of the ride. Much of the first 50mi was done on the small chainring (oldschool Trek 12sp) and 2-3mph off pace. Not the best day for riding. However, it was a flat 100mi pretty much.

By the way, I'm enjoying the posts and viewpoints/preferences. We have hills here in northern Michigan and could easily map a very hilly century :)

But only if the weather promised me a windless day.

From 93 onwards I only did one 100 mile ride a year. Bit of a toughie and I used to train all year for it. Started in January and it was down the gym twice a week besides the usual Sunday rides. April and the gym got cut and two evening rides came in and the weekend rides got the milage upped. End of May and I was reaching PEAK fitness and was one of those to chase up the hills on the weekend rides that were reaching 65 miles or so. Longest day of the year and it was ride time. Needed all the hours possible to do the ride in daylight and it used to take me about 14 hours to complete.

Kept the training up to be ready for next year and it was those easy Fun rides. 30- 40- 65 mile enduros and the occasional metric on the road. 4 hour road metrics were my aim but on the occasional full 100 milers I never got below 7 hours. Come November and I had eased off and it was just 30 miles at the weekend before the training started again January for the next 100 miler.

I failed the ride in 97 and 98 I did the Sag wagon for our team. Didn't do the ride again till 2003 after a few medical problems and this time it was on the Tandem. 04 and 05 did it again but 2006 and I decided to call it a day on what is probably the hardest one day ride offroad in the UK. That was the year I failed for the 2nd time in 11 attempts and My co- rider called it a day aswell while he went to Uni as a mature student.

Link to that last South Downs Way in 1 day ride is as below.

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ns-Way-failure

So I no longer do my favourite 100 miler and doubt that I could ever have the energy to train for it again. Instead I'll keep my fitness up by doing some of those easy road century rides.:innocent:

So I have done opposite to most of you--All I look for now is the challenge that is achievable and within my capabilities. Been there and done that on the "Extreme" type of ride and I think I have a T Somewhere.

I think I rode my first century back in 1972 or so. It was either Mt. Hamilton or the Marin Century in California. For Marin, I was on a PX-10, in the small ring for most of it (because I read and was told I should stay in small gears), and tried to keep up with the racers, who were riding a relaxed pace until we hit the town limit signs, then all hell would break loose. After that I started racing, for most of 35 years, with a couple years spent doing randonneur rides. Now I find I have way more fun just riding. Racing is just too much mental pressure in addition to all the boring training time you have to put in. I never get bored on long, quiet rides thru the open countryside.

Also, I do most of the century rides on my fixed gear bike. Makes it more challenging. This year's goal is a Cali Triple Crown (Davis, Borrego, Knoxville) on the fixie. Next year (2013), it's London-Edinburgh-London, and then enjoying some operas at Glyndebourne. I just love combining cycling and opera!

Luis

Rode my first double about a month after that first century.

I took my wife on her first century. It was the first half of the Seattle to Portland ride. She jokes that she liked it so much she got up the next day and did her second century — the second half of the 200 mile ride.

I've been doing 20+ century-length rides a year, for the last 4 or 5 years. But my longest ride so far was 118 miles last fall. I may try to do a longer-length ride some time this year, but usually after 100 I've had about all the fun I can stand. Normally it's my feet or my butt that's telling me to stop by that point, almost never my legs.

I still haven't done a century this year. I might get in two over the warm weekend though :)

I've ridden three fixed gear centuries but never tried a double fixed.

I can imagine Davis and Knoxville on a fixed gear . . . but Borrego, wow, that's going to be a challenge. Just that first climb (Montezuma Grade) on a fixed gear would use me up! Anyway, good luck with that!

Rick / OCRR

That's brave. I'm spoiled. Havent owned a fix gear since I was 10. My daddy bought me a Royce Union 3sp "english racer" and that was the end of pumping those big hills. Not long after that came the first roadie, the '72 Motobecane Mirage. Man, I was stylin' and livin' large.

My philosophy exactly...

It wouldnt take much to beat the time on my first century (last August). In the first 7mi I took a whizz stop (coffee ya know) at a country gas station and was a witness to a police chase and shots fired. That took almost 45min out of my day. Then there was the 15-25mph headwind that took another hour of my time, not to mention the energy sapped for the remainder of the ride.

Yeah, I'm going to beat the record this year....or should I say, establish one that should have been done last season.