I'm 51 and started riding last year. I rode 38 century+ rides this year including 9 back to back on my west coast tour in july. I do them for two reasons. First, I like spending time riding in the country and 7-10 hours out seems like a nice amount of time. Second, doing 100+ miles opens up a world of possibilities as to possible routes and lets me get out to some beautiful roads with little or no traffic at all. After you get used to them, they are just the new normal.

Its a Clubby thing, when I go with any Club rides full of 'type A' personalities, as soon as they drop me ,
which is what they are all about, I go Home. or I continue the ride as if I started it as a solo ride anyhow..

Texas Ray,
Sounds pretty good for just returning to bicycling, that amount of centuries is impressive for even a veteran. You and I ride for the same reasons it seems, if you have some pics they would be neat to see here.

Bill

Hi Bill
Here are a couple from Xmas eve morning. The fog in the valley was beautiful but it was cold as the dickens when we came through it. I stopped at the top to thaw my fingers and enjoy the view.

Beautiful pictures Ray, very well composed. Glad you had a good ride then.

Bill

Nice pics Ray....

I rode my first century back in '78 and I honestly have no idea how many I've ridden since; alone, with a few friends, or as major organized events. They were all fun though, as well as I can remember! Lots of adventures over the years, a bit of pain and suffering too, of course, things don't always go the way you'd like (or had planned).

A century is just a number though, and not a particularly magic number at that. I rode my first double century in '84 and lost count of how many I'd ridden until I moved to California in '95. Here they have an organization that actually counts the doubles for you! So now I know I've ridden 55 California doubles. 200 is just a number too though.

Big picture, they're all fun or else we wouldn'd ride them! And, as i like to point out, centuries are good training for doubles!

All that said, as I'm getting older (62 now) I've ridden less. Only 15 centuries this year plus only 3 doubles. Have to see how inspired I am for next year!

Anyway, OP, just go for it. It will be all good fun in the end, even with a few challenges thrown in along the way.

Rick / OCRR

I do about 2-3 centuries per year. I do 50 mile rides most weekends. I have done solo centuries but that was some time ago. In these days with cell phones, suffering a break down in the boonies is not such a bad thing, you are just a phone call from assistance. The trick with centuries is to not push yourself to hard early on. You can still finish a century after burning yourself out, but it isn't fun. I would suggest knocking off a mile or two per hour off of your shorter ride cruising speed. If you still feel fresh at the 70+ mile point, then you can increase your speed. Centuries are not all that hard if you stay hydrated, eat some food, and ride sensibly. They just take awhile.