Splitting a century
#1
Lover of Old Chrome Moly
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2011
Location: NW Minnesota
Posts: 2,949
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 143 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 23 Times
in
17 Posts
Splitting a century
How many of you would consider two 50-mile rides three hours apart an honest century?
The reason I ask is that there is a community bike shop 45+ miles from where I live that is open 2-5 pm Sunday afternoons (as well as some other evenings during the week) and I volunteer there often. This summer I am planning to ride to and from the shop each Sunday, weather permitting, in preparation for a couple of charity centuries this summer. By tweeking the route, I could easily make it 50 miles or more each way. How many of you would call this doing a century a week?
The reason I ask is that there is a community bike shop 45+ miles from where I live that is open 2-5 pm Sunday afternoons (as well as some other evenings during the week) and I volunteer there often. This summer I am planning to ride to and from the shop each Sunday, weather permitting, in preparation for a couple of charity centuries this summer. By tweeking the route, I could easily make it 50 miles or more each way. How many of you would call this doing a century a week?
#2
Zoom zoom zoom zoom bonk
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: New Zealand
Posts: 4,624
Bikes: Giant Defy, Trek 1.7c, BMC GF02, Fuji Tahoe, Scott Sub 35, Kona Rove, Trek Verve+2
Mentioned: 6 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 551 Post(s)
Liked 722 Times
in
366 Posts
The rules are you can't take off shoes or helmet during the break.
#3
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: Bay Area, Calif.
Posts: 7,239
Mentioned: 13 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 659 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 7 Times
in
6 Posts
Back when the League of American Wheelmen (now 'Bicyclists') promoted their Sanctioned Centuries, the distance of 100 miles had to be completed within 12 hours total elapsed time and be self-powered. There were no limitations on how participants wanted to allocate any rest stop periods within that time period. Nor were there any requirements on whether or not shoes or helmets were worn.
#4
Uber Goober
The "rules" are purely arbitrary, but I would call that two half-centuries, not a century.
If I set off on a 1200k ride, I can stop and sleep each night and still call that "one ride". But if I go to the store, come back, goof off a while, then go somewhere else, that's two rides.
If I set off on a 1200k ride, I can stop and sleep each night and still call that "one ride". But if I go to the store, come back, goof off a while, then go somewhere else, that's two rides.
__________________
"be careful this rando stuff is addictive and dan's the 'pusher'."
"be careful this rando stuff is addictive and dan's the 'pusher'."
#5
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: FL
Posts: 1,100
Bikes: Dolan Forza; IRO Jamie Roy; Giant TCR Comp 1; Specialized Tri-Cross Sport; '91 Cannondale tandem; Fuji Tahoe MTB
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times
in
3 Posts
If you were reporting the total time it took you to ride it -- including the 3-hour break -- then I'd call it a legit century. Otherwise, in my book, it'd be 2, 50-mile rides.
#6
In Real Life
Join Date: Jan 2003
Location: Down under down under
Posts: 52,152
Bikes: Lots
Mentioned: 141 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3203 Post(s)
Liked 596 Times
in
329 Posts
+1
__________________
Rowan
My fave photo threads on BF
Century A Month Facebook Group
Machka's Website
Photo Gallery
Rowan
My fave photo threads on BF
Century A Month Facebook Group
Machka's Website
Photo Gallery
#7
Commuter & cyclotourist
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Hadley, MA, USA
Posts: 496
Bikes: Boulder All Road, Surly Long Haul Trucker, Bike Friday New World Tourist, Breezer Uptown 8, Bike Friday Express Tikit, Trek MultiTrack 730 (Problem? No, I don't have a problem)
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times
in
0 Posts
Either way, you can say that you rode 100 miles in a day. Does it matter what you call it?
#8
Likes to Ride Far
It would go down in my logbook the same, regardless of how many hours break I had. My log book only has columns for each day for distance ridden, rolling time, and total ascent. As long as it's done during the same calendar day, it would therefore not matter to me.
#9
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2010
Location: Houston TX area
Posts: 816
Bikes: Trek 1420 triple, Mercier Corvus, Globe 1 700, Surly Disc Trucker, GT Avalanche, GT Grade, GT Helion, Mercier Corvus, Motobacane Boris X7 Fat Bikes,
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
I am new at this. I rode my 100 mile ride in 12.5 hours total time so I had three hours of break time along the way. More than an hour in one sitting because of the heat index of about 100 degrees. Also I did 93 miles in over 16 hours and did not call it a century. It was just a long day in the saddle I would call your ride a century if completed in 24 hours total ( I see others would not because they say 'calender day'. I see night rides as a way to get miles and that is why i am suggesting 24 hours)
#10
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: northern Deep South
Posts: 8,904
Bikes: Fuji Touring, Novara Randonee
Mentioned: 36 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2604 Post(s)
Liked 1,933 Times
in
1,213 Posts
How do you want to split the hair? In my book, it's all in one day, so it's a century.
I counted as a century a 70 miler a couple years ago, with 15 miles to the start of the ride to register, and 15 miles home after eating dinner. Pretty soon we'll have to argue over where you break between a one hour meal and a three hour volunteer shift.
I counted as a century a 70 miler a couple years ago, with 15 miles to the start of the ride to register, and 15 miles home after eating dinner. Pretty soon we'll have to argue over where you break between a one hour meal and a three hour volunteer shift.
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Arizona
Posts: 1,960
Bikes: Trek Domane 4.5, Trek 1500
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 20 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
Make mine a +3 here, if you are interested in being consider sanctioned or official. It is my understanding most of the double centuries have official cut off times. RUSA also has overall time limits for 200, 300, 400 and + brevets and permanents.
#12
Senior Member
Whether it's truly a century or not is pretty easy to determine.
Did the times of the rides fall on two different days according to the French time zone? If the French don't approve, there's nothing further to argue. The French are the final authority on everything cycling. Everything.
Did the times of the rides fall on two different days according to the French time zone? If the French don't approve, there's nothing further to argue. The French are the final authority on everything cycling. Everything.
__________________
Momento mori, amor fati.
Momento mori, amor fati.
#13
Uber Goober
To the French, a century would be 100km if anything, would it not?
__________________
"be careful this rando stuff is addictive and dan's the 'pusher'."
"be careful this rando stuff is addictive and dan's the 'pusher'."
#14
Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: FL
Posts: 1,100
Bikes: Dolan Forza; IRO Jamie Roy; Giant TCR Comp 1; Specialized Tri-Cross Sport; '91 Cannondale tandem; Fuji Tahoe MTB
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 4 Times
in
3 Posts
Interesting related note: Back in the day, the Big Dogs Ultracycling site (a few of us here have been logging our rides there for years) used to only give you credit for one century, no matter how long the ride was, if it was longer than 100 miles. Since people were competing to see how many centuries they could ride in a month/year/whatever, some would log a 1200K, for example, as 7 different rides (thus making it 7 centuries). Seems a bit of a raw deal to ride ~740 miles and only get credit for one century. That was changed a few years ago, and the website now give you credit for the number of centuries that can be evenly divided into whatever your ride distance was. The site still doesn't let you put in times in increments of more than 24 hours, though. To a lot of pople (me included), a ride gets logged only on the day it starts, and then you log the total distance of the ride, the saddle time, the total time, and other stats you want to track (weather, elevation change, calories consumed, whatever). I'm always too out of it on rides that are on multiple calendar days to remember how far I went at midnight or 24 hours from the start or any other increment that might make sense.
#15
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 1,247
Mentioned: 5 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 138 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 17 Times
in
16 Posts
I don't even log century rides because most of my rides aren't century, they are longer than century rides. Today for example, I did over 127 miles.
I only keep track of how many 100-100+ mile days I ride. I'm trying for one a week for an entire year. Right now I'm on week 28 with two double metric centuries this week alone.
This time of year with limited daylight I pretty much have to do them straight through but during the summer months when I'm riding faster and when the days are much longer I can break them up anyway I want to.
My question for znomit is...so you go to walk into a store to buy a snack or go to the bathroom, or fill up your water bottle, do you still keep your helmet on. I never do. Sure I keep the shoes on but I don't ever keep my helmet or sunglasses/ski googles on when I go into a store.
I only keep track of how many 100-100+ mile days I ride. I'm trying for one a week for an entire year. Right now I'm on week 28 with two double metric centuries this week alone.
This time of year with limited daylight I pretty much have to do them straight through but during the summer months when I'm riding faster and when the days are much longer I can break them up anyway I want to.
My question for znomit is...so you go to walk into a store to buy a snack or go to the bathroom, or fill up your water bottle, do you still keep your helmet on. I never do. Sure I keep the shoes on but I don't ever keep my helmet or sunglasses/ski googles on when I go into a store.
#16
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2005
Posts: 5,866
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 2 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 3 Times
in
2 Posts
Personally I never cared much about centuries. It just doesn't seem like that big a deal to ride 100 miles. (That is JUST riding 100 miles, if one is dealing with total time or some of the routes involved it is a totally different story).
#17
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: Northern California
Posts: 723
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 41 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 9 Times
in
7 Posts
Dang, I wish this thread had existed before I rode a "Midnight Century" last August. The ride is put on by a bunch of the local clubs and doesn't start going until ~6pm. While I think a lot of people finished the metric version before midnight, I rode the 100mi length and didn't get back until a little past midnight. "Midnight Hundred Mile Ride" doesn't sound as good though.
#18
Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2011
Location: Fort Wayne, IN
Posts: 464
Bikes: No. 22 Bicycle Great Divide, Lynskey R260, Salsa Colossal Ti, Litespeed T5, Lynskey Peloton, Bianchi Vigorelli, CAAD 10, Giant FastRoad CoMax 1, C-Dale Quick 1
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 50 Post(s)
Liked 36 Times
in
18 Posts
I'm kinda new at this, though I have logged more than 6000 miles in each of the past 4 years. IMHO there are too many of these nit picky, arbitrary "rules". Ride to the shop and then ride back. You rode a century. Our annual club "century" ride in July....the various routes loop out of one SAG. Some of our members ride the century and spend as much time talking/socializing at the SAG as they do riding. Eventually they get back on their bikes and complete 100 miles. It is a century folks.
#19
Uber Goober
"My question for znomit is...so you go to walk into a store to buy a snack or go to the bathroom, or fill up your water bottle, do you still keep your helmet on. I never do. Sure I keep the shoes on but I don't ever keep my helmet or sunglasses/ski googles on when I go into a store."
I used to always take it off, but anymore, find it's just as easy to leave it on.
I used to always take it off, but anymore, find it's just as easy to leave it on.
__________________
"be careful this rando stuff is addictive and dan's the 'pusher'."
"be careful this rando stuff is addictive and dan's the 'pusher'."
#20
Lover of Old Chrome Moly
Thread Starter
Join Date: May 2011
Location: NW Minnesota
Posts: 2,949
Mentioned: 3 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 143 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 23 Times
in
17 Posts
Wow, more controversy than I expected. As the entire trip, including three hours at the bike shop, would take between nine and eleven hours, it appears that it could informally be considered a century. I'm not worried about it either way. I'm just trying to tack down some of the terminology for a sport that's fairly new to me.
I realize that a century might not be significant to a seasoned rider, but three years ago I weighed nearly 300 pounds and was in a hospital bed with heart problems wondering if I was going to live to see 50. Walking up a flight of stairs left me short of breath and wheezing. Now I'm 60+ pounds lighter. I started cycling seriously last spring and in one year have gone from needing to rest after slogging 5 miles around the neighborhood, to group riding 20-30 miles regularly toward the end of last summer. I've made a few 50-60 mile highway rides without putting a foot down. The 75-mile and Twin Century charity rides I have planned for this summer will be real milestones for me.
It just doesn't seem like that big a deal to ride 100 miles.
#21
KingoftheMountain wannabe
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Independence, Oregon
Posts: 1,152
Bikes: V.O. Pass Hunter & Specialized Hardrock
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
I'd consider two separate rides. The distance (cut in half) just isn't enough to call it a century with a three hour break in the middle of it. Three hours is far more than enough time to relax and recover after that distance. It removes the "challenge" of completing a century.
Don't get me wrong, however. It's still a great accomplishment and you are going to rack up great miles and improve your fitness. Doing two 50 mile rides a day is very impressive.
Don't get me wrong, however. It's still a great accomplishment and you are going to rack up great miles and improve your fitness. Doing two 50 mile rides a day is very impressive.
#22
Senior Member
Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 817
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 2 Times
in
1 Post
I realize that a century might not be significant to a seasoned rider, but three years ago I weighed nearly 300 pounds and was in a hospital bed with heart problems wondering if I was going to live to see 50. Walking up a flight of stairs left me short of breath and wheezing. Now I'm 60+ pounds lighter. I started cycling seriously last spring and in one year have gone from needing to rest after slogging 5 miles around the neighborhood, to group riding 20-30 miles regularly toward the end of last summer. I've made a few 50-60 mile highway rides without putting a foot down.
#23
Lurking Under a Rock
Join Date: Jan 2011
Location: Golden, CO
Posts: 139
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
I think you should call it whatever you want to call it. Who cares what RUSA says, UMCA says, random people on the interwebz you've met say? It's a great accomplishment, and my hat is off to anyone who wants to spend their summer sundays riding 100 miles roud trip & volunteering at a bike program. If you want to play by someone else's rules then that is fine. But if you're cycling for the enjoyment, who cares?!
Where I live, people don't think I am a serious long distance cyclist b/c I have never completed LOTOJA. To each their own (that double century costs $175!, plus you have to enter a drawing). Don't ever loose track of why you are cycling, however it is you define it.
BTW, I get nasty hot foot in the summers, so I have taken my helmet and shoes off during a 200k. GASP!!
Where I live, people don't think I am a serious long distance cyclist b/c I have never completed LOTOJA. To each their own (that double century costs $175!, plus you have to enter a drawing). Don't ever loose track of why you are cycling, however it is you define it.
BTW, I get nasty hot foot in the summers, so I have taken my helmet and shoes off during a 200k. GASP!!
#24
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Minnesota
Posts: 857
Bikes: Cannondale '92 T600 '95 H600 '01 RT1000
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 92 Post(s)
Liked 109 Times
in
82 Posts
Myosmith, I'll vote for calling it a century. And congrats on your accomplishments over the past three years!
#25
Senior Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Posts: 2,318
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 0 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 1 Time
in
1 Post
Wow, more controversy than I expected. As the entire trip, including three hours at the bike shop, would take between nine and eleven hours, it appears that it could informally be considered a century. I'm not worried about it either way. I'm just trying to tack down some of the terminology for a sport that's fairly new to me.
I realize that a century might not be significant to a seasoned rider, but three years ago I weighed nearly 300 pounds and was in a hospital bed with heart problems wondering if I was going to live to see 50. Walking up a flight of stairs left me short of breath and wheezing. Now I'm 60+ pounds lighter. I started cycling seriously last spring and in one year have gone from needing to rest after slogging 5 miles around the neighborhood, to group riding 20-30 miles regularly toward the end of last summer. I've made a few 50-60 mile highway rides without putting a foot down. The 75-mile and Twin Century charity rides I have planned for this summer will be real milestones for me.
I realize that a century might not be significant to a seasoned rider, but three years ago I weighed nearly 300 pounds and was in a hospital bed with heart problems wondering if I was going to live to see 50. Walking up a flight of stairs left me short of breath and wheezing. Now I'm 60+ pounds lighter. I started cycling seriously last spring and in one year have gone from needing to rest after slogging 5 miles around the neighborhood, to group riding 20-30 miles regularly toward the end of last summer. I've made a few 50-60 mile highway rides without putting a foot down. The 75-mile and Twin Century charity rides I have planned for this summer will be real milestones for me.