Man, I need some advice (and maybe a good dose of reality).

So there’s a century here in NC that I’d really like to ride, and since I'm leaving the state and it's in a really fantastic area, this might be my last chance (http://bloodsweatandgears.org/).

HOWEVER:

1) I’ve never ridden over 50 miles at one time
2) The century has somewhere between 10000 and 13000 feet of climbing (sources vary)
3) It’s in just over two weeks!!

Sounds like a foolhardy plunge, eh?

I’m in pretty good shape, but still weigh in at 210 lbs--so the climbing could be killer...

Anyone here followed through with such a hair-brained scheme?

Am I nuts?

Do it for the experience/view...if the hills get the better of you, SAG to the top and continue on.
That is what a few people did at our recent local Sequoia Century

ExMachina,

13000 ft is a tremendous amount of climbing for a first century (or 2nd, or 3rd...)

Have you considered cycling the half century - 50 mile route and hit a full century later in the season as you build your miles? The 50 mile route still offers about 6,000 feet of climbing according to the website.

Depending on where the two routes split, you may be able to make your decision during the ride depending on how strong you are feeling.

Have fun and let us know how it goes!

A tremendous amount of climbing indeed! And a wise suggestion about the half.

Unfortunately, the half century is a different route--not nearly as "interesting"

That is a lot of climbing. The first double I did had just under 7000. Part way through I was wishing I had gone for the lowland route and tried for a tripple instead.

Well, then you are nuts. Enjoy the interesting ride. I am jealous - it sounds like fun. It will surely hurt, but it will be... ummm.... what you said; "interesting".

If I weren't all the way in Connecticut, I'd put myself through the challenge too!! :D

Sounds like even if you ride a triple, might be a little over your head with so little experience and so little time to train. However, you never know what the motivated mind is capable of - just make sure your ego/confidence isn't in for a huge hit if you have to bail. Trying isn't going to kill you, but you might be sore for a while...just read up on right preparation/eating/drinking guidelines and you'll be fine no matter what the outcome. The only person who knows your motivation and level of fitness is you. It often helps mentally to drive the course first to understand where the trouble spots for you are likely to be. This will also give you a boost of confidence if you get over some of those spots feeling good.

Get out this weekend and ride 75 miles with 9000" of climbing. This is 75% of your century distance and climbing. If you can finishh that training ride, you might have a fighting chance. 10,000'+ centuries are really tough (just did one with 12,000' in early May), I would suggest as other have, doing the 50 miler, or chosing a more reasonable first century. That being said, if you really want to, just go as far as you can, you can always get sagged in if you bit off too much. Good Luck, and give us a report if you try it. Also, if you do go for it, make sure you have correct gearing for that type of ride (at least a 39 x 27 or a triple or compact).

OC Roadie, that's almost exactly what I've got planned for Saturday, though hills are scarce and I think I will have a hard time racking up the 9000'--should be able to swing at least 5000' though.

Heck, maybe I *am* crazy. Now that I think about it, I choose my first crit partly because it was a notorioulsy difficult course, and I entered it with the express goal of self distructing in as painful and spectacular a way as posible (it would at least make a heck of a story, right?). Didn't turn out to be that destructive or painful, but this century very well might make up for that! :D <ugh>

Not to sound discouraging, but 5000' is nothing compared to 10-13k. Do some repeats on the hills that are available and get as many feet in as you can, at least try to rack up 7500.

Really? :eek: A few SAGs passed us on Zayante and asked us, "sure you don't want a little lift just to the top?", I thought they were joking! Even though the 10,000+ on the 200K was pretty tough, I can't imagine getting SAGged for just a hill, that's kind of lame.

Anyway: ExMachina: 10 to 13,000' in 100 miles is going to be one hell of a lot of climbing if you haven't even done half of that, or half the distance. Hard to really say because we don't really know your whole training regimen and experience, but I'd guess that you might be in for more than "just enough pain" on this ride. If it were later in the year, you'd have enough time to train, but June 25 is going to come up awfully fast.

Good luck, man . . .

Wow man, I'm working up to a 125 mile 13000ft ride in September, and am roughly at the same stage in development as you (only ridden 63 miles max). If I was to do it now, there is no way I could make it without a trip to the hospital at the end.

Sounds like fun though, go for it :D

LOL How does it go again? "With friends like these..." ;)

I haven't done the ride in Boone, but I can tell you that 10,000+ elevation gain is tough even for a lot of little guys. Here's the thing. A friend of mine did the Assault on Mitchell again this year. With the rain they were 10 hours in the saddle. Any time for me over 7 hours in the saddle is really uncomfortable. If you try it, remember riding anything over about 60 miles is very different from shorter rides. I bonked really hard on a century a week ago. I knew better, but just didn't eat enough. You have to eat, eat more and drink a lot or you won't have a chance. Bad nutrition that you can get away with on a 50 mile training ride will kick your butt on a century. OTOH, I've read that BS&G is really well supported so you could be fine to do as much as you can and then SAG the rest of the way in... The mountains around there really are pretty.

You could come over and do the metric at Cherohala Challenge this Saturday as a tune up. It's only about 3 hours from Boone. 6000'+ in the metric.

http://www.smwbike.org/cherohala/images/checha62.jpg

I would say go for it, but pace yourself and make sure you have plenty of gearing for a long day of climbing.. Do not grind over the climbs or you will be suffering at half way..

If you normally ride a 12-23 think about putting a 12-27 for the ride..

I was actually serious! If the ride was tomorrow I'd do it, even if it meant enjoying a nice little ambulance ride at the finish.

Ya won't get better unless you push yourself to the limits, and you won't know what you're capable of until you do the same.

Yesterday I went biking with my girlfriend who is just starting out. Before, the biggest hill she had ever climbed on a bike was maybe 30ft, and yesterday I got her to do a 300-400ft climb on gravel :eek:. Sure she had to stop a lot, but she got to the top, and proved to herself that she could do it.

I've got her addicted :D she even wants a road bike now!

Go for it and tell us how you do!

There's a big difference between pushing yourself to see where your limits have grown to and doing something stupid. Doubling your longest ride ever while at the same time at least doubling the amount of climbing you've ever done in a single ride qualifies as "stupid" in my book.

When I was first starting out biking with my mtn bike I nearly tripled the distance I had ever done before with a 35mile ride. I completed it, and was proud to know I was capable of doing it.

Earlier this year, I nearly doubled my longest ride distance with a metric century. It was a lot more climbing than I had done in one day before, but I completed it, and was proud to know I was capable of doing it.

The worst thing that happens is he doesn't complete the ride and he tries again next year. How is that stupid?

As the old Nike motto goes, "Just do it!" This is a supported century, so unlike a solo century, I don't see any problems in at least trying. I think the most important thing is (like others said) to pace yourself and eat/drink enough. Assuming that you've the endurance muscles, you should be able to sustain a certain power output, so just don't overexceed this limit and you should be fine.

Give it a try but be careful. There is real opportunity to hurt yourself if you ride too far, too fast. Many good posts about only increasing mileage X% at a time you might want to search for.

Also, if you are not comfortable riding with a group give some thought to your strategy at the ride start. A big ride can be pretty hectic and you certainly don't want to crash or burn out trying to keep up with the wrong group.

I'd rate this one as risky, but if managed correctly, the downside can be controlled.

Good luck - I'm sure you'll give us an update. I've got some friends doing this one and it sounds good.

Will there be any paramedics at this event? Any hospitals?

You can give it a try, because you can always bail with SAG support.

I do not think it is a good idea. 10,000ft is pretty brutal for an experienced century rider.

If you do it, you had better just cruise. If you start pushing (hard no to do) you could find yourself in the wagon. SAGging to the top of a climb would be a failed century attempt to me.

I wouldn't do it if I were him. Too much climbing. Too much distance. It'll be fun until mile 40 or so. By mile 65 you'll be talking to Jesus. Perhaps by mile 80 you'll be forced to stop. This is not your average century. It was designed to be a very challenging ride.....a suffer fest. It's hard for you to imagine how difficult it is going to be while you are sitting there in the comfort of your home right now while surfing the internet.Now if you were really fit and had an adequate amount of base mileage....well then that changes every thing.

I've spent enough time at alpine ski areas to see lots of people say "hey, this doesn't look so bad" with the thought that the worst thing that could happen is that they slip and fall a couple times. Half way down they realize that the "worst thing" is a lot worse then they imagined.

The consequences of getting in way over your head can be pretty severe. You did it and it worked out, congrats. If the OP is smart enough to listen to his body and realize that "this isn't going to happen" and gets into a SAG wagon, then yeah, not bad. If you keep trying to push "five more miles" or whatever -- you could be in a lot of trouble.

True, perhaps I give people too much credit when it comes to common sense. :p