dhayes

Hey guys,

I'm definitely the FNG around here, so I'm braced for criticism

Myself and my father have been riding for a little over a year and a half. To date, our longest ride has been a 66mile hilly-ish event ride. We've also done a 62 mile flat ride in Destin, FL, and our typical training rides are 35-50miles long once or twice a week along with 2-3 15-20mile rides. Our current average speed on most rides just broke the 15.5mph mark in the last few weeks, prior to that it was around 14.5-15.

We just signed up for the Savannah Century Labor Day weekend ride.

My question here is this: Our typical training/event rides are on rolling hills/semi-hilly terrain, getting around 1k ft of climbing in easily over a 50mile ride. Should this translate well into a flat 100miles, or are we biting off more than we should at this point?

Thanks in advance!

merlinextraligh

I think you'll be fine. Eat and drink a lot, and pace yourself.

If you can, this weekend or next weekend, doing a 75 mile ride would be helpful.

danmc

Based upon your longest rides and your training rides I don't think you're biting off more than you can chew at all.

I just rode my first mile century ride a few weeks ago. Prior to that my longest ride had been 80 miles and my typical training ride is 30 miles on days where I don't have much time and 40-50 miles on days when I have more time.

I was surprised at just how "easy" the mile century was for me. It wasn't until the last 5 miles or so that I kept looking for the finish line, mumbling "Not yet!!??"

milkbaby

+1... Also, the ride can be easier when you ride in a group at the century. Pacing yourself is more important than riding in a group though; riding way too fast in the beginning is a recipe for having to ride slowly at the end. Have fun and enjoy it!

TrojanHorse

1k in 50 miles <> climbing. That's pretty mellow, so you can probably extrapolate that to a flat course.

You're probably aware from your riding that there are speeds you can maintain forever that aren't going to exhaust you. I'm not talking about 10 mph but if you're not hammering you can ride & chat and hit your 100 without killing yourself.

I agree with Merlin - get a 75 miler in this weekend so you can make sure you have your hydration, eating & clothing strategies down pat. Stuff that works great for 50 miles may not agree with you after 75. Just try it out.

Ron Harry

Funny, I was also considering trying for my first 'mile' century in the Savannah Century ride. I usually do the metric centuries, as the enjoyment simply fades for me about 50 miles or so. But, I suppose we all have to do the 100 mile thingy somewhere along the way, just to say we've done it. So, yea, Savannah being a flat ride [from what I gather] would probably be a great event to do it. Thing of it is [for me] I just am not sure I really want to do it. Guess I'll make up my mind the weekend I head on up there. There's something about cycling that seems to 'suck' you into more and more pain and suffering, LOL. But, I guess we love it anyway. Good luck.

kiloRH

Was in the exact same boat as you last year, savannah was my first century and my longest ride prior was round 60 miles. It was a little tough the last 10 miles but I made it through fine at a pace well above what I expected. I remember at the end thinking I had learned exactly what people told me: eat before you're hungry, drink before you're thirsty, and stop before you're tired. Now I'm headed back this year and plan on a sub 5-hour time!

njkayaker

1000 feet in 50 miles is flat.

The Savanna Century is indicated as having 1003.94 feet of climbing in 101 miles. It's even flatter!

It would seem you won't have any surprises with respect to climbs.

I wonder how windy it can be?

Do a couple of 75 mile rides.

DropDeadFred

Me and a few guys are doing the savannah century and shooting for sub 5. It's really flat...hot hot hot

Edit: I'm with kiloRH

dhayes

Thanks guys!

Would love to get some 75mile rides in but time just isn't on my side at the moment.. shooting for the "next best thing" i suppose with double 50s today and tomorrow (already did today's).

And yea, I am definitely well aware of our 1k elevation gain over 50miles being flat by most standards, but hey.. its all we got (mostly)!

I'm definitely looking forward to the ride and getting that century mark under our belt ;D

AMGbrad

You'll do great as long as you approach it sensibly. Pace yourself, and avoid the pressure to go faster than what is your normal comfort zone. You'll regret it on the back half if you do. Hydrate often, use food/bars/gels, and try not to focus on your mileage until at least a few hours in. Once you get done, you'll say to yourself "that wasn't near as bad as I thought it would be."

dhayes

Well, we completed it!

8hrs 45min start to finish, 6hrs 38min ride time.. 15.1mph average (rolling time)

We completely failed logistically on the morning of the ride. We planned to grab a biscuit from Burger King, but it was closed.. we were running late already, so we just toughed it out and made it to the first stop before eating.

Everyone we encountered at the ride was extremely nice, and most everyone offered to let us 'hug their wheel' from stop to stop.

This was an absolutely amazing experience, and we'll definitely be going again next year (but shooting for a much more reasonable time )

Thanks!