banerjek

Every year, my wife and I go on a trip where she goes to the theater while I do a hilly ride in the Shasta recreation area. I've done it 10 times, though I DNFed last year due to stupidity. She's loves the theater and is wondering whether to order tix. I do not love the theater and would prefer not to go if I don't ride.

With the exception of a single organized ride last month (de Ronde of Portlandia), my riding has been confined to my commutes since August. Realistically, I may or may not pick up a century before the ride, but I'm not going to get around more than the commute aside from that. I *feel* like my legs are ok, but I don't know if I'm being delusional. I do not want to do the ride unless I can realistically expect to finish. It's over 16k feet of climbing in one day, so the ride is no joke. The de Ronde was difficult, but I didn't know the course and the grades were considerably steeper than the Shasta.

I know it may be dumb to do, but is this sort of thing reasonably possible just relying on my base? In my favor, I know the course like the back of my hand.

AdelaaR

I'm afraid the only option here is divorce. Sorry.

CrankAndYank

You never know what you can't do until you try.

ls01

Even if you dont complete the ride, the worst you can do is not go to the theater. Sounds like a winner.

banerjek

No more showtunes. Hmmmmm........

sfrider 

Go do a hilly 60-80 mile weekend ride with similar grades and see how you feel... See if you have first of all the base endurance, and second if you're fast enough to make it in the time allotted.

Not on a 'bent, I take it.

David Bierbaum

Go to the theater... and ride your bicycle continuously up and down the aisles during the show, until the police arrest you or security ousts you. Your wife will never invite you again. I think this will also start the divorce proceedings... if you're still alive by then.

clausen

She wants to go to the theater. You have one choice theater or ride. Have a good ride.

jalbri

Sounds like there's another choice also: no ride and no theater. The OP's wife must be very understanding and agreeable if she's done the ride/theater thing for ten years. Will she be understanding and agreeable if he decides not to do the ride and also declines to go to the theater? I would go on the ride no matter what condition I was in.

Rowan

If you know the route like the back of your hand, you must know whether you can do it with your current level of endurance.

I'd say give it a go. If you get half way and can't go on, turn around and go back

Seriously, you've been riding for years. I've found the innate fitness that is built up doesn't erode all that quickly if stuff like commuting can keep it ticking along.

caloso

Agreed.

StanSeven

Theater- sophistication. Cycling - sweat and grease. You two aren't compatible anyway.

Nachoman

Always choose cycling. Theater is just an expensive nap.

pallen

I would rather try and fail that stay home...

tmass

it depends; ask her if there is any nudity in the play, confirm it is female nudity and then if so flip a coin.

banerjek

I'm not worried about time limits, the individual climbs themselves, and the like. The main thing I'm concerned about is cramps. A good case of those will end the day. I was mostly wondering if a lack of saddle time would decimate endurance. The idea isn't just to finish, but to have fun doing it. If I wanted to us suffer for hours on end, I could just go to the shows...

contango 

It would have to be brutal cramps to end a day. I've had cramps that had me literally on my knees at the roadside pulling my quads out, hilly rides where it was a struggle to walk to the top of a hill pushing my bike and where every step hurt because of cramps, but worked them out and finished the ride. That ride was about 75 miles with about 8000 feet of climbing in it so perhaps not as hilly as yours, but I'd guess the only difference is how many hills you end up walking.

CrankAndYank

Cycling is theater, nacho.

banerjek

I wound up telling her to order tix for herself -- the trip is on. I haven't made a final decision on the ride yet, but if I don't do that, I'll spend the day on the Rogue whitewater rafting. One way or another, this will work out...

JCNeumann

What's the worst that happens? You have a great ride, and you just happen not to be able to finish. At 16k of climbing there has to be some STUNNING scenery!

Bring a camera a take some pictures while you work out the cramps. Plus, bring a little Pinot Noir in the water bottle. Helps with the cramps...

;-)

Rowan

You didn't mention the fear of cramps in your OP, but there are some defences against them, including, of course, rehydration, and maybe calcium and magnesium through sucking on a Tums or two during the ride.

Are you doing this with the recumbent or a diamond frame? Butt issues may be to the fore because of the lack of consecutive saddle time, but then I suppose the bent isn't exactly a mountain goat of a bike, either, and with the climbing on a DF, you can at least stand a fair bit.

If time is not an issue, take it easy, and enjoy it. Time limits aren't really important to me (us) anymore, unless we are on an organised randonnee like the other weekend, when I didn't really enjoy it that much. Maybe a slow, more contented pace means you will see more than usual.

But the whitewater rafting sounds like a fantastic substitute. I'd been torn between the two options,,,,

StanSeven

He meets a beautiful woman on the ride. She introduces him to gambling and binge drinking. He loses everything he has and ends up a homeless person

LowCel 

Lincoln wishes he had gone for a bike ride. Just sayin'....

caloso

Hah.

spectastic

but look what happened to poor JFK