# 1st Audax - Advice please



## Bugner (23 Jan 2009)

Hi, Currently commute to work 4 days a week 13 miles each way, takes about an hour. occasionally do a leisurely 30 miler on a Sunday.

What sort of mileage should I be doing to be able to complete a 100k Audax. Also can anybody recommend a good Audax for a 1st timer in the coming months in the South of England?

Cheers


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## peanut (23 Jan 2009)

well if you are currently doing 13 miles in an hour (leisurely) then 60 miles is going to take you say 4.75 hours if you maintain the same average speed. Realistically you are going to get a bit slower so I would suggest depending upon hillyness about 5.5 hours including a couple of stops. 
Thats a lot of hours to be supporting your trunk .
You'll probably find that you'll get saddle sore and your neck and back will ache. Your hands will go numb and it will start to feel like slow torture .

That's the good bit
If its raining ,hilly and you get some punctures .?....well you get the picture.

Have a look at the events page on the Audax site.
http://www.aukweb.net/cal/index.htm
I'm doing the 'Dave's Doddle 100k in April at Bishops Lydiard, my first Audax for 12 years 

You need to get in some 40-60 mile rides in to build endurance and strength and see how you cope . You may find you need to make changes to your clothing, gearing and bike setup. 

If you are managing 30 miles now you should be fine if a little tired and sore the following day. make sure you carry plenty of glucose rich food and snackbars and put some electrolyte in your drink


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## Bugner (23 Jan 2009)

Peanut thanks for your response. I was also looking at Sportive's as distances can vary quite a lot (a little less) , but £20 -£30 a go seems a bit steep, especially when cycling is meant to be saving me money as well as getting fit


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## Chris James (23 Jan 2009)

peanut, Bugner is 'only' proposing doing a 100km Audax, approx 62 miles, so i don't think he would need to do 40 - 60 miles training runs.

I dare say he has plenty enough fitness already. Depending on the exact route of the audax you select and how hilly your commute / weekend runs are then you might want to search out a few hills, Bugner. Other than that I would just suggest taking it steady and plodding on. You'll get there fine.


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## marinyork (23 Jan 2009)

I'm doing 100km audaxes this year. You're faster and probably fitter than me. I'm sure you'll have no problems whatsoever.


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## Alves (23 Jan 2009)

Chris James said:


> 100km I would just suggest taking it steady and plodding on. You'll get there fine.


agreed with bells on, most folk can do a 100k Audax if they cycle regularily. Its a great distance to start with, relax and enjoy it, talk to a few folk along the way and tag along with others who are going at your speed. If you say its your 1st Audax, I'd be amazed if they didn't help you along, company is very nice on a long ride. You probably won't find the same cooperative spirit on a Sportive.


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## Dave5N (23 Jan 2009)

100K? You'll be fine. Promise.


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## Greenbank (23 Jan 2009)

If you're regularly doing 13 miles each way 4 times a week you should get through a 100km Audax without major problems. Of course, it is a step into the unknown, and you may feel tired and/or sore at the end of it but that kind of distance during the week is perfect training. Just mentally split the ride into 5 x 13 mile commutes and you'll be fine.

I did my first 100km ride (the London to Cambridge charity ride) on the back of my 13km each way commute (usually 4 out of 5 days a week). This, and the occasional (once every 3 weeks or so) 50 miler, is enough to allow me to do any Audax so far (up to and including 600km).

Not sure exactly where you mean with "South of England" but I'd recommend any of the Henham/Ugley rides from near Saffron Walden as a good 100km ride to start with.


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## Randochap (23 Jan 2009)

No need to be training at event distance. To increase comfort on the day, do some brisk 30k rides and hill repeats. Most regular commuters in reasonable shape are capable of doing 100k.

Make sure your bike is in shape as well. If you don't have mudguards and rain is a possibility, get some. Also attach a rear mudflap. Your fellow riders will thank you.

We (BC Randonneurs) run several "populaires." These are 100k and shorter events intended to introduce cyclists to the sport of randonneuring (what you call "audax").We get huge turnouts to these rides -- in the hundreds. Official events (sanctioned by Audax Club Parisien) start at 200km.

Learn more about the sport and gear here.


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## andy_wrx (23 Jan 2009)

Like (almost !) everyone else says, you'll be fine.

An audax isn't a race, it has max and minimum speeds you have to maintain, but it's up to you how you get round : you are going way quicker than the minimum speed so don't worry about it.

It will also have several checkpoints, usually at cafes or similar and you're encouraged to go in, buy something, have a chat with fellow riders.


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## SheilaH (23 Jan 2009)

I'm doing my first 200k of the year tomorrow. Rode 150k on my own 2 weeks ago, it was my first ride for 5 weeks... hard but ok.

You'll be fine, it will just be either three 20 mile legs or two 30 mile legs, not hard at all for someone doing a 26 mile commute.

Just don't get involved in the inevitable race at the start or you'll burn off all your glycogen and struggle. Just det off at your own warm up pace and don't even think of exerting yourself too much... after a couple of audaxes you'll know your current capabilities better and be able to judge your eating and drinking on the ride.

Most of all, have fun! That is the object of the exercise


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## peanut (23 Jan 2009)

Chris James said:


> peanut, Bugner is 'only' proposing doing a 100km Audax, approx 62 miles, so i don't think he would need to do 40 - 60 miles training runs.



wasn't suggesting 60 mile training runs was I ? do you actually read the posts or just use the force 

I think it is worth doing one or two 40-60 mile runs just so that you know what to expect and it will tell you what you might need to change.
Most Sunday social club runs are 45 miles these days so its not a huge distance but 60 miles on a hilly route can be tough if you've never done it before.


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## Bugner (23 Jan 2009)

Thanks for all the responses. I'm going to register for the *Kent Invicta Grimpeur 100 *in March


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## Chris James (23 Jan 2009)

peanut said:


> wasn't suggesting 60 mile training runs was I ? do you actually read the posts or just use the force





peanut said:


> You *need* to get in some 40-60 mile rides in to *build endurance and strength *


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## yello (23 Jan 2009)

Bugner said:


> Thanks for all the responses. I'm going to register for the *Kent Invicta Grimpeur 100 *in March



Brave. Seriously. It is certainly one of the tougher 100s in the SE.

There's a few traditional season openers (and Greennbank can probably help me out here) out of Hertford that are very pleasant rides and certainly less challenging than any of the 'grimpeur' rides. 

I'd agree with others though, the riding you are doing sets you up well for a first 100km audax.

Hints: sorry, forgot to add my own advice. Register in advance and have a look at the route sheet and follow it on a map. Get a feel for the route and where you are going. On the day, ride your own pace (it will be fine, believe me) and enjoy it!


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## Greenbank (23 Jan 2009)

yello said:


> Brave. Seriously. It is certainly one of the tougher 100s in the SE.



Grimpeurs are at the serious end of the scale. 1700m of climbing in 100km is pretty damn hilly. Not impossible at all, but probably not ideal for a first Audax unless you really *REALLY* enjoy lots of climbing. 

If it's local to you, you might want to look at the map (on the calendar entry page on the Audax website) and try and work out where it goes and give bits of it a try. That'll give you a feel for it.


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## Bugner (23 Jan 2009)

Bugger 

Maybe I will do the 50k version and see what else is available on the Audax site?


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## marinyork (24 Jan 2009)

Greenbank said:


> Grimpeurs are at the serious end of the scale. 1700m of climbing in 100km is pretty damn hilly. Not impossible at all, but probably not ideal for a first Audax unless you really *REALLY* enjoy lots of climbing.
> 
> If it's local to you, you might want to look at the map (on the calendar entry page on the Audax website) and try and work out where it goes and give bits of it a try. That'll give you a feel for it.



Thank you very much. That's made me feel great . I haven't done any audaxes yet but I did an Audax distance in December that had 5000ft of climbing.


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## stevevw (24 Jan 2009)

How about this ride
http://www.stevenagectc.org.uk/ Stevenage Start of Summertime Specials. I am going to do the 115km but there is an option of 210km if you are brave.


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## yello (24 Jan 2009)

stevevw said:


> How about this ride
> http://www.stevenagectc.org.uk/ Stevenage Start of Summertime Specials.



That's the ones I meant. Very well organised, good route sheets and well attended. If the weather's good, the 100 really is a good ride. 

Have a go at the Invicta 100 if you like. My first audax was the now no more Hilly Chilterns 100. I decided on that one because it was easy for me to get to, no other reason. I thoroughly enjoyed it too and did it every year following as a kind of anniversary thing!


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## vernon (24 Jan 2009)

marinyork said:


> Thank you very much. That's made me feel great . I haven't done any audaxes yet but I did an Audax distance in December that had 5000ft of climbing.



But did you have an acceptable average speed?

It's easy to do the distance and for some rides not so easy to do it within the time


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## Greenbank (24 Jan 2009)

marinyork said:


> Thank you very much. That's made me feel great . I haven't done any audaxes yet but I did an Audax distance in December that had 5000ft of climbing.



5000ft is 1524m. Pretty hilly for a 100km ride. Below average for a 200km ride.

That Kent Invicta is 100km and has 1700m of climbing (5500ft).

The Elenith is 305km and has 4727m (15,500ft) of climb.
The Midland Super Grimpeur is 300km and has 5390m (17,700ft) of climb. I'm kind of looking forward to this in a strange kind of way (I'm not a climber at all).

Or you could do the Maniac Grimpeur Permanent. 1000km long and contains a mere 17,000m (55,750ft) of climbing.


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## marinyork (25 Jan 2009)

vernon said:


> But did you have an acceptable average speed?
> 
> It's easy to do the distance and for some rides not so easy to do it within the time



Yes. Substantially within audax time had it been an audax. Slow, but well that's me and I can see it improving.


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## Zoom (25 Jan 2009)

The 1066 in a couple of weeks is a good first event if you can get down to Hailsham in time; better get your skates on with an entry though. Or else the Worthing Winter Warmer the week after; also very good.

The Invicta Grimpeur's not that bad; it's all hills but only a couple of really steep ones.


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## Nuncio (26 Jan 2009)

My first Audax was a Super Grimpeur (Wes May Memorial) in 1999 - 2950m ascent in 100km. It put me off doing another one for a couple of years. On the other hand a) you are better prepared than I was,  the Invicta's not as hilly and c) I finished well within time. Go for it I say. Don't worry about the time too much - the minimum ave speed is 12.2 kph and to go slower than that you would have to have a lot of stop time. So just go with aim of enjoying a long bike ride rather than worrying too much about speed and time.


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