Done my first century!

[Brandane]

For a while I have been wanting to join the century club. Decided that if it was going to get done this year, then it would have to be soon before the days get too short. A window of opportunity opened up, and a reasonably kind weather forecast, so.......

Today I set off from home in Largs, Ayrshire and headed south to Ayr then Maybole. From there, east across to Dalmellington, and south east to Carsphairn, Moniaive, Dunscore then finally Dumfries. 103 miles . Some of those hills I thought would never end, and at times I was thinking I had bitten off more than I could chew. Surprisingly I don't feel too bad now, but will see what pains the morning brings! Have done it now, but my thoughts right now are that I won't bother doing it again. Was a good thing to do, but that's it done now. Probably.....!!

 

[Globalti]

Well done! PaulB will congratulate you on having done it without paying money to some buffoons to put up a few signs.

Did you go through Dalfibble? Our friend is a dairy farmer there.

 

[Lien Sdrawde]

Congrats! - its my dream to do that at the moment (or a target at least). How long have you taken to build up to that?

 

[Brandane]

Well done! PaulB will congratulate you on having done it without paying money to some buffoons to put up a few signs.

Did you go through Dalfibble? Our friend is a dairy farmer there.

Dalfibble? Had to look it up on Googlemaps , but it is further to the east. I came in to Dumfries from Dunscore, which is north west of Dumfries.

Congrats! - its my dream to do that at the moment (or a target at least). How long have you taken to build up to that?

48 years ! Or 44 if you discount the first 4 years of my life when I didn't know how to ride a bike. I suppose I have only been making more of an effort since I realised I was becoming a fat git and got my Tricross last November, so about 10 months.

 

[martint235]

For a while I have been wanting to join the century club. Decided that if it was going to get done this year, then it would have to be soon before the days get too short. A window of opportunity opened up, and a reasonably kind weather forecast, so.......

Today I set off from home in Largs, Ayrshire and headed south to Ayr then Maybole. From there, east across to Dalmellington, and south east to Carsphairn, Moniaive, Dunscore then finally Dumfries. 103 miles . Some of those hills I thought would never end, and at times I was thinking I had bitten off more than I could chew. Surprisingly I don't feel too bad now, but will see what pains the morning brings! Have done it now, but my thoughts right now are that I won't bother doing it again. Was a good thing to do, but that's it done now. Probably.....!!

Well done. It's a great feeling to get those triple digits up isn't it?

Now onwards to 150 miles...... then it's 200

 

[ianrauk]

Yep, very well done.
Next target for you is a century a month for next year...

 

[Shaun]

Well done, and congrats for getting it under your belt ... the century is still on my to-do list and will probably not get reviewed until next year now ...

 

[007]

For a while I have been wanting to join the century club. Decided that if it was going to get done this year, then it would have to be soon before the days get too short. A window of opportunity opened up, and a reasonably kind weather forecast, so.......

Great work - a couple of months ago 100 miles on a bike was an unknown quantity. I live out in Beith, on Saturday I went:

Beith > Glengarnock > Johnstone > Bridge of Weir > Kilbarchan > Quarriers Village > Lochwinnoch > Beith

This is a fairly hilly route which was a shade over 30 miles. The thought of another 70 miles on top of that is right now, unthinkable. A century ride is really impressive.

Largs is next on my list to do before the weather turns. The haylie brae ascent is something I need to do!!! Have you?

 

[CopperBrompton]

Congrats - it's a good feeling, isn't it?

Though I share your view entirely about having no desire to repeat the experience ...

 

[Ball]

Congratulations!! I too recently completed my first 100miler, though in somewhat more organised circumstances at the Pro Tour Ride in the South West. 107 very lumpy miles with 3200m of climbing. I think the organisation made it easier, being surrounded by hundreds of other riders sharing the pain and spurring me on, having regular well stocked feed stops and generally buzzing off the adrenaline of a mass participant event. So really well done to you for having the determination to keep going on your own, when it is so easy to turn back as soon as the going gets tough.

That said, what surprised me was how physically ready I was for it. I have not even come close to 100 miles this year. My rides have been limited to short evening runs, the occasional weekend 40-50 miles and a few hill training sessions. Perhaps the best training I had was a 5 day holiday in the Southern Alps about two weeks prior to the event, where we cycled over 6 passes. I certainly felt like this took me to a level I've never been to before, but I was always aware that it was achieved in a very short space of time and that that strength/fitness might not last that long. Yet, even with 95 miles under the belt I still had the strength to really push on at the end.

The ride was actually far more of a learning experience, not about fitness so much, but about the bike, eating, drinking and patience! I had a bit of a nightmare ride, puncturing 5 times and running out of inner tubes. Luckily as the event was so organised I was able to profit off the support vehicles provided. Without them I may have been walking to the end. But they all frustrated my rhythm and my state of mind and by the 5th time I was ready to throw my bike off a cliff.

So I think what I learnt from it, was to prepare myself for the length of time it could take, and to stay patient in the face of the other disruptions that can occur in that space of time. Also, to take a good variety of food, because mule bars really aint that nice after the 45th one. Maybe the next time it will go a bit more smoothly, making for a very pleasant surprise! And yes, I'm very keen to do it again, if just to prove to myself I can do it in a far quicker time.

Anyway, sorry to hijack your post, just thought I'd share.

 

[Midnight]

Well Done, Brandane.

I take my hat off to you, that's a fantastic achievement!

 

[Brandane]

Largs is next on my list to do before the weather turns. The haylie brae ascent is something I need to do!!! Have you?

Have to admit, I have never done the Hylie Brae ascent. Descent, yes, but not the other way! My reasons for this are quite simple, I don't mind climbing hills too much, but that one is plain dangerous these days. Far too much traffic on what is quite a narrow road with no verges, coupled with blind corners is a recipe for disaster IMHO. Not so bad going down the way when you are going at a fair speed, but puffing up there at 6 or 7 mph when a fast moving car rounds a bend behind you? No thanks!

My alternative route if I want to head over towards Dalry/Kilbirnie for the Sustrans route is to head down towards Fairlie, then turn left near Fins restaurant to climb the Fairlie Moor road. An absolute killer of a climb but preferable to the Haylie Brae for me. Or better still, let the train take the strain .

 

[Brandane]

I had a bit of a nightmare ride, puncturing 5 times and running out of inner tubes.

You need to get yourself some puncture resistant tyres! I have Specialized Armadillo tyres on my bike and so far (touching wood) they have been great.

 

[ammwhite]

Largs is next on my list to do before the weather turns. The haylie brae ascent is something I need to do!!! Have you?

I live in Greenock and regularly cycle to Largs over the Old Largs Road. I've not climbed up the Haylie Brae yet, but I have gone down it ... it's not really that steep, so I don't think it would be too bad going up it. It's just not a very nice road (the A760) to cycle as it's quite narrow and busy with fast cars.

If you're in Beith, a climb you should try is the Moor Road just south of Fairlie - it's a great climb on a very quiet single track road, with great views too. Last weekend I did Greenock -> Largs -> Fairlie -> Dalry -> Lochwinnoch -> Kilmalcolm -> Greenock, which was just under 50 miles and a couple of good climbs.

 

[Ball]

You need to get yourself some puncture resistant tyres! I have Specialized Armadillo tyres on my bike and so far (touching wood) they have been great.

Ye maybe you're right, but do they compromise speed? I used to use slime filled tyres but found them slow too. I never usually have that problem but the road surfaces were terrible, it was wet, and when you have to install a new tube on the road with just a mini pump you just can't get the tyre up to a decent enough pressure to avoid further punctures.

So would you absolutely not want to do another 100miler? Even with the prospect of it feeling easier next time?