Preparing for a monster charity ride.

[GrahamG]

So, I've signed up for a ride in September/October 2010. It's called 'clock2rock' i.e. from Big Ben to Gibralter in 14 days (1700 odd miles). Basically we need to average 130 miles a day, even through the Pyrenees.

How would you go about building up to these distances? I've been off the bike for 3 months after fracturing my ankle and can't ride seriously for another month once the physio has built everything back up sufficiently. So despite the fact that I'd done my first 100 miler in June, I'm probably 'back to square one' now.

I was thinking that I needed to get up to doing regular 60-100 mile rides over winter after having November/December to get back into the swing of things.
Then I was thinking of signing up for some sportives with the other people doing the ride as well as doing Audaxes throughout 2009 - was thinking this would be a good way of avoiding boredom with a nice range of routes in different areas.

I can't bring myself to think of what I need to be doing in 2010 in the run up - one idea was a one week JOGLE a couple of months before with plenty of weekends doing 100+ miles on both Saturday and Sunday.

 

[HLaB]

I've no experience of doing that distance repeatedly for so many days, I just wanted to say good luck.

 

[cisamcgu]

I have no advice to offer, except the fact that the Tour is approx 2,200 miles in 21 days. This is only 110 miles per day

This really is a monster ride you have signed up for !!



Andrew

 

[GrahamG]

I have no advice to offer, except the fact that the Tour is approx 2,200 miles in 21 days. This is only 110 miles per day

This really is a monster ride you have signed up for !!



Andrew

I know - hence training starting two years ahead!
Mind you, we won't be racing at all - the daft bugger who's organising is talking about doing 17-18mph average. He lives in London though and is a stranger to hills

I reckon about 8-9 hours in the saddle for non-mountain days and probably 12 hour murderous ones in the pyrenees.

I have a triple

 

[Kirstie]

All I would say is get used to riding that distance/duration regularly. As you said you'll be doing 8 - 9 hrs per day, sometimes longer, so get to a point where you can ride 8 - 9 hrs per day, and get up the next day with no ill effects ie aching legs, back ache, arse ache etc. This was my approach to lejog and it worked perfectly. As we would be doing 75 miles per day on loaded tourers (works out at 7 - 8 hours per day, averaging 10mph), we spent the five months before the tour riding at least one day per weekend for that time, as well as shorter sessions in the week. At first, we couldn't hardly speak after the ride, but it gradually got easier and easier as time passed. Didn't stop us getting a caning on the ride itself, but we coped with it much better, and were only hitting the recovery drinks on day 12 (out of 14).

 

[Scoosh]

Mind you, we won't be racing at all - the daft bugger who's organising is talking about doing 17-18mph average. He lives in London though and is a stranger to hills

I reckon about 8-9 hours in the saddle for non-mountain days and probably 12 hour murderous ones in the pyrenees.

Has he done anything like this himself ?
Does he know what it is like to ride the TdF/Vuelta ?

I sincerely hope it is 'fully supported'


HOW MANY ??? (jars before it seemed like a 'good idea' ??)

 

[GrahamG]

It was indeed a pub idea, and yes it will be 'fully supported'. He's done a fair bit of riding before and, more importantly, is absolutely fantastic at making all sorts of corporate/media contacts to ensure that the charity element sees as much publicity as possible to maximise fund raising.

 

[Greenbank]

A few of the wizened gristly Audaxers might be able to help you. There are a couple of long permanents of similar distances and timescales that some mad people have done.

Calais-Brindisi is a 2600km permanent Audax. (Abraham Cohen did it last month. I haven't seen a write up of it yet.)

Trafalgar-Trafalgar (Trafalgar Square, London to Cape Trafalgar, Spain) is 3100km Audax and not far off the same start/finish locations.

Stephen Poulton's write up of his T-T is here:-

http://www.aukweb.net/mag/I15NGgAg__StevePoulton_Sun_Sep_14_15_15_16_2003.pdf

For any Audax over 2500km the minimum speed is just 200km a day, so not far off your plans. And, since these are Audaxes, they're unsupported.

 

[GrahamG]

A few of the wizened gristly Audaxers might be able to help you. There are a couple of long permanents of similar distances and timescales that some mad people have done.

Calais-Brindisi is a 2600km permanent Audax. (Abraham Cohen did it last month. I haven't seen a write up of it yet.)

Trafalgar-Trafalgar (Trafalgar Square, London to Cape Trafalgar, Spain) is 3100km Audax and not far off the same start/finish locations.

Stephen Poulton's write up of his T-T is here:-

http://www.aukweb.net/mag/I15NGgAg__StevePoulton_Sun_Sep_14_15_15_16_2003.pdf

For any Audax over 2500km the minimum speed is just 200km a day, so not far off your plans. And, since these are Audaxes, they're unsupported.

Much appreciated, Greenbank - there's always the 'well hard' contingent, I bet it's even been done on fixed!

 

[Greenbank]

Much appreciated, Greenbank - there's always the 'well hard' contingent, I bet it's even been done on fixed!

That reminds me...

You might get some use out of considering doing some Audaxes. They'll teach you a thing or two about long distance riding and how you adjust to it and deal with bad patches you'll inevitably get out on the road. There's a distinct advantage to doing these rides with other people (i.e. encouragement) rather than solitary training rides where it's easier to give up.

If you've done a few of the the long+hilly events (like the 300km Elenith) you'll find a 200km hilly ride much easier.

Good luck with it.

 

[punkypossum]

That is just plain scary!!!!

 

[bof]

There was a very good article by someone who did last years Paris-Brest-Paris (1250km) in Audax UK's house magazine, Arrivee, describing how he trained for it. The guy was called Colin Bezant and he took around 70 hours. I think the article is around a year old (i.e. the last Arrivee of 2007). It would be very pertinent to what you are doing.

Unfortunately I dont have a copy any more, but I think if you join Audax UK you can buy back copies.

I'd back up the others who have said do Audaxes.

 

[wlc1]

Please excuse the language but your ****ing mental.

Is it for charity cos I'd be happy to thrown some cash your way.

 

[wlc1]

And I've just noticed there is a swear filter on this forum - how crap is that.

Bollocks

fiddle

crap

sorry being silly now.

 

[wlc1]

LOL

Obviously not those words.

You have my utmost respect... totally mad