The Metric Century (100KM) A Month Challenge ChatZone

[ColinJ]

Correct. Well, I'm aiming for 111, or eleventy one, but a bit of overshoot won't hurt. Naturally, having achieved it, the next one will be irritatingly far off, but I can't think of any especially good numbers beyond 111 so at the moment I'm happy to leave that regret for later.

I noticed that a lot of your rides are now 112 km and was wondering why!

I've also noticed how many metric centuries you have already done this year, and wonder if you have a secret plan to complete a century of centuries in 2020?

I am so far off the boil with my cycling that if I raised the temperature by 100 degrees, I would still be in danger of ice forming!

 

[Sea of vapours]

Yes - eleventy one now achieved so normal service of 'just over 100km' will resume, at least for the remainder of the cold, dark, wet bit of the year. That's really what's been driving making nearly every ride 112.

No such plan re a century of centuries; too weather dependent around here I feel, though it has a nice ring to it and I do have a distance target of 9,999, with a stretch target of 11,111.

So you're at about 173 kelvin then? Chilly :-) I hope you can warm that up a bit ready for an earlier start on the Lunacy Challenge than last year!

 

[Dogtrousers]

Correct. Well, I'm aiming for 111, or eleventy one, but a bit of overshoot won't hurt. Naturally, having achieved it, the next one will be irritatingly far off, but I can't think of any especially good numbers beyond 111 so at the moment I'm happy to leave that regret for later.

I know what you mean

Your metric Eddington Number is 109 That's good!
You need to do 3 ride(s) of at least 110 to increase it to 110. Fair enough
You need to do 6 ride(s) of at least 111 to increase it to 111. Oh, all right then. I can handle that.
You need to do 12 ride(s) of at least 112 to increase it to 112. What? are you sure?
You need to do 18 ride(s) of at least 115 to increase it to 115. Give me a break!

 

[Sea of vapours]

I know what you mean

Your metric Eddington Number is 109 That's good!
You need to do 3 ride(s) of at least 110 to increase it to 110. Fair enough
You need to do 6 ride(s) of at least 111 to increase it to 111. Oh, all right then. I can handle that.
You need to do 12 ride(s) of at least 112 to increase it to 112. What? are you sure?
You need to do 18 ride(s) of at least 115 to increase it to 115. Give me a break!

My equivalent to that, with a current value of 111, is:
- 13 more days of 112 required;
- 28 more days of 113 required;
...
- 73 more days of 125.

Sooooooo........ that'll be enough Eddington number chasing for a year or several then, since even 125 isn't an especially pleasing number.

 

[ColinJ]

I'll have to switch to something else for ride logging now that MCL is no more...

My cousin signed me up for Strava a couple of years ago when we were on holiday together but I never really got into it.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I'll have to switch to something else for ride logging now that MCL is no more...

My cousin signed me up for Strava a couple of years ago when we were on holiday together but I never really got into it.

Have a look at ridewithgps too. That's what I use. But Strava would be fine too probably.

 

[Sea of vapours]

I'm really looking forward to a metric century which doesn't involve 20-40mph winds for the entire time; often more!

Today's only-just-over-100km ride featured that with a series of delightful and not forecast hail showers thrown in for good measure. Barbondale westward - which some people may know as a beautiful, long fast descent with little or no need to pedal - involved pedaling quite hard in order to go quite slowly whilst being pelted with small but painful pieces of ice. Ugh. Admittedly, thereafter, the Sun was mostly shining and the wind eventually became of benefit, but dead calm would be much, much more appealing.

Grumble, grumble, mutter ...

 

[Brandane]

Struggling to get an opportunity to complete February's ride. Work rules out 4 days out of 6, and so far the weather hasn't been kind on days off. By not kind, I mean heavy rain and strong winds, gusting at 50 mph plus..
The forecast for next week's days off is similar, which only leaves 2 days at the end of the month. I am not confident of any improvement, this hideous weather seems pretty constant at the coast now!

 

[ColinJ]

It is looking like I may well have problems with my cycling this year!

I had a long layoff from the start of November to January 8th, when I ignored my lack of fitness and went out anyway and did my Jan metric century. Given my lack of fitness, I understandably found it hard work. What alarmed me though were some pretty unpleasant sensations in my left leg on the last hill of the ride. That leg already had lasting damage from the DVT that I suffered in 2012. I think that I have made the damage to my leg worse worse though because it is still periodically swelling up and going numb over a month later, even when sitting down at home in a position that I formally found comfortable. I did a simple 50 km ride last week and had the same problem.

My hypothesis is that extra fat on my legs has been squeezing the DVT-damaged area of the big vein in my thigh/groin. I was wearing fairly tight bibtights on the 100 km ride and they were probably squeezing my legs more than was good for me. Constriction of the vein is what caused the DVT in the first place!

I am hoping that losing weight and getting fit again will help. I have already lost 3/4 kg but would like to lose another 8 or 9.

I also think that getting out of the saddle periodically on long rides could help. I tend to sit down for very long periods, which doesn't seem to agree with me. I'm a bit lazy and find sitting down easier, but if the price of doing that is a numb leg then I will stand up more often!

If we don't get another storm hard on the heels of 'Dennis' then I will go out and do an easy 50 km ride for my Feb '50' challenge. If that goes okay I will try to do the Feb metric century in the time left in the month.

 

[Bazzer]

February's done, but I have certainly had better rides.
A frosty start, but even after sunrise it was cool throughout and I had to keep moving to keep the chill out, with the breeze increasing as the ride progressed. Three horribly close passes which have been reported to the relevant police forces and then towards the end of the ride, three cars parked in and blocking off a designated cycle lane running parallel to a dual carriageway; also reported.
It had also become apparent during commutes this week, that my gears were, change by change, failing. I suspect new cables are required but it was too late yesterday afternoon to do anything about it and I don't have spare cables. The result was that shortly into the ride, I had only 2 of a possible 27 gears available. Normally I would have waited, but other life stuff means it is likely my next pleasure rides are likely to be the 27th or 28th, which is just too squeeky bum.

 

[cyberknight]

Struggling to get a ride in of any distance this month, the weather has been universally rubbish for the last 3 Sundays which is the only day i get chance .
1st week , cold and wet and with my reynauds a no no, last 2 weeks just blowing a gale and floods
farking grumpy and about to turbo it for a bit but its not the same

 

[tallliman]

Just realised I'd not posted in here for a bit.....back into this challenge after a year or 2 off due to illness. 2 months in and feeling strong at last (bar the virus I've caught!)

 

[Fiona R]

February's done today, but only a 101km so not long until I have the Eddington problem too!

Went to visit lovely Wales, only a gale and rain out over the closed-to-traffic Old Severn Bridge with 3 club mates. Coffee in Chepstow and the wind dropped and the sun came out. lovely return trip but as I had started along the route I had to stretch the route by doing my local Belmont Hill (after buying carrots at the Farm Shop for pot roast so I hauled them too), and was hoping for a cider at the 19th at the top, but the golfer had already departed the 19th and I found him at home watching rugby.

 

[ColinJ]

It is looking like I may well have problems with my cycling this year!

HMMM... The horrid stormy weather hasn't helped but I can't deny that there were still several days when I could have squeezed a 100 km ride in.

I was going to go out on Thursday, when the weather here was still windy but was at least sunny and dry. That ride was scuppered by insomnia - I didn't get to sleep until gone 05:00 and then woke up several times before my alarm went off at 08:00. I had a blood test at 09:00 and then had to do some shopping. My plan was to rush home, get my cycling kit on and go back out on the bike. In reality, I felt like I had been hit over the head with a baseball bat so I went back to bed for a few hours but I still felt very groggy when I reemerged in the afternoon. I decided to check the forecast for Friday and Saturday - yesterday was foul, but today was looking ok so I planned to take advantage of 'leap day' and get my ride in at the last opportunity.

Except that I haven't... Bloody insomnia again! Tossing, turning, checking the clock until gone 05:00. I finally slipped off, but ended up being woken up every few minutes after that by the noise of the wind outside. More 'baseball bat head' this morning...

I have a guest arriving early evening so I didn't have enough time left to do my ride once I finally felt clear-headed enough to consider it.

And so... I am out of the challenge for this year!

TBH - I was feeling fed up earlier but now I feel relieved. I need to get my life in order and the 100 km challenge was one thing too many for me this year. I'll still get my monthly '50s' in and desperately want to complete the Lunacy challenge this time. I have 4 weeks to get ready for my first outing for that, my 100 mile ride from Garforth on 28th March. I will probably do a 100 km ride before then but can concentrate on building some fitness back up, and sorting my sleep pattern out.

I'm going to start getting up earlier, no matter how tired I feel. It might take a couple of weeks of feeling knackered every day but eventually I should settle into a more sensible regime.

Anyway - those of you still in, enjoy the rest of the MCAMC this year. Hopefully, I will rejoin you for next year's challenge.

If you would like to join me on any of my 100 mile rides this year, you'd be welcome to. I think about 10 of them will be forum rides, details of which will be posted 2-4 weeks in advance.

 

[Sea of vapours]

That's unfortunate. Then again, one fewer thing to get done in a month, so you can be more flexible, and that has to be a benefit. One day, the weather may not be annoyingly grim too.