Tips and Tricks

[Lucasmik]

Does anybody have any good advice in regards to riding 35 miles or more, as it would be appreciated.

 

[Dags11]

A banana at the 10 mile point
A gel at 20
A cereal bar at 30

700ml of fluid

Should see you through 35 miles ok

 

[screenman]

Do some training first gradually working up to the distance, however if you are fit to some degree then 35 taken easy should be achievable, but you may feel it the next day.

Start off easy and stay that way, eat and drink on the way, most important ENJOY the ride.

 

[Pigo]

+1 for that! Enjoy it would be my advice too. Take your time, see what's around you & stop if you feel like it!
Take plenty of fluids along & listen to your body with regards to eating & drinking.
Plenty of stretching after to stop you stiffening up will help too.

 

[david k]

A banana at the 10 mile point
A gel at 20
A cereal bar at 30

700ml of fluid

Should see you through 35 miles ok

think people take too many gels and stuff. good prep should be about carb loading, taking carbs on route is either a last resort or a top up bcause your doing many many miles

i suggest a large bowl of porridge and hour or 2 before you ride. cup of coffee (my preference) plenty of fluids and relax. start the carb loading the night before, maybe another bowl of porridge and a few bananas, dont do much excersise the day before, rest

 

[Herzog]

Unless you're planning on completing the 35 miles at racing pace I wouldn't bother with a gel at 20 miles.

Pretty much as David K wrote: eat a good breakfast 2 hours before the start (e.g., porridge); dried fruit and water/fruit juice (50:50 mix with a bit of salt) during your ride and you'll be fine.

A decent meal the night before also helps.

Good luck!

 

[Rouge Penguin]

Id have a bagel and peanut butter for breakfast, coffee and stick 2x water bottles with one water and the other half fresh Orange/water and a pinch of salt.

I wouldn't jump from riding 10 miles to 35 though. Unless you do it at a lazy pace. You'd struggle past 20-25 if you did Imo

Gels a good for a short burst, but no good for sustained energy, banana or flapjack halfway round would be better.

 

[Arch]

Ride 18 miles out from home in a straightish line...

Then you either make it 36 to get home, or you move house...

There have been times when I thought moving would be easier....

Seriously though. How far can you ride at the moment? I've heard it suggested that you can build up miles by adding a thrid to what you can comfortably do, so when you can ride 5, start aiming for 7, then maybe 10, 13, 17, 22ish... etc. You can make the increase bigger as you get fitter. Once you can ride 25 miles or so, I think 35 is doable.

Eat well before, a good breakfast like porridge. Snack as you ride, or have proper stops - proper stops at cafes are good because you get to get off the bike, stretch a bit and so on, and waiting for your cuppa and cake makes you res, as opposed to just grabbing a mouthful of food and rushing on.

Personally, I wouldn't bother with gels and so on. A bag of chocolate raisins is my preferred sugar hit, jelly babies are what some people swear by. A museli bar is handy if you feel hungry, rather than sugar-lacking, because it has a bit of bulk to it.

 

[BrumJim]

35 miles is just about short enough to do without food on-route, but best to keep something in the back pocket anyway. Flapjack, Mars bar, take your pick.

Water IS important.

Take a day of rest before.

Get a decent breakfast down you before you start.

You'll be OK.

 

[chewy]

Agree with pretty much all of the above...including the advice against gels, not really needed and not as tasty as jelly babies or plapjack

 

[Night Train]

I am what you could call a fair weather non cyclist. I would occasionally do 3 miles round trip adn maybe clock 30 miles in a year. However, when faced with a 35mile ride I take a 'camel pack' with about 1.5 - 2 litres of water depending on the amount of sun and then just get on with it. Breaking it up into short 10 mile bits and stopping just to stretch legs and eat a few jelly babies helps a lot if you can but if it is a non stopping ride then just have the snacks to hand if needed.

I find that I will change my pedaling to rest legs, currently, if the terrain allows, I do 5 strokes and then coast a little. It gives alternate legs a stretch and makes the energy go a little further.

 

[Crackle]

35 miles is just about short enough to do without food on-route, but best to keep something in the back pocket anyway. Flapjack, Mars bar, take your pick.

Water IS important.

Take a day of rest before.

Get a decent breakfast down you before you start.

You'll be OK.

Pretty much this, have something you fancy in your back pocket. Personally I don't use chocolate unless I really need an energy boost as I find it gives me a high and then leaves me even lower but 35/40 miles is about the distance you can get away with not eating much on the ride. You can even get away with not drinking much but best to keep a steady intake as you'll pay the next day for that, you might even sleep badly.

 

[BrumJim]

Water is very much dependent on weather. Sun beating down on your back and a desire to push those legs as hard as you can, and you won't survive 35 miles without water. Cold wind and a more casual attitude, and liquid won't be required, but best not to leave it behind.

 

[chillyuk]

Check the weather and dress accordingly.

I did 40 miles yesterday. It was quite cold when I stuck a toe out of the door to check, and it was windy, so I wore tights. Got to 12 miles and it was scorching and I was overheating. I went through two full bike bottles and had to twice stop and buy more drinks en route.

 

[endoman]

Just done 38 miles, 1 litre of isostar, 500 ml lucozade sport, big latte half way round, couple of slices malt loaf to nibble on and a cereal bar thing.

First time I've gone that far with only the stop for coffee, felt really good, had some porridge as well before leaving.