The Metric Century (100KM) A Month Challenge ChatZone

[ColinJ]

Maybe it's a "dead road"...?

If it is 3-4% then that by itself is enough to account for the deadness.

There is one very familiar stretch of 'dead road' near here, and we rode along it on my forum ride yesterday. It is the stretch of the A646 from Walk Mill through Holme Chapel towards Cliviger Gorge. It is not too bad with fresh legs but if you ever tackle it when tired, it just seems to drag on and on. It hardly seems to go uphill but is in fact averaging about 2%, with a 'heavy' road surface, and often a bit of a headwind.

I also know a stretch of, er, 'live road'. There is a steepish little climb from Old Town on the hillside above Hebden Bridge to Chiserley. The road then turns sharp right by some cottages and continues to ascend, still looking fairly steep, but feeling relatively easy. I think that it is the reason - 6-7% feels easy compared to 10-11%. It is only a short stretch of road. I'm sure if it continued to climb for a km or two then it would start to feel like hard work!

 

[Supersuperleeds]

If it is 3-4% then that by itself is enough to account for the deadness.

There is one very familiar stretch of 'dead road' near here, and we rode along it on my forum ride yesterday. It is the stretch of the A646 from Walk Mill through Holme Chapel towards Cliviger Gorge. It is not too bad with fresh legs but if you ever tackle it when tired, it just seems to drag on and on. It hardly seems to go uphill but is in fact averaging about 2%, with a 'heavy' road surface, and often a bit of a headwind.

I also know a stretch of, er, 'live road'. There is a steepish little climb from Old Town on the hillside above Hebden Bridge to Chiserley. The road then turns sharp right by some cottages and continues to ascend, still looking fairly steep, but feeling relatively easy. I think that it is the reason - 6-7% feels easy compared to 10-11%. It is only a short stretch of road. I'm sure if it continued to climb for a km or two then it would start to feel like hard work!

There are hundreds of dead roads around this way

 

[Donger]

Every hill is a horrible hill if the people you are riding with are going faster than you want to. I enjoy a good challenge when I'm riding alone, but the same hills when riding with a group are a different level of grief.

 

[Brandane]

Surprisingly, I am still in this . Todays 100 km ride was one of the nicest rides I have had this year - beautiful weather and hardly any wind. In October . I suspect that November and December might not be quite as pleasant .

 

[ColinJ]

Surprisingly, I am still in this . Todays 100 km ride was one of the nicest rides I have had this year - beautiful weather and hardly any wind. In October . I suspect that November and December might not be quite as pleasant .

I am intending to do a 100 mile audax ride with Littgull in early November (see my current signature link), so that would cover my metric century for that month, but I am not looking forward to a potentially freezing December metric century ride. I will try to get it done as early in the month as possible.

I am contemplating going to Spain at the end of January 2016 to get my Jan/Feb metric century rides done in warmer conditions. If I do that, I may even try and get imperial centuries in as well so I could potentially be doing the imperial and metric century challenges PLUS the half century challenge next year.

Of course, what will happen now will be that I suffer a really bad flu bug in Jan which knocks the stuffing out of me and scuppers all 3 challenges before they even start!

 

[Brandane]

I am intending to do a 100 mile audax ride with Littgull in early November (see my current signature link), so that would cover my metric century for that month, but I am not looking forward to a potentially freezing December metric century ride. I will try to get it done as early in the month as possible.

I am contemplating going to Spain at the end of January 2016 to get my Jan/Feb metric century rides done in warmer conditions. If I do that, I may even try and get imperial centuries in as well so I could potentially be doing the imperial and metric century challenges PLUS the half century challenge next year.

Of course, what will happen now will be that I suffer a really bad flu bug in Jan which knocks the stuffing out of me and scuppers all 3 challenges before they even start!

That was my tactics this year. I did my January metric century on 31st January - in Florida. Three days later I did February's century, whilst still in Florida!

 

[ColinJ]

That was my tactics this year. I did my January metric century on 31st January - in Florida. Three days later I did February's century, whilst still in Florida!

I remember thinking what a good idea that was, and planning my own escape for 2016! I will be getting a very small pension in January and 1/3 of the lump sum would pay for the holiday ...

 

[Brandane]

I remember thinking what a good idea that was, and planning my own escape for 2016! I will be getting a very small pension in January and 1/3 of the lump sum would pay for the holiday ...

I'm considering something similar myself. I like to get away in January anyway when flights are cheaper and places are quieter. Can't be bothered with holidays during peak periods like school holidays. Florida Gulf Coast will be getting googled in the next few weeks!

 

[ColinJ]

I'm considering something similar myself. I like to get away in January anyway when flights are cheaper and places are quieter. Can't be bothered with holidays during peak periods like school holidays. Florida Gulf Coast will be getting googled in the next few weeks!

Indeed - I can't see the point in going away when the weather here is likely to be at its best and temperatures abroad are likely to be way too high, and everything costs more! It is getting through the long, dreary UK winters that I have a problem with.

I met a group of pensioners who took Costa Blanca cycling holidays every year for the whole of Jan, Feb and Mar. They said that hotel deals were so good at that time of year that it was almost cheaper than staying at home and paying the heating bills.

 

[fatjel]

I don't mind the cold so much as the short days in Winter
The last 200k ride ended after dark despite starting shortly after dawn
First week in November is the plan for next big one
I shall be in Portugal in Jan so will be trying to cycle a bit whilst there..

 

[Brandane]

Surprisingly, I am still in this . Todays 100 km ride was one of the nicest rides I have had this year - beautiful weather and hardly any wind. In October . I suspect that November and December might not be quite as pleasant .

November's ride turned out to be fine, apart from some chilly fog patches along the way. I did a repeat of last months ride, which I did last month on my 28mm tyre shod Tricross at an average speed of 13.1 mph. Today I was on my lighter road bike (Spesh Secteur) on 25mm tyres. The difference was a whole 0.3 mph faster on the road bike . No wind worth bothering about on either ride.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Phew. November on the board. That was definitely my hardest 100k this year. I picked an easy route with well below average hills, but for whatever reason - heavy bike (No 1 bike is being mended); heavy tires (M+); gusty headwinds; heavy legs; lack of sleep; it being my first long ride for over a month; nervous hangover from falling off yesterday, I don't know but I just couldn't get going. I was riding through treacle. I've not checked but it's probably my slowest long solo ride that I've recorded.

Now for a big roast dinner ....

 

[velovoice]

Well done, Andrew!

I missed October due to injury: first, a sports therapist I saw on short notice when my usual gal wasn't available absolutely pulverised me resulting in tears to both IT bands. Then (possibly related?), I came down with a spectacular case of dermatitis from neck to ankles. On the last possible day, desperately itchy and unsure if the ITB tears had healed enough, I got back on the bike to get the 100km in, only to fall on a treacherously slippery stretch of Grand Union Canal towpath.

Between the rash and the bruises, I had to wear trousers at work all last week (which is not exactly kosher).

I'm probably still too itchy to don lycra but I'm getting back on the bike for tomorrow's commute, because the local bus is doing my head in.

 

[ColinJ]

I was supposed to have ridden an imperial century audax event today but was put off by the forecast of strong winds and lots of rain. That left me with no ride planned to get November's metric century in so I have looked up a route that I had been plotting for a future forum ride and might try and do that in the next couple of weeks.

The route goes to somewhere that I have not ridden before, mainly because it involves riding some stretches of busy road which I would normally avoid. It is a loop passing through Rivington near Bolton. I got a lift there in 2002 to watch the Commonwealth Games road races and decided that I'd like to ride over some time but up to now I have not got round to it.

I have just spent an hour using Street View to examine the unfamiliar roads. It looks like quite a nice route apart from the busier sections. 116 km in total.

I found a couple of places where the Street View car had not been, which is quite unusual in the UK now. When I examined the far end of the blank section, a sign said "Private Road", which might explain it. It is shown as a normal road on the OS map. Maybe I am being stupid, but I wonder if it is actually named 'Private Road' rather than just being a road which IS private?

 

[Fubar]

Man that was hard today! Took a solo ride out to the Clackmannan Bridge and crossed the Forth (with a headwind the whole way), took the usual single track road to stay away from the main roads - cyclist going the other way shouts something (which I don't catch but give him a thumbs up anyway), half a mile on the road is flooded with no view of the bottom. I could see the exit approx 500 yards on, and a ridge on either looks "doable" so I lift the bike and go for it - mistake! My feet start sinking and shoes fill up with freezing water. I hopped into the farmers field which was better but muddy, but then have to hop back onto the ridge as the field is flooded - more bleddy water!

That was all 30k in, so spend the rest of the ride with wet feet. Never mind! Novembers 100k - done.