Cycling 100 miles in a day

[Ludwig]

I'm thinking of trying to cycle 100 miles in a day. The most ive done is about 60 and tend to get quite tired. If you have cycled 100 miles in a day how often do you take breaks, do you need to build your distances up over the months like a marathon runner would, do you eat and drink often and so on. If you did 100 miles in a day how did you do it?

 

[Big Nick]

I'm not sure there's an answer to your query because it will largely depend on someone's fitness

I break every 20 miles or so but I ain't ever got anywhere near the 100!!

 

[Supersuperleeds]

I normally stop for 5 minutes or so to scoff a bit of cake or what other food I have carried with me. Will do this two or three times at the most.

Everyone is different.

 

[philinmerthyr]

If you can do 60 miles it won't take much to build up to 100 especially if you are not after speed. Do a 70 and 80 then go for the 100.

I was 20 stone when I did the London 100 last year. My cycling time was 7:15 and elapsed time 7:48. Just over half hour of breaks. From memory it was 4 breaks at the food/water stops and to take in the view at the top of a Box Hill.

 

[Dayvo]

You need to build up to it, but if you cycled regularly and sensibly, there's no reason why you couldn't do it in 6-8 weeks (at a guess).

You'll also need to know how to feed your body with food for the right fuel/energy.

 

[Old Plodder]

Likely you'll want to have a short rest approx 30~40 miles in, then it'll be down to how you're feeling as to how many/how often for the rest of the ride.

I used to ride with & without others, when on my own I seldom stopped for long. When with others, we had an 11's stop (20~30mins), lunch (up to an hour), tea at about the 70~80 mile mark (20~30mins), then home for dinner.

Don't forget to have a good evening meal the night before & a good breakfast on the day.
(Carry food & drink with you, as sometimes you won't find anywhere open when you need it.)

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Everyone is different. If you are tired at the end of 60 miles, then you probably need to make sure you rest up prior to the ride, fuel well the night before and make sure you pace yourself carefully during the first half. Stop frequently before you are tired and refuel sensibly and you should be OK.

 

[Mo1959]

I did 86 miles today. I could maybe have squeezed out the 100 but
a) I was getting a bit tender and
b) I didn't really want to leave the dog any longer

I started sipping my drink and nibbling on flapjack from around 25 miles. Maybe took a few mouthfuls every 20 minutes to half hour roughly.

 

[outlash]

Maybe try for 80 before you give it a go? Saying that, I had only done about 60 miles max before my first century . It was my CC's sportive route recce and we just took our time, a couple of decent stops and paced ourselves. No point in setting off like a rat up a drainpipe if you're flagging after 40 miles. As for stops and fuel, only you know yourself. Keep topped up and see how you feel.


Tony.

 

[Spinney]

As others have said, part of it is to pace yourself at the beginning. I take all day over it, have at least 3 cafe stops and (near the end when my legs are hurting) a few more short quick-drink-and-bite stops.

The killer is when you get home to find your computer says 97 miles, so you have to cycle another 1.5 miles up the road and back....

 

[Banjo]

Provided your bike is comfortable if yo-u can do 60 you can do 100 miles.

Food and drink are the most important things.

Eat well the day before and start the ride well hydrated. Force yourself to eat more than you think you need during the day. Any high calorie food will keep you going, my favourite food on bike rides is a full english breakfast about 11 then a late lunch with sweets and other snacks as you go along.

If you feel you are exhausted stop and eat some sugary stuff and you will soon be underway again.

drink more than you think you need , keep the pace gentle you will do it.

Good Luck

 

[BigonaBianchi]

I rode 104 miles yesterday with over 2000 m climbing . I had no breakfast and had a sandwich halfway roughly. I did have two energy drinks on th eway around. when i got back i got the serious munchies...i think missing breakfast was silly, suggest not doing that lol!

 

[Davidc]

I did 110 on the EE (overnight) last year. I did some long rides beforehand but time constraints meant a maximum of about 70 miles. Plenty of hill climbing practice.

Sensible breaks, plenty of drink (mainly water) steady nibbling. Careful pacing, and most of the suggestions above.

If you can do 60 miles you should be able to do 100+.

If I can do 100+ miles most people should be able to do so! (with preparation and care).

I'm not doing it this year, mainly because I won't be able to do the preparation.

 

[djb1971]

The killer is when you get home to find your computer says 97 miles, so you have to cycle another 1.5 miles up the road and back....

Glad I'm not the only one to do this. I've lost count of the times I've shot past the house and gone 'around the block' to get it to 50/75/100 instead of 49/74/99.

My wife thinks I'm nuts*, she often sees me forgetting where I live

*she thinks I'm nuts without the aid of a bike.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

I built up to a 75 miler before attempting my century last summer. A packed lunch plus lots of home made flapjack helped with fuelling and I got through pretty much all of the of water I took with me.

I didn't have a plan for stops which I think I paid for later in the ride. I'd plan to have a bite of something quite frequently (at least every hour) when doing it again.