Progressing from 100km Audax to 200km

[Glover Fan]

Hi,

Got my first 200km audax on the 19th June, have only done 100km so far, regularly cycle 50-75 mile rides at least once a week with shorter distances interspersed.

What tips can you guys give for successfully completing the next distance? I'm having real trouble pacing myself slowly, on the last audax I average 26.1km/h which is way too fast and my legs were pretty sore when I finished the audax. I don't know if the bike encourages me to go faster or whether it's all in my head. I'm finding it hard to train myself to go slower as well?!

I'm gonna have a go at cycling 100 mile distances over the next couple of weeks which will be enough milestone in itself, but probably won't actually cycle 200km til the day of the event!

Thanks in advance,

Jon.

 

[Baggy]

It sounds as if you're doing all the right things - if you're regularly riding 75 milers etc you should cope fine with the transition to 100 miles, and then you should be able to manage 200k on the day without much problem. If you start off too fast you might find the last 45k or so to be a bit of a grind so if you think you're pushing on too fast (especially on hills) you could always drop a gear so you have to slow a little.

On your first 100 milers, take note of any aches, pains etc that appear towards the end of the ride (if you have any!) and if necessary tweak your bike position/sort out any causes.

Take the opportunity to stretch and give your legs a self-massage at controls.

If possible, teaming up with someone who is riding a bit slower than you is a good way of pacing yourself on the day, and pacing people up hills conserves energy - if someone is riding uphill ahead and you're catching up, don't overtake them, ease off and ride up at the same speed.

All that aside, I know a few people who can happily ride 200k at 26kph, so you'll probably be fine as long as you eat and drink well!

 

[DrMekon]

I´m not very experienced, but my hunch is that you are there already. Just take it a bit easier to the halfway point. I´ve got into the habit of shifting into the middle ring if I find myself overdoing things; that way, it´s harder to get sucked into pushing on. The other thing for me is getting caught up in groups that are too fast for me. During my last 300km I had a really bad patch at the 260km mark because of trying to to my share on the front of a group containing some really fast blokes going into a headwind. I felt fine once I came off the back and dropped to a more sensible speed.

I suspect that if you enter one, it´ĺl all just come together. I have my first 600km in a few weeks, and my longest ride is 335km. I am hoping for the same.

 

[yello]

I average 26.1km/h which is way too fast and my legs were pretty sore when I finished the audax.

Nothing wrong with taking the same approach to a 200 and dragging yourself around the latter part of it. Seriously, it'd be a good learning process. You'll get a good indication of how far you can go at that pace and you'll build strength. At the very worst, you'll learn to pace yourself next time! Besides, at that pace, the time you'll have banked up means plenty of time to have a sit down, plate of beans on toast, recuperate and tackle the final section.

Btw, I would not be suggesting the above if I didn't think you were capable of it. I think, from what you've said, you are. The biggest difference, imho, between 100 and 200 is in the head. You think 'twice as far, twice as hard'. It's not like that. It's really just more of the same. If you're fuelled and hydrated then you just keep going.

Personally, I'm lucky that I rarely knock myself out. Taking it easy comes naturally so I rarely have to remind myself to slow down. The downside of that is that my average speed has not increased a great deal over the years. If you want to be quicker then you have to push yourself.

 

[Scoosh]

'Ride Management' is my term for getting this stuff right.

IMHO the main thing, as others have said, is proper eating/drinking. Have a small swig from your bottle every 20 mins or so and eat something (a bite of a bar, sandwich, roll etc) every half -> one hour.

Have a decent stop at the just-over-halfway control. Get off your bike and have a reasonable meal

- preferably something that you would normally eat ! (I had beans on toast in the middle of my first 300 and, soon afterwards thought: 'Hang on !

I never eat beans on toast !

Why am I trying it out in the middle of the longest ride I've ever done ?'

Fortunately, no ill effects

)

When going for the ride, tell people you are new to this distance and see if you can team up with someone who is more experienced. If they are slower than you are - no problem, provided your objective is just to get round in time. If you want to see how far you can go at your normal pace before 'blowing up' - fine, try that.


You'll be fine on the day. You actually know you can do it, your main concern seems to be 'can I do it slow enough not to blow up ?'


Let us know how it goes .....

[Of course, you could always put some bricks in your bag to give you more weight to drag around, which should slow you down a bit, as well as being good training for your 300 ....

]

 

[Ian H]

If possible, teaming up with someone who is riding a bit slower than you is a good way of pacing yourself on the day, and pacing people up hills conserves energy - if someone is riding uphill ahead and you're catching up, don't overtake them, ease off and ride up at the same speed.

There's good advice for pacing yourself.

 

[Banjo]

I think for the first time at a new distance the priority has to be on finishing not getting a fast time.Whatever time you get will be a personal best so take it easy and enjoy it.

I did my first 200 a few weeks ago I didnt find it noticeably more difficult than doing a 100 or 150,