The Metric Century (100KM) A Month Challenge ChatZone

[KingswayRider]

April and May done so all still on track. I need to get a couple more 101km done to hit my 101km Eddington but after that it pretty much falls off a cliff. I doubt I'll ever reach the Eddington km of 102!

I've just updated my signature to include the metric Eddington & I'm at 102. I'd like to move that up to 115...but it looks a long way off. So many 60 something mile rides to shift out of the way. Hopefully I can shuffle the metric up at least a couple (ideally 105 or beyond) & the imperial Eddington to 71 or 72 by the end of the year. Not too bad after switching to road cycling after many years of mtb'ing.

 

[Sea of vapours]

Why 115? Just curious as I was aiming for 111 a couple of years ago. Naturally, it'll now be pretty much forever before it gets much above that.

 

[KingswayRider]

Why 115? Just curious as I was aiming for 111 a couple of years ago. Naturally, it'll now be pretty much forever before it gets much above that.

115 / 70 miles - seemed a good target to chase, but then I'll probably want 120, as it is a "rounder" number. That means I'll have to chase 75 as an imperial number. "Just" 26 to make the imperial number & yes, pretty much forever, for a metric 120.

 

[13 rider]

June's done ,I'm away on holiday near Buxton. Derbyshire this week which happens to be 66 miles from home ,so I rode up and the rest of the family drove up . Tough ride 5000ft of upness with 3\4 of that in the last 25 miles and lots of sections of headwind .But it's done some hilly ride this week I think

 

[Sbudge]

Finally got that 101 Eddington on the Nightrider event. Great ride and excellent organization this year. The GPX track was a little off in places but the signage was much better this year. Perfect conditions too.

 

[steverob]

Final weekend in June and looks like I'm the last to post AGAIN! Though I don't see @13 rider has officially posted in the main thread, I know he has done the distance, so that means five are still in and hopefully I'll be number six.

Had been waiting multiple weeks for a whole bunch of parts to come in to my LBS and now they've finished their work, I finally have a working bike in my possession (or at least one I can safely do 100km on). Now it's a question of whether the lump on top of the bike is capable of getting across the line - wish me luck!

 

[13 rider]

Final weekend in June and looks like I'm the last to post AGAIN! Though I don't see @13 rider has officially posted in the main thread, I know he has done the distance, so that means five are still in and hopefully I'll be number six.

Had been waiting multiple weeks for a whole bunch of parts to come in to my LBS and now they've finished their work, I finally have a working bike in my possession (or at least one I can safely do 100km on). Now it's a question of whether the lump on top of the bike is capable of getting across the line - wish me luck!

Sorry Sir . I know how people in the 50km thread feel now , Just about to update the thread

 

[13 rider]

July's done ,A Cafe ride with fellow Ccers @tallliman and @Supersuperleeds . Out early for 30 early miles and a slightly extended route home for just enough 62.2 miles all on local roads

 

[steverob]

Got my July ride done today on a day off work. Should have gone out and done it last weekend, but I was melting in the heat and just could not stomach four and a bit hours outside and decided to have the weekend off!

As this weekend is looking to be equally hot, thought that a midweek ride might be a little easier, especially if I headed out early to avoid the worst of the temperatures. Decided to take the train from Haddenham to Banbury and cycle back to Aylesbury, but because Chiltern Railways doesn't allow bikes on their train during peak hours (even if you're travelling AWAY from London), the earliest I could leave the house was 08:30 to make the 8 mile trip to Haddenham station. Due to rush hour traffic, I avoided the roads for the first half of my ride and stayed on cycleways to the edge of Aylesbury, which was quite slow going, but I felt a lot safer.

Eventually got to Banbury just after 10:00 and took my usual wandering type of route in the vague direction of home, aiming to cross off VeloViewer tiles in areas of east Oxfordshire and south Northamptonshire I'd only briefly crossed through before. Took a quick lunch break at a McD's en route, but to get out of there it did involve trying to cross the busy A43 dual carriageway at a roundabout, which was a little hair raising to say the least. Started to get a bit too hot for me (e.g. over 30 degrees C) with about ten miles to go, but by that time I was back on familiar roads, so I took it a bit easier and cruised home.

Still got time in July to do a second monthly metric century for the first time this year, but I'm not making any promises.

 

[KingswayRider]

It's been a while, so thought that whilst I was adding in my last couple of rides, I'd post here too. I've started the month with a couple of 100 mile rides.
The first was an early start, heatmap filling in Cheltenham & having over 40 miles by the time I arrived back at the start of the club ride at 9am. The club ride (only 2 of us out as it happened) was out to Sherston & it occurred to me that the potential for the 100 was there. Agreed that as we hit the A46 south of Nailsworth on the way home I'd be cut loose to pick up the pace. I peeled off to do a little lane to Horsley (evil little climb) & took a few little detours on the way home to gain the 7 extra miles needed. My companion took the direct route back & beat me by 10 minutes.
100 number two was a bridge loop, with Wandrer heatmap filling along the way. I specifically wanted to go down to Beachley & take in the view of the Severn Bridge, before passing through Chepstow & crossing the bridge after a very brief foray into Wales. The vast majority of climbing was done by the time I crossed the bridge (over 1000m), but I still had to stop off at Berkeley Tea Room on the way home to buy a couple of cans of lemonade - the heat was starting to bite & I was out of water. The sugar rush helped me on...
I've a number of rides in the 50's, but I just can't be bothered to top them up to 100k - if it isn't over 75 miles to help boost my Eddington number, then they have little value to me. My focus recently has been in Wandrer heatmap filling & also chasing a few targets. Last year I targeted a 4x400 - 4 consecutive months over 400 miles, which I accomplished ( 6 months in a row). This year I'm chasing 5x5 - 5 months of 500+ miles. I have three months completed & topped 400 so far this month, so should comfortably hit month 4.
I've now topped 3000 miles for the year to date, so happily pushing on & I'm just going to see where it takes me rather than chase a target.

 

[KingswayRider]

Quick query...my Strava says 3 rides today. 1st was early start for a bit of heatmap filling, before low battery warning popped up on my Garmin (I'd forgotten to charge). 2nd was getting home after Garmin died (used my phone to record). Spent about 30 mins at home with Garmin on charge & rummaging about for a fix for main ride. A couple of velcro straps, a short USB cable & an Anker 20000Mah powerbank strapped to the top tube got me under way & out on the club ride. If I count just the club ride it is 75 miles...but where do the rules for posting stand? Is this a "stop" or would it be separate rides? Over 90 if I combine the three bits.

 

[Sea of vapours]

The rules say that stops for 'repairs' are fine. That all sounds to me as if it qualifies, don't you think?

 

[KingswayRider]

The rules say that stops for 'repairs' are fine. That all sounds to me as if it qualifies, don't you think?

Will combine distance & climbing as it is allowed. Frustrated that stoppage meant I missed out on an imperial hundred.
Out tomorrow, so will update my list of rides later in the week. (Garmin fully charged ready for a spin out tomorrow evening).

 

[steverob]

Finally got round to doing a second 100km ride in a month for the first time this year. Will admit I was tempted to do a shorter ride and instead hold this route over until next weekend in order to get the August entry done nice and early, but I thought that you can't rely on the weather being this bike friendly forever, so might as well make the most of it now. Having said that, it then proceeded to lightly drizzle on and off all ride, although because it was so warm, I never actually got wet as such. Interestingly there must have been proper rain at some point on my route because around Bicester the roads were completely soaked with puddles and everything, but I completely missed that.

Picked out a relatively flat route (ironic for someone who's recently signed up for the Lunacy Climbing challenge) with the intention of trying to find a cut through between two rather nice cycleable roads that are parallel to each other, but separated by the A34 dual carriageway and the Chiltern railway line out of Oxford. You can get across these at the ends of the road (it's about 7 miles long) but if you come out on it halfway along as I usually do, you seemingly have no choice but to go all the way to one end or the other, then go for a mile or so on fairly busy roads to get to the opposite side.

I had identified some potential other crossings on Google Maps that looked like trails or farm tracks, but it wasn't clear how passable they would be on a road bike, so this was the route to test out my plan. Unfortunately it didn't work out - my first option would only have really been possible on an MTB, while the other did have a not-terrible surface but once you got about a mile down the road, there were "Private Road" signs everywhere, including one that specifically said "No route through for cyclists" (I guess the landowner had previously had issues), so I turned around and went back on my normal cross-over route.

This of course added on a few extra miles to my original plan, but it turned out (when my Garmin eventually gave up on asking me constantly to make U-turns and bothered to recalculate) only to be five, and I dropped one from that by not taking an optional detour I'd originally only added to my route to ensure I got a 100km ride - now obviously no longer needed.

 

[13 rider]

Jan 16 - 62.64 miles, 2,909ft, 4.27.48 - Bilton, Hillmorton, Houlton, DIRFT, Crick, West Haddon, Ravensthorpe, Teeton, Spratton, Brixworth, Holcot, Sywell, Mears Ashby, Sywell, Overstone, Moulton, Railway Cottages, Boughton, Church Brampton, Lower Harlestone, Upper Harlestone, Great Brington, Whilton, Whilton Locks, Welton, Barby, Rugby, Biton, Cawston, home.
Feb 27 - 66.44 miles, 2,965ft, 4.50.47 - Bilton, Cawston, Dunchurch, Willoughby, Braunston, Daventry, Newnham, Preston Capes, Canons Ashby, Moreton Pinkney, Weston, Milthorpe, Weedon Lois, Wappenham, Syresham, Biddlesden, Whitfield, Falcutt, Helmdon, Stuchbury, Sulgrave, Culworth, Eydon, West Farndon, Westhorp, Priors Marston, Lower Shuckburgh, Sawbridge, Grandborough, Woolscott, Dunchurch, home.
Mar 12 - 63.70 miles, 2,008ft, 4.13.55 - Bilton, Cawston, Dunsmore Heath, Ryton-on-Dunsmore, Bubbenhall, Cubbington, Kenilworth, Beausale, Haseley Knob, Wroxall, Chadwick End, Baddesley Clinton, Lapworth, Hockley Heath, Earlswood, Tidbury Green, Wythall, Hollywood, Majors Green, Whitlock End, Cheswick Green, Illshaw Heath, Hockley Heath, Lapworth, Kingswood, Rowington Green, Rowington, Shrewley, Hatton, Warwick, Leamington Spa, Cubbington, Weston under Wetherley, Princethorpe, Cawston, home.
Apr 17 - 71.72 miles, 2,938ft, 4.41.54 - Bilton, Newbold on Avon, Harborough Parva / Magna, Cross in Hand, Magna Park, Lutterworth, Kimcote, Walton, Saddington, Smeeton Westerby, Kibworth Beauchamp, West Langton, Thorpe Langton, Welham, Slawston, Blaston, Stoke Dry, Caldecott, Great Easton, Drayton, Medbourne, Weston by Welland, Sutton Bassett, Market Harborough, Lubenham, Theddingworth, Husbands Bosworth, North Kilworth, South Kilworth, Swinford, Catthorpe, Brownsover, Old Brownsover, Newbold on Avon, home.
May 8 - 73.17 miles, 2,489ft, 4.46.48 Bilton, Cawston, Dunchurch, Toft, Kites Hardwick, Southam, Bishop's Itchington, Gaydon, Chadshunt, Kineton, Little Kineton, Oxhill, Whatcote, Upper Brailes, Lower Brailes, Sutton-under-Brailes, Stourton, Cherington, Little Wolford, Nethercote, Great Wolford, Four Shires Stone, Great Wolford, Todenham, Willington, Honington, Whatcote, Oxhill, Little Kineton, Kineton, Chadshunt, Gaydon, Bishop's Itchington, Deppers Bridge, Southam, Kites Hardwick, Toft, Dunchurch, home.
Jun 12 -76.53 miles, 3,309ft, 5.21.10 - Bilton, Hillmorton, Kilsby, Watford, Murcott, Long Buckby, East Haddon, Holdenby, Church Brampton, Chapel Brampton, Boughton, Moulton, Overstone, Sywell, Earls Barton, Wollaston, Hinwick, Bozeat, Easton Maudit, Grendon, Cogenhoe, Northampton (Ecton Brook, Rectory Farm, Overstone Lodge, Southfields, Round Spinney, Booth Rise, Moulton Park), Boughton, Church Brampton, Railway Cottages, Long Buckby, Murcott, Watford, Kilsby, Hillmorton, Rugby, home.
Jul 17 -78.62 miles, 2,485ft, 5.21.24 - Bilton, Newbold on Avon, Harborough Parva / Magna, Pailton, Monks Kirby, Cloudesley Bush, Wolvey Heath, Burbage, Hinckley, Wykin, Upton, Sibson, Sheepy Parva, Orton-on-the-Hill, Austrey, No Man's Heath, Chilcote, Netherseal, Clifton Campville, Thorpe Constantine, Seckington, Newton Regis, Austrey, Warton, Little Warton, Orton-on-the-Hill, Sheepy Magna, Sheepy Parva, Sibson, Upton, Wykin, Hinckley, Burbage, Wolvey Heath, Wolvey, Five Ways, Withybrook, Brinklow, Bretford, Church Lawford, Long Lawford, home.
Aug 7 - 80.22 miles, 3,361ft, 5.36.40 - Bilton, Newbold on Avon, Harborough Parva / Magna, Cross in Hand, Magna Park, Ashby Parva, Leire, Broughton Astley, Primethorpe, Sutton in the Elms, Croft, Thurlaston, Desford, Merry Lees, Thornton, Copt Oak, Nanpantan, Loughborough, Stanford on Soar, Cotes, Barrow upon Soar, Quorn (Quorndon), Woodhouse, Newtown Linford, Field Head, Botcheston, Newtown Unthank, Desford, Thurlaston, Croft, Sharnford, High Cross, Cloudesley Bush, Brinklow, Bretford, Kings Newnham, Church Lawford, Long Lawford, home.

Very local roads to me today .You came within 1 mile of my house . I live in the next village to Newtown Linford if you hadn't turned off to Field head . A bit lumpy Leicestershire loop Thurlaston back to Thurlaston