QUESTION: How difficult is a century ride? I’m 35 years old and not overweight, but I don’t really exercise regularly. An older friend from work has invited me to do a century ride with him in a few months. I own a hybrid bike. Will I be able to do it cold, or should I train for it? He says I need a training program, but I’m more than 10 years younger. —Alan R.
RBR’S STAN PURDUM REPLIES: A lot of cyclists view completing their first century ride as a significant milestone in their cycling life, because riding 100 miles in a single day requires, at minimum, endurance and determination from the rider.
The difficulty of the ride varies widely depending on:
- the terrain — is the route mainly flat, hilly or mountainous?
- the wind — riding into an unrelenting headwind is real energy sapper, and you likely won’t know what the wind is going to be like until the day of the ride.
- how tolerant you are of physical discomfort — the fact that you are normally comfortable throughout a two-hour ride is no guarantee that you will be comfortable after several more hours in the saddle (depending on your fitness and training, a century can take up to 6-8 hours to complete). Expect aches and/or cramps in your butt, your hands, your shoulders, your neck, your legs and elsewhere.
- the weather — riding in a cold rain or on a high-temperature day can cut your endurance by half or more.
- the bike you ride —if the century is on paved roads, that hybrid may require a bit more effort to pedal than the bike made for road riding. Over the 100 miles, that bit more effort will add up and contribute to how much the ride tires you.
- the support services — will there be regular rest stops with refreshments, bike mechanics and first-aid workers or do you have to self-support the ride?
The fact that you are 35 and not overweight is in your favor, but even so, I don’t recommend that you attempt the ride “cold” without any training. Normal good health and grit count for a lot, but they do not compensate for a lack of training.
That said, training does not necessarily need to be a highly disciplined regimen, but there does need to be some consistency. Since you have a few months before the ride, take the time to build base fitness by riding, if possible, three times a week, gradually increasing the distance until you can do about 70 miles on your weekend ride. If your total mileage for the week usually equals 100 or more, it’s likely you’ll be able to finish the century.
Here is some further help from RoadBikeRider:
Quick Fix: Insufficient Training for a Century Ride
Follow These Top Tips to Prepare for a Bicycle Century
Avoid These Common Century Ride Mistakes
Assuming the century ride is on paved roads, you can make the hybrid work more in your favor by switching from the hybrid tires to road tires, using a comfortable saddle and making sure that the bike fits you well.
Readers, feel free to weigh in below about your experience (or that of your friends) preparing — or failing to prepare — for a century ride.
Stan Purdum has ridden several long-distance bike trips, including an across-America ride recounted in his book Roll Around Heaven All Day, and a trek on U.S. 62, from Niagara Falls, New York, to El Paso, Texas, the subject of his book Playing in Traffic. Stan, a freelance writer and editor, lives in Ohio. See more at www.StanPurdum.com.
This is what I tell everyone who wants to do endurance sports.
The body will do what it has to do. The brain is the problem. Somewhere during most long distance rides, the brain will tell the body, “Don’t be stupid”. The successful endurance athlete has a natural ability (or learned) to tell the brain to be quiet and let the body do what it does best…. move.
Obviously you give the body the best chance of success if you train, feed and water it properly, but the brain will do everything in its power to stop this foolishness. And the brain can be very convincing.
Accept that there will be a period, where for lots of very logical reasons, the brain says to stop. Shut your brain off and listen to your body. To me that ability is what makes endurance sports possible for one person but not another.
Maybe that’s what Jens Voigt was doing with his well-known “shut up, legs” mantra.
EXACTLY! 🙂
I know someone that didn’t train for the Triple Bypass. She was fairly fit but did not do the miles or climbs. She finished the triple but had to walk some of it, and finished in over 12 hours . She said it ‘almost killed’ her. Ive seen younger guys hammer from the start then fade halfway through. I think training will make these tough rides more enjoyable.
is it only me or i find this guy’s question offensive?? why do they think you can just get up the couch and ride 100 miles in a day without training?? that is probably why people see cyclist on the road and think we are a waist of time…. NO BODY NEEDS TO TRAIN! YOU JUST RIDE 100 MILES AND THAT’S IT..
Not so much offensive as ignorant. Perhaps he should go on a cruise instead.
You could probably finish the century with no or minimal training, but you wouldn’t enjoy the last half of it. If you train for it, it can be a lot of fun.
Riding a century should not be taken lightly. If you want to ENJOY it (and isn’t that the point?), start ramping up the length of your rides until you do 70 with ease. Learn how to eat and drink on the bike – absolutely mandatory for enjoyment. Then, with these two things accomplished, it’s all mental! I think it helps to divide the century mentally into four 25-mile rides. Then when you finish each segment, forget about it and start afresh. Have fun!!!
In 100% agreement with you, kept the 100 mile ride out of my mind and just thought of 25 miles 4 times, and drank plenty of water and some snacks that were tried durning training rides,equaled success
Everything I read here was good advice, and I too would caution the young man to just find out what he’s able to do before thinking his age and weight is what determines what he can do, especially if he’s going to do the ride on a hybrid.
I’ve done a few centuries in my day, but now I’m old enough that a “metric century” is more to my liking. Ha!
Anyway, many years ago I came across this bit as a way to know if you are ready for a particular distance: On the ride you are contemplating, if it’s not a race, you shouldn’t have trouble completing twice the distance you are comfortable with on your usual rides, or if the distance you ride in a week is twice the distance of the ride you are planning to do, you’ll be okey, dokey.
So, for 100 miles, do you do 50 miles and it’s no big deal, and do you often get 100 miles ridden in the course of a week? Does that sound about right?
Oh yeah, and drink before you get thirsty. 🙂
One more in just three words: “Don’t blow up!”
Original comment should read 200 miles in week for the distance desirable to be ready for a century.
Poor proof reading on my part, sorry.
Some things that help me do long distance (6-10 hour road and gravel rides) are: carb food & electrolyte drink, and lots of both (eat early and eat often!); comfortable seat; never going at maximum effort; taking brief breaks and micropauses (especially uphills if feeling like I’m nearing “maximum-effort-required”); knowing the terrain you’re riding, especially knowing the final 30-40 miles of the circuit; finally and this one’s probably a bit controversial for purists: fast music to keep the legs moving but a micro-speaker not earbuds or headphones.
As others have stated, building up endurance over a few months (12 weeks) is a good idea. Not just for leg muscles, but for seat comfort also.
Find a safe route/circuit where you can do a medium distance ride once a week, even if it requires laps. You don’t want to be riding in busy traffic in a near-exhaustion state and only focusing on finishing and nothing else around you. Also for safety, Practice stopping at busy intersections and esp for left turns. Double-check before making turns across traffic. I know this sounds like beginner cycling advice, but the number of close calls I see so-called expert cyclists make is a bit scary!
If the goal is simply to do a century then that is likely possible without training. If you want to enjoy it and not spend the next week limping around and tending to likely saddle sores you need to train. It is very different to do a one off than to get back on the next day and continue riding. Most will find a drop bar bike both more comfortable and easier to peddle for long distances. Does not have to be a performance bike, I wouldn’t hesitate to do a century on my Lynskey GR 300 with Rene Herse 650×48 tires. In 2009 we rode the Southern Tier from San Diego to Saint Augustine in 40 days without a rest day. All of our group were experienced, but some had not trained much. There was some suffering but by the time we got to Texas everyone was able to do the 5 centurys (longest 132 miles) and get back on the bike the next morning.
Unless you have some kind of physical impairment and are a reasonably healthy 35 Year old male, you can complete the ride. You will suffer physical discomfort, but nothing you cannot overcome if you are determined. To enjoy the ride, have a feeling of accomplishment and want to do another, do some training. The more training, the better you will ride, the better you will feel, the better you will have the opportunity to know the joy of a major accomplishment.
I think work up to 75 or 80 mi and then 100 should be doable. Dont start out too fast “burn all your matches at once” eat and drink but not too much. Dont spend too much time at the aid stations. Keep moving but at your pace. Being young and not overweight may not be a guarantee.
exactly! break it up into segments. Make it to the aid station, then the next etc.
I guess he’ll find out, won’t he?
lots of good comments from experienced cyclists! I hope this guy takes them into consideration. Live and learn.
If legs were the only body part engaged in riding a century, then probably almost any reasonably fit person could ride one. The training is critical for other areas – your butt primarily but also your shoulders, neck, arms and hands. If you’re a bit twitchy riding a bike for an hour, imagine it for 5 or more hours. Death grip on the handle bars? What do you think that will be like after half a day.
All those contact points will let you know if they are unhappy. Most likely this person may not know the importance of nutrition and hydration either. Who knows? Maybe he’ll do just fine. I know someone that is fit but did not train. She had to walk some of it and it took her over 12 hrs. I know someone else that thought she was trained but had to sag on the Triple Bypass(. 120 mi, 11,000’). You have to be trained for that.
You guys aren’t going to like this, but here goes. I smoke and I was regularly train doing up to 80 miles. watching what I ate and how much I sm9ked. Getting ready for my third century. On that third one I didn’t want to stop but a minute to light a cigarette and I believe it was about mile 83 with a decent grade I was feeling pretty good, I passed a guy who was struggling a bit while I was smoking. he looked at me and said as I passed too, he said, holy catfish and you’re smoking too! I’ll never forget that. That was a long time ago. I am still riding but it’s a heavy recumbent tadpole, Life is good!