# Newb question about century.



## MCF (Oct 12, 2006)

Is a century a 100 mile ride that was done pretty much during the course of one ride with no more than occasional stops for bathroom, snack, lunch, etc.? Does 50 miles in one day, sleep and 50 miles back count?? Also, is there any distinction between an 'easy' century or a 'hard' century? Be easy, I mean 50 miles out in West Texas and back where there are NO hills and by hard I obviously mean some significant climbing involved...


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## ericm979 (Jun 26, 2005)

MCF said:


> Is a century a 100 mile ride that was done pretty much during the course of one ride with no more than occasional stops for bathroom, snack, lunch, etc.? Does 50 miles in one day, sleep and 50 miles back count?? Also, is there any distinction between an 'easy' century or a 'hard' century? Be easy, I mean 50 miles out in West Texas and back where there are NO hills and by hard I obviously mean some significant climbing involved...


A century is 100 miles in a day. 100 miles over two days isn't a century. 100 miles in a day with a nap in the middle is a century, but after a nap it is pretty hard to get motivated for the second half so the nap is not something I'd recommend.

There's easy centuries and hard centuries and centuries that are designed to be real sufferfests (the Markleeville Death Ride being an example at 128 miles and 16000 feet of climbing). There are even centuries that are ridden like races, at least at the front. But there is no official distinction. For all of them you can choose how hard you want to make it, assuming there's not a cutoff time. A flat century could be pretty hard if there's a wind and you're going fast.


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## Cory (Jan 29, 2004)

*The nap bothers me a little, but I think it counts...*

My first reaction was that a century is ONE RIDE. Get on the bike and go 100 miles, with maybe a snack break and a couple of pee stops. For some reason the idea of a nap bothered me.
On the other hand, I've probably taken two hours off the bike in every century I've done, and what's the difference between taking a nap and sitting with my back against a tree trying to convince myself I shouldn't take a 30-mile short cut and go home? I say if it's 100 miles in a day, it's a century.


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## Ridgetop (Mar 1, 2005)

Especially as a beginner you don't want to start out doing anything hard anyway as far as throwing large elevation into your 100 miles. The first we did was to ride 50 miles out to some town and then get lunch and ride the 50 back. A year later we did 100 miles of the Death Ride (only 12,500 feet of climb - we blew it ). Anyway, if your are just starting out you might want to start with a metric century (about 68 miles) and then keep increasing your mileage from there. Good luck.


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## brianmcg (Oct 12, 2002)

I would say it is 100 miles done in one day. But I don't like the idea of a long break in between. 

I mean you could ride 50 miles in the morning. Take a nap, have some lunch then get back on the bike in the late afternoon and go another 50 miles. Technically you did 100 miles in one day, but its was spread out so much the effort just isn't the same.

I had a sister-n-law that "ran" a marathon once too. It took her and her sister over twelve hours. They walked the whole way and stopped and had lunch somewhere. When she got to the finish line she was mad that they had taken everything down and everyone had already left from the after-party. LOL.

Technically she finished the marathon, but it just doesn't count in my book.


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## MCF (Oct 12, 2006)

*Thanks...*

I agree about the Marthon....there is a town about 50 miles South of Florence called Sienna....you can drive on the highway or take a rode called SR222...it weaves through Chianti and is an older two lane road that doesn't have much traffic but it is a 'rolling' road through the hills of Tuscany....I hope to ride to Sienna and back...I guess if I can't make it back I will just take the train...I can do 30 miles now pretty easily and would think that I could do 40 now without much trouble....after that I am not sure how my body would react. I guess I just need to get out and ride as far as I feel comfortable on SR222 and if I start to feel like I might have trouble making it back, turnaround.....yeah, a like the idea of a metric century first....


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

The Ultra Marathon Cycling Association says....

"For routing reasons some centuries are just under 100 miles. In the Y-R a century is a ride of 90 - 149 miles" and you have to do the first 90 in 12 hours.

http://www.ultracycling.com/standings/year-rounder.html

I say a Century Ride is 100 miles in a day starting at 12:01am and ending at midnight.


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## Dave Hickey (Jan 27, 2002)

I agree with the others. 100 miles in one day is a century. I'd be very careful about the nap though. Aches and pains can likely prevent you from finishing after an extended rest period. Stop and have a nice lunch but don't rest more than an hour or so...

I did 70 miles on Tuesday morning. On Tuesday night, I decided to go for a night ride of about 20 miles. It [email protected] neared killed me. Granted it's winter and I'm not riding as many miles but I've ridden many centuries and do a metric every weekend. The 20 miles on Tuesday night was very difficult....


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## Mark McM (Jun 18, 2005)

*What, no mention of Metric Centurys?*

And what about if your rode 100 nautical miles - would that be a Nautical Century?


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## MB1 (Jan 27, 2004)

*No, you would just be all wet.*



Mark McM said:


> And what about if your rode 100 nautical miles - would that be a Nautical Century?


nmnmndm


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## MCF (Oct 12, 2006)

*I will try the metric...*

nautical is out..my bike doesn't float...changing subjects...which cassette would give the best (i.e. lowest) climbing gear...I have an '06 Lemond and I swear it is harder to climb hills in it than on my mountain bike....the roadie is a three ring, but I would like to change the cassette to get lower gears....last week I rode the same road on my mtn bike and never left the middle ring...today I had to almost get in my smallest ring almost immediately on the roadie.....I looked for cassettes at Jenson and Pricepoint...is there a difference between roadie cassettes and mtn bike cassettes? I would think so....what about a Sram PC990? What cassette would give best climbing (ie lowest ratio) for a roadie?


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## John Nelson (Mar 10, 2006)

Personally, I wouldn't consider it a century unless it was done in one ride. If I go home and then go back out again later, I consider that two rides. But you get to define it any way you want. It's not like there is some sort of official certification process.


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## Kerry Irons (Feb 25, 2002)

*Cassette choices*



MCF said:


> What cassette would give best climbing (ie lowest ratio) for a roadie?


Uh, that would be the cassette with the largest cog. Do you not understand gear ratios? Your question suggests that you might want to spend some time on Sheldon Brown's site. An example might be: www.sheldonbrown.com/gearing/index.html


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## 99trek5200 (Jan 26, 2007)

I just purchased an Ultegra "Century Special" 9 speed cassette from Harris Cyclery. It is has 13-30 teeth, is said to be usable with any derailure and was designed by Sheldon Brown. My bike is a double and I am a newbie, so the 11-23 that came on my bike did not offer many useful gears. I bought the cassette socket so that I could swap it out myself. It was a piece of cake. While the bike is still on the trainer for a month or so, I am confident this cassette will help me handle the rolling hills in my area.


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## Ridgetop (Mar 1, 2005)

Get a 12-27 and you'll be happy with the climbs, but top out on the downhills. It's a trade off.


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## MCF (Oct 12, 2006)

*'06 Lemond came with a...*

Sram PG950 12-26 9spd and triple 52/42/30.....would a 12-27 really make that much difference?? Not too concerned about 'topping out on downhills' as I usually am riding the brakes some because of cars around here and keep a comfortable 'coast' around 25mph.....

Also, what about changing the middle ring to a 39 on Bontrager Race GXP cranks?


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## ericm979 (Jun 26, 2005)

I'd recommend changing the middle ring to a 39t. That gives you about one more cog's worth of gearing. Make sure you get a middle ring designed for a triple, not an inner ring for a double. FSA makes a 39t middle ring, and Shimano now puts one on their 10sp systems. I put the FSA ring on my wife's bike, which has ultegra 9sp, and it works ok. There is a bit more triming involved when on the middle ring, but having a 39 makes the middle ring more useful, so it's worth it. 

Rather than switching to a cluster with a 27, you can get a smaller granny ring. A 28t ring with your 26t large cog will give you a low gear thats lower than a 30x27.

Don't get into the habit of riding the brakes. Instead, brake strongly and then release. Riding the brakes on a long descent will make them fade.


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