# First Century in the mountains in Aug!



## trek21 (Oct 27, 2010)

i will be doing my first century ride in August in Asheville, NC. The ride is called the Blue Ridge breakaway and has 9,000+ feet of elevation change. I am doing this with a group of friends and my brother and will be doing it just for fun and not a time. What would you recommend me do to prepare for this? What kind of nutrition should I use, solids, infinite, hammer perpetuem, or a little of all? Any other advice is greatly appreciated. Oh, and I just had peroneal tendon surgery this last July so I hope that won't affect me any. Thanks Chris


----------



## ericm979 (Jun 26, 2005)

I've done more 10,000'+ days than I can count- in organized rides like the Death Ride (I've done 8) and many others, races like Everest Challenge, and in training.

That's a hard event for your first century. I suggest trying an easier one first. If your current long rides are under 40 miles then you should try a metric century first, then a flatter 100 mile century, then a hilly century.

Your training should include a lot of climbing. To finish the event you should be able to do 6000' of climbing during training rides and not be entirely hammered. Do shorter climbing rides during the week and go a little harder on those climbs than you do on the climbs on your long ride.

For nutrition you should use what you already know works for you. Use your long training rides to figure that out. If you know what the organizers will have, you should try that and see if it agrees with you. 

With a group there's always stronger and weaker riders. Even if the stronger riders are committed to riding the pace of the weakest rider, the weak rider(s) will be going harder than they ought to because they don't want to make their friends wait. If you're the weak rider you will do better by letting your friends off the hook and riding your own pace. Speaking of pace, you want to go slow for the first parts. Many people go too hard and then pay for it later, if they finish at all. Set a low limit on your HRM if you need a reminder to not race.

For the event, use gearing that gives you one cog lower than what you think you will need, based on what you use on your long rides for climbs of similar grade. On the event you want to use a slightly lower gear than normal so your legs are turning a little higher rpm than you commonly use. That will save your legs for later in the ride. The lower gearing is in case you misjudge your nutrition or pace and crack near the end. It's so you can still get over the climbs in a weakened state.


----------



## trek21 (Oct 27, 2010)

Thanks for the advice! I have committed to myself that I will do it so there's no backing out, lol. I won't be the weakest rider in the group but somewhat in the middle. I will mess with the nutrition part once it warms up here and can do a long ride.


----------



## ericm979 (Jun 26, 2005)

I wasn't suggesting you back out, I was suggesting you do easier centuries first.


----------



## BRparkway (Oct 19, 2010)

Trek21-

I have done Bridge to Bridge in Lenoir for the last 3 years (102 miles 12K climb) and my advice is that you have get in the best climbing shape you have ever been in. Period. Find some climbs in your area that require sustained climbing for at least 60 minutes at a time.

I live in Va and I have a 4000 foot x 13 mile climb near me on the Parkway that I will ride as many as 4x a week during my training regimen in the 2 months leading up to the B2B century. I also do a fair amount of interval training as well.

Do this on top of the long distance rides suggested above and you will be fine.


----------



## trek21 (Oct 27, 2010)

Thanks Eric, forgot to mention in July I will be doing the 24 hours of booty ride here and will attempt my longest ride of over 150 miles. Thanks for your advice I appreciate it. 
@ brp, thanks I am planning on hitting the hills come spring and get some good climbs in to get prepared. That plus I will do a pre ride in about 4 months with a friend that lives there. Hills are my biggest fears and that's why I want to do it!!! Need to prove to myself that I can do it if I put my mind to it.


----------



## dcorn (Sep 1, 2011)

That's quite ambitious for a first century! I went with ericm's suggestion personally. Started riding Oct of 2010, did a metric century with maybe 1000-2000 ft of climbing in April, then in October did my first century. It was the seagull century out on MD's eastern shore, so maybe 100-200 ft of climbing (yeah, its that flat) but we had a 15-30 mph headwind on at least 75% of the ride. 

I think my issue would be that there aren't many long sustained climbs around my area to train on, or at least I haven't found them yet. Some of my basic rides probably mimic interval training with short steep hills that I blast up, but nothing that I can sit and climb for 20-30 minutes at a time (and I don't think I'd want to haha). 

For nutrition, just sample all kinds of stuff and see what you like best and what makes you feel energized. I'm partial to the gummy type stuff like Clif shot bloks, but I always carry a few GU gel packs as well. Clif bars are a favorite for when I need a small meal on the trail. Usually charity rides will have stops every 15-20 miles with snacks and drinks, but choose that stuff wisely so you aren't left with a hurting stomach or feeling too full.


----------



## trek21 (Oct 27, 2010)

Thanks dcorn, yeah I think it's a big jump but I will be ready by then. I am adding mileage every ride and by then I should be capable of riding over 100 miles on hilly terrain. I have a few good hills here were I live (11-15% grade) that I will practice on from time to time. I will just try different stuff to eat and see what works I guess. Thanks


----------

