# 2010 McClinchy Mile



## thoran (Aug 1, 2009)

I finally bit the bullet and registered for the McClinchy Mile this coming weekend. I'm very excited but also a bit nervous as this will be my first organized ride of any kind. I would love to do the full century if I can manage, but I'm not entirely sure. I plan to do the Arlington-Machias and Arlington-Stanwood loops for sure (81 miles total) and will play it by ear on the last 20. My longest ride so far was 66 miles a couple weeks ago, but thanks to poor planning on my part, I suffered from nutrition and hydration issues (the latter being the worst - I had planned to refill at a park only to find that the water fountains weren't operating!), so I'm somewhat optimistic I can do all 100 miles on a supported ride.

As I mentioned, this is my first organized ride of any kind. Does anyone know what I should expect in terms of nutrition at the food/water stops? Filling up my water bottles is pretty straightforward, but I don't know if I should plan on bringing some food with me or if I'll be OK relying on the food stops.


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## Rider5200 (Sep 7, 2007)

Well-organized rides usually have plenty of food at the stops. They'll also have water, perhaps some sport drinks and Honey Buckets. When doing long rides, remember the motto "Eat before you are hungry, drink before you are thirsty" -- it goes a long way towards making the ride enjoyable. You should plan a couple of 70-75 mile rides a couple of weeks before the event. In addition, slowly increase your mileage week-to-week to build up endurance and strength. There are lots of training plans and advice on RBR and on the net.

Lastly, organized rides are supposed to be fun, so plan on having fun! If the century seems too daunting the first time out, take one of the shorter routes and have a good experience. Having said that, given adequate training, proper nutrition and hydration, if you can do 80 miles, you can do 100. Good luck!


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## thoran (Aug 1, 2009)

I certainly will enjoy myself, once I get over my fear of running into someone else. Unfortunately, the ride is this weekend, so that makes it a bit hard to ease my way from 66 to 100.  I would have liked to ease into it, but I need to figure out other methods of getting more water before I can go for some longer solo rides. I felt pretty good at the end of my 66 mile journey - a bit low on energy, but not really in any discomfort - so I'm pretty confident I can manage to complete the 81 miles and I'm optimistic about getting to 100, but we'll see how it goes!


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## rcnute (Dec 21, 2004)

thoran said:


> I certainly will enjoy myself, once I get over my fear of running into someone else. Unfortunately, the ride is this weekend, so that makes it a bit hard to ease my way from 66 to 100.  I would have liked to ease into it, but I need to figure out other methods of getting more water before I can go for some longer solo rides. I felt pretty good at the end of my 66 mile journey - a bit low on energy, but not really in any discomfort - so I'm pretty confident I can manage to complete the 81 miles and I'm optimistic about getting to 100, but we'll see how it goes!


Take it easy, eat and drink and you'll be fine. I've heard the ride is very pretty.


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## thoran (Aug 1, 2009)

It was indeed a very pretty ride. The turnout seemed pretty good and I was very glad I'd preregistered. The weather was pretty nice, though it was colder than forecasted in the morning. By the afternoon the wind had picked up, so the ride from Stanwood back to Arlington was pretty tough. I'm really not used to riding in winds that strong and on the way back the wind was either directly in my face or blowing me sideways the whole time. In the end I managed to complete all 3 loops and hit the magical 100 mile mark (just a hair over 6 hours of pedaling time, 7 hours of real time), so I'm quite pleased!


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## rcnute (Dec 21, 2004)

thoran said:


> It was indeed a very pretty ride. The turnout seemed pretty good and I was very glad I'd preregistered. The weather was pretty nice, though it was colder than forecasted in the morning. By the afternoon the wind had picked up, so the ride from Stanwood back to Arlington was pretty tough. I'm really not used to riding in winds that strong and on the way back the wind was either directly in my face or blowing me sideways the whole time. In the end I managed to complete all 3 loops and hit the magical 100 mile mark (just a hair over 6 hours of pedaling time, 7 hours of real time), so I'm quite pleased!


Six hour century is good!


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