# Montauk Century Ride



## Phlsphyguy (Nov 21, 2006)

has anyone ridden the Montauk Century? I am concerned about their transportation of my bike in the way of it getting stolen or damaged. I wrote to the bike club and got a pretty rude answer. He made me feel like I was some moron because I was concerned about my bike being damage....He basically said I should expect some "minor frame damage with scratches and dents" dents on a carbon fiber bike...no way! Anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks


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## Dumbod (Dec 31, 2004)

Basically, the club takes no responsiblity for any damage to the bike which is understandable from a operational/liability point of view. Look at it from their point of view. They're trying to transport as many as a 1000 bikes as quickly and as efficiently as possible. They don't want to get into an arguement of who caused what damage when.

There is an option ($10, I think) where you can rent a moving blanket and wrap the bike. They will also transfer a bag to the finish for you. If you're really concerned, include a roll of bubble wrap in your bag.

If you're still concerned about possible damage to your bike: (1) leave a car in Montauk the day before so that you can drive back after the ride, (2) persuade a gulible significant other to drive out to meet you or (3) find another ride. The Bloomin Metric is the same day.


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## Phlsphyguy (Nov 21, 2006)

Thanks Dumbod for the suggestions. I guess I don't understand why someone would allow his/her bike to be placed on a truck, whereby you don't know the honesty of the driver, and allow it to be possibly damaged or stolen. I had some luggage stolen on a cruise and that was where the passengers leaving the cruise would check in for their flight at the port and load their luggage on trucks for transport to the airport or another cruise (which was the case with me...I went on another cruise immediately after finishing one cruise). Being in law enforcement was very advantageous, as I learned that the driver would be paid by some rascals to pull over enroute to the other ship or airport, then the rascals would go on the truck and take whatever luggage they desired. The blame would rest upon the cruise line or the airport..it was a very good scam and I do believe that the cruise lines and airlines knew about it, as I had inside information from a friend whom worked for the cruise line.

So, you see my dilemma...I don't want my $5000 cycle destroyed because some clod threw it on the truck, nor do I want it stolen via the aforementioned scam. $10.00 to rent a blanket is insane and tantamount to extortion. If I do the event, then I will probably make a weekend of it with my girlfriend, or I can use my hardsided travel case to put my cycle in. Hopefully, they wouldn't have a problem with that. It just seems like a lot of work just to keep my bike from being destroyed. I will check out the Bloomin Metric as well. Frankly, I have a very bad taste in my mouth with this whole event...mostly because of the condescending remarks from a spokesman with the bike club.


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## Dumbod (Dec 31, 2004)

You could also try the Ride to Montauk (http://www.ridetomontauk.com) that is taking place in early June. It's run by the guy who used to organize the Montauk ride for 5BBC. 

For what it's worth, you're going to have the same problem. It's a 1 way ride. That means you have to transport the bike back. LIRR hates bikes and would be completely overwhelmed by that many bikes so the organizers have to promise that riders won't take the train. One advantage of the RtM ride is that it takes place on a Saturday, not a Sunday. That theoretically means that you can spend the night in Montauk andtake your bike home on LIRR on Sunday, assuming of course that you have a permit.


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## barry1021 (Nov 27, 2005)

*I did it last year*



Phlsphyguy said:


> Thanks Dumbod for the suggestions. I guess I don't understand why someone would allow his/her bike to be placed on a truck, whereby you don't know the honesty of the driver, and allow it to be possibly damaged or stolen. I had some luggage stolen on a cruise and that was where the passengers leaving the cruise would check in for their flight at the port and load their luggage on trucks for transport to the airport or another cruise (which was the case with me...I went on another cruise immediately after finishing one cruise). Being in law enforcement was very advantageous, as I learned that the driver would be paid by some rascals to pull over enroute to the other ship or airport, then the rascals would go on the truck and take whatever luggage they desired. The blame would rest upon the cruise line or the airport..it was a very good scam and I do believe that the cruise lines and airlines knew about it, as I had inside information from a friend whom worked for the cruise line.
> 
> So, you see my dilemma...I don't want my $5000 cycle destroyed because some clod threw it on the truck, nor do I want it stolen via the aforementioned scam. $10.00 to rent a blanket is insane and tantamount to extortion. If I do the event, then I will probably make a weekend of it with my girlfriend, or I can use my hardsided travel case to put my cycle in. Hopefully, they wouldn't have a problem with that. It just seems like a lot of work just to keep my bike from being destroyed. I will check out the Bloomin Metric as well. Frankly, I have a very bad taste in my mouth with this whole event...mostly because of the condescending remarks from a spokesman with the bike club.


The organizer and the people were great, really top notch. You probably caught a member of the club on a bad day. As Dumbod said, one guy has gone off to start a competing ride, and maybe they're a little jumpy. That said, I am not sure what you expect from a ride that does not end where it begins. Transportation is an issue, and they supply a reasonable alternative if you need it. If you are concerned about your $5000 bike, Montauk is a beautiful place to spend a weekend. Otherwise you might consider a ride that doesn't have this issue.
To me, it was a bit of an unusual ride. I noticed in the parking lot that there were a number of riders that looked like they had not been on a bike in years and that they took the bike off the hook the day before. Sure enough, only a few miles out, people were on the side of the road with pinch flats. I never saw so many flats or, unfortunately, ambulances. The ride through the Hamptons was great, and the wind into Montauk was not an issue, although I am told some years it is pretty tough. I think they do a great job and if you are looking for a flat century, this fits the bill.

b21


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## Doggity (Mar 10, 2006)

No way any $5K ride would leave my direct supervision, ever...but that's just me.


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## Dumbod (Dec 31, 2004)

barry1021:

There are two distinct flavors of the Montauk ride. You can start at Penn Station and do the 145 mile. Trust me, no beginners on that ride. Typically fast pace line riding (23-24+) once you get out of the city.

They also offer a metric century ride. You take the train (and your bike takes a truck) to Mastic/Shirley, about half way, and you ride from there. You're right about that ride, it's not as bad as the 5 boro but it's still can be a little crazy. BTW, you don't have to be a beginner to need an ambulance. I had one of the worst accidents on that ride a couple of years ago and wound up being helicoptered to the trauma center where I eventually got 300+ stitches in my face. (Watch out for the curbs in the Hamptons. They're a little higher than normal.)

The advantages of the ride are (1) it's through a really affluent area so they have great medical care (OK, I can't figure out how to insert a winking smilie here but you get the point) and (2) it's really pretty. When the weather's nice, it is just a great ride.


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## barry1021 (Nov 27, 2005)

*i did the Babylon to Montauk*



Dumbod said:


> barry1021:
> 
> There are two distinct flavors of the Montauk ride. You can start at Penn Station and do the 145 mile. Trust me, no beginners on that ride. Typically fast pace line riding (23-24+) once you get out of the city.
> 
> ...


portion which I recall was a regular century. I swear there were a bunch of flats only a few miles out and there were people on the side of the road the whole way! I just got the feeling there were casual riders who didn't take the 100 mile distance that seriously. It was a fun ride, lots of ambulances (Bridgehampton? where you go through the town center?).
300 stitches in your face!!!! That's horrific, I hope you have recovered, Dumbod.

b21


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## Dumbod (Dec 31, 2004)

barry1021 said:


> portion which I recall was a regular century. I swear there were a bunch of flats only a few miles out and there were people on the side of the road the whole way! I just got the feeling there were casual riders who didn't take the 100 mile distance that seriously. It was a fun ride, lots of ambulances (Bridgehampton? where you go through the town center?).
> 300 stitches in your face!!!! That's horrific, I hope you have recovered, Dumbod.
> 
> b21


Thanks barry, I'm fine. The way I look at it, I'm my own before and after face lift - right side before, left side after. 

There is a relatively small group that rides 100 miles, starts at the Babylon train station. Normally that only involves people who live near Babylon because there's no train access - I know, how can there be no train access at the Babylon station but LIRR hates bikes. The rank amateurs tend to do the metric. I agree, I can't believe that anyone would ride a century without carrying a flat-repair kit and knowing how to use it but I marshall serveral centuries and, in some cases, not all of the marshalls know how to change flats, much less the riders. Sigh.


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## E. Tage Larsen (Dec 25, 2005)

I've signed up to do the double this year. Mostly i've ridden the 100mi in the past. The first time i accidentally did the double ...back when it finished at the lighthouse. Those last 7 or 8 miles were horrible. The year i took the train from Penn to the 100mi start was rough. I think i had to wake up at 330 in order to make the train to be out there at 6.

For the most part this is a very flat ride.

As others have mentioned, you've got to ship the bike back some way. I've found that the guys who drive the trucks are very concerned about the bikes and handle everything with care. I had some scratches in the paintjob on my carbon frame and had my hoods jammed up a bit once. Since then i've opted for the foam wrap.

Didn't know that there was a pace line out of the city from Penn. That would be really helpful.


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## mleptuck (Jul 29, 2002)

*Planning on the 145 this year too*

A buddy of mine and I are getting dumped in NYC Saturday afternoon by the wives (we're from PA), who are then driving out to our place in Montuak to await our arrival on Sunday. We'll find a reasonably-priced (HA!) hotel near Penn Station and get up REALLY early to register...

I'm really eager to do this ride -- my solo rides out there in the summer time are SO flat, I end up doing a 55-mile loop from Montauk to the Shelter Island Ferry in North Haven and back @ 22mph average with little real significant effort. I'm just so used to the rolling hills around here, and I've got more of a Ullrich build than a Basso build, so I just get up to speed and hold it. The Hither Hills area, and the bits of 27 east of Montauk Village to the lighthouse are the only 'hills' and they're hardly blips... Of course with 135 miles in the legs, those hills probably aren't quite the same.

For the veterans of the 145-mile ride, a couple of questions: how's the ride out of Manhattan and Brooklyn? Are there a plethora of lights and stop signs to contend with? On a Sunday morning I imagine the traffic is pretty light on the plus side. Are the 145-milers willing to work with strangers in pace lining? 

My take is this: the two of us routinely ride centuries here in PA with 7000' of climbing with no issues, so I'm thinking effort-wise the flat 145 should be similiar; the extra 2 hours or so in the saddle might be the most significant difference... Opinions, anyone?


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## Dumbod (Dec 31, 2004)

1) Reasonable hotel? What's that?

2) The ride through Manhattan and Brooklyn are different. There will be traffic in Manhattan, even at 6:00am (clubs let out late here.) Not by mid-day standards but the roads will not be empty. There is no way to safely paceline in Manhattan. The route through Brooklyn and Queens differs from year to year so it's hard to get a good answer. Two years ago (last time I did the ride), the ride went through Williamsburg and Bushwick. Very quiet from a traffic point of view at that time of Sunday. Pacelining is more theoretically possible but we're still talking an urban environment with lots of stop lights. More importantly, everybody leaves Penn Station within a couple of minutes of arriving. There's not really a chance to form a paceline because there isn't a critical mass of riders. My recollection is that serious pacelines didn't develop until after the first rest stop on the Queens/Nassau border. No problems pacing with strangers.

3) The difficulty of the ride is entirely wind-dependent. Wind from the west, easy peasy. Wind from the east, you're screwed. Most of ride is at or near the water so there will be wind. Unless you have winds like last year, the ride is no killer but, it's early in the season so you might not be as fit as you would be in September.

145 miles is a long way, even if it's flat. The last five miles to the traffic circle in Montauk is just enough of a hill to notice and curse. 

Great ride. I recommend it highly.


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## mleptuck (Jul 29, 2002)

*Yes, it's a long, slow grind*



Dumbod said:


> The last five miles to the traffic circle in Montauk is just enough of a hill to notice and curse.


From the split in the highway up to the lookout on the north side, it's a pig of a climb when you're gassed (though I wouldn't even consider it a climb normally!), and then from there to the recycling center it's a steady 1-3% uphill pull, nothing killer but enough to notice it, for sure.

I agree 100% on the wind -- from the east is got to be deadly on a ride like that, and there is NOWHERE to hide, either, unless some 300# behemoth wants to pull me all day!

Thanks for the info dumbod -- maybe we'll catch up with each other on the way out there! I can't wait to get to the finish at Ruschmeyer's, bike UP the hill to the house (we're on Glenmore, not too far from the Manor on the top of the hill), shower and then retire to the West Lake Fishing Lodge for beer and LOTS of food!


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## mleptuck (Jul 29, 2002)

*Yea, one week to go!*

We just snapped off our third century+ in the past three weeks, and I think we're ready to go for 145 in one week.

Hey Dumbod, how's FREE for 'reasonable'??? My buddy had enough Marriott points to score us a free twin queen room @ the Marriott Marquis up in Times Square! More money left in the budget for beer drinking Sunday night @ the West Lake Marina in Montauk! Woo-hoo!

Maybe we'll meet up with some of the RBR 'locals' on the ride!

-Mike


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