Organized Ride: Suck it up -OR- Sit it out?

[Bike Goddess]

If I were you, I'd stock up on Gel! Just take some before you hit the last 2 hills and you'll be fine1 Nothing like a little boost of energy!

Be sure to stay hydrated. Have some carbs before you leave on the ride, then eat every once in awhile (good for a break)and drink a sports drink while you ride (I'm now using Cytomax which seems to be fine on my digestive system).

AND...Start at a slower pace, get warmed up, and just plug along. The point here is to not wear yourself out before you get to the end.

When you are finished and home, I suggest you have a recovery drink- I use Endurox 4 with milk and yogurt in the blender. Not only good, but you'll feel better the next day!

Good luck! I hope you do the ride. We'll be waiting for your report!

[caligurl]

ya know.... i really need to give that gel stuff a try some time! i know the big rule is never to try something new on a big ride... so i'll have to remember to try some when we do our national park climb here!

oh... to add to BG's advice (if it wasn't stated earlier in the thread) eat a GOOD breakfast!

for normal rides here at home... and "normal" (not climbing centuries that i can get to in a decent amount of time... say within 1/5 to 2 hours) i have my favorite pre-ride meal of oatmeal, natural peanut butter and light chocolate soy milk...

however for any of my epic climbers.... we stop at denny's and i have a good breakfast: eggs... bacon... (even the hashbrowns!) and a fruit filled pancake! so i get some protein... fat.. and carbs! i stay fuller longer than i do on oatmeal (i try to eat my denny's meal an hour to hour and a half before i leave!) seems to work for me! otherwise i get hungry quicker than the first rest stop.... and that's not good!

[Nokomis]

I made it thru the first ride ~ COLD, breezy... spent the majority of the ride sheltered by DH & his coworker (nothing like drafting between two guys to keep you out of the worst of the wind!) I ate well, kept hydrated, but on the last little hill (dead cat hill, for those that rode) my legs started to cramp a bit. The last 20 miles or so I was pretty beat, and frustrated because I never felt "strong" like I did on a much warmer ride the Friday before.

Ride stats: ~63 miles, avg 15.9mph, top speed 29mph, sustained winds ~15? and below 55 degrees for at least 3/4 of the ride.

Poor shorts/saddle fit during ride; never did get things adjusted right ~ am shocked that I managed to get thru w/out any sores; I'm sure the chamois butt'r saved me.

I'm thinking I just don't have the legs right now to do the RACC. However, my lungs & heart are much stronger than last year... and even if I was creeping up dead cat hill at 6mph, I wasn't sucking wind like I would have last year. Dunno - I'll have to keep thinking about this one, and probably need DH to commit to taking an intentional break before the final climbs.

[SadieKate]

Ride stats: ~63 miles, avg 15.9mph, top speed 29mph, sustained winds ~15? and below 55 degrees for at least 3/4 of the ride.

Based on this you can do the next ride. Back off and take the hills easy. Don't even think about your average speed for the ride or your speed for individual hills. That's not important. Start slow and easy at the beginning (ignore all the enthusiastic speedster starters) and your legs will feel better at the end.

When else are you going to try something for the first time?

[tprevost]

I'm throwing in my .02 here but I think you should try it next week. Your stats for this last ride were excellent and the conditions weren't. Start very slowly, don't push yourself, hydrate well, watch your nutrition and I would bet $$ you'll finish and finish well!!! I am still pretty weak on the hills but I just plug along (did you know that I can go 3.8 mph and not fall over on a 2 mile grade? - pretty impressive huh? ) and I do okay on most.

Let us know what you decide!

Tracy

[Nokomis]

When else are you going to try something for the first time?

Next year, of course! I never even considered this ride for this year, until one of DH's friends congratulated me for joining them on the ride - less than 3 weeks from the event hehe

Mon: bike shop to get LOOK pedals on my bike, to go with my sassy new shoes (fit like a dream in the shop - my first real first road shoes) and I'm hoping they'll work well in practice. We'll probably noodle around the neighborhood so I can get used to them.
Tues: spin class, 1 hr
Weds: Pumpkin Ridge - 6.5 miles of low grade climb
Thurs: spin class, 1 hr
Friday:
Saturday: RACC

[Nanci]

If I were you, I'd _really_ rest up this week, and then do the ride at a comfortable pace for _you_. Draft with your friends if it isn't stressing you, and then take it easy on the climbs. Isn't spin class like, really hard??? I'd skip it...You can not add to your fitness this week, you can only make yourself more tired!!

Nanci

[Nokomis]

Thanks Nanci - the spinning class Can be very hard, but it's also easy to fake out. We'll be using the class to keep the legs moving, flush out any extra lactic acid, and maintain form rather than pushing hard. Our instructor is great, and supports our need to ride to our training goals. It'll be a recovery ride, not a training ride.

[Dianyla]

Good going, Nokomis! It was friggin' cold! yesterday. I kept expecting it to warm up so I could peel off a layer, but that moment never actually came. Not to mention, the headwind for the first half of the ride wasn't exactly pleasant either. At the first rest stop I saw one woman wearing a Hill Slug TE t-shirt and I talked to her to see if it was you, but she was someone else.

My stats:
60 miles (I think my computer blinked out a few times, really I did ride the whole 63 miles)
16.9 mph avg speed
88 rpm avg cadence
152 bpm avg heartrate

All these stats are thanks to the Team Bag Balm folks that I rode and drafted with the entire ride. Solo, I would be considerably slower given the headwind.

Based on the stats you posted, I'm sure you are capable of finishing RACC next weekend. Once you have a certain amount of conditioning (which you seem to have already, based on your numbers) then the rest is all mental and nutritional. Go for it!