Oh Long distance ladies..Can ya help moi

[crazycanuck]

Hey Girls,

Since you guys are the long distance queens, can you help me with my possible dilemma?

I really want to do the 200km ride this weekend but i feel as if i've got some phleghm in my chest or somthing funky happening in that region. I don't feel ill & and am happy to ride. Perhaps it's the stress of the event getting to me.
I'll take care of myself for the next few days & decide on friday.

I've been training for the event..Well as much as I can..On top of my nightly 60-70km rides,i've only been able to do 3 100km rides in the past month or so. My question is-Should I wait & try for another event? The problem is, theré isn't another 200km ride that fits into my schedule..only a 250km & 300km.

I won't be doing much road riding on the weekends from now on as i want to start training for the 6hr & the Anaconda.

Any ideas are great. I'll probably wake up Friday feeling fine knowing me


Thanks ladies..

C

[Veronica]

I always get anxious before a big ride. For me it's huge butterflies in my stomach and not sleeping well the night before.

If you're not actually ill, go for it. My longest training ride last year before my first 200 miler was only 96 miles. Long distance riding is really all in your head.

V.

[maillotpois]

Watch how you feel this week. If you feel more phlegmy and have any hint of a fever, get to a doctor to make sure you don't have a bronchitis or something brewing in there. Your ride will make things worse and set you back, and you really don't want that to happen.

If you feel the same or better than you do now, then give it a try. Why not?

Good luck - let us know how it goes!

[Brandy]

I agree with Veronica, these long distance rides are mostly mental! I have countless games that I play with myself on long rides...whatever it takes to get to the end.

I hope that you feel better, I'm in the same boat...a little congested, and I have a double century on Saturday.

[crazycanuck]

Thanks ladies,

Brandy-what kind of games do you play?

Much appreciated. I know i can count on the long distance ladies for good info.

C

[Veronica]

I count cars. I sing songs in my head. When it's dark I use some random event, usually a passing car, to check my GPS.

I do the math to figure out how much longer I'll be riding. I swear I'll never do another freakin' long ride. I do the math to figure out how much longer I'll be riding. I swear at the ride organizers for putting this hill in the ride. I do the math to figure out how much longer I'll be riding. Gosh darn it, why isn't the number of hours going down? I swear I'll never do another freakin' long ride...


V.

[crazycanuck]

I think i might be counting cows & other farming machinery this weekend on my ride..It's on country roads & rather quiet.

I could always count the distance between houses..

I get the picture...

C

[Brandy]

I do the math to figure out how much longer I'll be riding. I swear I'll never do another freakin' long ride. I do the math to figure out how much longer I'll be riding. I swear at the ride organizers for putting this hill in the ride. I do the math to figure out how much longer I'll be riding. Gosh darn it, why isn't the number of hours going down? I swear I'll never do another freakin' long ride...


V.

EXACTLY! I do a whole lot of math on these long rides. Then I pad the mileage until the rest stop or the finish line so that I'm surprised when I reach it more quickly. Yes, I'm a big dork, but it works...lol! If I have 5.2 miles to the finish, I tell myself I have 5.8 and really, it's amazing that this works because I'm consciously padding the time right there in my head and really...who am I fooling?!?!? It needs to be said again...yes, I'm a big dork!

Oh, and I know that I'm really suffering when I can't calculate anymore. This happened on Saturday in the heat. Simple math just ceased to be simple at one point.

[maillotpois]

This is how I know I am a cyclist and not a runner. Back when I was running marathons and halfs more regularly, my training partner and I would have a heck of a time trying to figure out splits, mph, etc. We just couldn't do simple math for the life of us while we were running.

Now that I am riding, math is a lot easier for some reason. It's as if my brain's not a stressed out when I am riding a bike, but I just become stupid when I run. Of course, you're working with much bigger numbers, which is gratifying also.

I also play songs in my head. I talk to animals constantly. You can play the ABC game if there are any road signs around. Just don't start asking yourself over and over "When are we gonna be there?" :P

[Fredwina]

I might be strange, but I usually don't do math vis-a-vis distance in head when I'm out. Part is a break from the 9to5(or in my case 8to6).
I usually leave the computer set on ET or watch and use it monitor nutrition and hydration. I'll check my mileage every hour or so- just to see what I'm doing.
I gaze at the secenry a lot ,. I'll talk with someone riding along at my pace (disadvantge of being the Captian of Team Dead Last ).
above all, enjoy it! I think if you don't enjoy being out there for that amount of time, it's going to turn into a sufferfest (look up my Thread on the Brevet I did last month in Flagstaff )