Donating Blood

[malaholic]

I donated about a week before riding RSVP last year. My speed/performance definitely suffered but I was still capable of finishing the ride. I just finished it more slowly than I would have otherwise. As long as your century is a recreational ride, rather than a race, I bet you'll do just fine. Just pay attention to how you're feeling, make sure to eat/drink plenty, and slow down a bit if you feel yourself getting winded, so as to conserve energy to make the full distance.

[Zen]

"Whole blood donors may give once every 56 days in order to allow plenty of time to replenish their red cells. Apheresis platelet donors can donate more frequently, as much as every seven days, up to 24 times per year, because the platelet and plasma components are replaced in the body more quickly than red cells."

That said, I wouldn't worry about it.

[water_bugg]

Thanks for all your input - it made me a little less anxious about riding. I did finish the ride. The ride was much hillier than my past centuries, so I'm not sure which issues I can attribute to donating and which to the terrain, but I did notice a few things: 1. my pace was a bit slower for this century than others 2. my legs ached earlier in the ride than I'm used to (although I did get a 2nd wind and finished strong)

I think in the future I'll shy away from giving so close to an event, but definitely wont hesitate to give during biking season.

[Aquila]

Great to hear that you finished the ride!

And yay to you for donating. The Red Cross folks here say that a single donation can help up to 3 people. So that's way cool.

Ride safe