Contemplating your first bicycle century can be intimidating even scary! It’s pretty easy to psych yourself out and make yourself really nervous about your ability to finish.
15 tips to help you make it through your first bicycle century.
- Train well before you attempt your first bicycle century.
- Eat a good meal with carbs and protein the night before the ride
- hydrate hydrate hydrate ~ make sure you drink every 15 minutes. It’s much easier to stay ahead of your hydration than to catch up.
- Stand up in on your bike once in a while ~ give your hiney a break.
- Go your own pace! Don’t worry about how fast everyone else is going!
- If you can’t make it up a hill ~ no worries, just get off and walk.
- Make sure to carry an extra tire tube and know how to change a tire.
- HAVE FUN!! That’s why we do this after all right??
- Bring Snacks and eat BEFORE you get hungry.
- Make sure your bike fits you ~ seat the right height, and in the right position.
- Before the ride visualize yourself getting through the tough moments.
- Don’t ride full out the whole ride ~ spend most of the ride at a level you can easily carry on a conversation.
- Change your hand positions often.
- Bicycle shorts will help immensely.
- If it’s hot make sure to rest in the shade, and drink extra water.
There you have 15 tips to help you make it through your first bicycle century event. The big thing to understand about finishing your first century ride is to make sure you’ve trained for the event. The right training can make the difference between finishing your first century and bonking half way through.
Here’s a good training program for your first bicycle century ride.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=b47ee4e7-1748-4aa6-8586-baf17d5e49cf)
I’m just watching you and your bicycle bloom. I believe that anyone who has a profound experience with a bicycle later life will appreciate wholly that experience for what it is. I’ve become a true cycling advocate. I may never be able to do a century, though I hope to. If not, it’s okay; there are still Critical Mass rides, potential riding groups to organize/join, etc. I’ve met many online friends who, like me, have decided to do without a motorized vehicle and simply take their bikes. “Simply” being the operative word here…bicycle vs. car ownership means a lack of responsibility: no insurance, no gas, no major costs for repairs, no parking fees (or even trying to find parking, really), etc.
I have a feeling this will all get closer and closer to home to you as your love for your bicycle and everything it brings you…and you to it…grows. Namaste’.
Thanks Tee ~
I think you’re probably right ~ and I already have some of those feelings, and I would probably be doing a lot more of that already ~ only issue I have is we live in the middle of nowhere ~ the nearest town is 10 miles away ~ the nearest decent town is 17 miles away.
With that being said ~ Hanna is starting preschool this year ~ her school is 10 miles away ~ I already plan to pick her up (or drop her off) at school on the bike when I can.
VERY cool about transporting your daughter to and/or from school on the bike. As for shopping…I have to go 25 miles (one way) to get groceries. If I don’t know someone already planning to drive there that I can catch a ride with, I put my bike on the bus and go by myself (for a whopping 70 cents total for going 50 miles). Convenient? No. Easy? NO! Rewarding? Ohhh, yeeeaaahhh!
That is pretty cool ~ there’s no public transportation out here but it gets me thinking!!
4 years later, I did 4 in two months. The love of cyilcng has not died. And I’m so lame commenting on my own posts, but hey, this blog is more of a journal.
OMG that’s awesome! I still love riding my bike but have not been able to get much time in the seat. I’m shooting for a century this fall! Congrats!!