Conference noted::bicycle

    
    First, congratulations on another century!  Second, all your
    advice is, of course, sagatious and proved by experience.
    
    I find that mixed rides (25, 50, 62, and 100-mile participants,
    that's what I mean!) are interesting, because they liven up the
    field with more exuberant, casual riders, as you portray, and
    sometimes that rubs off so that the endurance guys aren't so
    grim (at least not the whole way).
    
    The Wichita Falls ride must be that way - it is the largest century
    in the country, I believe, in terms of attendance, but also has
    shorter loops, which most people opt for.  I've yet to do it.
    Think I'll try the Markleeville ride first.  :-)
    
    Good going!
    -john

    	RE: 1549.0
    
    	Fred, I agree about doing something new or different. I
    	rode my first (and only) century back in July of 1987.
    	It was my birthday present to myself for my 40th Bday.
    	I did it in July (my Bday's August 11) because I was
    	not sure I could make it; I wanted time to recuperate
    	(if needed), and try again. Well, no real problem.
    	I left at 6 AM and was done by 2 PM. But, I was so full
    	of P and V that I started out on the big ring, really
    	bombing along. What a mistake. By the time I got to
    	Chester, NH, I was wasted. I eventually slowed down
    	and used my head. I figured I already had 2/3s of the
    	ride done, I might as well not waste what I had.
    
    	Anyway, I finished with no problems, other than the
    	fact that the temperature was around 90 F before I got
    	home.
    
    	Congratulations. And, you've learned a few more lessons
    	that'll help you next time.
    
    	RE: 1549.1
    
    	John,
    
    	Now, I would usually never correct you about anything.
    	But, when you use them big words, which I have to look
    	up in the dictionary, I feel constrained to correct.
    
    	Sagacious, that is some word.
    
    	Scott (Yea, I want to ride a coupla C's this season)

    	I find that, in a mixed distance ride, the difficult thing is to
    maintain a slow enough pace at the beginning, when everyone is tearing
    off at 20 mph or so. I try to ride at the same speed for the whole
    century, picking up speed at the finish if I can. Most people start out
    fast and slow as they get tired. It's fun to whiz by them at about 80
    or 90 miles. 
    	This is one place that a bike computer/speedometer is very useful!
    16 mph feels so slow at the beginning, but is zipping along near the
    end (OK, now you know, this is the 'Turtle' strategy). - slow Chris

    	Chris,
    
    	I agree totally. I like to start out at about 15 MPH on long
    	rides, and, as it turns out, my speed increases slightly
    	the farther I go.
    
    	Starting fast and being wasted in the middle, or at the
    	end, is not fun at all.
    
    	Scott

    Can a 46 mile ride with 22,000 people be compared with a 100 mile ride
    with 300 riders.  I did the 5 borough bikeathon and then rode home.  It
    was a 75 mile day.  Now I have a 100 mile run with 3 people planned,
    and I was wondering if it would be easier or harder with less people.
    
    Thanks for some input
    

re:.5:I think it would be easier without 21000 yahoos cramming for the lead
    all the time.
    
    I did the Spenco ride in Colo. Springs in 86 with 3000+ riders and that
    was a royal pain.  On the uphill side there were always wheel suckers
    trying to save an ounce of energy and on the downhill they were all
    cramming into a pack to get elbow to elbow, with frequent screwups.
    
    It's easier when it's just a few folks having a good time.  But then,
    I even enjoy solo multi-C rides.  :-)
    
    I think John Lee does, too.
    
    ed

    RE: Scott - thanks, "sagatious" didn't look quite right.
    
    RE: Ed - you're right, solo has its plusses sometimes.
    
    RE: pacing - Sports Illustrated recently had a good write-up 
    on the Kentucky Derby.  They described the favored horse
    (something "Frisky"?) as getting off to a "Southern Fried start,"
    which didn't leave much for the home stretch.
    
    -john

>>    Most people start out fast and slow as they get tired. It's fun to whiz 
>>    by them at about 80 or 90 miles. 

Ya, That happened to me last year. I was doing a 100 and this guy on a
recumbent was doing the metric. As I was finishing the 100 I whizzed by him as 
he was still riding the 62. Did he start too fast??? Or was it the contagious 
flat tire syndrome???  :-)

Tom

    I chuckle at the idea of 22,000 yahoo's getting in each other's
    way. That's what they were alright! However I love the idea of really
    well attended centuries because there are so many more people to
    get lost in. Also they have lots better sag support. If there were
    only 3 others at least one of them is going to say something that
    will imply that I'm much too slow for them. So give me somekind
    of a crowd. (somewhat less than 22,000 though!) How many times in
    the NYC ride did you have some Yahoo with a $85.00 ZAYRE's Special
    stop right in front of you because their seat pack needed to be
    adjusted! 
    
    Fred Mudgett

	A coupla years ago I decided to attempt a century.  I was talked
	into it by a bunch of grad students and profs at the University 
	of Connecticut who'd been going every year for several years.  It 
	was in the Newport, RI area and called, "The Flattest Century in 
	the East."  Now, I'd never attempted a century.  Never even come 
	CLOSE to riding 100 miles.  My tops was probably 35 miles.  But all 
	these folks convinced me that if THEY could do it, I could do it (and
	by the looks of some of them, I had to agree).  I convinced my
	boyfriend that this would be a good joint activity.  

	We had a couple months to "train". Did we?  Naaahhhh!  Who has
	time to train when they're in school?  We figured that if the
	SLOWEST we went was 10mph, we'd finish in 10 hrs.  And we also
	figured that at 10mph we could go on forever.  We discovered that
	this is a falsity.

	The group reserved two hotel suites.  We filled up on spaghetti
	the night before.  Woke up bright and early, had muffins and juice.
	Packed our bike bags with dried fruit and bagels.  Headed to the
	start.  

	It's kind of an overcast day.  Not too bad, at least it wasn't hot.
	We caught the excitement of the day and couldn't wait to get
	started.  Finally, we're off!  Mark and I pull out ahead of our
	group.  They're going so SLOW!  Within 3 miles of the start, it
	begins to rain.  It never stops.

	Within 10 miles I think I'm getting a blister on my butt.  Not fun.
	Within 15 miles I can't feel my feet.  Why is this happening?  This
	NEVER happens!  Within 30 miles the group passes us.

	At about 35 miles is the turn-off for the half-century.  Mark and
	I kind of hem-and-haw about whether we REEEALLLLLYYYY want to finish
	this century.  We decide to go for it.  How would it look to the rest
	of the group if we were the only ones that didn't finish?  5 miles 
	later we're pulled over for a pee-stop, and I convince him we've made 
	the wrong decision.  We're a wreck!  It's raining!  We've been riding 
	forever and we're barely over a third of the way there!

	We turn around.

	Have you ever ridden AGAINST traffic in a century?  Believe me, you
	feel about one inch tall.  Or rather, you WISH you were, so no one
	would notice you.

	All in all, we ended up riding 58 miles that day.  The rain killed
	Mark's computer.  I quacked at ducks and mooed at cows.  You gotta
	have a sense of humor about these things.  Heck, it could be worse.
	I saw a middle-aged over-weight guy on a bike who's seat had broken
	off.  He was trying to hold the seat with one hand and stear with
	the other.

	Eventually, we made it back.  No one else in the group had gone the
	100 miles (huge sigh of relief).  In fact, we beat them all back by
	45 minutes.

	
	A few back, someone mentioned bringing a parka.  I enthusiastically
	agree!  I also suggest bringing dry underwear and socks!  It was
	a very uncomfortable ride back to the University of Connecticut.

	Sue

    re. .8   ...er....ahemm!...That was the result of a number of things:
    	1. primary - trying to keep up with you from Barre to the Quabbin
    	   turn-around (going too fast in the first part of the ride)
    	2. secondary - 3 stops for flat tires (Nancy had 2, me 1). We were
    	   in no great hurry to get them fixed and back on the road.
    	3. A long stop back in Barre with my welder/fabricator friend (who
    	   did a lot of work on my streamliner). Nancy got to pump up one
    	   flat with a pump out of a Pierce Arrow (remember seeing it go by
    	   going west from Barre?).
    
    real reason: This was the Metric that I laid out for NEAR '83. I had
    never ridden (is that a word?) it. I thought it was all up hill from
    Worcester, and an easy coast back. WRONG! There's some climbing on the
    return to Worcester!  Got caught in my own trap! - Chris

    Well, out here in Minnesota where the sun hasn't shined this month...
    
    Yesterday was the one-year anniversary of starting to ride and
    exercise.  And it wasn't raining at 7 a.m.  and the sun finally came
    out.  So, I decided to go for the first of my 1990 goals 
    
    I made my first half century.  
    
    And, I found that all the things that have been talked about for
    century rides hold true for half centurys.  My normal weekend ride is
    25-33 miles or so, so this was a good bit longer.  I felt surprisingly
    good at the end, but I surely applaud all you that can do 100 miles.  I
    definitely could NOT have done it.  YET.  But - I WILL...
    
    My other goals are a 1500 mile year, and a metric century.  Not
    counting the miles on the mag-trainer I've just passed the 400 mile
    mark, so I'm confident I'll hit the 1500 miles.  And, I'm hoping to
    ride the Wisconsin bike trail from Elroy to Sparta (supposed to be
    absolutely marvelous - 32 miles, 3 train tunnels, lots of nice scenery)
    in June, so I'll hit the Metric (with a little luck)...  
    
    All in all, if the sun will just shine for the next four months, I'll
    be just fine...
    
    STILL LOVE MY TREK 660!!!!!!!!
    
    David Perez

    
    Good going!  And 400 miles on a trainer is no joke.  
    
    (Don't know if I could have managed that one!)
    
    Congratulations and keep up the good work.
    
    -j

    I didn't notice anything in here about the Mass(achusetts) Pride
    Ride held this past Sunday, so I thought I'd drop in to mention
    it.
    
    In its 3rd year, the ride is sponsored by Blue Cross/Blue Shield,
    and is organized for the US Olympic Team and Genesis (birth defects)
    Fund.  It consists of 4 distances, 100m, 50m, 25m, 10m, beginning
    in Springfield, MA and ending at the New England Sports Museum in
    Boston.  The 3 "pick-up"/staging areas are Auburn, Marlboro, and 
    Weston.  The ride is advertised as a paced ride, 15 - 20 mph with
    additional stops to "regroup" the riders.
    
    I signed for this thing 2.5 months ago........figuring plenty of
    time to train for my 1st century in 15 years.  Little did I know 
    that Mother Nature would decide to let it rain virtually every day 
    since mid April.  So, with that excuse out of the way, and with
    little training (1 50m ride 2 weeks previous), I was one of 160 
    riders who began Sunday at 8:40AM with overcast skies, drizzle, and 
    45 degree temps.
    
    The course travels Route 20 in MA for the entire distance until
    the final 4 miles, where it follows some Charles River roads to
    the Sports Museum finish.  We were paced by a lead truck, 2 state
    police motorcycles, and various state and town vehicles.
                                                                   
    The rain cont'd off and on throughout the day.  It was a steady
    downpour for the final 15 miles.  By this time, the group had swollen
    to 300+ complaining, whining, crying, wet and cold riders.  The
    pace also slowed the final 5 miles to keep EVERYBODY together. 
    For those of us who had ridden the entire day at a comfortable (17mph),
    pace, this was tough to take.  But we made it through continuing
    to bitch and moan.
    
    The ride was well organized.  Plenty of food, including Entenmann's
    cookies, bagels, Smartfood, yogurt, AND Mrs T's pierogies, cooked
    and served 3 different ways (no kidding!!!). There was also all
    the water and electrolyte drinks you could ask for.
    
    The pace truck was good, allowing the lead groups to "air it out"
    on the downhills.  Because of this, the group broke up over a 5
    - 10 mile distance.  We only stopped once, at 28 miles, to "regroup".
    The stage area stopovers were approx 30 minutes.  Each one had an
    indoor facility, which was a welcome refuge from the weather.
    
    My group of riders, the 2nd pack, actually missed the 75 mile turnoff
    to the stage area.  So we ended up riding to the 90 mile stage area.
    It wasn't bad, except we had to wait 1 hr, 10 minutes to allow the
    rest of the group, including the pace truck and escorts, to catch
    up.
                       
    I ended up with 98 miles, 6:07+, and 16 mph on my cateye.  The total
    time from start to finish was just over 8 hrs.  I was pleased at
    how well I held up.  I honestly had some major concerns about the
    distance.  At 65 miles, I started feeling it pretty bad.  After
    a long uphill in Marlboro (just west of I-495 for those who know
    the area), I thought I'd lose it, but shortly thereafter, lunch from
    the 50 mile mark kicked in, which allowed me to have the best portion
    of the ride from 70 - 95 miles.  The last 5 were just T-O-O slow.
    
    It was fun.........2 other DECcies that I know rode the 50 mile
    segment.  After riding in that weather (which I rarely do), I'll
    probably have less of an excuse not to ride when it rains.
    
    As a postscript.......I got out today at lunch for 18 miles.  Felt
    fine.  For those looking to do a 1st time (or 1st time in a long
    time like me) century, on little training, these types of organized
    events make it much easier and more enjoyable.
    
    ricb 
        

>    Good going!  And 400 miles on a trainer is no joke.  
>    
>    (Don't know if I could have managed that one!)
    
    Gee, I didn't count the 350 miles on the trainer this winter because
    (as I recall it) Ed Fisher said they weren't the same...  I've only
    been counting the 400 or so actually on the road so far this year!
    
    Now, if I could just get back on the schedule to start losing some more
    of this stomach!!!!!!!!
    
    D

I count trainer/roller miles.  It depends on how you ride them.  My trainer 
rides are usually harder than my road miles, especially from the mental aspect.

Kevin

    A couple of thoughts (for FREE no less),
    
    1. I loved the story in reply #10. It sounds like something that
    I could have done. Have you ever tried one since?
    
    2. My wife has at various times had a trainer in the house to help
    her loose weight. We have generally wound up using it as a cloths
    hanger. I love riding my bike but I could hardly stand to use the
    trainer, it is like punishment to spin the wheels and not go anywhere.
    I need the hills, the dead animals and the fat rednecks yelling at
    me as they go by them to enjoy a bike ride. 
    
    3. Hey I've never been on a century that was sponsered by somekind
    of company. What are the advantages? Do they have nice trinkets?
    Also am I the only person who loves collecting the tee shirts patches
    etc. that we get on rides?
    
    Fred Mudgett

    R.17 Con't.
               
    One more question:
               
    4. I've been meaning to ask this for a while...Do any other riders
    ever use a radio? (or more accurately a sound system) I tried several
    and the only one that seems to work is the Radio Shack one. My son
    always makes fun of it because I listen to AM and talk radio, he
    says that if I'm going to listen to something make it music!
    
    Fred Mudgett   
               

    re: -1:
    
    Actually, the radio is the ONLY way I made those miles on the trainer! 
    I put together a tape of the VERY limited repertoire of rock I have
    (Dire Straits, Fleetwood Mac, Linda Ronstadt, Credence Clearwater,
    etc...)  and listened to it on the Walkman while riding!  
    
    But, here in Minnesota they HAVE A LAW!  You cannot use any kind of
    headphone sound system while on a bike or vehicle of any kind!  And,
    they have been know TO GIVE TICKETS!  
    
    re: -?: 
    
    As far as working hard on the trainer, I always managed to wind up
    covered with sweat in 5 miles!  

   Greetings again all,
    
    First, in response to .19 I never use a walkman because they are
    illegal here in Maryland. In fact wherever it is legal bike people
    act like it is a criminal offense anyway. I use a radio shack regular
    AM/FM with a real speaker and it is bolted into my front pack. 
    
    Next, last weekend I rode a century with my 12 year old son. The
    little rascal made all 100 miles. (truth be told it was 106 because
    of a wrong turn by some darned fool!) Geeze I was proud of him doing
    it! 
    
    Finally, I ran across a great list of other less well known but
    equally valuable things to help us survive (or at least enjoy more)
    century's. This is from AUGUST BICYCLING page 82, called "IT'S ALL
    IN YOUR HEAD."  Reprinted without permission here for your reading
    pleasure:
    
    -Start at the back of the pack.  You won't be as tempted to go out
    fast, and you'll continually be passing riders, which is always
    good for the ego.
    
    -Divide the ride into segments and set easily attainable time goals
    for each.  Beating your target will give you extra strength down
    the road.
    
    -Clean, wax, and tune up your bike the night before.  You'll feel
    faster.
    
    -Get yourself a new pair of shorts, gloves, or a jersey to wear
    on century day.  Look good, feel good.  (Be sure to break them in
    on a couple of training rides, however.)
    
    -Promise to reward yourself with something decadent if you finish.
     Then think about it during the latter stages of the ride.
    
    -Ride with a friend or start conversations with other cyclists.
     It'll make the time pass quicker.
    
    -Have friends or family members meet you halfway for some moral
    support.
    
    -In the latter stages of the ride, don't think of how far you have
    to go, but rather how far you've come.
    
    -Don't forget the obvious.  Pump up your tires to lower rolling
    resistance and prevent pinch flats, and carry a repair kit and spare
    tube.  Confidence in your equipment means confidence in yourself.
    
    -Relax and don't be intimidated by the distance.  It's never as
    hard as you think. 
  
    Fred Mudgett
    
    P.S. Hey NCDEL::PEREZ congratulations on doing 1000 miles this year.
    Also don't let the 50 miles a day on the WAM get you down...You
    would have all day to do the 50 miles and there are always people
    in like the worst shape you can imagine on these rides. I've done
    2 of these cross state rides and they are alot of fun. I just hate
    camping!  

�    <<< Note 1549.20 by BALMER::MUDGETT "He's reading notes again, Mom!" >>>

�    -Get yourself a new pair of shorts, gloves, or a jersey to wear
�    on century day.  Look good, feel good.  (Be sure to break them in
�    on a couple of training rides, however.)
    
    "Beware of any enterprise that requires new clothes"

	- H. D. Thoreau
    
�    -Relax and don't be intimidated by the distance.  It's never as
�    hard as you think. 

    This is so true!  I feel that for the most part, longer rides are
    mental rather than physical, and this becomes all the more true the
    longer the rides are.

    - Jim  

    re .20:
    
>    P.S. Hey NCDEL::PEREZ congratulations on doing 1000 miles this year.
>    Also don't let the 50 miles a day on the WAM get you down...You
>    would have all day to do the 50 miles and there are always people
>    in like the worst shape you can imagine on these rides. I've done
>    2 of these cross state rides and they are alot of fun. I just hate
>    camping!  

    Thanks.  Way back in February or March when everybody was putting in
    their goals I said I wanted to do 1500 miles and a metric century this
    year.  If I don't wrack myself up somehow I'll make the 1500 miles no
    problem - and I'm planning to doing the Metric on a ride in southern
    Minnesota/northern Iowa that is labeled as "the flattest century in the
    midwest"!  Sounds like my kinda ride!
    
    As far as the TRAM - I'm not so much concerned about the ride (I even
    LIKE camping) as that Digital has the foolish and ludicrous idea that I
    SHOULD COME TO WORK EVERY DAY!  Just because we're doing system test
    and ATP (on the only successful piece of software in a sea of disaster)
    during this period!  Sheesh - a provincial attitude at BEST!  
    
    ah well,
    D

    I'd like to participate in some kind of organized ride this September,
    the question is, how big?  I just noticed a listing in  "Bicycling"
    magazine for a ride on 9/16 in Hew Hampshire that's described as
    "flat", so that seems like a good place to start.  They're featuring
    25/50/62/75/100 mile distances.  Am I correct in assuming that I have
    to decide which event I'm interested in NOW, and not on the day of the
    ride?  As of today, I've been riding 6 weeks.  I commute 11-17
    miles/day (depending on my route), 4 days/week, and take longer rides
    on weekends.  My Saturday/Sunday milages, so far  have been :
    
    Week 1 : 17 miles
    Week 2 : 28 miles
    Week 3 : 30 miles
    Week 4 : 35 miles
    Week 5 : 40 miles
    Week 6 : 54 miles
    
    My average pace on the 54 miles was 15.7, including a coupkle of red
    lights, map reading stops, etc.  I have to admit that the last 6 miles
    I was starting to feel it - feet were numb, felt like I had just downed
    a couple of martinis, etc., but still I'm sure I could have pushed it
    to 62 & lived.  However, the thought of turning around and doing it
    AGAIN, was not a particularly attractive one at that moment.  So, I
    guess I'm looking for advice from some of your veteren distance riders -
    is it reasonable to shoot for a hundred in four weeks?  Would it be
    more realistic to stick with the 62 or even 75 and save the 100 for
    next year?  Thanks.

    I recommend, to all others also, the Seven Hills Wheelmen century.
    It starts in Spencer Ma taking back roads into Connecticus.  Very few
    turns allow you to concentrate on scenery rather than the road.  Date
    this year is September 23.  Send mail if you would like an entry form.
    (I will be traveling for a good portion of Sept, so please do so
    early.)
    
    This ride is nice for you because you do the first 75 then return to
    the start point before finishing the last 25.  You can recharge
    yourself or call it quits and get the metric patch.
    
    steve
    
    

RE: .-2

The 25/50/75/100 ride in N.H.  I think you're talking about the Granite
State Wheelmens Tri-State Century.

Yup. It is flat.  it also has a couple loops from teh start point that 
make the century. One is a 25 mile loop the other 75. So if you choose to 
to do the 75 first and nned to quit that's fine. If you can do the full 100
that's fine too.  There's also a sag stop on the 75 mile loop that you go
by both on the way out and the way back.

I rode this century on both Saturday and Sunday last year.  Had a blast!

Dani

    
    re .24:
    
    SHW doesn't sound like a 'flat' century if it's in central Mass.
    Are you sure?
    
    There's also Narragansett Bay Wheelmen's "Flattest Century in the East"
    on Sun, Sept 9th.  And yup, it's flat (except the last 3 miles).
    
    

    re -2 : Yup, that's the one.  Guess I'd better start training harder -
    the ride may be a bit easier if I have a few tons less weight to drag
    around 8^}
    					jb

    re: 26
    
    The Seven Hills Wheelmen Century is light rolling for the first 75
    miles, the last 25 miles are a bit hilly.  Still a very do-able century
    for the first timer.
    
    PS:  For speed fanatics, I have been told by a few people that this is
    a perfect century because of low amount of turns and red lights.
    
    Why not ride both, if not more?
    
    steve

    If someone was looking for a hilly century, then you just missed it -
    the Mt Greylock Century was this past Sunday.  I had planned to do the
    entire 100, but I wasn't properly prepared for the weather so I cut it
    short and only did 50.  Oh well, I'll do it next year.
    
    Rich

    
    Someone told me about this century.  What was the weather like?
    The terrain (as far as you got)?  How many riders?
    
    Thanks,
    -john

    I guess the question I'd still like to ask of you more experienced
    riders is whether a century is a realistic goal for this year,
    considering my present state of training (.23)?  As I said, last
    weekend's 54-miler left me pretty whiped, but then, I didn't eat
    anything along the way, drank one bottle of water, and started out with
    a bit of a hangover 8^{}
    
    	My goal for this weekend is to try a metric century - start out a
    bit slower, eat first, bring some munchie bars, and drink a bit more
    water & see how I feel when I get in.  If it feels OK, I'll do it again
    the following week for my long ride, and try 75 the week after that. 
    The next week will be the week of the century.  Is this pushing it?
    
    	I might also mention that I weigh in at about 215, so I AM hauling
    somke excess cargo around 8^(.  

    If you take it easy, and plan to spend all day doing it, a century
    shouldn't be out of reach.  I remember riding the MS 150 a couple
    of years back, and seeing non-bikers ride 80+ miles on machines that
    wouldn't turn 15mph.  You can bet they felt it, though!
    
    
    MATT

The weather report for Sunday was for some showers in the morning with clearing
later and cool.  The clearing never happened.  The ride starts in Pittsfield, MA
and continues up Rt 7 for about 7 miles, this section is almost flat.  After
this there were a few small hills, but nothing substansal until we got to the
Mt Greylock Reservation vistor's center (at the bottom).  The first mile was
quite steep, after that it wasn't so bad and there were even a few flat spots.
The total distance from the base to the summit was 8 miles, and we climbed about
2000' during that.  The road to the summit was closed because there were some
trees down on it (get off the bike and carry it over), and a good sized washout
in one place.  When we got to the summit the visibility was about 15'.  Coming
down the other side there were numerous potholes, bumbs, and small washouts (all
marked), and two gravel sections.  After decending from the mountain is when we
decided to cut the ride short by taking Rt 8 south from North Adams back to the
starting point.

The weather was cool (low 50s?), wet, and breezy, especially on top of the
mountain.

Someone estimated that about 75 people showed up for the ride.  I believe that
some people did finish it (I heard one woman mention that she had done BMB last
week), but a lot of people cut the ride short because of the weather.

Had we completed the ride we would have had another climb on Rt 2 of 1500' the
majority of it being done in 3 miles (the switchback), then a descent for 8
miles on good surface, another major climb into the town of Charlemont at 52
miles, and the last major climb was 1000' from Cummington to Windsor, this was
somewhere around the 85 mile mark.  After that it was rolling downhill until to
the finish.


Rich

    re [.32] Thanks  - that's very encouraging.  Think I'm gonna go for it!

    RE: .-2
    
    Thanks for the description.  What an adventurous ride!
    
    The BMB rider may have been Rose Kostin (Rochester NY)
    ... on a Terry?
    
    -john

re .35

I believe that your guess that the BMB rider is correct as I heard someone refer
to here as Rose, and there were a number of riders there from Rochester NY.

    Hi Steve,
    
    Does seven hills offer 1/2 and metric centuries as well?  
    
    Thanks
    Joe

The Seven Hills Wheelmen Century is a LAW sanctioned century offering - it
offers a 25, 50, 62 (metric) and 100 mile ride.

Rich (another 7HW member)

    To be more exact, there will be a 25, 50, 75, 100.  75 and 100 meet
    at 7:30 AM, 25, 50 at 9:30 AM.  Location: Knights of Columbus Hall,
    Meadow St (off rt 9) Spencer MA.  Go through Spencer center about 1
    mile, take a right at the McDonalds.  About 1/2 mile on your right.
    
    Steve

    Some centuries in the Massachusetts area:
    
    Sept 9 Connecticut Valley Century (100, 75, 50, 25) Registration $6
    Hadley village Barn Shops, Rt. 9, Hadley, MA
    
    Sept 9 19th TFCE Regsitration $20 by Aug 27.  Contact
    Darla M. Farley, TFCE Narragansett Bay Wheelmen, P.O. Box 428,
    Tiverton, RI 02878
    
    Sept 15, 16 Granite State Wheelmen's Seacoast Tri-state Century
    (100, 62, 50, 25) Registration $10 (includes parking) at Hampton Beach
    State Park, Rt 1A, Hampton Beach, NH
    
    Sept 23 Seven Hills Wheemen Cetury (100, 75, 50, 25) Registration $5.00
    before Sept 17, or $8.00 day of ride.
    
    Sept 29 (rain date Sept 30) Nashoba Valley Pedlers' Fall Century. (25,
    50, 100) FFI send SASE to Linda Wisocky, 18 Griffin Rd., Framingham MA
    01701

    there will be centuries each of hte 3 days of Labor Day weekend from
    the  Tara in Nashua.
    
    Letme propose this one and see if we can get as good turnout as we had
    in 88 or maybe a little better.  How about all interested digits take
    you personnal holiday on Fri., Sept 7 and dash down to Tiverton to do
    the TFCE.  We'll be unsupported but the roads will be marked and stores
    open so we can get the needed supplies on the way.  Digital jerseys
    recommended.  When I did it in 88, I parked in a lot about a mile
    east of the high school.
    
    What say you all, any interest?  Thiswill be cheaper than the NBW's $20
    and won't get you a t-shirt, but could be a chance to get to know some
    of you fellow bike digits.   Given the state of support, I'd expect to
    do it in about 7 hours, but that depends on the crowd.
    
    ed

    	Count me in.  It'll be my first C since knee surgery so
    I'll be looking for a slower group to ride with but I'm game...
    I also have a digit jersey that's too large for me :) so I don't
    mind skipping the TFCE T shirt.
    			
    						_Jerry

    Carpool, Jerry?  Plan to meet other digits there at, say, 8 am.
    
    
    ed

    Carpool sounds like a great idea.  I have an open pickup which
    will hold a lot of bikes.  This way we can keep it down to just
    a couple of vehicles, one for people and one for bikes, unless
    of course (a thousand poxes) it should rain :( .
    
    						_Jerry
    
    Then of course we could all be called back to work for
    an emergency meeting...is there ever any other kind?

I'll join the gang (provided that it doesn't rain).

If we're going to carpool, I prefer someplace like HLO or MRO for MA riders.

Rich

    I'll be there, rain or no rain, ...  Siad whilst thirsting for a good
    long ride.
    
    Of course, I'll have to relearn how to ride on the right side of the
    road.
    
    ed

    Some of the riders on TAGRAM were members of the NBW (the people who
    put on TFCE), and I learned that the course this year is a little bit
    different.  The change was made so that they would not conflict with a
    race that takes place the same day..
    
    Rich

    Ok, so it's me, Jerry Smith and Rich Whalen as the persons who
    have declared "I'll be there."  From Southern NH I figure it's 2.5
    hrs to get there, Perhaps a 9 am start would be a better idea?
    
    We should pick up Rich if it's just the 3 of us.
    
    Is anyone else going to join us?
    
    Slightly new route?  Well that's ok, it's arrowed -- famous last words
    -- Anybody got a cue sheet?
    
    ed

    As I stated in my previous reply "we could be called into an 
    important meeting" and I was.  Sorry gang, I have to withdraw
    my offer.  I'll be with you in spirit as I do laps on the
    stat bike around some hotel room in Detroit :-(
    					_Jerry

    	It sound like the new routing is near Horseneck Beach, at about
    the 30 - 40 mile point. During past events, there have been warnings
    about a foot race and you could see the cones and road markings along
    the road in the area.  - Chris

Greetings Cyclists,

I did a century this weekend in a place called McSherrytown Penn. and I
finished it. NOT ONLY THAT BUT I FINISHED IT IN LESS THAN 10 HOURS! So
after my debacle in the HHH I'm please to say that I'm back to being a 
cycling hombre, a real dude to be dealt with on two wheels-wise. I did 
it in 8:45 hrs. 

1. I did this same cent. last year and there is something about going
over the same route that helps make it easier. 

2. This was billed as flat to rolling. I couldn't remember any flat
last year and I was right...there was rolling hills the whole way.
There was also a headwind for 50 miles, out of the north which is 
odd because it seems rare around here to get that direction...Oh well
just fortuneate I guess.

3. Probably because I knew the route I really could pour on the coal
when I could. (Pouring on the coal for me is going fast enough to have
the auto-shutoff on the cateye stay on!)

4. I notice that I have a real problem getting grumpy after 70 miles or
so. I get steamed at everyone and thing, I hear all kinds of problem 
sqeaking in my bike etc. Also I fantasize about hearing Greg LeMond
or even more close to home John Ellis yelling to me, "Hey Fred how
about easing up on the pace a bit we're having a tough time keeping
up!" I of course (in my fantasy) am utterly charitable. About that time
some 14 year old one a 10 speed Mongomery Ward's special whizzes past.

your fellow biking hombre,

Fred Mudgett

    Well, when I started riding this past July, the thought of riding A
    HUNDRED MILES seemed downright unnatural.  I certainly never thought
    I'd be doing it, at least not this year . . . however, yesterday at
    4:15PM, I became the proud, if somewhat exhausted, possessor of my
    first century patch!  My brother and I finished the Tri-state century
    in 8 hours on the nose, including a tire-patching stop (his, not mine -
    _I_ invested in kevlar tires 8^).
    
    	THe weather was absolutely gorgeous, and the course was, as
    advertised, fairly flat - though there were some low-gear hills and
    some long steady inclines.  I was a bit worried about attempting it
    with less than 400 miles of training behind me, but nothing ventured,
    nothing gained, right?  What really amazed me is that my brother
    started riding a month after I did & only had about 200 miles of
    training before the century - the kid's a natural.  Thanks for all the
    encouragement that this conference has provided - I can't wait till
    the 7 hills century next weekend!

re -1

>    THe weather was absolutely gorgeous, and the course was, as
>    advertised, fairly flat - though there were some low-gear hills and
>    some long steady inclines.  

You musta rode it on Sunday!  I rode the 100 mi on Saturday and got soaked.
At about 30 miles into it it poured for the next 35 miles then stopped only
for a head wind to start blowing for the next 10-15 miles.  Then finally the
sun came out.  Because of this rain and wind I fell short of my goals of doing
it in 5� hours.  Instead I finished in 6:07.  This was my first time riding
in the rain for so long and it's different.


Cheers,

...Ed

    re [-1] Yup - I heard they were predicting thunder storms for Sat AM &
    Sun promised to be nice, so I planned accordingly.  It was still a bit
    chilly - I never even took off my sweats, so I imagine it must have
    been pretty cold Saturday, especially if you were wet!

    I also rode it on Saturday, aside from the early morning fog and mist,
    rain, thunder, a little lightening, winds, and the sun; it was rather
    enjoyable. We didn't get cold until we stopped. It was actually fun riding
    in the rain, well, until we had to cross the steel bridges. My
    Cateye decided to stop working about 67 or miles into the ride (works
    fine now that its dried out) and the jockey wheels really were squeaking the
    last 30 miles. It was pedal for 20 to 30 revolutions and coast to have some
    quiet. The route was well marked with all of the green arrows. It was nice
    to have the tailwind coming back from Plum Island. I finished with around
    6 hours of riding time. Not bad for my first century, I guess. I did try
    to follow the Bicycling century plan, though I didn't always do the long
    rides.

    garry.

    Well, it was either sheetrock or a century for me and the latter won by
    a landslide.  I did the Charles River Wheelmen Century (aka the Tour of
    the Cemeteries - passed by 5 or 6 of 'em) this past sunday and the
    weather was cool and dry, ideal for a fast century.
    
    There was a big crowd at the start by the time I got there and they all
    left as I was still finishing the lyrics to "Love is like Anthrax"
    while getting my gear on.  Anyway, I ponied up my 7 clams and was
    registered, after which I was offered a bagel (they looked like they
    had the consistency of joint compound and, besides, they didn't look
    kosher anyway).  The warm-up took us through some of the tonier
    sections of Wellesley but this was all taken away as we moved into
    Natick and Framingham (not kosher either).  By the time I was warming
    up, we passed about a mile from MRO and continued west in the general
    direction of Spag's.  At that time, I was caught by two fellows on Red
    Cannondales and we rode until we started hitting some hills out in
    Shrewsbury/Westborough (don't ask me, I just follow the arrows) and,
    though they were good company, they fell off.  I caught up with a
    fellow riding a nice Guerciotti (about my size too) but, having
    forgotten my switchblade at home, I couldn't make a new acquisition. 
    After about 40 miles into the trip, I caught up with a pack of 5 who
    were really making a go of it.  Unfortunately, some hills got in the
    way and they also fell off too.  (Parenthetically, the CRW ride
    choreographer did a splendid job of finding all the hills in the area.)
    
    The route took us through Uxbridge, Mendon and other towns which would
    lead anyone to think that we should soon be encountering the "Land that Time
    Forgot".  Alas, the route turned northward and away from the sounds of 
    pterodactyls and triceratopses.  Oh well.....
    
    Mile 85 or thereabouts had us go through a nice little forest (Sherborn
    or Dover, I don't know - the only thing I knew was that I couldn't
    afford to live there).  However, like in most of Massachusetts's
    ritzier towns, the road conditions were appalling.  Macadam roads
    (uglier than John Silber and just as painful) and rutted sections that
    reminded me of the Sea of Tranquility (aka Maynard).
    
    After what seemed like an eternity on those macadam roads, I reached
    Rt. 16 and my butt sighed in relief.  I reached the ride end with 101.7
    miles in the odometer (strangely enough, it was exactly the same
    mileage that I got when I rode with Ed and Mike in the Kanc the week
    before.  I thought to myself "I bet that, if Mike rode this century,
    he'd have 100 miles on the dot".)  Time - 5h8m  Not what I wanted but
    not bad for solo either.  Either way, it was better than sheetrocking.
    
    At the snack counter, all the sodas were diet except one (why on God's
    green earth would anyone count calories after 100 miles of cycling?)
    and the goodies weren't that tasty (the brownies were too liquid and,
    besides, who the heck eats yoghurt after a century?).  I went home to a
    nice plate of tabouli.
    
    Alfonso  

    I rode the CRW Century yesterday, too.  The weather was gorgeous, and
    I was amazed at the scenic selection of roads (in Eastern Mass, no
    less!).  Since I arrived a little late, I rode alone, and spent most
    of the morning passing people.  I mellowed out in the second half
    and finished with an ET of about 5:50.  Two long stops at convenience
    stores really hurt my time, as did staying out until 2AM Saturday
    night!  I hope to ride at least two more centuries before the season's
    up.

    We did  the CRW quarter century on Hermaphrodite (our counterpoint
    opus).  It was my wife's first organized ride, and she was feeling
    tired,  and  we  only had about 30 miles on the bike so we took it
    very easy.

    It was   an  interesting  route  with  some  absolutely  beautiful
    stretches, and a few pieces of somewhat main road, but the traffic
    wasn't  bad.  It's  nice to know that there are such nice areas to
    ride well inside 495.

    If we  can schedule it, we're going to try for a metric later this
    fall.

--David

    Trip report: Spring City Cycling Club "All You Can Eat Century", $15,
    Hunstville, Al, Sunday 9/16.  Terrain: rolling (@600'ASL) with one
    steep climb (@1500'ASL... bastards; hit 51mph on the way down the other
    side though).  Route: three loop figure "eight" running north-south
    between Tenessee border and the Tenessee river, on backroads through
    cotton fields east of Huntsville.  Three rest stops (two at crossover
    points) that were essentially fruitstands (peaches, grapes, figs,
    bananas,...) + Gatorade and water, with Spaghetti, salad, and cold drinks
    at the end.  Weather: perfect, 70 at start (7:00) warming to 85 at noon.
    Wind didn't exactly cooperate: nonexistent at the start, becoming a
    brisk headwind for the way back north.  Also, several miles of the route
    were pea gravel on macadam; not very fast.  About 300 riders with a good
    showing of fancy Trek's, Cdales, mountain bikes, although not all went
    on the century (25/50/62 mile routes too).  My bike: Trek 1200.  Time:
    5:59, including stops.  Distance: 103.5 miles (who measured this
    anyhow...)  Ate: lots.  _kb
                                                                         

Of course, I too did the CRW century yesterday.

The arrowing job was excellent, never had to look at the map.
I liked it in that it was pretty; it was also pretty hilly.

I think the food spread was pretty good considering the price was only
5 to 7 dollars (pre-register/member/non-member), but maybe I'm
prejudiced.

The worst part for me was the night before.  I couldn't sleep so at
2 A.M. I decided I might as well pump up my tires -- boom.
Of course it was the rear too.  That wasn't in the plan.

I didn't meet you other Digits there, sorry about that.
[The area with the woods near the end was around Farm Pond in
Sherbourne.]

	~Mike

P.S.  Over 350 people did one of the four routes, most doing the
100.

Are there any organized centurys this coming weekend like last weeks CRW, 
Tri-State, etc.  


I must ;') do MORE before the snow flies.

...Ed

    re [-1] I believe the 7-hills century out of Spencer is this weekend.

    re .61, .62
    
    Yes, the 7 Hills Wheelmen run their century this weekend.  It starts at
    the Knights of Columbus Hall, Meadow Street, Spencer, Mass.  At Rt 9
    take West Main Street to Meado Street, approximately 1/2 mile.  The 100
    & 75 mile rides start at 7:30, the 50 at 8:30 and the 25 at 9:30.  The
    cost is $8.00 and covers map, pathc, refreshments and facilities.
    
    See you there!
    
    Rich

Reply to a couple back-looking for some more centurys:

I've done two century's this month (in honor of national century month)
and am thinking of doing another. I live in Maryland and most of the 
local rides are hilly so I look for century's everywhere else like
New Jersey and Delaware. I find alot of info on century in BICYCLING.
That mag. has a section in the back that contains significant rides
sorted by geography. This year I have really learned to love doing 
these rides! Its like a whole day of fun and something of a duable 
challange. 

Fred Mudgett
 

    There will be a GSW C on saturday from the Tara.
    
    ed

    re. .64   Fred,  If you see a century in the Salisbury MD area, go for
    it!  The total rise/fall will be under 10'!  When they define
    absolutely flat, they were thinking of this area. Be prepared to do
    your fastest century ever (if it's not too windy).
    	LAW Nationl Rally was there in '88. And they want to do a GEAR
    within the next few years.  I hear that GEAR in Williamsburg, VA will
    have mostly flat rides, too (I'm already signed up - see you there?)
    	- chris

    Grrrrr! I HAD hoped to be pedaling in the 7-hills century today, but it
    looks like I'll be pedaling my firefox all day.   Oh well.

    re .67
    
    It's a shame you missed it.  There was a good turn out, in fact they
    ran out of century patches.  The weather was perfect, and the course
    was great if you ignored the 3 miles just before that CT border that
    had been scraped for resurfacing.

    Well, since this is the note where I bragged about finally doing my
    first metric century and making my 1500 mile goal, I just had to drop a
    reply in here about breaking 2000 miles today!  
    
    We've had a bit of warm weather up here in MPO, and today the power
    went out in our building about 10:00.  So, since I couldn't do any
    useful work, I went out at lunch for a ride around the neighborhood... 
    and when I looked at the trusty computer it showed that I've managed
    2020 miles for this year!  
    
    Its a good thing I did it today, because they're predicting winter
    tomorrow and SNOW by Saturday...  I think it may be time to put the
    bike on the trainer!  Bo DON'T ride in no snow!

    Greetings feller cyclists,
    
    Its been a slow year century-wise for me. Last year by this time I had
    done two but so far I've driven to several to have them canceled or
    rained out or something. 2 weeks ago I decided to try a Metric called
    the Tour de Lebonnon Valley. It is in the Lebonnon Valley Penn., which 
    is just a couple miles north of Hershey Penn. A METRIC you are
    concievably saying with a snearing snort. "Do you mean the same length
    that Greg LeMond would ride in about 1.5 hours to warm up for a real
    ride? The same distance that John Ellis goes just to make sure his 
    derailer is working correctly?" "Don't make me laugh," you are probably
    saying into your VT220, "you must be sniffing too much tape head
    cleaner fluid Fred."  Well these were close to my honest thoughts but
    the mitigating factors were:
    
    1. A friend of mine from the area said that this is a comparitivly flat 
    area.
    2. I don't have any ride patches from this year.
    3. I was going out of town and it would give me a good quick sucess
    that I could boast to my friends about. 
    4. I love to go to organized cycling events the same routes all the
    time looses its challange. 
    
    Well the weekend was like 100 degrees (which is something like 5 degrees
    C.) and very very humid. The ride was discribed as rolling. Hah! I was
    fantasizing about rolling something over whoever thought that little
    discription up. OOOOOOh was I steamed. Wheezing my way up some of the 1
    - 2 mile inclines that were everywhere on this ride I noticed that I
    might have miscalculated how much water I needed. You see I usually
    don't drink alot of water on a ride. I just get a 44 oz thing of
    diet-coke and go for it. Wrong, this ride was all out in the forest and
    there was nowhere to get anything to drink. I only had several ounces
    of week old diet-coke which I found myself drinking after 10 miles. By
    the time I got to the first water stop I had completely rethought my
    water drinking plans. I got the 44 oz filled and drank it down and
    refilled it. I thought that ought it just about do it. WRONG. I
    couldn't believe how much water I used. It must have been from all the
    hill climbing because I've ridden in 100 degree weather and didn't
    cause me to sweat that much. 
    
    Anyway the upshot of the whole thing was  that this Metric really
    really really kicked my butt. Fortuneately I was the very last person
    to finish. All the local club people were trying to hide thier
    contempt, "you must not have alot of hills like this down there in
    Maryland."  "Yah," I wanted to say, "we have hills like this in Maryland
    but we don't trick people into coming to ride them by saying the
    terrain is rolling, we would have called it bone-crushing, LeMond's
    butt-kicking tough, that only cycling's toughest people could do." Now
    that would be an accurate discription.
    
    Fred Mudgett 

    
    	Tell me Fred. What's it like riding in 100 degree heat? The only
    weather experience that us Scots get is several inches of water. The
    only country where you've got to cycle with a snorkel :)
    
    Graham.
    

Yo, Fred, if you want some nice hill-practice down MD way head out for a 
tour of Howard County. Had a nice 80-or-so-mile ride there a number of 
years back in 95F+ heat that still gives me the shudders and involuntary 
twitches when I think about it. Oughta be just the practice you need 
when heading up to PA again! :-)

                        ken-glad-to-be-outta-the-deep-south!

    Today I got up early and headed out for a little 40-mile ride with one
    of the local clubs.  Nice day, low 70s, low humidity, no wind at all...
    At the end of 40 I felt pretty good so I decided to go around again
    because (as I said in note 1233 last night) I needed to add the 10% to
    my season high of 70 miles.  
    
    At the end of 80 I decided on a few more and BEFORE I COULD STOP MYSELF
    I had FINISHED A CENTURY!  
    
    I took it easy and averaged about 13 mph for the distance and turned it
    on a bit for the last 10 miles - averaged about 16 and did a couple
    half-mile bursts in the mid 20s...  At the end I felt GREAT - wouldn't
    want to go another 100 miles but I was amazed at how painfree I was -
    the new shoes kept my toes from hurting, legs felt fine, and aside from
    a tired butt...
    
    But, unlike Fred on his ride, in 100 miles I consumed:
    
    5 (yes 5) large bottles of water and was into the sixth
    1 large bottle of orange juice (swig every so often washed down with
      water to provide sugar to get all the water out of my stomach
    1 apple
    1 banana
    2 chocolate chip cookies
    1 ham/cheese/...  sub sandwich
    2 diet cokes
    a lot of my own gorp concoction of honey granola, raisins, and M&Ms
    
    (can you GAIN weight riding 100 miles?)
    
    BTW:  for the last couple weeks I've been putting talcum powder in my
    shorts - it seems to work well to keep things dry and chafe-free.  I
    also took the advice in here and put some ointment on the sensitive
    nether regions at the 40-mile mark on todays ride - I like it!
    
    Well, I"ve now made half my 1991 goal!

    Greetings,
    
    Congratulations Dave. If I decided to do 40 miles at somewhere 
    around 38 I'd be whining! Also I'd NEVER do a century without
    a patch involved. If it doesn't have a patch it isn't a century.
    
    Fred Mudgett
    

>    Congratulations Dave. If I decided to do 40 miles at somewhere 
>    around 38 I'd be whining! 
    
    Thanks.  Well, I got lucky - the first 40 miles were with a group that
    is pretty relaxed.  So, I got to take it easy and talk and such, so at
    the 40 mile mark I felt like I was warmed up but not tired.
    
    Interesting comment about the patch...  they don't seem to be very
    popular up here.  Of the dozen or so rides I've been on in the past
    year or so that had centuries (although I usually did the shorter
    routes), I"ve only seen 1 that gave away a patch.  Mostly they seem to
    do T-shirts, or the occasional crying towel.  I rather like the
    T-shirts!

    
    	Hello,
    
    	I'm looking for confirmation of a century leaving from Hampton
    	Beach  NH. on the weekend of Sep. 14 or 15 (not sure which day).  
    	
    	I believe the GSW are running this event.
    
    	Any additional info would be greatly appreciated.
    
    	Thanx............Dan 

    Greetings,
    
    According to the LAW Sept mag. this ride is allegedly on both
    the 14th and the 15th. The mag says contact Granite State Wheelmen
    Fred McLaughlin 77 S. Main St. Concord, NH 03301.
    
    (The following is commentary and humor not fact)
    This ride is advertised as flat AND in New Hampshere. PLEASE flat?
    In The Granite State? I smell a rat here. I'll bet you a dollar
    to doughnuts that Monday morning there are going to be some serious
    whining from GSW's.
    
    Just an opinion;-}
    
    Fred Mudgett
     
    

    It's flatter than the alledgedly Flattest Century in the East, but
    usually a tad windier  :-).  For more info please read replies to note 2040.
    
    ed

    
    Thanx for the pointer, Ed.
    
    As this will be my first official century, I was wondering how you all
    stay hydrated. 
    
    I tend to drink one large capacity bottle for every 20-25 miles. Usually 
    during rides over 50 miles I will stop and refill, but I'd prefer to stay
    in the saddle for the duration of this one.
    	                                                                      
    Is there generally H20/"glucose" drinks available at the turnaround 
    point? 
    
    Gracias.........Dan

    The course has a south loop of about 30 miles and a north of about 70.
    On the North loop the rest area is about 20-23 miles up so you can hit
    it twice.  Thus, to accomodate your needs, if you do the south loop
    first, you might be able to refill your H2O on the northward pass of
    the rest area.  It's a tad off the road at a state picnic area so that
    might hinder your sub-4 century attempt by 10 or 20 seconds.  :-)
    And then if you grab some cookies and bananas ...
    
    ed

    
    Thanks for the info....now if I can only control my bladder a sub-4
    century just may be a reality. :-)
    
    Dan

    There will be toilets at the rest stops...
    
    ed

yesterday, saturday August 20, i broke the 1000 mile mark for riding
my bicycle this season - AND - i rode a 65 mile ride!!!  i have lived 
to talk about both!

    following advice i've seen in the notes, i didn't change any of my
    equipment or clothes for the this ride.
    
i really shouda rode friday night, i woulda hit 1000 miles then, but 
i bagged it to rest for the big saturday ride.  at the 15 mile mark on 
the big ride i hit 1000 miles. i was riding with the ride leader and
we had ourselves a little toast without missing a spin.

when we got to the rest stop (37 mile marker) a few of the faster riders
were still there and pete (the leader) announced my mileage highpoint.
i got a nice round of applause.
    
    	i was riding 12.1 mph at this point, but the wind got the best of
    me on the remaining ride. i ended up with 11.7 mph. still not bad for
    me.
    
the ride started out as a metric century (62.4 miles). the longest ride
i've done before this was 52 miles (last week). i felt good after that 
one, and so long as the wind worked with me, i should be able to do the
62 miles. well, starting out the wind was against me. it was really
noticable trying to get speed going down hill.  the ride started at
minnetonka city hall, went out to wayzata then to watertown and on to
the rest stop in waconia then thru victoria to excelsior (stopping at
adele's frozen custard stand) and back to minnetonka city hall.  the
wind was against me on the ride from victoria to minnetonka. after 
having the custard at adele's, i opted to take the bike trail back to
city hall. i just couldn't take uphill into the wind anymore. at least
the bike trail was flat. but it wasn't protedted from the wind.  i 
rolled into the city hall parking lot with 65.33 miles.  it was actually
more like 67 miles as i turned off the computer at stop lights and 
sometimes forgot to start it right up.  i gotta get one of those 
automatic ones.

i survived the trip because i had a good mental attitude. "i think i can -
i know i can - this is just another ride". and i ate a good 
breakfast (pancakes at panekoken) and munched every 45-60 minutes 
while riding. those fat free newton fit in my bike bag pretty good. 

it turns out there were 2 other riders for who this was also their longest
ride (dave and theresa). they both made the ride to the end. dave rolling
in with a flat that started about a mile from the end.

regular doses of advil (at begining, middle and end) and a long hot bath when
i got home certainly helped in the recovery.  well, i'm done with biking
for the season - NOT! i'll be back out later today (sunday) and during 
the week.

	spinning along - ann
                                                   

RE: <<< Note 1549.83 by ANGLIN::HARRISA "Confluence - its a way of life" >>>

Hey sounds great! I Hope that the good feeling lasts a while.
						-- Tom

My 1st century (solo) was actually a 125 mile ride in Florida, Gainesville 
(U of FL) to Winter Park (near Orlando).  The biggest challenges were the 
heat & humidity and crazy truck drivers that enjoyed blasting their air 
horns as they approached from behind. Cycling on roads that I normally drive
gave me a chance to really see rural Florida.

It felt great riding down that last street to my parent's home.  When my
grandfather heard what I had done, he called the local newspaper to tell
them about this 'headline news'.

My training consisted of a couple of months of 1 hour rides, 3-4 times a week.  
I wore running shoes and rode my Columbia 10 speed and finished in 7 hours,
with 2 stops - 1 for water, 1 to report a car accident.  I did get foot 
cramps toward the end.

Now I would like to attempt an organized century.  I have polished up my
Huffy 12 speed and am getting into shape for some local rides.

    A few years ago I did my first century (120 miles) as part of a 1200
    mile ride from John O'Groats (the most north easterly part of Scotland)
    down to Land's End (the most south westerly part of England) which
    basically from length of Great Britain. This 120 was done on about day
    6 after having averaged 70 miles a day until then, it took about 8 1/2
    hours, stopping once to re-hydrate. (I spent the next day relaxing).
    
    My training for this run was 6 months averaging about 90 miles on
    a Sunday and 10 miles every other evening.
    
    The bike I was riding was a 10 year old Raliegh tourer with a full 4
    pannier and tent set up.
    
    dickie.