In preparation for our Rt. 66 ride, I’m trying to get used to going out on consecutive days for long rides, since that’s basically what we’ll be doing. My thinking is that if I get used to riding three days in a row for long distances and only stopping when necessary, I’ll be prepared to go five days in a row riding at a leisurely pace and stopping with some frequency to see the sights.
This is my shadow riding 60 miles on his bike on a road northwest of Huntley, IL. I was riding 60 miles at the time, too.
This past weekend was my most serious effort with this approach. I rode 40 miles on Friday and 60 miles in a rather healthy wind on Saturday. When I got home I was tired, but did some gardening and took a nap. After I felt quite good and started thinking about how far I wanted to ride on Sunday. On Saturday I had passed signs for the MS ride and that reminded me that the Swedish Days century ride is always the second day of the MS ride.
My initial thought was that there was no way I could do a century the day after riding 60 miles. Then it occurred to me that it would be an excellent challenge and, if I pulled it off, it would tell me that I’m just about ready for the Rt. 66 ride. I decided to meet the challenge, got up at 4:30, loaded the bike and gear, and headed to the corn and bean fields to see how much abuse my legs could stand.
I was careful to save energy the first 50 miles and really didn’t get loose until I’d covered 50 miles. It was at that point I knew I could finish the century, so I went for it. I finished much stronger than I expected. The final five miles I caught up with a guy who was cramping and struggling after 60 miles. He was definitely in shape so I guess he screwed up his water and food. I rode to the start with him to take his mind off of the misery. He knew what I had done and thanked me. Anything for a member of the two-wheel brotherhood.
The end result was that I rode 200 miles in three days and didn’t feel all that bad on Monday, i.e., I could have ridden 20 or 30 without any problem. I also feel that I’m ready for the Rt. 66 trip.
