Advice for BIKING 60 miles

[simms]

I'm planning to bike about 100km (60 miles) with my friends to Niagara Falls. I'm a first time long distance biker and I'm going with 3-4 other friends. We're biking there and bussing back.

I have a helmet and a 12-speed speed bike and bike gloves. It's expected to take 12 hours and we have repair kits, spare tires, GPS, a route and hopefully we can complete the distance in one day.

Can you give me any advice? I just have a new helmet and some reflectors on the bike.

 

[ragazzo]

No idea. Never tried it, but I'm guessing Gatorade and lots of trail mixes? Shrug

 

[40Hands]

What kind of bike are you using?

Food high in carbs and maybe some beef jerky for protein/salt. Also I would recommend having LED safely lights for the back of your bike in low light conditions.

Oh yah, don't forget the porn.

 

[olds]

Parody?

 

[Armitage]

How much are you riding now?
Is the bike in good shape?

 

[bigrash]

60 miles shouldnt take you the whole day, even with a lot of rest in between.

Make sure u bring lots of water and equipment to fix the bike.

 

[Blieb]

I hope it's a parody olds ...

What type of shape are you in?

Dude you need to train up a little. If you go out, you either won't be able to finish, or you won't be able to walk for a week or two.

But, in the event that you're serious:
1) Buy chamois butter.
2) buy a crapload of hammer gel
3) start training and get some riding in so you don't kill yourself.

 

[radioouman]

I would guess that this will be a 5 hour trip on a 12 speed bike

Bring water and some food and you'll be fine.

 

[Blieb]

60 miles really depends on the group, fitness levels, and terrain.

A group Roadies, riding a train ... could do it in about 2.5 hours (25mph)
Novice people who never ride ... I could see 6+ hours. (9 mph)

 

[imported_Elias]

I rode a 100-mile trip spread out over 2 days a little while ago. The best advice I can give you is to make sure you seat is adjusted to the correct height (should have a very slight bend in the knee at the lowest point of pedaling) and make sure its comfortable. You don't need a old fogey one with springs under it or anything, but you'll be in pain if its crappy.

Also pick up a pair of biker shorts. There's padding in the arse area for a reason.

 

[DrPizza]

Read Blieb's post.

If you ride single file, taking turns in the front, very closely following each other, you will all be able to ride significantly faster than you could on your own. The lead biker is kinda sprinting - when he starts to tire, someone else takes the lead and he falls back into line somewhere behind.

Still... 60 miles? Even if you're not in that great of shape, I don't see it taking more than 5 or 6 hours.

I used to always eat bananas for the potassium to help avoid leg cramps.

btw, where are you biking from? I'm roughly 70 miles from Niagara.

 

[DrPizza]

n/m... I looked at your profile... you're on the other side of Niagara Falls.

oh, one last tip: you want tires made for higher speeds on roads;
if you're pedaling a mountain bike type of bike with big wide knobby tires, it's going to suck.

 

[PunDogg]

I would honestly also take NO2(Low dose), you cang et NO2 at GNC's, it helps the blood flow to your muscles, but a low dose is for endurance athletes like yourself. By low dose I mean 2-3 pills. it has helped athletes all across the US, even some pro biking athletes. If you have more questions PM me

Dogg

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

bicyclist shorts with good fit and padding.
drink water regularly, before you are thirsty.
consider turn around points just in case you get in over your head.

when you stop, only stop for 5-10 minutes. keep riding, even its only 10 mph.

 

[notfred]

12 hours? You could almost WALK 60 miles in 12 hours. 60 miles in 12 hours is barely 5mph.

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

Originally posted by: notfred
12 hours? You could almost WALK 60 miles in 12 hours. 60 miles in 12 hours is barely 5mph.

no.. in 12 hours you could walk about 30-40 miles.

 

[Armitage]

:roll: Cripes guys - 60- miles isn't that big a deal, especially with no particular time constraint.
You certainly don't need supplements/gel/whatever. Some gatorade, a couple of bananas and you're good to go. Eat a good breakfast and stop somewhere for lunch.
My friends and I used to do 50-60 miles back in high school on POS huffy's and cutoff jeans.

Cycling shorts and a decent seat are a good idea.
Make sure the bike is in good repair.
Do some riding to get your legs (and ass) in shape.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude

Originally posted by: notfred
12 hours? You could almost WALK 60 miles in 12 hours. 60 miles in 12 hours is barely 5mph.

no.. in 12 hours you could walk about 30-40 miles.

I thought most people walked at a pace of about 4 mph... that puts it around 48 miles.

 

[oboeguy]

Lots of good advice. I think another point to stress is to train a little so you don't kill yourself on the big day. Try to make whatever adjustments you need (e.g. saddle height) ASAP so you're used to everything on the big day. Bike shorts are a must (and again, use them for a few rides to get used to them!).

60 miles is not a big deal if you take your time (or are a serious rider). My better half, not the bike enthusiast I am (yet!) rode 55 miles with me this Sunday. Yeah, the pace was very slow, but it was fun for both. 12 hours should be far more than enough, including long breaks (which you should avoid unless you're really toasted or have tourism to do on the way).

Final advice: eat and drink fairly regularly, but in moderation.

GOOD LUCK AND HAVE FUN!!!

 

[Lonyo]

Originally posted by: DrPizza

Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude

Originally posted by: notfred
12 hours? You could almost WALK 60 miles in 12 hours. 60 miles in 12 hours is barely 5mph.

no.. in 12 hours you could walk about 30-40 miles.

I thought most people walked at a pace of about 4 mph... that puts it around 48 miles.

4mph for 12 hours straight? I doubt most people could do that.

 

[simms]

No, not a joke.

It's possible for a group of four of us to do this, right? Not insane? We're doing it this weekend. It's 100km, which I guess was around 60 miles.

I forgot to mention I also just bought a pair of cycling gloves. But what about a cycling shirt? Is that needed or would you recommend shorts above all? And what if it's a bit too cold out...

Would it also be worth the money to spend say, $15 on a gel padded seat cover?

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

Originally posted by: simms
No, not a joke.

It's possible for a group of four of us to do this, right? Not insane? We're doing it this weekend. It's 100km, which I guess was around 60 miles.

I forgot to mention I also just bought a pair of cycling gloves. But what about a cycling shirt? Is that needed or would you recommend shorts above all? And what if it's a bit too cold out...

Would it also be worth the money to spend say, $15 on a gel padded seat cover?

spend the money on some good shorts with padding. they will run you 20-40 dollars. You don't need a gel seat if you have good shorts. Gel seats don't even work well IMO.

Yeah you can do it, unless you are really out of shape.

Ahh, another thing, keep your cadence up high, spend time in gears where you are spinning your feet at least 60 rpm. Pedalling too slowly, in too high of a gear will stress your knees....cummalative effect too.

 

[simms]

Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude

Yeah you can do it, unless you are really out of shape.

Ahh, another thing, keep your cadence up high, spend time in gears where you are spinning your feet at least 60 rpm. Pedalling too slowly, in too high of a gear will stress your knees....cummalative effect too.

Good advice on that part... but you don't want to make it too easy right?

 

[HomeBrewerDude]

Originally posted by: simms

Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude

Yeah you can do it, unless you are really out of shape.

Ahh, another thing, keep your cadence up high, spend time in gears where you are spinning your feet at least 60 rpm. Pedalling too slowly, in too high of a gear will stress your knees....cummalative effect too.

Good advice on that part... but you don't want to make it too easy right?

right, 60 rpm is pretty comfortable and easy to count too.

when you go up hill, increase your cadence to 80+. when you go down, you can coast or spin at a much slower rate.

 

[Fausto]

Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude

Originally posted by: simms

Originally posted by: HomeBrewerDude

Yeah you can do it, unless you are really out of shape.

Ahh, another thing, keep your cadence up high, spend time in gears where you are spinning your feet at least 60 rpm. Pedalling too slowly, in too high of a gear will stress your knees....cummalative effect too.

Good advice on that part... but you don't want to make it too easy right?

right, 60 rpm is pretty comfortable and easy to count too.

when you go up hill, increase your cadence to 80+. when you go down, you can coast or spin at a much slower rate.

60 should really be the lowest rpm you ever see on the bike if you can help it. 80-90 is where you want to be most of the time for the sake of your knees.