MattSantos Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 Help. A very good friend is organising 3 days of charity hell; which i drunkenly said i'd 100% do... The challenge, is to cycle the 2 stages of the grand depart in 3 days. In August. The charity is for a local hospice - a great cause and one very close to my idiot mate's heart. So, baring in mind that i am complete novice and the thought of riding a bike on a road is very scary, i now have a lot of questions; 1. Can you hire / loan (get free from somewhere) road bikes? 2. How difficult is ~80 miles per day? 3. Any good links to training resources? 4. What do you do about the scary trucks? Many thanks in trembling anticipation. Lance. Running the Rob Burrow marathon to raise money for the My Name'5 Doddie foundation: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ben-dyas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Futtocks Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 This is, apparently, the Cycling Proficiency Qualification of the 21st century: https://bikeability.dft.gov.uk/ Try this quickie online test, too, just to see where you're at: http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/quiz-could-you-pass-cycling-7315073 80-odd miles per day is a lot, especially for a beginner, even on flat roads. Failing that, just wobble about screaming obscenities at anyone who blocks your God-given pavement. Let me never fall into the vulgar mistake of dreaming that I am persecuted whenever I am contradicted. Ralph Waldo Emerson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingerjon Posted March 18, 2015 Share Posted March 18, 2015 I've done Bikeability and I have to say it was blinking useful. It was offered free by the local council (Southwark or Lambeth, I forget which) as part of the Boris Bikes sign-up. There may still be deals out there for it because in terms of getting you to at least understand *why* you should be where you should be on the road (even if it doesn't give you the confidence to go there) it's second to none. Today I have done an equivalent to MattSantos: last year I organised a 4 day bike ride from hell (and I will do the same next year) but managed to avoid riding it as I was chief organiser. This year we're doing (or rather my charity is) the Tour de France stage from Cambridge to London and I've run out of excuses. Today I have invested in a road bike (entry level and discounted because it's the 2014 model) and it gets collected on Friday. The most I've cycled in one go is about 20 miles and it pretty much wiped me out the solitary time I did it - the ride in June will be just over 80. I have a lot to do in a short time. You can hire bikes from plenty of places and if you look on gumtree sometimes there are people giving (or as good as giving) bikes away. What I would say from having seen this at close quarters both for myself and for the guys who did our ride last year is that no matter what you spend on a bike make sure it's one you've been able to ride on a fair bit before your big ride and also that people who know about bikes (say the guy at the independent bike shop) have helped you find one that fits what you need. Unless you really really really really have to avoid going to Halfords or Evans (with the caveat that all my bikes before now came from those places). Your local cycle club (give them a call, I've just rung mine) should know people who can help you get comfortable. (EDIT: 12/13 on Futtocks' test. I didn't know the question about being fined.) Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. (Terry Pratchett) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shrek Posted March 19, 2015 Share Posted March 19, 2015 Buy a discrete electric road bike and if asked argue the technicalities of what is and isn't in the spirit of the event when caught! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattSantos Posted March 23, 2015 Author Share Posted March 23, 2015 Thanks peeps. I might be emigrating anyway... *This is not linked. At all. Honestly. Running the Rob Burrow marathon to raise money for the My Name'5 Doddie foundation: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ben-dyas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingerjon Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 Thanks peeps. I might be emigrating anyway... *This is not linked. At all. Honestly. Quite an extreme reaction ... Build a man a fire, and he'll be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, and he'll be warm for the rest of his life. (Terry Pratchett) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Frightful Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 Help. A very good friend is organising 3 days of charity hell; which i drunkenly said i'd 100% do... The challenge, is to cycle the 2 stages of the grand depart in 3 days. In August. The charity is for a local hospice - a great cause and one very close to my idiot mate's heart. So, baring in mind that i am complete novice and the thought of riding a bike on a road is very scary, i now have a lot of questions; 1. Can you hire / loan (get free from somewhere) road bikes? 2. How difficult is ~80 miles per day? 3. Any good links to training resources? 4. What do you do about the scary trucks? Many thanks in trembling anticipation. Lance. In response to: 2. Take your normal drugs, they seemed to be rather effective. 4. Take a recreational drug, you won't care. (This post was made in jest btw ) Hull FC....The Sons of God... (Well, we are about to be crucified on Good Friday) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stimpo-and-kat Posted March 24, 2015 Share Posted March 24, 2015 Long distance is all about comfort. Get your bike fitted properly and get a saddle that you can sit in all day without any numbness. Gel padding shorts are a wise investment whatever the cost. Don't try to push the speed, speed will come with comfort and fitness. Start the distance small and work up. To do around 80 miles a day in terms of fitness for three consecutive days you should be looking to be able to complete that distance on one day and not be tired after wards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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