First Century - Lessons Learned

The day before my first Century, I found myself turning to Google searches for "Tips for a First Century". I found a few ideas and pointers, but thought I'd share my reflections for others. So, here's my top ten, in no order of importance.

1. Share the load - I quickly found a couple of guys about my age and fitness level. We all got along well, enjoyed chatting, and shared the workload in rough stretches. Made the miles fly by. This is really key.
2. Hydrate and fuel - you're burning calories, and sweating off fluids. Drink often. If Gatorade is available to you, take advantage of it, especially on a hot day. And even if you're not hungry, eat something every hour or so.
3. Fit is it - I had a professional fitting done by Jess Bratus of FitMI. Over the first 50 miles, I might have never noticed it. But for the last 50 it was CRITICAL.
4. Log the miles - Training was key for me. I needed regular, increasing miles. By mid-Summer, my standard training loop was around 45 miles. General wisdom is that you can complete 2-3x what you train. I found that to be true.
5. Beat the heat - riding a Century in August means it could be hot. And we had a generally cool Spring and early Summer here in Michigan. When the first really hot weather hit, I made sure to get in a few solid rides. This really paid off on the big day as I was more acclimated to the heat. My first hot training ride was a shit show...
6. Move around - when you're spending over 6-1/2 hours in the saddle, making some effort to change positions, stretch, etc. really pays off. Climb some hills out of the saddle. Ride in the drops. Ride on the bar tops. At mile 80, you'll wish you did.
7. Enjoy the view - most organized rides are set-up to maximize rider enjoyment. Don't just pedal along and suffer. Take in the scenery!
8. Smooth is good - one thing I learned watching others, a smooth pedal stroke is efficient, and easier on your body. When you hit mile 90, you'll be glad. I've always had a pretty good pedal stroke (my fitter even complimented me on it). But, working on it on a trainer or while climbing really helps.
9. Shit happens - on arrival I found I'd grabbed a pair of mis-matched gloves. And, of course, one was from a pair I don't really like very much. I started to get fired up about it, but then realized it didn't really matter. And, it didn't. Relax - things will go wrong. As long as you didn't forget your bike, you're good.
10. You CAN do it - if you did #1-9 above, you can easily ride a Century. If there's one thing I've learned about cycling it's that confidence is king. Knocking off every ten mile increment always gives you confidence that enables the next one. So get your ass out there!

-Sean-

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