Silly Commuter Sportives

il_principe

DonDaddyD wrote:

My bottle only holds 750ml....

You need 2 bottle cages and 2 bottles... especially for summer riding!

itboffin

DonDaddyD wrote:

Jay dubbleU wrote:

DonDaddyD wrote:

This is the Spring Onion (my sportive on Sunday) route profile

Thoughts please?

Also any advice hugely appreciated.

Who else is doing this, have you heard from the event organisers yet?

Nervous?

Would I be overplanning if I said:

Every 10 miles swig of water.
Every 15miles - swig of Energy drink/tablet
Every 20 miles - Cliff bar.

I would say at least 500ml of liquid per 10 miles - I drank over a litre in 30 miles on Sunday and it was a cold run
Good luck - maybe see you at the Wiggle Spring sportive

My bottle only holds 750ml....

Always take 2 bottles on a sportive

DonDaddyD

Yeah, I got two (non carbon - but soon to be carbon in the coming months) bottle cages and two 750ml bottles that kinda match the Karen's colour scheme.

One (electrolyte) energy drink, one pure water.

jonginge

DonDaddyD wrote:

Jay dubbleU wrote:

DonDaddyD wrote:

This is the Spring Onion (my sportive on Sunday) route profile

Thoughts please?

Also any advice hugely appreciated.

Who else is doing this, have you heard from the event organisers yet?

Nervous?

Would I be overplanning if I said:

Every 10 miles swig of water.
Every 15miles - swig of Energy drink/tablet
Every 20 miles - Cliff bar.

I would say at least 500ml of liquid per 10 miles - I drank over a litre in 30 miles on Sunday and it was a cold run
Good luck - maybe see you at the Wiggle Spring sportive

My bottle only holds 750ml....

Jay's estimate seems excessive. That said, it all depends on how much you sweat, which is a function of how hard you are working. I had two 750ml bottles on sunday and barely drank half of one in 70miles. (May have stopped at a pub for lunch, though, where rehydration of a sort took place.) If you only have one then get yourself another bottle and cage. You'll be able to refill bottles at the feed stations.

With regard to nutrition the normal advice is TESTIT (try everything several times in training). That way you work out what works and what doesn't before you need it to work.

Good luck on the ride. You'll be fine

Edit: On a sportive I'd be looking to drink a bit every ten minutes or so.

amnezia

itboffin wrote:

Always take 2 bottles on a sportive

+1

worse feeling in the world is running out of water with no more food stops to go.

Fireblade96

DonDaddyD wrote:

Yeah, I got two (non carbon - but soon to be carbon in the coming months) bottle cages and two 750ml bottles that kinda match the Karen's colour scheme.

One (electrolyte) energy drink, one pure water.

Sounds fine, and you'll get a chance to refill them at the feed stations. I drink loads when riding, I probably drank at least 1.5l water and 1l energy drink on Sunday !

Oh, and some guy on a Kuota came past me like I was going backwards

DonDaddyD

Fireblade96 wrote:

DonDaddyD wrote:

Yeah, I got two (non carbon - but soon to be carbon in the coming months) bottle cages and two 750ml bottles that kinda match the Karen's colour scheme.

One (electrolyte) energy drink, one pure water.

Sounds fine, and you'll get a chance to refill them at the feed stations. I drink loads when riding, I probably drank at least 1.5l water and 1l energy drink on Sunday !

Oh, and some guy on a Kuota came past me like I was going backwards

Richmond Park? Black guy (I have only ever seen black guys ride the Kuota, just saying) Black jacket, tights and grey/blue shoes? Maybe?

UndercoverElephant

My tip would be the obvious: You are not racing. There will be people going past you a fair amount, do not try to race them. Concentrate on your own ride and ignore them. Also, if you need the loo, stop and go - otherwise you'll stop drinking enough which will loose you way more time in the long run.

Good luck, and enjoy it.

Fireblade96

DonDaddyD wrote:

Fireblade96 wrote:

Oh, and some guy on a Kuota came past me like I was going backwards

Richmond Park? Black guy (I have only ever seen black guys ride the Kuota, just saying) Black jacket, tights and grey/blue shoes? Maybe?

Nope, the Evans Watlington Sportive. So not you unless you were going so fast you'd passed into a parallel dimension ;-)

bigmat

Re hydration, sounds like everybody's needs differ. I would just take a 750ml bottle of energy drink* and refill it at the food stops. I did 40 miles on Sunday and drank no more than a few swigs, don't personally need to drink a lot in this weather. Saying that, probably better to have too much than too little. I'm not sure you'll need "tablets" (nuun?) and again, if you've had a good breakfast you'll probably be fine refuelling on food at the food stops although its always a good idea to have a couple of bars with you in case of emergency and maybe a gel or two / some energy tablets in case you bonk.

*(I do carry two bottles in summer, one energy drink and one water - I like to have a straight water for cooling purposes e.g. to pur over my head - not nice with energy drink! Can't see that being an issue for you on Sunday though).

rolf_f

JonGinge wrote:

Jay dubbleU wrote:

I would say at least 500ml of liquid per 10 miles - I drank over a litre in 30 miles on Sunday and it was a cold run
Good luck - maybe see you at the Wiggle Spring sportive

Jay's estimate seems excessive. That said, it all depends on how much you sweat, which is a function of how hard you are working. I had two 750ml bottles on sunday and barely drank half of one in 70miles. (May have stopped at a pub for lunch, though, where rehydration of a sort took place.) If you only have one then get yourself another bottle and cage. You'll be able to refill bottles at the feed stations.

With regard to nutrition the normal advice is TESTIT (try everything several times in training). That way you work out what works and what doesn't before you need it to work.

Good luck on the ride. You'll be fine

Edit: On a sportive I'd be looking to drink a bit every ten minutes or so.

+1 on the above. I'd agree Jay is probably drinking more than most too - I got through 750ml in 76 miles on Sunday. I'd be stopping to pee every five minutes if I was drinking a litre every 30 miles

symo

http://www.dartmoorclassic.co.uk/index.html

OK thanks for those on here who have entered. With great delight I can say the Dartmoor Classic is now sold out. I hope those on this thead who wanted to enter managed to get a place.

Like I said I will be doing L2P with a colleague (also a member of MDCC) but we should be bike in Newton Abbot by around 5pm/6pm (Hopefully). So if any of you tired souls fancy a curry with me (I know the best Indian Restaurant in town) as well as a glass of refreshing recovery lager or two please pm me. I can then proceed to tell you that L2P was worse than anything you went through (except perhaps Holne cross but please do not walk up it; it's too early in the ride to justify it).

Oh quick tip. The sports massages at the end are heavily discounted and well worth it.

londonlivvy

I read in a bike radar article some time ago that men can benefit from the carb loading thing (ie more carbs night before, and massive breakfast in the morning and don't need to eat so much on the go) but it doesn't have the same effect on women and we're better off eating frequently.

So I've established a routine on long rides / sportives of eating something every hour (a banana one hour, energy bar the next) and drink a couple of swigs of water / diluted energy drink every twenty minutes. Seems to work for me. That is the key, really - as you'll have seen from the advice above, it varies hugely.

Other than that, my key advice with sportives is not to get carried away chasing people in the first ten miles. 60 miles takes a bit of doing and you don't want to feel like dying half way round. Done that. Not recommended.

stuaff

JonGinge wrote:

Jay's estimate seems excessive. That said, it all depends on how much you sweat, which is a function of how hard you are working. I had two 750ml bottles on sunday and barely drank half of one in 70miles. (May have stopped at a pub for lunch, though, where rehydration of a sort took place.) If you only have one then get yourself another bottle and cage. You'll be able to refill bottles at the feed stations.

With regard to nutrition the normal advice is TESTIT (try everything several times in training). That way you work out what works and what doesn't before you need it to work.

Good luck on the ride. You'll be fine

Edit: On a sportive I'd be looking to drink a bit every ten minutes or so.

How did you get up to 70 miles? I reckon I did 50-55 all day, including the rail replacement cycle service....
I tend to err on the side of having more drink than I'll need- Sunday I went through about 3/4 litre, perhaps a litre tops, I think (had my hydration bladder with 2l in it). On the other hand, when I did the IOW in October, I emptied the bladder (3 litres) plus a bottle of Lucozade Sport on top, over seven hours.

Fireblade96

Well, I thoroughly enjoyed yesterday's sportive, don't even hurt too much today, so might just sign up for another one.

This, in fact:
http://www.evanscycles.com/ride-it/reading-south-chilterns-may-8th-9th-2010#route_info
is pretty much right on my doorstep, it's just a tenner, so it would seem rude not to !

Anyone else ?

cjcp

londonlivvy wrote:

Other than that, my key advice with sportives is not to get carried away chasing people in the first ten miles. 60 miles takes a bit of doing and you don't want to feel like dying half way round. Done that. Not recommended.

Amen to that. You can feel great at 65 miles, pants at 70.

And to what Amnezia said about that awful feeling when you run out of water.

@DDD - it's worth putting an extra sports drink powder sachet in your back pocket. That way you can fill up on water and sports drink if needs be. Also, make sure:

i. you have a good brekfast;
ii. drink plenty before you leave home; and
iii. eat something just before you start e.g. a banana.

tailwindhome

DonDaddyD wrote:

Yeah, I got two (non carbon - but soon to be carbon in the coming months) bottle cages and two 750ml bottles that kinda match the Karen's colour scheme

.

Good to see that you've got the priorities right in your preparation plan

ETA Kinda matching won't do, sort it


Scratch everything else I'd written, just realised your rides on Sunday

Good luck and be sure to keep enough in the tank to write up your report on Monday

Jay dubbleU

Fireblade96 wrote:

Well, I thoroughly enjoyed yesterday's sportive, don't even hurt too much today, so might just sign up for another one.

This, in fact:
http://www.evanscycles.com/ride-it/reading-south-chilterns-may-8th-9th-2010#route_info
is pretty much right on my doorstep, it's just a tenner, so it would seem rude not to !

Anyone else ?

Tempting - very tempting :roll:

TheStone

DonDaddyD wrote:

Yeah, I got two (non carbon - but soon to be carbon in the coming months) bottle cages and two 750ml bottles that kinda match the Karen's colour scheme.

One (electrolyte) energy drink, one pure water.

Sounds fine. I always take 2 bottles, both energy drinks, but this time of year I'm
getting home with nearly all of it left over.

I'm doing the SWRC Onion. Nice ride. Hills early and late, but rolling ride in the middle.
Advance forecast looking a bit warmer than last weekend.

suzyb

Now I have a proper bike I was thinking of entering a sportive

Maybe the Lake District sportive since it is the nearest to Scotland and it has a short fun route.

Fireblade96

Jay dubbleU wrote:

Fireblade96 wrote:

Well, I thoroughly enjoyed yesterday's sportive, don't even hurt too much today, so might just sign up for another one.

This, in fact:
http://www.evanscycles.com/ride-it/reading-south-chilterns-may-8th-9th-2010#route_info
is pretty much right on my doorstep, it's just a tenner, so it would seem rude not to !

Anyone else ?

Tempting - very tempting :roll:

You'll be ready for the 60-miler by then....

DonDaddyD

londonlivvy wrote:

I read in a bike radar article some time ago that men can benefit from the carb loading thing (ie more carbs night before, and massive breakfast in the morning and don't need to eat so much on the go) but it doesn't have the same effect on women and we're better off eating frequently.

So I've established a routine on long rides / sportives of eating something every hour (a banana one hour, energy bar the next) and drink a couple of swigs of water / diluted energy drink every twenty minutes. Seems to work for me. That is the key, really - as you'll have seen from the advice above, it varies hugely.

Other than that, my key advice with sportives is not to get carried away chasing people in the first ten miles. 60 miles takes a bit of doing and you don't want to feel like dying half way round. Done that. Not recommended.

Are doing the Spring Onion this Sunday?

DonDaddyD

TheStone wrote:

DonDaddyD wrote:

Yeah, I got two (non carbon - but soon to be carbon in the coming months) bottle cages and two 750ml bottles that kinda match the Karen's colour scheme.

One (electrolyte) energy drink, one pure water.

Sounds fine. I always take 2 bottles, both energy drinks, but this time of year I'm
getting home with nearly all of it left over.

I'm doing the SWRC Onion. Nice ride. Hills early and late, but rolling ride in the middle.
Advance forecast looking a bit warmer than last weekend.

cool, it's my first ever. I'm thinking I'm a bit in over my head...

cjcp

Am keen on this Wiggle New Forest one.

The Hampshire Hilly Hundred and the King of the Downs look interesting, too.

owenlars

DonDaddyD wrote:

This is the Spring Onion (my sportive on Sunday) route profile

Thoughts please?

Did it last year. Firstly there is a feed station half way round, i.e. about 2 hours or so in, so you don't need to carry too much, I did two bottles of water and a couple of bananas last year + the feed station.

There are four main climbs, from Effingham up to the west end of Ranmore Common which is ok, Leith Hill south from the A25 up to Coldarbour which is a bit of a grind over two or three miles, a big climb after Wisborough Green which hurt last year and the dreaded Coombe Bottom which drags north up from the A25 back to the west end of Ranmore Common again, (nearly all downhill after that). Coombe Bottom is short, sharp and steep but do-able.

I'm going to be there be good to say hi probably wearing olive green jacket and on an Enigma.

rolf_f

DonDaddyD wrote:

cool, it's my first ever. I'm thinking I'm a bit in over my head...

Honestly, you won't be. Just pace yourself and make sure you feed. The worst that can happen is you have to get off and push a bit. First sportive (of two so far!!) I did, I booked the intermediate and then on the day decided what the hell and changed to the long. Would have been far too short a day if I hadn't

Try not to get intimidated by the final climb - I did on my Lakes sportive. Last climb was Wrynose Pass from the West but it turned out to be easier than some of the earlier climbs. Remembering that the last climb is the last and that it is (mostly) downhill all the way after is good for keeping you going.

londonlivvy

DonDaddyD wrote:

londonlivvy wrote:

I read in a bike radar article some time ago that men can benefit from the carb loading thing (ie more carbs night before, and massive breakfast in the morning and don't need to eat so much on the go) but it doesn't have the same effect on women and we're better off eating frequently.

So I've established a routine on long rides / sportives of eating something every hour (a banana one hour, energy bar the next) and drink a couple of swigs of water / diluted energy drink every twenty minutes. Seems to work for me. That is the key, really - as you'll have seen from the advice above, it varies hugely.

Other than that, my key advice with sportives is not to get carried away chasing people in the first ten miles. 60 miles takes a bit of doing and you don't want to feel like dying half way round. Done that. Not recommended.

Are doing the Spring Onion this Sunday?

Yes sir. I am indeed. will be getting train from Streatham Common early doors which I understand is your neck of the woods. See you there?

Bassjunkieuk

DDD - I'm sure you'll do fine at the weekend, as others have said just try not to get caught up in any racing!
Would have offered to come out for a ride with you bit I've been warned by the other half if I go out on Mothers Day much pain will be inflicted upon me :-( Hence my planned weekend ride has been brought forward a day - thinking of heading over the RP for 4/5 laps!

bigmat

cjcp wrote:

Am keen on this Wiggle New Forest one.

The Hampshire Hilly Hundred and the King of the Downs look interesting, too.

I'll probably do the King of the Downs again this year. Nice route although it was a bit over long last year (made worse because there were very few people riding the long route so I rode it mainly on my own). There's a timed hill climb (Yorks Hill?) which is fun, will try and get in shape for that this year as last year there was a prize draw for getting within a minute of the course record, think I was about 1.30 down but nobody else made it either, if I'd focused totally on that I may well have won £1500 worth of bike! :P

Sewinman

DonDaddyD wrote:

TheStone wrote:

DonDaddyD wrote:

Yeah, I got two (non carbon - but soon to be carbon in the coming months) bottle cages and two 750ml bottles that kinda match the Karen's colour scheme.

One (electrolyte) energy drink, one pure water.

Sounds fine. I always take 2 bottles, both energy drinks, but this time of year I'm
getting home with nearly all of it left over.

I'm doing the SWRC Onion. Nice ride. Hills early and late, but rolling ride in the middle.
Advance forecast looking a bit warmer than last weekend.

cool, it's my first ever. I'm thinking I'm a bit in over my head...

Nahh, you will do well I am sure. Just take it fairly easy, particurlarly at the start. I finished the HOTA and you are quicker than me, so you will be able to do this one pretty well as its not quite as brutal. I had to stop on two hills for a breather last time but other than that it was fine. It feels great when you finish and there was even one hill that I actually really enjoyed!?

I am doing it too by the way.