Way constitutes a long ride?

Graeme Jones

So had the bike nearly 2 months and gone from 6 miles and being shot to 30 miles without stopping. When telling non cyclists I did 30 miles yesterday they are like bloody hell, but I know realistically this is nothing like running 30 miles. I am aiming to step up another 10-15 miles over the next fortnight while on annual leave. In beginners terms what is a long ride? Or is that a how long is a piece of string question

kayakerchris

A long ride is any ride that leaves you tired at the end.

When I started I could manage about 10, last week I did 200 and I am looking at London edinburgh London next year over 5 days.

But a 60 mile trip to hathersage pushing it up the hills and on the way back is also a hard ride.

Its not about distance (it is really) but rather enjoying yourself.

you sound as if you are steadily increasing and have a plan. Good luck

Chris

charlie_potatoes

I am probably at a similar level having started at 6 mile I now do a 14 mile 3 times a week and am up to 40 at the weekend.
I am aiming at our local 100km (62mile) run in Sept and would like to step that up to the 100 mile sometime next year.

That seems a lot to me but I was chatting to someone earlier who does 250 mile a week which put my efforts in to perspective :-)

finlayson99

I measure it by my recovery i.e. how do I feel the next day.
Normal daily distance = fine the next day and ready for more.
Longer ride= stiff muscles and an easier couple of days.
The longer rides are getting longer and are a good measure of developing fitness.

Enjoy.

alwaystoohot

3 minutes trying to keep up with Wiggo would be a mighty long ride.

ForumNewbie

When thinking about what constitutes a long ride maybe you should think of time rather than distance, i.e. if a beginner is out for say 5 hours I would say that is a long ride even if he/she only does say, 60 miles. A fast club cyclist would probably also do a long ride in 5 hours, but they may cover 90 to 100 miles, or even more in some cases in that time. So I would say if you are out for about 5 hours or more on the bike you are doing a long ride, whatever level you are at.

desweller

It's a long ride if, despite not ever having gone into the red, you still can't keep your head up for the last 10 miles back.

ineedalager

Alwaystoohot wrote:

3 minutes trying to keep up with Wiggo would be a mighty long ride.

3 ninutes of Wiggo trying to keep up with Chris Froome was to much!

That said it's great to have a GB one two in the TDF!

Secteur

I get bored after 2 hours, and so rarely do more than that, although I do 1.5 - 2 hour rides 5 days a week. I consider these long rides, but many wouldnt.

SBezza

It is as long as a piece of string really, no two people would probably agree on what is long. For me 5hrs + is a long ride no matter how many miles I cover in that time. For a beginner I would think 3-4 hours would feel a long time in the saddle.

As for gauging it on tiredness, that is pointless, I can be more wiped out by a 2 hour ride than I can with a 6 hour ride, obviously the shorter the ride the harder it is done for me a 2 hour ride is not a long ride at all.

snoopsmydogg

did 30 miles last night and would class that as long since I slipped off the pedal about half a mile in and hit my nuts on the top tube. Serves me right for not clipping in when I was freewheeling back to get my pump.

Quite a bit of pain for the next hour and a half made it feel much longer than it was.

secretsam

snoopsmydogg wrote:

did 30 miles last night and would class that as long since I slipped off the pedal about half a mile in and hit my nuts on the top tube. Serves me right for not clipping in when I was freewheeling back to get my pump.

Quite a bit of pain for the next hour and a half made it feel much longer than it was.

Assume "it" refers to the ride...

DavidJB

Don't even bother with miles any more just do time. I'd say a 'long ride' is like 80 miles+ but depends on a lot...80miles flat or 50 miles up and down mountains...etc...

Non-cyclists think 15 miles is a lot.

charliew87

For me it's pretty much how my boredom threshold works out on the day. Sometimes after 15 miles I can't be arsed and head home. Sometimes I've felt fresh after 30 and doubled it.

As someone said above, if you're knackered at the end it's probably long enough.

Not everyone has 8 hours in their day to smash out 120 miles.

Bozman

The more you get into cycling the further you ride, plus thats relative to time available and the faster you get the further you'll go in the time you have.
I've got a young family so i used to just fit a ride in when i could and just make it a bit more intense, these were usually 20-30 miles, now that i manage my time better and gain brownie points those rides have increased to 50-70 miles, the wife was out with the kids the other week so i did a ton, all purely down to time available.

If i had all the time in the world then i'd put 70-80 miles as a long ride, but after a while that'd turn in to a short sharp blast and god knows where it'd end.

cougie

A local charity ride round me is about 50 miles. It gets plenty of people - from those on MTBs and BMXes to full on racers.

Most people manage the 50 mile route. I know my wife did and shes no cyclist having only done a few rides of 10 miles or so.

Cycling isnt like running - you can increase your milage pretty easily if you wish to.

But at the end of the day - it only matters to you what you consider a long ride.

Lossie Loon

I guess it's a personal thing, but I tend to think of my own rides as being:

Short - up to 20 miles
Medium - 21 to 40 miles
Long - over 40 miles

If I ever get round to doing something longer than 80 miles I would probably place that in a "Too F**king Long" category...

TouchingCloth

I have had my road bike for almost 3 weeks and did nothing prior to getting it. In fact I spent two years struggling to walk 50 yards due to blocked arteries from smoking so I was unfit. I started with 5 miles and my bum was the worst pain not the legs.
I have done a 30 and was shot at the end, but not during, I'm sure I could have done 40 if the extra 10 were flatish and felt much the same. I have done a couple of 25s and several 10-15s and they all felt as bad. I live in a hollow so its a hill out and a hill to get back in. My legs are telling me every day I have worked them, but its bum ache, wrist ache, and tingling fingers that actually feel the most uncomfortable during the rides. This is getting better much slower than the legs are building.
A 13 mile ride with an experienced friend left me shattered half way around as his pace was far too quick for me. Wind in my face also knocks the stuffing out of me. The 30 miler and the 25s were my longest runs but the most enjoyable too. Comfort is my biggest barrier at the moment, leg burn on climbs is an issue but getting better. As a previous poster said , if I had to do a 50 for charity I'm sure I could with only my meager experience at my own pace.

I hope to be doing 30s and 40s as evening runs before the light runs out, with 50+ weekend runs before the end of the year. How far I can go next year will depend on what pace I can get up to as time is hopefully my limiter.

Mikey23

Wow, that's humbling. Well done you. I train up to about 30 and do a 10 as a time trial once a week. Have done a couple of 50/60 sportives and managed ok. I need to get out on the busier roads now and do some longer local circuits. Am a bit nervous but I will do it

desweller

TouchingCloth wrote:

... wrist ache, and tingling fingers that actually feel the most uncomfortable during the rides.

That sounds to me as if you have too much weight on your hands.

radiation man

just did 106 miles today 7 hrs, but wont be doing it again i just wanted to do over a 100 miles while im 50

racingcondor

In my first year of cycling I struggled to get over 30 miles without being completely knackered but managed to finish it off with a 50 mile charity ride (the goal really helped).

5 years later, I'd say 80+ is a long ride and unless the company is good more than 100 just gets dull unless the company is good. It's all perspective though, 80+ is a long ride for me because find it hard to spare the time for more than 60 miles in one day.

djfleming22

I think everyone is different it depends on time and one other.... attitude .... as you said non bikers think 10 miles or 20 miles is a lot to cyclists that go out more think 50 miles and above is a good ride.

I took up cycling being overweight lazy bugger in January 2012 at 47 training in the house using a Tacx Flow building up the length of time in the saddle decided to venture on the road in March again building up mileage then in June did my first 100 miles in the one day was i my body ready for it maybe not because it was hard going but my attitude was and i think that's what makes the difference... now i do regular 50 to 100 miles and try to do about 200 miles a week .. as i said i has been hard going but i have been wanting to do it and training hard to get there so like anything if you want it you will get there so best of luck

Graeme Jones

33 miles in 2 hrs this morning would have liked to have done 10 more but was short on time.

sub55

what's a long ride ?
it's relative to you ability. but if you keep pushing the boundries, sleep deprivation is the limiting factor.
personally 100+ miles is fair but have ridden 24 hour races and 1000K audax's. so the sky`s the limit, if you want to go there.

Mikey23

30 for me this morning on fairly busy rural roads. Couldn't really be bothered to do any more and I try not to get too hung up on it. Mileage is one of the things that spoiled my enjoyment of road running

Graeme Jones

I think anyone who is doing above 50 miles without stopping isn't a newbie. 80miles+ is pretty good and for the most part is elite for me.
My aim is to get to 80miles as I want to aim for some charity rides. Just need to sign up and get motoring!