Stopping ?

RandG

Being relatively new to distance riding I'm just wondering what's the story with stopping for a wee break ?

For example on a 40 miler, should I...

A) Stop before I get too tired

Stop only if I get tired

C) MTFU, stopping is for fannies

night_porter

There are no rules but B is your best option.

Remember that your activities prior to the ride for a few days will affect how tired you feel. Some days you will want to stop (maybe even twice) and others you will carry on until the end.

The more used to it you become the less you will want to stop.

Grill

Option C. I find the worst part about long club rides is the cake stop. I'd rather just keep riding. Shouldn't really need to take a wee break on anything less than 5 hours.

Peddle Up!

Practice riding one-handed and you can do it whilst on the bike. Dress to the left to avoid spraying passing cyclists, but watch out for pedestrians.

Mikey23

Same pattern as sportives for me, every hour or so I like to have a little break, stretch legs, have a wee, cake and drink. I cycle more for enjoyment than being competitive

Grill

Peddle Up! wrote:

Practice riding one-handed and you can do it whilst on the bike. Dress to the left to avoid spraying passing cyclists, but watch out for pedestrians.

Teach me oh master!

ShutUpLegs

Cue the whole peleton stopping today after a hour and a half

Peddle Up!

Grill wrote:

Peddle Up! wrote:

Practice riding one-handed and you can do it whilst on the bike. Dress to the left to avoid spraying passing cyclists, but watch out for pedestrians.

Teach me oh master!

Or if it's raining really hard, enjoy a silent "p" as in swimming.

daxplusplus

I think the OP just means a short break in the ride and not a toilet break. I could be wrong but up north a wee can mean small.

daxplusplus

Oh and I'd go for option C every time .. but that's just me.

How I'm feeling (mentally and physically) tends to dictate my pace so that if I can tell I'm getting unusually tired then I may decide to throttle back. Maybe take a breather on the descents or drop down to a lower gear earlier on hills and take my time rather than pushing on. If it's worse than that I may just switch to recovery ride mode and admire the views and the fact that I'm out on my bike and stop worrying about setting a PB on every section

Bozman

Apart from a pee and falling off i've never stopped whether it's 20 miles or 100 miles, i just don't get the point of stopping it defeats the object of my ride. If you were a runner and went for a 20 mile run would you stop halfway for a cake and a coffee? ..... no.
Maybe if you're out with the wife and kids or on a social run with a club you'll stop, but if you start stopping it might turn in to a habit, the stopping at the cafe thing has put me off joining a club, If i stopped i doubt i'd be able to start again.

stueys

I tend to stop to eat when on 70 miles plus. Blocs, gels and drinks I can do on the move. If I'm out on a longer ride though I need a break from the sweet stuff and like an energy bar. I struggle to get one down whilst moving show normally stop for five mins and sneak in a quick pee with it.

I actually think its probably more detrimental to the legs than just spinning gently for a bit as a break though. Takes my legs a couple of minutes to get back into it after stopping.

charlie_potatoes

Bozman wrote:

Apart from a pee and falling off i've never stopped whether it's 20 miles or 100 miles, i just don't get the point of stopping it defeats the object of my ride. If you were a runner and went for a 20 mile run would you stop halfway for a cake and a coffee? ..... no.
Maybe if you're out with the wife and kids or on a social run with a club you'll stop, but if you start stopping it might turn in to a habit, the stopping at the cafe thing has put me off joining a club, If i stopped i doubt i'd be able to start again.

Exactly this.
I really struggle to get going after a stop.

RandG

DaxPlusPlus wrote:

I think the OP just means a short break in the ride and not a toilet break. I could be wrong but up north a wee can mean small.

Yer stop on fella, I meant wee as in small/short

tiredofwhiners

I only stop when I have to, so for food, water or exhaustion.

White Downs Lane top counts as thee latter but I'd rather get home and stop there than alongside a road in the middle of nowhere or eating/drinking at a teashop.

but whatever floats your boat - I did a leg of the JOGLE with my cousin last year and got very bored doing 60 miles in the time I could have done 90, due to their coffee and lunch stops.

baldwin471

Charlie Potatoes wrote:

Bozman wrote:

Apart from a pee and falling off i've never stopped whether it's 20 miles or 100 miles, i just don't get the point of stopping it defeats the object of my ride. If you were a runner and went for a 20 mile run would you stop halfway for a cake and a coffee? ..... no.
Maybe if you're out with the wife and kids or on a social run with a club you'll stop, but if you start stopping it might turn in to a habit, the stopping at the cafe thing has put me off joining a club, If i stopped i doubt i'd be able to start again.

Exactly this.
I really struggle to get going after a stop.

Opposite situation here. Sometimes say 25-30 miles into a 40 mile ride i get very demotivated and need a quick break. I find a 10 minutes stop for a small sandwich and a coffee really boosts me and i end up doing 50 10 or 15 miles more than i planned. I suppose everyone is different though.

wod1

I seem to be in the same boat as a number of people here. I am put off joining club rides on the Cafe stop principle. I am more than happy cycling on my own for a number of reasons otherwise but never ever stop. Trying to find some free time to do my first 100 mile so wondering about making a stop for this distance for comfort.

englander

I do it by feel. If I start to feel tired on a mid distance ride i.e. 30-60 miles I'll have a quick stop and eat something (not too good at eating whilst riding still). On a really long ride (100 miles) I'll take a few pre-emptive breaks so I never get overly tired.

danowat

If you need to pee, stop......infact it's normally one of the only things that I stop for.

d4evr

RandG if you want a 'small' stop then stop. Its about enjoying yourself at the end of the day. The more you ride the less you will have to stop. Do what feels right for you.

NWLondoner

I too hate the coffee stops that most clubs seem to love, which is a shame.

I did try out one club that had a great bunch of guys but the longish cafe stop is a prerequisite of their club which is not just for me.

I prefer just to spin if my legs go pop

drlodge

tiredofwhiners wrote:

I only stop when I have to, so for food, water or exhaustion.

White Downs Lane top counts as thee latter but I'd rather get home and stop there than alongside a road in the middle of nowhere or eating/drinking at a teashop.

Now I know what you mean there, that and Barhatch Lane are killers! Did both on Saturday morning but didn't stop on either (jeez I must be a hard man now...) If on a long gruelling ride I find stopping for any decent length of time makes getting going again really dificult, especially if its cold. My legs just freeze up.

Did 68 miles weekend before, stopped for a couple minutes every hour or so to unwrap & eat a piece of home made flap jack since I'm not comfortable riding no handed. Had enough drink to last me the distance.

On Sunday club runs the stops are typically 30mins and it can be difficult getting going again.

And I should add...best policy I think is to pace yourself so you don't "need" a long stop.

MattC59

I tend to eat on the move, however, on a longer ride (especially if its a nice day) me and my regular riding buddy will sometimes stop for 20mins for a swift pint unfortunately, this tends to sit a little heavy for the next 30mins or so :roll:

theescapedslave

MattC59 wrote:

I tend to eat on the move, however, on a longer ride (especially if its a nice day) me and my regular riding buddy will sometimes stop for 20mins for a swift pint unfortunately, this tends to sit a little heavy for the next 30mins or so :roll:

better option would be to just take the pint on the road with you...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3EanUbDJCE

MartinB2444

I'm ok riding 50-60 miles around the Peak District without a stop and do this if I really want an endurance training ride or am short of time. Otherwise I really enjoy a cafe stop. Someone mentioned that runners don't stop, however, if you went for a drive out into the Peak District you probably would. Not all rides have to be full on grunts. There's something great about just going for a ride out into the country and having a nice chill with a good slice of cake. Hathersage Deli chocolate chilli fudge cake highly recommended

kayakerchris

Try the coffee shop on the corner in Hathersage as well! I usually ride up from Derby, have cake and coffee and then decide on a hard or easy route home.