How far for a daily ride?

lancenewman1

I understand this question is very much 'horses for courses' however.

I rode on some of the circuit that I will be doing daily. It was 6.5 miles, all in the circuit will be a shade under 11.

And I'm wondering is doing this mon-fri and doing a longer ride on sat/sun going to be sufficient for sportive training (I intend on doing a 60 mile one in June)

macleod113

i think if you do regular cycling you will be ready. are you able to extend your commute home M-F to add a few miles here and there? i know i take the long route home sometimes? i'm sure you'd breeze 60 miles at the weekends before too long. step it up a bit each week but dont flog yourself too much.

danlikesbikes

You should be OK as you will be getting some good miles in the week for fitness and building your endurance on the weekend longer rides.

Only other question to think about is your regular ride area and that of the sportive are they similar i.e. flat, rolling or hilly.

If they are about the same then you will defiantly be OK, if not you might just need to add in say some hill work if not in your regular ride.

lancenewman1

i won't be using the bike to commute, mainly due to being a singer in a band and not being able to get the PA system on the back of the bike!! :P


it does mean that i've got 7 days a week where i do nothing through the day so i can get out on the bike... i intend on upping the distance, and throwing in 20-30 mile rides every couple of days once i'm up to fitness (i've got aches in muscles that i forgot existed today)


i've got the route for the sportive, so once i've got a bit of strength in my legs i'll start doing parts of it weekly, ending up with me doing the whole route a couple of times... i'm not bothered about how i get on really.. as long as i beat my father in law by a good 10 - 15 minutes.

Ber Nard

lancenewman1 wrote:

i've got the route for the sportive, so once i've got a bit of strength in my legs i'll start doing parts of it weekly, ending up with me doing the whole route a couple of times... i'm not bothered about how i get on really.. as long as i beat my father in law by a good 10 - 15 minutes.

Personally I wouldn't do that. It's a good idea to familiarise yourself with the sort of terrain you'll be riding but, if you've done the route twice already, what's the point in forking out the entry fee to do it a third time? I'd save riding the full course until the day and it'll seem like a bit more of an achievement.

Rob

danlikesbikes

Ber Nard wrote:

lancenewman1 wrote:

i've got the route for the sportive, so once i've got a bit of strength in my legs i'll start doing parts of it weekly, ending up with me doing the whole route a couple of times... i'm not bothered about how i get on really.. as long as i beat my father in law by a good 10 - 15 minutes.

Personally I wouldn't do that. It's a good idea to familiarise yourself with the sort of terrain you'll be riding but, if you've done the route twice already, what's the point in forking out the entry fee to do it a third time? I'd save riding the full course until the day and it'll seem like a bit more of an achievement.

Rob

Sensible advice

If you can ride the route & its near you I personally would be saving my pennies (or pounds with the entry costs these days) & spending them elsewhere on another Sportive or some extra clothing etc.