Lads, I just rode a century (miles). My time wasn’t fantastic, but I don’t give a shit and it’s been a while since I last rode one so it felt good to do again. Here are my tips/lessons learned for first timers thinking about trying one:
>Planning
This is an all-day ride, so shit has to be planned out at least 2 days in advance. Plan what you’re going to eat before you ride, and plan what food you’re going to bring with. No last second mods, and don’t scramble trying to get any last minute shit done before the ride. That was my problem. I made a food run in the morning before and tried to add bottle cages (all which took longer than expected) before I left and ended up leaving late.
Ideally you get out of bed in the morning, put your shit on, hop on, and get going.
>Weather
I also advise monitoring the weather and riding WITH the wind the last 50 miles if your route allows. Plan around the wind.
>Food
Eat whatever the fuck you want the night before, but don’t each too much in the morning before you go out. I ate an Aldi pizza the night before my ride, but the real problem was I ate ANOTHER Aldi pizza the morning of. My body didn’t digest it very well and I resigned myself to drinking Gatorade the entire ride because I couldn’t put any food down during the ride itself.
Ideally, you eat light in the morning, and stop every 45 minutes to an hour and put something LIGHT down with carbs/sugar. Even though you’ll burn 4000kcals during the ride, riding for 8 hours on a full stomach sucks ass.
>Fitness
Don’t be afraid to take it easy if you feel tired. You definitely don’t want to gas yourself out at any point during this ride.
Overall, the centuries are tough, but they’re not impossible. Watching the weather, planning your nutrition, and taking it easy will really help you have an enjoyable century experience on your e-bike.
