If you are a cyclist, eventually, you have to do a century — one hundred miles by bike in a single day. It is a right of passage, much like runners eventually need to upgrade from a 5K to a 10K to a half marathon and finally a marathon.
When I say ‘eventually‘, I mean you ride increasingly longer distances and work your way up to a century. Some cyclists take years to get to the point where they can bang out 100 miles.
But Not Laura — I Hate Laura
In February — late-February, she is quick to add — Laura decided to buy a bicycle and become a cyclist. She hadn’t ridden in years and was never a serious cyclist.
Her company, G4S Wackenhut, was organizing a team to ride the MS-150. I met Laura on a team training ride. She did nearly 30 miles at better than 16 miles an hour. I didn’t think much of her performance. That’s about average for a semi-regular cyclist working her way up to a charity ride.
She Had Been Riding for Only Three Weeks
It was only after the ride that I learned that she had owned a bike for only three weeks and, at that point, had ridden only 77 miles in the last decade. It was also about that point that I learned to hate Laura: no one should be able to ride that well after only three weeks.
Not only was she able to put in hefty mileage at a good speed after just three weeks, she did well in traffic, displayed no fear, road a pace line comfortably and — this is the worst part — never complained. She is always positive.
Pouring down rain on the Saturday morning we’re going to do 42 miles? No complaints. Hot? No complaints. Cold? No complaints. No sleep the night before? No complaints. It is almost pathological the way she manages to keep a positive attitude.
Police Athletic League Century Ride
April 19 was the Palm Beach Police Athletic League Century Ride. Laura’s longest ride to date had been 40-some odd miles. And, oh, by the way, did I mention she has only been riding for nine weeks?
Laura finished the hundred miles in about six an a half hours of saddle time for an average speed of 15.2 miles an hour.
To put that in perspective, my first four metrics (100 kilometers; about 62 miles) were done slower and my first century was done at 13.5 mph and I had been riding for eight years at that point. For a first timer with only nine weeks experience, she knocked it out of the park.
Nice work, Laura.
Laura at the Finishing Line Flaunting Her Cycling Prowess
Tell Us About Your First Century Bike Ride
Do you remember the first time you rode your bike 100 miles? Post your story below.
—Matt
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9 responses so far ↓
1 Ken Steinhoff
// Apr 20, 2009 at 11:17 am
Yep, you never forget your first century. I did my first century on the West Orange Trail outside of Orlando.
Here’s the account of Matt’s first century across Florida.
Interestingly enough, both of us elected to do our first ones unsupported.
Yes, Laura is a freak of nature. Did you notice any strange wires plugging her into anything? I’d keep a close watch on her when she goes through a metal detector. Something ain’t right here.
2 SLM
// Apr 20, 2009 at 10:18 pm
“A bicycle does get you there and more And there is always the thin edge of danger to keep you alert and comfortably apprehensive. Dogs become dogs again and snap at your raincoat; potholes become personal. And getting there is all the fun.”
-Anonymous -
Ah the very first century, so many hundreds of miles ago…there have been lots of century rides come and go since the very first one.
Ken was there and so was my neighbor Wally. We rode in Columbia, Illinois on a flat country road that is known for wind, upholstery tacks on the road (the locals didn’t like bike riders) and the cool air that wafts across the road near the end from old mines adjacent to the road.
I think we got back to the parking lot with about two miles short and rode around a bit to make up the final miles, unadventurous to say the least. Except for the fact that it was the first 100 miles that I had ever ridden on bike. A 100 miles. Let that sink in for anyone who has not ever done it before. Drive your car 100 miles and you think you have gone somewhere. Now imagine riding on a bike for 100 miles. Seems unfathomable, until you do it.
Once you do ride 100 miles you realize that it really is all psychological, that is the biggest hurdle of riding a century. Some folks I ride with break a century down in 10 mile increments and then it doesn’t seem so overwhelming to them…”just 90 to go….just 80 to go…”
Depending on the terrain, a century ride can be a piece of cake, or it can be something else if you throw in some large hills or mountains. I prefer the later. Riding in the Smokey Mountains in the Chattanooga Three Mountain, Three State Challenge Ride is the best worst century ride I have ever done (three times). The worst ride was in the upper Ohio valley where it was hot and flat and windy and I cursed out loud most of the way, “WOULD IT HURT THEM TO PLANT A FEW F#@*^% TREES OUT HERE!?” Needless to say, I have not been back to do that century ride.
Congrats to Laura for doing her first century (and I’m glad to see her hoist her bike as well) and let’s hope she keeps Matt fuming for a long time to come.
3 matt
// Apr 21, 2009 at 10:00 am
Uh, hello, I was there, too.
What my beloved Uncle fails to remember is that we didn’t set out to ride a century that day.
I had never ridden more than about 40 miles prior to that day. The plan was to ride about 60 miles. I figured I could ride 60 miles since I had ridden 40 miles. Of course, the 40 miles I had ridden was flat and there were rolling hills in Illinois.
What I didn’t expect is to have that 60 miles turn into an all day endurance ride.
85.56 miles
That day, I road 85.56 miles. Then, I stopped. I was near death.
We got to the intersection of ‘Nowhere’ and ‘Middle Of’. I pulled over, put down the kickstand, found a soft spot in the grass and told everyone to pick me up later. I didn’t know that I’d still be alive when they returned but it would be nice if they could at least recover the body.
It was at that corner I sat in the cool grass for nearly three hours while I waited for the van to come by and pick me up.
Every once and a while, a farmer would drive by in his pickup truck and ask if I was dead. More often than not, I told them ‘no’ and they went on their way.
A century is hard. After just nine weeks of owning a bicycle, it should be impossible. Laura sucks.
—Matt
4 SLM
// Apr 21, 2009 at 2:16 pm
Dearest Nephew/AKA Farmer Matt/Second generation Bianchi owner…
Yes, I remember that you were there that day as well. BUT I have removed the image of you being there that day until now when you reminded me of it again. As you remember, THAT was the ride your bike shorts caused a small girl riding in a car next to you to blinded by a lower planetary moon and her mother nearly swerved off the road and killed us all like dominos.
I have survived fairly well forgetting about you being there all these years after that ride with your thinner than air bike shorts.
Now about that small child, no telling what sleepless nights and small physical ticks she has
had to endure all these years…
5 Lisa Martin
// Jun 8, 2009 at 1:30 pm
I just completed my first century yesterday and WOW, what a feeling.
I completed America’s Most Beautiful Bikeride around Lake Tahoe. I’ve been training for about 11 weeks, never having owned a bike before that (at least as an adult…). It took me and my team about 8.5 hours in the saddle – which translated into about 10 hours total. We trained pretty consistently up to the event, having completed an eighty mile ride about 3 weeks before.
Interestingly enough, I thought I wasn’t going to make it up until about mile 87. Physically, I felt fine the whole way – mentally, I started to lose it after about mile 60. I recovered after 20 of the most miserable miles ever – but I had to really talk myself through with the help of my teammates.
I started out being jealous of the Lauras out there – 16 mph is unfathomable to me at the moment.. In fact, I still am… but I also know that as I rode on past walkers and resters while climbing a freaking mountain at 6500 feet, they might have been thinking that about me too… Everyone has their own battles, I think.
Plenty of centuries to come in my future…and it’s true, I’ll never forget this one.
6 Ken Steinhoff
// Jun 8, 2009 at 6:36 pm
Lisa,
Most of my centuries have been 10-hour events, counting stopping to shoot pictures, talking to folks along the road and eating.
It would be nice to have fewer hours in the saddle, but I don’t have any desire to sniff someone’s Lycra in order to do it in five hours.
That’s not to say that’s wrong; it’s just wrong for me.
Like SLM said, riding 100 miles (or 20 miles, for that matter) is psychological.
I have several points where I hit plateaus.
Mile Two, when I look down and think, 98 more to go.
My right knee bothers me from Mile 2 through 10, when it realizes that I’m not going to stop, so it might as well stop hurting.
Ten thru 40 are usually pretty good, but 40 is where I will find out if there are any places that are going to chafe. If so, I pull out a film can filled with Chamois Butt’r.
Somewhere around 80, I hit another little speed bump, but that’s where I start breaking the rest of the ride into pieces: 20 miles to go; that’s from my house to the Palm Beach Inlet; 12 miles left, that’s my normal Lake Worth nighttime loop; two miles, ANYBODY can ride two miles….
If you can ride 45 miles, you can probably do a century. At that point, it’s more head than legs.
Congrats.
7 Skippy
// Jul 30, 2009 at 8:27 pm
First century today–July 30, 2009–6 hrs. 3 mins.
Was hoping for under six, but hit a fierce headwind at mile 80 that slowed me to 14mph or so for 10 miles. I’ve only been riding since March after too many years with no road bike to my name. It’s all about turning the legs. I can’t wait for my next one–the 6 hour barrier is next to fall. Time for hill work and intervals.
Nice to read about budding cyclists and best to all.
8 Ken Steinhoff
// Jul 30, 2009 at 9:59 pm
Congrats, Skippy. You’re faster than I am.
Still, we’re in a small group of folks who have ever done it, not matter how long it took.
9 Dave Wright
// Aug 5, 2009 at 4:13 pm
6.5 hours for a first century is an exceptional time, even a flat one. Congrats to Laura! She obviously had a good fitness base and was fortunate to fit her saddle well.
Every century is different, though, and I welcome FL riders to check out some of the excellent ones at the southern end of the Appalachian chain. Many have ~10,000 feet of climbing. Gorgeous scenery, and friends no longer question your sanity – they know for sure that you’re crazy. So far this year we enjoyed Blood Sweat & Gears and the Hot Doggett 100. Tour de Tuck and 3-State 3-Mountain are great rides too.
Come on up! You don’t have to be a hammerhead to enjoy these rides. Slow pace makes the scenery all the better.
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