Increasing Distance

[Mister Fiendish]

Next month I plan to do my first 300k having done a couple of 200's this year. The idea of doing the first 200k was ok because this is only a little bit more than a standard club run / reliability rides (at least in my mind). However the thought of the 300 is a much bigger deal and seems like a big bridge to cross. How have people managed in the past to deal with the increase in distance the first time they have done it ?? I guess the same applies in going from a 300 to 400 or 400 to 600

[Ian H]

100k's only a short distance, right? You've done 200 and it's no big deal? So, when you've finished your 200, riding just another 100k isn't really going to signify, is it?

[border-rider]

Get comfortable doing 200s before you try a 300.

So most years I would ride club runs early season, maybe a 150 in Feb, 3 or 4 200s in March & April and then a 300 in mid-late April.  Then back to club runs and 200s with an occasional 300, then a 400, then back to the 200s, then a 600 by end May

Once you get to 300, going to 400 or 600 is mostly a matter of being able to sit on the bike for a longer time.

[Chris N]

I didn't try to do it in one go - instead, I went from 200 to 240 to 270 then 300km over a few rides.  That way, it was only an extra hour and a half to two hours per ride, rather than an extra 5 or 6 hours in one go.

[Greenbank]

Do a 200 with Peter T?

[hellymedic]

Just do it!

My first Audax was a 300 anyway.
Make sure you have prepared self, bike and supplies adequately. Learn the difference between a minor discomfort which can be ignored and one which signals Potential Trouble.
Attend to Potential Trouble immediately and try never to get too hot, too cold, too dry, bonked out or too tired.

You can do it! If I could, anyone could!

Good Luck!

[Charlotte]

Eat before you get hungry, drink before you get thirsty, use a Brooks saddle and never try to keep up with old farts.

These old boys are masters of space and time and you'll never beat them to the controls because they use ion drives, hyperspacial vortexes and antimatter flapjack.

[Jethro]

Never think of the distance as a whole.  Ride only with the next control in mind and before you know it, you will have gone further than you thought.

Thats the way I now ride and it certainly works for me.

[Andrij]

+1 to what Charlotte and Jethro wrote.

I did my first 300 this year after doing two 200s plus a few other rides between 100-200.  Do be aware of the weather - the heat on my ride nearly did me in.

[Mister Fiendish]

Thanks for the advice - I'll have to post how I get on.
Any further tips regarding pacing on the ride or should I just ride it at a comfortable 200k pace and suffer at some point in the last 100k ?? I am pretty comfortable riding 200k, the last of which was the Fairies Flattest in Kent (hello tandem riders Thing1 and Thing2  )

[Chris N]

Slow down a little - I'm going to struggle to keep up with you at the start if you insist on riding it at the same pace as for a 200.  We've got all day, remember!

[vorsprung]

My first 300 was the "Moor like a 300" in Devon.  This ended up being rated at 3.5 AAA points

Prior to this I'd done one 200k ride a month before

I rode the first bit with David Johnson- he was on the 400 which followed the same route to start with

It was a loverly day and I finished in 16.5 hours

Oh, I was attacked by a buzzard too

I love 300s.  It's a wonderful distance

So, basically what I'm saying is don't do as I do

[Thing2]

Thanks for the advice - I'll have to post how I get on.
Any further tips regarding pacing on the ride or should I just ride it at a comfortable 200k pace and suffer at some point in the last 100k ?? I am pretty comfortable riding 200k, the last of which was the Fairies Flattest in Kent (hello tandem riders Thing1 and Thing2  )

[waves]

Helllooooo!

[scottlington]

Just do it!

It's all in the head. Don't think of it as such a big step up. If you're physically fit enough to do a 200 you will have no problem with a 300 as long as you have a good mental attitude.  I gaurantee it.

[urban_biker]

I did my first 300k this year and it was the most fun audax I've ever done.

In the months prior to the 300k in April,  I did one audax a month, starting with a few 100ks, two of which I rode to the start to make them more like 150k. Then one 200k, followed by a very hilly 100k (plus a 70k ride to the start)

I was expecting the 300k to be tough but in the end it went really well.

So long as you have ridden 200k or close to 200k a few times then 300k should not be a problem. Just set your mind to expect a tough ride - and then if it isn't that's a bonus  

[Greenbank]

Just do it!

It's all in the head.

+1

I dithered about last year riding only 100s, 200s (some flat, some hilly) and a single (very flat) 300 (although riding to/from some of the 200s pushed some of them up to about 270km).

I wish I'd just gone straight for an SR. Now that I've done it I can honestly say that the old adage of:

If you can do a 200, you can do a 300.
If you can do a 300, you can do a 400.
If you can do a 400, you can do a 600.

is true.

I'd just temper it to:-

If you can do a 200 without too much stress and with a bit of time to spare, you can do a 300.
If you struggle round a 200 and get in just within time then expect an extra 7 hours of the same on a 300, but you can still do it.
If you struggle around a 300 then you'll find a 400 even tougher because of sleep dep issues.

And any ride can turn into a horror if the weather isn't kind, or you're suffering for other reasons (dodgy stomach, sleep debt, etc).

[Mister Fiendish]

Thanks this all seems like good advice - maybe see some of you at Mildenhall ??

[D0m1n1c Burford]

Do a 200 with Peter T?