I'm mulling over doing this late summer. My fitness is reasonably good, thanks mainly to Zwifting this winter and have already done the middle Tour of Flanders sportive (87 miles). I'm doing similar length weekend solo rides at the minute and have a couple of metric centuries planned which I'm not at all worried about doing. My question is, how much harder than a century would 170 miles be? I'm familiar with the terrain and have ridden most of the route at various times - apart from that east of York which is fairly benign. It's more like time in the saddle/comfort and tactics for breaking it up over a long day. Is it best for example, to have a good couple of say, hour long breaks to freshen the legs or to keep moving at a slower pace? My lower back normally starts to complain at about 70-80 miles but nothing a brief rest doesn't sort.
Has anyone here done this route or similar length in a day and have any advice on pacing, timing etc?
The climb out of Settle is a monster and the climb out of Burnsall not much less; they must be equivalent to 50 miles on the flat in terms of the energy you'll expend. Why do you want to do it in one day? It's a delightful ride especially the relatively unknown bits east of York and through the wolds. By then you will be knackered, in pain and worrying about daylight rather than enjoying the unusual terrain and pleasant riding. I would say do it in two or three days as a minimum.
To get a feel for the effort required for this route, park at Lancaster, take the train to Barrow then ride the Sustrans route back through the south Lakes peninsulas. You'll cover about 75 miles and will be properly goosed by the end.
Terrahawk and Twinklydave did it... in 11 hours.
https://jasonmilesracing.com/2011/06/03/a-seaside-daft-ride/
http://www.twinklydave.com/?p=864
Me and a couple of mates rode in preparation for Wales in a Day a couple of years ago.
We stayed in Morecambe the night before and then got an early start, breakfast in Burnsall and then we pushed on until the end with a brief stop
Once you've got to Ripon the majority of the climbing is done and with a couple of you working you can maintain a decent average speed.
The main trick is eating and drinking enough, and making sure you don't push too hard on the pedals. Heart rate monitor is very good for this!
The end is a little fiddly, so we ended up taking a slightly more direct approach for the final couple of miles.
As I remember we got on the 8PM train, so somewhere under 12 hours end to end.
My brother did it the two saturdays ago (west-east), with me riding from Pateley Bridge. He did it 13hrs22m, raising over £600 for cancer research. The route was good in places (from Pateley through Fountains Abbey) and horrible in places - the last 20 miles from Driffield to Bridlington just go on for ever on horrible windy farm roads. The route markers are good apart from a few noticeable sections such as through York or Boroughbridge. There is a short section through Dunnington east of York which is on a dirt track and can be avoided by heading along the A166 and rejoining in Stamford Bridge. I rode the climbs around Settle and Burnsall at the weekend and can confirm they are killers but the worst on the route. Be very careful coming down Greenhow Hill into Pateley too, you can very easily end up on the wrong side of the road if going too quickly.
We did it on proper road bikes with 25mm tyres no problem, though we were helped by lovely dry weather. It could get quite claggy if wet on some of the roads. I wouldn't worry too much about having a prevailing westerly wind, the route winds around so much that you will frequently be riding into a tail wind.
As usual, with any long ride, use a comfy bike and clothes. Eat and drink plenty both before and after. You will go for long periods of time without access to shops or food so I suggest you carry plenty of food and water.
Our problem was the section from Ripon to Pocklington, flat and uninspiring, hard to keep your head in the game. East of Pocklington to Driffield is nice though.
Why do you want to do it in one day?
Exactly. Its a gorgeous ride and you'll miss the scenery if you do it flat out. I did it over two days and wish I'd spent three.
In terms of effort the first 60-70 miles from Morecambe are the hardest (about 6000 ft of climbing IIRC), then its pretty much flat until about 20 miles before the end.
Much as I'm not bothered by long rides I'd suggest that if you are getting back pain after 70/80 miles then doing it in a day might not be the best idea.
If you insist on giving it a go then keep hydrated and eat regularly.
Edit: The descent into Pateley Bridge has seen a couple of deaths of cyclists doing the route in recent years. Definitely take care on this bit.
I have found frequent short breaks good (5m every hour or 2), but not done over 130 miles, or as hilly.
I would play it by ear on the day, and make sure you have low gears.
I did 140 miles (8500ft of climbing) recently (having not ridden more than 30 in about 2 years). Previously i'd had no issues with century rides with no training, did the Manchester 100 (flat) in top gear just because i'd made it the first 30 miles without changing gear.
I can honestly say that the last 20 miles were the hardest i'd ever done on a bike. I hadn't really factored in how much recovery time you get in a group, even though i'm normally on or near the front or how bloody awful I am at pacing myself. I got a load of Strava PRs in the first 30 miles of the ride then told myself i'd be alright once I'd got to the top of the cat and fiddle. Piss poor route planning meant that I avoided some main roads in the peak but went down into a load of valleys and added about 1000ft of climbing!
Moving time for that was about 9 hours, I've no idea how long another 40 miles would have taken me but i'd probably have managed it, even if it took me another 9 hours!
Oh, and suncream!
I rode it last year in 2 days. We went to Bridlington and then finished in Hull as we had made good time.
We are doing it again this may but we are going to change it. There were a few pointless bridleways that we took that we're more suited to cx than road. The muck spreading didn't help either.
I appreciated taking back roads and overall I enjoyed it but some of the route I found was a bit bizarre.
The 2nd day was pretty much flat and we were lucky not to have a head wind for the full day. When we did it was hard work and if you had one all day it would be harder than a days climbing.
Thanks all. Some good advice.
Why do you want to do it in one day?
Because I want a challenge. As I've said, I've done a lot of this route or variants of it in the past including a BHF charity ride from Lancaster to York a few years back including Greenhow Bank over to Pateley Bridge. I've also ridden in the Wolds before and know how long and draggy the climbs can be. I know I could do it comfortably in 2 days. Doing it in one, on my own will be challenging alright.
I'm inclined to agree 2 would be more chilled, especially as I have to factor in a ride to Scarborough to get the train back (Lancaster).
Thanks for the links Harry, I'll definitely do it. One day is a lot less hastle in terms of no need for accommodation (carrying extra kit) and time away from the family. Two days are more manageable though. I'll give it some more thought...
I can honestly say that the last 20 miles were the hardest i'd ever done on a bike
This is helpful. I once did 130 miles on an MTB with slicks and rigid fork (swapped the night before) and I can remember the last 30 miles being a killer and I was with a good group then. It's mental strength as much as anything. Endurance cycling is tough old sport. Chapeau to all those who do it.