Only been riding DezB’s bike for a month (and very fast it is) I have done a 60 mile ride and felt OK and the Sportive is 100K so I dont think the distance is too much its the speed that concerns me. I am happy to sit at 17mph but I imagine most roadies will be cruising a little higher.

So any top tips?

Go at your own speed and take every opportunity to wheel-suck where you can!

As above!
Riding in a pack can add a few MPH, and 17mph is pretty good regardless.

You’ll overtake, you’ll be overtaken….it’s not a race (can ‘o’ worms there!)

Have fun mate!

Must ride together soon!

DrP

As above.

It’s only 60 miles. Just ride at a speed that suits and enjoy yourself – no point in grovelling, but no point in dawdling too much either.

You’ll be fine. There will be some people faster than you, there will be a surprisingly large number of people slower than you. Just remember to eat and drink regularly (but don’t waste too much time at the feed stations or you’ll get cold), and don’t get tempted to whizz off too fast at the start. Suck a few wheels by all means, but if you find yourself in a small group it’d be polite to do your turn too. Above all, have fun!

Eat lots during the ride. Have different food, not just 35 snickers, as they kind of get boring. sausage rolls etc are good, dont just have sweet stuff. Keep water topped up, running out is bad mmkay.
enjoy it.

Oh, and if its not over 100 miles its not a sportive…

the wiggle one?
If so you’ll be coming right past my house, wave if you see a man up a ladder with a hedge trimmer by the green village hall. That’s if it’s dry
Enjoy it, I love that bit of my commute.

Don’t get caught up in a fast start. Pace yourself is the way to finish well. Drink energy drink. Plan the ride by looking at the profile of the route, know where the big hills are. Make sure your bike computer is accurate.

If it’s anything like the first road sportive I did this year, enjoy overtaking people on the downhills. I’m not the greatest descender by any means, but I felt the Peaty of the Spanish road bike scene, hammering down the side of the mountains…

I don’t think the 100k route goes up Blissford Hill like the 100 miles one does (I’m on the long one) and the rest of the New Forest is pan flat, so 17 mph should be a reasonable target.

Then again, Gold Standard is 16mph av, so why try harder? 😉

(and the forecast looks ok for Sunday after some biblical warnings a couple of days ago)

Take a waterproof! 😉

Glad I looked at this post! The event basically uses my 3 regular runs, and I was going to be out on Sunday as there’s no Newforce ride this weekend.

I’ll go the other way round so as not to look like a free loader then!

Oh and Rich – enjoy the climbs from Bramshaw upto Stoneycross and Brock over towards Beaulieu. They can drag a bit on tired legs! The Epic route sees a few more hills up around the Grimsteads and Woodgreen. Otherwise those are some of the better roads to ride around the Forest

If its one of the Wiggle ones (and I imagine its the same with most others), then the start is staggered over at least an hour or so, so there’s no peloton, just lots of small groups. Do it at your own pace, don’t be tempted to try and race people much faster than you, but if you do find a group that suits you then stick with it for a while, making sure you do you fair share on the front. Take a little food and energy drink for the start, but there are pretty good feed stations quite regularly. You probably paid about £25 so might as well get your money’s worth!

turtleheading – Member

Eat lots during the ride. Have different food, not just 35 snickers, as they kind of get boring. sausage rolls etc are good,

I’m not suprised at your log-in name with that advice! Dunno which is worse for riding on, numerous snickers or a sausage rolls, but I’d happily settle for a slower time and eat all that at feed stations )

Why do you need to eat on a 3 hour ride? At most a energy bar half way but advice above is a whole packed lunch – wtf? How do you make it from breakfast to lunch every day?

2 bottles of squash (energy drink if you must) on the bike should be plenty for this.

Any top tips

It’s a bike ride ,have fun.
Watch out for triathletes ( only joking :wink:)
It’s not a race ( or is it ?)

[start sarcasm mode]
Any tips?

(Attempt to) Smash every hill you can
Ignore all the road rules of the land
Curse out car drivers whilst doing the above
Suck every wheel you can
Comply with all those Velominati rules
Give a faceless company your money to ride on the Queen’s highways
Don’t put anything back in to the sport, like supporting a local bike club, volunteering etc
Ponder how Audax and reliability riders have managed to cope cycling without Sat Nav, sag wagons and full colour turn based navigation maps for the past oh forty years
[/end sarcasm mode] 😉

Don’t put anything back in to the sport, like supporting a local bike club, volunteering etc

Would it mean dealing with miserable old men?

jam bo
Would it mean dealing with miserable old men?

I’m only 44! 😛

All joking apart, Sportives are quite divisive in many cycling circles. Whilst they’re great for getting folk out on bikes, a lot of people don’t like them for the fact that companies just run them as a cash cow, and many entrants want everything handed to them on a plate.

I personally don’t do them as I’d rather give my money to a notable cause and/or local (cycling) organisations.

YMMV

Yup it’s the wiggle new forest one am quite excited cheers guy’s.

Find a similarly paced bunch, one you think you can stick with.

Stick with them, dig in if you have to…a few seconds hard effort is well worth the shelter you’ll need when you’re tired.

And take a turn up front when you’re feeling strong 🙂

You’ll love it if you can find a good group to work with…

If you manage 17 mph you’ll be in the top 25% probably. As for advice, basically just keep eating. Around 50g of carbs per hour. Oh, and enjoy it (probably the most important bit of advice).

Why do you need to eat on a 3 hour ride? At most a energy bar half way

not everyone is pie eater with fat reserves, i would have to eat 3x energy bars to ride on the road for 3 hours.
i’m off out tomorrow on a 4hr 70-80 hilly one, i’ll be taking 4 energy bars and a gel in case i need it at the end. will not be stopping at all though and doing a steady 19-20 on the flat with a small group (who are mostly 4-2cat).

no food means bonkville somewhere around 40-45 miles

no food means bonkville somewhere around 40-45 miles

after 2 hours your bonking. Thats pretty dire TBH

not everyone is pie eater with fat reserves,

Im 6″2 and 75kg, pretty minimal bodyfat. I did a 100 mile road ride solo lsat week with just water and 3 homemade lentil bars. If you are bonking about 40 miles into a group ride maybe lay off the refined carbs.

Give a faceless company your money to ride on the Queen’s highways

Ghetto-sportives.. it’s the future. Ride local sportives for free by follwing the signs, ignoring food stops and having some sport with the wheel-suckers and think-it’s-a-racers : )

after 2 hours your bonking. Thats pretty dire TBH

Not really, it’s all dependant on pace. I can ride 2 hours or so at a brisk pace happily on an empty stomach (pre-breakfast) and w/o food. Or, I can ride hard for under 3 hours having eaten before and still be totally empty at the end if I don’t eat during the ride (ie before 1 1/2-2 hrs in). I’m no cat 1, but certainly not slow or unused to long rides (not meant as ‘hey I’m so fast, me’, just a reference to fitness to put the difference between pace/food needs on 2-3hr rides in context)

I’ve heard you can only store so much energy as glycogen in your muscles and most fit riders can use it up in about 2-3 hours of hard riding, where ‘hard’ is relative to your fitness not an absolute. After that you’re on fat reserves and that won’t keep you going fast for long.

Im 6″2 and 75kg, pretty minimal bodyfat. I did a 100 mile road ride solo lsat week with just water and 3 homemade lentil bars. If you are bonking about 40 miles into a group ride maybe lay off the refined carbs.

Bit of a fatty then 🙄 that extra half inch on me weights 10kilo.
I’m a paid up member of the wholemeal/oats/ little refined sugar/no processed foods/no fizzy drinks brigade. And I’m not diabetic either, just have to start eating after the first half hour if I’m doing a long ride, can get away within if nipping out for an hour but not for long rides.
Everyone is different, and get their fuel differently and metabolise at different rates and there are many variables like temperature. I could probably do 100 miles on 3 bars but solo not riding with racers.