I bought a nice trek hardball mountain bike to start training and have been riding the river valley for the last few days. I was wondering from more experienced riders what will be the difference on the course. I don't want to buy a road bike ill never use it,
Also is anyone actually riding 70 km twice a week at this point like they suggest? Ive been doing a couple hours a night on the trails and i don't have many problems. I just need to work on my cardio a bit. Is this really going to be that hard?
I would like to know what other people are riding and in what kind of shape your in?
This is my 3rd year in the Alberta Ride and this year I've decided to use a mountain bike too (used a cyclocross bike with slicks the last couple years). No, you don't need to go out and get a road bike...lots of folks do the Ride on things other than road bikes (cyclocross bikes, cruisers, mountain bikes, bmx bikes, tandems, recumbents and so on). Yes, it would make things a bit easier overall (they are generally lighter, run thinner tires so they have less rolling resistance but also have a taller gearing that can make hills tougher) but it isn't mandatory. After all, this isn't a race, it's a ride.
If you're going to run a mountain bike, I would strongly recommend getting some slick tires (instead of knobbies) to put on for the Ride. Someplace like MEC generally has them pretty cheap. I'd also recommend stiffening up your fork, if you can. If it is an air fork, pump up the pressure for the Ride, if it is coil, up the pre-load if you can. The bike's ride will be more harsh, but you'll loose less energy to the suspension bobbing.
As for training, you definitely want to keep pushing yourself. I know a lot of people that hadn't done more than a 50km ride before trying to tackle the Ride. It is possible, but it will take a significant toll. The Ride is fairly hilly (with much longer hills than anything you see in Edmonton) and you're looking at two, back-to-back 100km days. It's a tough ride unless you can get some good km's under the tires and some longer hours in the saddle beforehand. If you're doing a couple hours of multi-use trails (MUTs) and singletrack a night, you're on a good path to get where you want to be....but you still want to stretch yourself. Keep pushing the distance, ride regualrly and I'd recommend doing at least a few longer road rides before the Ride itself.
I'm not where I'd like to be but, considering I try to do more outside riding and the weather hasn't been great, I'd say I've got a good start. For myself, I've been on the trainer indoors since January, made the leap back outside for April 1 and have been commuting to work regularly. As the trails and roads have been getting better, I've been riding more and more with some longer rides entering the picture (like the 50 km road and mud/slush fest I did on the 'cross bike last weekend...it was a 50/50 mix and I think the off-road took a heck of a lot more out of me due to the trail conditions). Now that things are getting better, I'll be doing my 80km, 100km and 150 km loops in the coming weeks to get my legs and lungs up to snuff and putting more time in on the mountain bike (I'm still building it up) so I'll be ready for the Ride.
Good luck with your training,
Mike
-- Edited by Psycho Mike on Thursday 28th of April 2011 04:23:16 PM
This is my ride for the Ride this year... It's going to be a bit of work, but I think the overall package will be lighter than what I've done the last two years ;)
I ride a mountain bike too :) My team likes to gather around my bike, take turns lifting it, and all have a little laugh at my expense :) What a great bunch they are :P I find that as long as I train on what I plan to ride on, then I can manage. Not being an avid cyclist, but having really enjoyed training for the ride last year and this year, I am just now starting to wonder if a small upgrade might be a good idea.
Well, I was pleasantly surprised by that beast on Saturday. I did a half-Century (50 mile or 80 km ride) and was able to do it in less than 4 hrs. It rolls pretty well and the hills will be fun (going down, at least).
I chuckle with folks...my bike is 37.5 lbs or 17kg. The fancy road bikes are 17 lbs. I guess I'm doing the ride on 2.2x the bike that they are ;)
Well I upgraded last minute - I was able to scoop up a road bike from a friend at a great deal. I'm a little nervous because I trained on my heavy beast of a mountain bike, and now I'm going to actually ride on a bike I haven't spent much time on, lol. Probably not the smartest thing I have done, but I'm feeling adventurous!
