City to City cycling

RHemmings

Is there anyone here who does long distance inter-city cycling? E.g. maybe visiting cities 40K or more away and returning the same day? If so, how do you find this mode of transport?

Nebulous2

I do a lot of cycling, and sometimes do very long journeys in a day, but I do it for the trip, rather than to visit somewhere.

I see a lot of issues for me in doing what you suggest, including:-

clothes -those I wear on a bike are not those I would wear visiting.
carrying stuff - food, tools, clothes etc
security- where could I leave my bike?
traffic- I prefer riding on quiet country roads to heavy traffic

I tend to do long circular routes and will sometimes stop for food, to take photos or for a rest.

I also sometimes cycle to somewhere that my family are driving to. That means they can carry my clothes and I can change and leave my bike in the vehicle.

RHemmings

I was thinking of cycling to somewhere that the rest of my family would go to by train. Generally when I'm cycling I carry a lock. Heavy, but it allows me to leave my bike. I have a cheap bike and if it gets stolen, it gets stolen. Generally I ride with a small bag, which will contain food, tools, spare inner tubes, etc. Generally I prefer quiet country roads when I go on shorter trips, but it appears that it will not always possible to avoid the larger roads.

brat

The more you carry, the slower you will be. I'd normally cover 40k at an average of 32-33kph on a flattish route, 28 to 30kph if hilly. But that's travelling light. If you use a hybrid with panniers, I'd be looking at 22-25kph average for the same amount of effort.

Also, if a city is 40km away on a main road, you may have to add another 10km if you want to use roads that are more enjoyable to cycle.

But your question is still very general. Are there any specific issues you would like advice on?

RHemmings

There are an awful lot of questions I'd like to now the answer of, which is why I've been less specific. There is also the problem that I may not know which questions to ask yet, because I don't know what I don't know.

But, here are some specific questions. There are too many to expect anyone to answer, but if I get some useful information, this thread will have been worth it.

The average speeds are useful to know, as it will help me consider possible destinations. I don't yet go at your speed, but am rapidly getting fitter and faster.

I'd be curious about individual journeys that people have made, how long it took them, and what eventualities they encountered on the way. E.g. using slime filled tubes is tempting, but I've read that someone had problems with patched tubes with slime as the patches came off. If people have travelled long distances with certain types of tyres (e.g. kevlar reinforced) with or without experiencing punctures, that would be interesting.

It would be useful to know at what distance potential injury would be a concern. I used to get some discomfort in my knees on long (for me) journeys of 20K or more. Since I've improved my seating position, this hasn't been an issue. But, if I go longer, are there issues such as blistering that I wouldn't have come across in shorter trips.

I'd like to know what people think about the required quality of bikes for long distance. I have one cheap bike and one bike that was higher quality in 1980 when it was new, but it's old now. Has anyone travelled long distance on bikes such as these?

Do cyclists plan their route to be near technical help (e.g. to buy a replacement tyre or inner tube) should this be necessary. Has anyone had a major technical failure, such as a chain breaking, and how was this addressed? What sort of repairs have been successfully completed on the roadside, over and above replacing tubes or fixing punctures (which is all I've done myself on the road)? I wondered about checking for bike shops en route before leaving so that

What is the role of a cycle computer on longer trips? Interesting to know figures, or do people find them important in order to keep track of distance and speed to prod them into keeping going at a good rate?

What about google maps navigation? Useful, or does it send you onto the big roads not good for cycling. Is there a way/app to map out a route ahead of time so that a phone app can help with navigation?

What and how often do people eat on the longer trips? How long a trip before cyclists really should have proper meals on the road instead of before and after a one way journey.

If someone gets stuck way out in the country, how did they resolve this? Trying to hitch a lift back to civilisation?

What about the social aspect? I've read of 'wheel suckers' which are a negative aspect, but suspect that I wouldn't be quick enough to attract attention. In triathlons I'm doing about 24km/hr on a hilly course, but don't know how fast I'd be over double or more the 18k or so distance I've done on them. And cyclists greet each other as they go past. But, what about other interactions. Is there a good community whereby strangers may meet up for rides, as there is for open water swimming?

And, the positives, which journeys did people particularly enjoy, and what made them enjoyable?

dotdash79

At the moment I ride home from work a couple of times a week (34 miles), I have a backpack with my clothes in and have a shower when I get home.

I would ride into work but the "shower" isn't the greatest, however they are building a block of 4 showers with changing rooms soon so I will start riding in.

I don't feed on my journey home but I only clime 500 meters, I have two bottles with high five zero in to replace the lost salts. I normally have a phone, some change, a bank note and also a cash card or credit card so if I get stuck I have a way out, this is on every ride I do with the normal spares (1 x inner tube, tyre leavers, patch kit, CO2 inflator, 3 x CO2 cartridges and a multi tool) . If I'm doing over 40 miles then I will have a gel or two and one or two jelly sweets every couple of miles as I ride.

If I'm doing over 50 miles then I would have a meal part way through. A lot of it is trial or error and what works for you. The biggest risk on an 80k round trip is bonking so even if you stop for a few hours rehydrate and have some food.

Have a look at mapmyride where you can create a route or http://www.cyclestreets.net/journey/ where they will give you route options (fastest, balanced, quietest).

Nebulous2

If you are trying to get experience I'd build distance before worrying about speed. Cyclists can cover distances that people who don't cycle are amazed by, but it really isn't as difficult as they imagine if you build it up gradually.

I don't use kevlar tyres or slime, but I carry two tubes and some tyre levers. As a last resort I can generally phone home to get collected. A circular route helps with that. Some people carry a chain splitter but I don't. I've only once snapped a chain, but I change them regularly at 1300 to 1500 miles. Good maintenance reduces the risk of breakdowns.

Carrying food is sensible when you are getting to know your limits. Within 6 weeks of getting my bike I was doing a 30 mile circular route. I carried a bottle of water, a bottle of high 5 drink and I stopped halfway for a banana. A year later I was doing 50 miles on just a bottle of water.

Eat well before you go, I usually have porridge and some dried fruit. If you are on a long ride eat regularly and often. Good foods include fig rolls, jelly babies and bananas. I try to pick things I can eat on the move.

For a cycle computer I have a garmin 500 with GPS. It was fairly expensive but I see it as one of my best buys ever. I log all my miles and compare performance over the same route. A phone doesn't work for long rides as the battery doesn't last long enough.

RHemmings

On some blogs about people cycling from Lands End to John O'Groats, I see that people are cycling 100-140km per day. That seems an awful lot to me, but I've noted that over time I'm getting more used to longer distances. A month ago I cycled 60km in one day, in three bursts, and that didn't seem so bad. Particularly if it's a day trip, I'm sure I can go much further than that easily.

Nebulous2

100- 140 km is reasonably straightforward. Keeping it up day after day would be much more of a challenge.

I set myself targets and I switch between miles and km. So from 60 km you could aim for 50 miles. Then 100 km. The next big one is 100 miles. 100 miles took me a long time, possibly because I switched to trying to get faster before I reached that point.

I once went away on a two day trip, staying in a youth hostel overnight. I did 195 miles in two days, but didn't break 100 miles on either of the days. I took a back pack as I was on a road bike and carried too much stuff, so the biggest issue I had was my shoulders with carrying the bag.

Mid afternoon on the second day I was going up a very slight slope and found myself in my lowest gear with my legs remarkably unwilling to turn. I spent a few miles in a very strange disconnected state but stopped for a coffee and some cake and that revived me quite a bit. The final stage was hard work, but nothing like that earlier bit.

Different people want different things from cycling. Touring cyclists will often have bigger heavier bikes and go well equipped with panniers front and back. They may carry their own tents and all their gear for a holiday. 12-14 miles an hour overall is good going for them and a lot of them seem to regard 50 to 70 miles as a good daily average.

RHemmings

I did think about cycling from Leicester to somewhere watery, such as one of the Norfolk beaches or The Wash. If I did that, I'd probably take a whole rest day at my destination, and return on the third day. I don't think I'd want full panniers, I'd want to travel lighter. Buying an Argos value tent near my destination and donating it to a charity shop before leaving would be cheaper than staying even in a hostel. But, I'd want many more miles and experience of trips nearer to that distance before trying that.

This would be a distance of a bit more than 100 miles. I note with interest your experience of your legs becoming unwilling to turn near the end. That could be a disaster if I tried to do too much in one day and ended up in the middle of the countryside at nightfall. But, I note that your legs revived after cake

Good idea about the numerical targets, and using both km and miles.

dotdash79

The dreaded "bonk"

http://sportsmedicine.about.com/od/Exercise-Metabolism-Energy/a/Bonking-Hitting-The-Wall.htm

In England you are only a few miles away from a shop so keep some change on you and you should be fine.