{"id":203035,"date":"2025-10-01T16:08:10","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T16:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/?p=203035"},"modified":"2025-10-01T16:08:10","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T16:08:10","slug":"attempting-my-first-100-mile-ride-when-i-ignored-my-own-advice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.welovecycling.com\/wide\/2025\/10\/01\/attempting-my-first-100-mile-ride-when-i-ignored-my-own-advice\/","title":{"rendered":"Attempting My First 100-Mile Ride \u2013 When I Ignored My Own Advice"},"content":{"rendered":"

This was never going to be a solo challenge. From the start of the year, the plan was for me and my girlfriend to take on our first 100-mile ride together. We\u2019d been talking about it for months, preparing in our own way, and looking forward to the moment we could share the adventure. I described the preparation in previous articles. Today, I will talk about what happened on the big day.<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Last minute change of plans<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Originally, I had planned the perfect route, marked a September weekend in the calendar, and left everything ready. But then life happened. Apart from the century ride, we were also planning to challenge ourselves with the longest road climb in Czechia, up to Zlat\u00e9 n\u00e1vr\u0161\u00ed in the Krkono\u0161e mountains. As September moved along, I realised I could only realistically do one of these before the weather turned too harsh in the mountains, or my deadline for writing about the century ride came and went.<\/p>\n

So, I made the not-so-smart decision: combine them. Why not attempt the longest climb and the longest ride of my life on the same day? What could possibly go wrong?<\/p>\n

The new route<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The climb is no joke. Nearly 20 km with 1 100 m of ascent, including a brutal 7 km stretch at an 8 % average gradient. For a rider like me, that\u2019s already a proper challenge. And then the idea was to ride all the way back to Prague afterwards, for a total of about 165 km and 2 000 m of climbing. Not exactly the kind of century you\u2019d pick for your first one. Especially considering the previous longest ride I did with my girlfriend was just 90 km with under 1 000 m of ascent.<\/p>\n

But we committed. There was no going back now.<\/p>\n

A shaky start<\/strong><\/h2>\n

We arrived at a hotel in Krkono\u0161e the evening before, so we could head out early and finish before sunset. Unfortunately, things didn\u2019t start smoothly. Pre-ride nerves, a loud street outside, and a late dinner meant we both slept poorly. In the morning, we moved slowly, and by the time we finally rolled out, it was already 8:20, an hour behind schedule.<\/p>\n

The big climb started just 10 km into the ride, and to my surprise, it went pretty well. Knowing we still had 100 miles ahead probably helped us hold back and keep a steady pace instead of blowing up early. Reaching the top was euphoric. We took a short snack break, asked a kind hiker for a photo, and then turned toward home.<\/p>\n

The mid-ride crisis<\/strong><\/h2>\n

That\u2019s when reality hit us.<\/p>\n

At our first refill stop, we realised we\u2019d been riding for 3,5 hours and only covered 55 km. We were under slept, the midday sun was beating down, and our legs were still heavy from the climb. The thought of doing 110 km more, farther than we\u2019d ever ridden, was crushing.<\/p>\n

We started having serious doubts but kept going. Every small hillock felt like a mountain. Sweat was pouring, energy fading. At around 80 km, quitting wasn\u2019t just in the back of our minds. We genuinely considered calling it and taking the train back home. At a caf\u00e9 stop we topped up bottles, grabbed strawberry ice cream, and agreed to keep pushing for now and see how we feel later.<\/p>\n

Crossing the 100 km line<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Crossing the 100 km mark gave us a mental lift. It was officially our longest ride yet. We also finally managed to settle into a proper fuelling rhythm, something we couldn\u2019t quite get right during the big climb. Our energy picked up and we were determined to finish the ride.<\/p>\n

Carb mix to the rescue<\/strong><\/h2>\n

But the hours were taking their toll. My girlfriend struggled with an unrelenting headache. For me it was knee pain and stiff neck and traps. And we both had digestive discomfort, unable to take in solid food without nausea. That was the point where carb mix saved the day. Being able to drink our energy allowed us to keep going.<\/p>\n

With about 30 km to go, we realised there was still a chance to finish before sunset. That gave us a new focus, and we pressed on. The last 10 km were brutal for me, every ache and pain screaming, while my girlfriend seemed to be hitting her stride, like she could have carried on even longer.<\/p>\n

The finish<\/strong><\/h2>\n

We rolled in just as the sun was setting. 8,5 hours of pedalling, 11 hours total with breaks. Tired, sore, but happy.<\/p>\n

I should also note that my girlfriend was just 3 months post abdominal surgery on the day of the ride. She missed 2 big months of cycling and was just getting back into it. I\u2019m seriously impressed and proud of her.<\/p>\n

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Zobrazit p\u0159\u00edsp\u011bvek na Instagramu<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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P\u0159\u00edsp\u011bvek sd\u00edlen\u00fd Jiri Kaloc (@jiri.kaloc)<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n