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Paddy The Pirate · 07-03-2012, 21:55

Hi everyone! I'm sorry if this is a very vague question, but I want to cycle from Dublin to Galway (C. 240k) this summer (alone probably), and I'm unsure whether this would be too much of a challenge to manage.

The furthest I've ever cycled so far is 147km from Rathfarnham-Dundrum-Saggart - Naas - Blessington - Sally Gap - Laragh - Roundwood - Enniskerry - Glencullen - Kilakee Road- Rathfarnham at 25km/h average speed, and honestly, at the end of that I was wrecked.

Would anyone have any tips for training specificaly for something like this?
Am I being too ambitous having cycled only over half the distance before?
Should I wait till next summer?

Here is the propable route I would take (my obvious lack of routing skills mean I've probably not got it right but it's vaguely there.)

http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view...=1&new_route=1

buffalo · 07-03-2012, 22:00

Nah, you'll be fine. Did a couple of years ago, before I took up racing. Hadn't cycled anything near the distance. If you've got 150km under your belt, and a decent bike, you'll be grand.

lennymc · 07-03-2012, 22:00

it should be doable provided you hydrate and eat and train. Im thinking of something similar myself, down to county limerick, circa 270 kms. pace yourself, and allow yourself good time.

JamesL85 · 07-03-2012, 22:06

I did Cork to Galway in one day, which is similar kind of distance. took about 8 hours. The big decider as to how tough you will find it will be the wind. On a normal day when you're riding a big loop, even if it's windy, the wind will be at you back for at least some of it. However, going Dublin to Galway you will be going against the prevailing wind, and 8 hours or more into a strong headwind can be soul destroying. If you can pick your day, wait for an easterley (rare) or at least a southerly wind. A very light westerley would be ok.

In terms of training, I'd say keep doing what you're doing, get some good miles in, endurance will be more important than power for this kind of ride.
On the day, try to ride steady and remember not to wear out your legs too soon!

Physically, the thing that is most likely to get you is running out of fuel. Eat plenty of carbs the night before, have a good (carbohydrate filled) breakfast and eat regularly throughout the day. On such long rides it is a case of balancing between the nausea caused by eating too much and the hunger knock caused by eating too little.

Best of luck with it!

jaqian · 07-03-2012, 22:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamesL85

I did Cork to Galway in one day, which is similar kind of distance. took about 8 hours. The big decider as to how tough you will find it will be the wind. On a normal day when you're riding a big loop, even if it's windy, the wind will be at you back for at least some of it. However, going Dublin to Galway you will be going against the prevailing wind, and 8 hours or more into a strong headwind can be soul destroying. If you can pick your day, wait for an easterley (rare) or at least a southerly wind. A very light westerley would be ok.

This is a cycle I'd love to do (and have been thinking of doing) as well but as JamesL85 said, you would be better with the wind at your back. Would you not consider instead cycling from Galway to Dublin? Get the train down, stay in a hostel or B&B? Best of all at journeys end you are home

monkeyslayer · 07-03-2012, 22:48

+1 on all the above advice. I did it solo last summer in about 8 hours and got the bus back that afternoon. Had a decent amount of training, ie had done the wicklow 200 a couple of weeks beforehand, but i wouldn't consider myself particularly fit nor fast nor healthy. Just get used to sitting on a saddle for a few hours and eat loads. Though I was hurting at times I wasn't nearly as wrecked as i'd thought i'd be but was slowing after athlone. I broke the day down into stages, so lots of small goals to achieve rather than counting off the whole distance. Theres a town or village pretty much every 20km. Its quite flat and quite boring in the midlands, but it undulates a bit more as you progress further west, but once you start seeing sign posts for athenry and galway city and then see the sea its quite a buzz. Was the most bizzare feeling sitting in eyre square eating a bag of chips having left my house in Dublin on my bike that morning. Heres the route I took and a photo i took on the day

http://ridewithgps.com/routes/581475

Doc Daneeka · 07-03-2012, 22:49

Ha, waiting for the day when the first response to one of these threads is... Whoa, hang on a minute!

250k on your own is a pretty big ask. If its wet and windy I certainly wouldn't fancy it.

**Captain Havoc** · 07-03-2012, 23:01

If you go the opposite way, you'll probably have the wind on your back.

**Timbuk2** · 07-03-2012, 23:08

I did Liffey Valley - Galway at the start of February as part of a charity cycle, but it was split across 2 days with an overnight stay in Athlone. I haven't done anything of that distance before and got on grand, felt fine at the end of it! Of course doing it over 2 days makes it easier, but the route itself isn't difficult, it's very flat for the most part!

We went Day 1: Maynooth - Enfield - Kinnegad - Kilbeggan - Moate - Athlone
Day 2: Ballinasloe - Loughrea - Oranmore - Galway

If you can manage 147km at 25km/h average then you are a lot fitter than I was, so with a good bit of training, the whole distance in one day should be doable. The 2 day option is something else to consider, but at roughly 120km a day, it might be a bit too easy!

Signal_ rabbit · 08-03-2012, 06:22

Reading the posts on here have made me realise that I'm not crazy for trying to attempt cycling from Malin Head to Mizen Head in two days this May!

lennymc · 08-03-2012, 09:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by Signal_ rabbit

Reading the posts on here have made me realise that I'm not crazy for trying to attempt cycling from Malin Head to Mizen Head in two days this May!

with todays fuel prices you would be crazy to NOT attempt cycling from Malin to Mizen.

Paddy The Pirate · 08-03-2012, 10:23

Thanks for all the replies! I feel a little less daunted now, I can cycle from family in Galway to Dublin if that would be more manageable but honestly I'd rather go the other way.

Is there anything specific I should be doing training wise?

Rob A. Bank · 08-03-2012, 14:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paddy The Pirate

I feel a little less daunted now, I can cycle from family in Galway to Dublin if that would be more manageable but honestly I'd rather go the other way.

These wind roses from Met Eireann for the country might help you make up your mind. As you can see the wind is from somewhere westerly about 2/3ds of the time. The difference between cycling into the teeth of a westerly (probably increasing in strength as you approach Galway) and having it push you along is very significant.

WIND DIRECTION (percentage frequency of wind direction)
Circled number=%CALM

Rob A. Bank · 08-03-2012, 14:19

Also to help your planning in picking the day (or the direction you cycle)... this surfing site gives a chart of the forecasted wind for the next 7 days.

http://magicseaweed.com/UK-Ireland-M...rts/1/wind/in/

L'Enfer du Nord · 08-03-2012, 16:45

Did it with a Friend a few years back, 240 km door to door.

The wind wasn't bad for us except for a section between Moate and Shannon Bridge.

The wind will be a bit of a lottery, but obviously the prevailing wind is from the west.

My friend suffered a lot more than me, neither of had been cycling seriously before. My preparation involved a mixture of intense midweek cycles of 30-60 kms and progressively longer weekend cycles up to 150 kms the weekend before. My friend did a load of 80 km cycles in the 3 weeks before Dublin-Galway. (I live in Galway, he lives in Dublin, hence we weren't really training together).

I had two big dinners a day in the week leading up to the cycle.

I did a long cycles to Achill last summer with an other novice friend, the 2-3 mid-week intensive plus 1 long one at the weekend method seem to work for him too. I think this a relatively simple, but effective way of building up cycle fitness and endurance.

Also on any given day, determination will usually get you through, so if you have any cycle fitness at all you be able to do it if you're mentally determined, if you can do 140 km you can almost certainly do 240 km.

Also, Enjoy it! If you're lucky with the weather and do it mid-summer it'll be a great experience.

07-03-2012, 21:55	#1
Paddy The Pirate Registered User Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: South Dublin Posts: 278 Adverts \| Friends	Dublin to Galway. Too ambitious? Hi everyone! I'm sorry if this is a very vague question, but I want to cycle from Dublin to Galway (C. 240k) this summer (alone probably), and I'm unsure whether this would be too much of a challenge to manage. The furthest I've ever cycled so far is 147km from Rathfarnham-Dundrum-Saggart - Naas - Blessington - Sally Gap - Laragh - Roundwood - Enniskerry - Glencullen - Kilakee Road- Rathfarnham at 25km/h average speed, and honestly, at the end of that I was wrecked. Would anyone have any tips for training specificaly for something like this? Am I being too ambitous having cycled only over half the distance before? Should I wait till next summer? Here is the propable route I would take (my obvious lack of routing skills mean I've probably not got it right but it's vaguely there.) http://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view...=1&new_route=1

07-03-2012, 22:48	#6
monkeyslayer Registered User Join Date: May 2010 Posts: 332 Adverts \| Friends	+1 on all the above advice. I did it solo last summer in about 8 hours and got the bus back that afternoon. Had a decent amount of training, ie had done the wicklow 200 a couple of weeks beforehand, but i wouldn't consider myself particularly fit nor fast nor healthy. Just get used to sitting on a saddle for a few hours and eat loads. Though I was hurting at times I wasn't nearly as wrecked as i'd thought i'd be but was slowing after athlone. I broke the day down into stages, so lots of small goals to achieve rather than counting off the whole distance. Theres a town or village pretty much every 20km. Its quite flat and quite boring in the midlands, but it undulates a bit more as you progress further west, but once you start seeing sign posts for athenry and galway city and then see the sea its quite a buzz. Was the most bizzare feeling sitting in eyre square eating a bag of chips having left my house in Dublin on my bike that morning. Heres the route I took and a photo i took on the day http://ridewithgps.com/routes/581475 Last edited by monkeyslayer; 07-03-2012 at 22:52.

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07-03-2012, 22:00	#2
buffalo Registered User Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Dublin Posts: 3,387 Adverts \| Friends	Nah, you'll be fine. Did a couple of years ago, before I took up racing. Hadn't cycled anything near the distance. If you've got 150km under your belt, and a decent bike, you'll be grand.

07-03-2012, 22:00	#3
lennymc Registered User Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 2,110 Adverts \| Friends	it should be doable provided you hydrate and eat and train. Im thinking of something similar myself, down to county limerick, circa 270 kms. pace yourself, and allow yourself good time.

07-03-2012, 22:06	#4
JamesL85 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 1,393 Adverts \| Friends	I did Cork to Galway in one day, which is similar kind of distance. took about 8 hours. The big decider as to how tough you will find it will be the wind. On a normal day when you're riding a big loop, even if it's windy, the wind will be at you back for at least some of it. However, going Dublin to Galway you will be going against the prevailing wind, and 8 hours or more into a strong headwind can be soul destroying. If you can pick your day, wait for an easterley (rare) or at least a southerly wind. A very light westerley would be ok. In terms of training, I'd say keep doing what you're doing, get some good miles in, endurance will be more important than power for this kind of ride. On the day, try to ride steady and remember not to wear out your legs too soon! Physically, the thing that is most likely to get you is running out of fuel. Eat plenty of carbs the night before, have a good (carbohydrate filled) breakfast and eat regularly throughout the day. On such long rides it is a case of balancing between the nausea caused by eating too much and the hunger knock caused by eating too little. Best of luck with it!

07-03-2012, 22:49	#7
Doc Daneeka Registered User Join Date: Dec 2009 Posts: 233 Adverts \| Friends	Ha, waiting for the day when the first response to one of these threads is... Whoa, hang on a minute! 250k on your own is a pretty big ask. If its wet and windy I certainly wouldn't fancy it.

07-03-2012, 23:01	#8
Captain Havoc Moderator Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Buckley Park Posts: 7,887 Adverts \| Friends Mod: Archery, Cycling, Kilkenny City & County, South East	If you go the opposite way, you'll probably have the wind on your back.

07-03-2012, 23:08	#9
Timbuk2 Moderator Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 7,183 Adverts \| Friends Mod: Google Earth, Learning to Drive, Leaving Cert, The Graduates	I did Liffey Valley - Galway at the start of February as part of a charity cycle, but it was split across 2 days with an overnight stay in Athlone. I haven't done anything of that distance before and got on grand, felt fine at the end of it! Of course doing it over 2 days makes it easier, but the route itself isn't difficult, it's very flat for the most part! We went Day 1: Maynooth - Enfield - Kinnegad - Kilbeggan - Moate - Athlone Day 2: Ballinasloe - Loughrea - Oranmore - Galway If you can manage 147km at 25km/h average then you are a lot fitter than I was, so with a good bit of training, the whole distance in one day should be doable. The 2 day option is something else to consider, but at roughly 120km a day, it might be a bit too easy!

08-03-2012, 06:22	#10
Signal_ rabbit Registered User Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: Forced to reside in Bantry Posts: 657 Adverts \| Friends	Reading the posts on here have made me realise that I'm not crazy for trying to attempt cycling from Malin Head to Mizen Head in two days this May!

08-03-2012, 10:23	#12
Paddy The Pirate Registered User Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: South Dublin Posts: 278 Adverts \| Friends	Thanks for all the replies! I feel a little less daunted now, I can cycle from family in Galway to Dublin if that would be more manageable but honestly I'd rather go the other way. Is there anything specific I should be doing training wise?

08-03-2012, 14:19	#14
Rob A. Bank Registered User Join Date: Jul 2010 Posts: 603 Adverts \| Friends	Also to help your planning in picking the day (or the direction you cycle)... this surfing site gives a chart of the forecasted wind for the next 7 days. http://magicseaweed.com/UK-Ireland-M...rts/1/wind/in/

08-03-2012, 16:45	#15
L'Enfer du Nord Registered User Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 208 Adverts \| Friends	Did it with a Friend a few years back, 240 km door to door. The wind wasn't bad for us except for a section between Moate and Shannon Bridge. The wind will be a bit of a lottery, but obviously the prevailing wind is from the west. My friend suffered a lot more than me, neither of had been cycling seriously before. My preparation involved a mixture of intense midweek cycles of 30-60 kms and progressively longer weekend cycles up to 150 kms the weekend before. My friend did a load of 80 km cycles in the 3 weeks before Dublin-Galway. (I live in Galway, he lives in Dublin, hence we weren't really training together). I had two big dinners a day in the week leading up to the cycle. I did a long cycles to Achill last summer with an other novice friend, the 2-3 mid-week intensive plus 1 long one at the weekend method seem to work for him too. I think this a relatively simple, but effective way of building up cycle fitness and endurance. Also on any given day, determination will usually get you through, so if you have any cycle fitness at all you be able to do it if you're mentally determined, if you can do 140 km you can almost certainly do 240 km. Also, Enjoy it! If you're lucky with the weather and do it mid-summer it'll be a great experience.