Cycling solo

jane82

I went out today for 2and a half hours solo. Way more than the usual for me. What I found the toughest part was the lonliness/boredom. I used to run alot and used headphones but I dont feel safe with them on cycling.
What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

Idleater

Scenery, bird song, wind in the ears, etc.

Lusk_Doyle

jane82 wrote: »

I went out today for 2and a half hours solo. Way more than the usual for me. What I found the toughest part was the lonliness/boredom. I used to run alot and used headphones but I dont feel safe with them on cycling.
What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

I am that lad that you heard of from Raam last week! Take in the scenery. Focus on increasing the average speed. Do intervals. Enjoy the solitude. Life is busy enough!

wirelessdude01

jane82 wrote: »

I went out today for 2and a half hours solo. Way more than the usual for me. What I found the toughest part was the lonliness/boredom. I used to run alot and used headphones but I dont feel safe with them on cycling.
What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

I cycle with one headphone in the left ear.

Diggabot

I love to hear my breathing and my pedal strokes. Such a great way to clear the head

Lyaiera

I've only ever been out for an hour and a half, but I don't remember thinking about anything during my rid3es. I mean I have thoughts about my heart rate, cadence, my speed, how I'm going to suffer on the hill coming up, "Oh god I'm suffering on this hill!" and "Wheee!" As I freewheel down the other side of that hill, but I don't actually think about anything normal or everyday. That's a good thing to me though.

jane82

Maybe Im just really needy. My head was that mashed from tiredness a fella overtaking me shouted "to your right" near sutton cross. I turned to the right and nearly hit him.
It really is mentally challenging.
I was gonna ask him to cycle with me I was so alone but he was on a fancy bike doing twice my speed.

If hes reading this sorry dude brain was mush.

Lusk_Doyle

jane82 wrote: »

Maybe Im just really needy. My head was that mashed from tiredness a fella overtaking me shouted "to your right" near sutton cross. I turned to the right and nearly hit him.
It really is mentally challenging.
I was gonna ask him to cycle with me I was so alone but he was on a fancy bike doing twice my speed.

If hes reading this sorry dude brain was mush.

Give it time. It'll become more natural and less challenging.

t'bear

Lyaiera wrote: »

I've only ever been out for an hour and a half, but I don't remember thinking about anything during my rid3es. I mean I have thoughts about my heart rate, cadence, my speed, how I'm going to suffer on the hill coming up, "Oh god I'm suffering on this hill!" and "Wheee!" As I freewheel down the other side of that hill, but I don't actually think about anything normal or everyday. That's a good thing to me though.

+1. Even if I try to think a problem through the suffering smothers it. Spent 8hours recently listening to wind and traffic

blobbie

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

I cycle with one headphone in the left ear.

+1 on the single headphone @ low volume

And get on to some hills - no time for boredom but plenty for suffering

smacl

I do most of my cycling solo and actually really like the break from conversation, phones and endless chatter of background noise that accompanies so much of our day to day life. If you're happier with company, maybe consider joining a cycling club where you'll be part of a group. Seems like a good choice for most.

jane82

blobbie wrote: »

+1 on the single headphone @ low volume

And get on to some hills - no time for boredom but plenty for suffering

I went around howth in that time. I suppose at that part I wasnt bored but I was so alone. There was a chap fixing a gate. I was gonna stop and ask him did he need some help haha. Just shoot the breeze.

3102derek

Love cycling solo. Especially on new routes on unknown roads around Wicklow. Should I go left right.. quick make up our mind.. right it is. And then spend the next 40k trying to resist the urge to look up Google maps on the phone to try and figure out where the hell I am.

You just don't get that sense of adventure/confusion/pain and enjoyment from a group imho

Peter T

As said above going solo gives you the freedom to take the back roads and have a mini adventure. You'll have plenty of friendly chat with dogs giving your sprinting skills a test. In time 2+ hours on the bike will breeze by.

clod71

When I commute, especially on the way out in the morning, I love the solitude and the silence around me... I see no boredom, but beauty instead.

OldBean

Cycling solo is grand on new routes and adventures, but for regular routes I'd love a bit of company.

I'm freelance/self employed and weekends are my only real quality time with friends and family, so I'm pretty stuck with solo cycling during work hours mid-week (when I'm actually working/not working in Ireland). I do find it pretty lonely if I'm out for a few hours, and the extra motivation of having someone with me, I'm sure would do wonders.

mamax

3 1/2 hours this morning listening only to the birds and the sound of gear changes, after a busy week there's nothing else I'd rather do

brayblue24

mamax wrote: »

3 1/2 hours this morning listening only to the birds and the sound of gear changes, after a busy week there's nothing else I'd rather do

+1 on this, I think it's great to escape really. If I've any kind of important decision to make I'll take the bike for a spin to the Wicklow Mountains and chill. Best decisions I've made have been when alone on my bike, presumably because of the lack of distractions.

That said, I'm happy enough with my own company so maybe that's your problem if you're not but like other say, it'll get easier, particularly when you pick up a bit more speed, and you'll find that'll come quickly enough anyway.

CatFromHue

I've never cycled in a group and have to say it doesn't really appeal to me.

When I go on long cycles I listen to Podcasts. Usually Second Captains or something that lasts a while.

How much I actually listen to them I dunno as I do tend to drift off to my own thoughts sometimes.

Keep_Her_Lit

Another "Johnny No Mates" solo rider here.

If you have a specific goal in mind for the spin you're on, that can certainly banish any boredom that might otherwise crop up. For example, if you use the same route regularly, you may be focused on getting around quicker than the last time you rode it. Unfortunately I don't get out for a long spin as often as I'd like. So when I do, I'm usually fairly clear about what I want to get out of it.

That said, it can be very enjoyable to go for a spin with no expectations or goals. You just disappear into the hills for a few hours and relish the independence of being able to travel miles and miles under your own steam ... the bicycle really is an amazing invention.

And Wicklow, what a beautiful county! I wouldn't get bored of that too quickly.

tim63

podcasts to start and then music when it gets a bit tougher, but the roads are quieter around here, still not the safest thing to do though...

Limestone1

jane82 wrote: »

I went out today for 2and a half hours solo. Way more than the usual for me. What I found the toughest part was the lonliness/boredom. I used to run alot and used headphones but I dont feel safe with them on cycling.
What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

MOD VOICE: Deleted and warned

Amprodude

jane82 wrote: »

I went out today for 2and a half hours solo. Way more than the usual for me. What I found the toughest part was the lonliness/boredom. I used to run alot and used headphones but I dont feel safe with them on cycling.
What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

I usually focus in on the colour of my bar tap which is white and I love seeing my mavic kysriums wheels spin as I magically turn the cranks with my legs. Other than that I listen or see when or what my garmin is communicating some golden and quality information to me.

eeeee

Limestone1 wrote: »

POST DELETED.

Gender has nothing to do with the ability to sustain solitude! I am a woman and I can spend hours and hours on the bike by myself. I don't have a smart phone so I just go for hours by signs and before I got a lidl trip computer I'd go home and try to see where/how far I went on my spin. I love the time on my own. I can suffer better with company though I find. It's nice to cycle with people, motivating. I have only recently discovered it and would like to do more in company. But I like my own space too, and the vast majority of my pedaling is solo, all actually bar track stuff. You can go where ever you want, start and stop where you like.

I suppose it's a balance, lovely to get solo head clearing time, I love the sociability of track, and it's good to have someone to motivate me on hilly bits!

secman

Only back on the bike since early March after a 5 month lay off. All of my spins are solo until I get back up to speed. I haven't a note in my head but tend to sing when cycling solo ! Don't even know words to any songs bar 100 green bottles sitting on the wall .... so I tend to make up my own words... couldn't do that out with a group. ! Solo has it's positives.

eeeee

secman wrote: »

Only back on the bike since early March after a 5 month lay off. All of my spins are solo until I get back up to speed. I haven't a note in my head but tend to sing when cycling solo ! Don't even know words to any songs bar 100 green bottles sitting on the wall .... so I tend to make up my own words... couldn't do that out with a group. ! Solo has it's positives.

Ha ha me too. Thank fuup no one can hear me I'm tone deaf! I can never remember the words of songs, or titles. So I could be singing the same bit over and over again with different words every time! I have a friend who does the same. We sometimes duet on road trips. Maybe we could start a trio and busk on Grafton Street. They'll be throwing money at us to shut us up :pac:

Cookie_Monster

Pretty much only ride solo, never get bored - there's too much to look at

Wishbone Ash

jane82 wrote: »

What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

95% of my cycles are solo and I've been in the saddle for more than 8 hours on several occasions (9hrs 45mins last Friday). I don't ever recall being bored on a ride in Ireland. There's just too much variety here to get bored.

The most boring cycle I ever did was along a 160km off-road cycle track built on a disused railway through a forest in Florida. I encountered 4 other cyclists on the route and it was the nearest I've come to going insane - trees, trees, trees, trees, trees, trees, trees, trees.........etc.

Cycling along pan-flat, straight, junctionless US Highways in 45 degrees heat for hours on end without feeling that you are actually getting anywhere can also be pretty boring!

krissovo

My misses bought me some bose headphones that are for fitness/sport, they are awesome in that you can hear most of what is going on around you.......that and my iphone loaded with led zep :-)

jane82

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triggermortis

I cycle solo and love getting away from it all. I also make sure my phone is on silent or even airplane mode as I found it incredibly annoying if I were to hear it ring while I was out

iamtony

I enjoy my own company so lonelyness and Boredom isn't an option. In fact I hate hearing people say they are bored, nothing to do with cycling, I'd actually love to feel bored just to remember what it feels like! Too much going on is the problem and cycling is a nice time to self reflect and challenge yourself to do something you never thought you could do.

My first cycle(since I was young or course) lasted one kilometre and I found it hard to walk when I got off to go into the shop I was visiting. Now I'm planning a 50k cycle in the next day or two and it's a great accomplishment and that alone gives me the motivation to keep doing it. Hopefully by the end of summer I will reach the 100k run. Although I'll have to upgrade my €150 mountain bike for a road bike soon buy that is just something else to aim for.

Keep doing it jane08 it get easier and then more enjoyable once it's not such a struggle;-)

jane82

@tony fair play to you Id imagine there was some serious weight loss involved there too.
I also cycle on a cheapo bike. My barse is feeling rough today because of it. Think I need a better saddle.

No Pants

I don't think I've ever gotten bored on a cycle. Between listening to the bike, looking around the scenery, navigating obstacles, listening and watching out for pedestrians, cars and other roadusers, I have plenty to do. Just back on the bike this month and put 90k up yesterday. Longest spin so far this year.

.ak

I like getting out on the bike by myself. It's nice not to have to worry about pace or even direction because you're on your own. I get to explore parts of Dublin I just usually don't get to see because of work or whatever. If you find your cycle is boring then try a different route or direction, you'll see something new and the new route will keep you on your toes.

cdaly_

I wear noise isolating headphones and don't find I'm any deafer than usual with them in. Indeed, they cut some of the wind noise. I've found that, with or without headphones, the notice I get of an approaching vehicle from sound is very little and that regular shoulder checks work just nicely.

I'll listen to music or audiobooks/podcasts to while away some of the time but I'll also find that I've ridden an hour or two with no sound as well...

kerry4sam

jane82 wrote: »

I went out today for 2and a half hours solo. Way more than the usual for me. What I found the toughest part was the lonliness/boredom. I used to run alot and used headphones but I dont feel safe with them on cycling.
What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

Well firstly well done to you on increasing your solo cycling time. Before you know it, that'll be increased further again.

I find my longest solo spins are in unfamiliar surroundings as my mind tries to take in everything new around me. The surroundings that I am familiar with tend to be shorter and repetitive spins to try and increase and better my timings, but that's just me

Often find myself singing along actually. I'd see something and it's remind me of a song and I'd just sing along; or it'd remind me of a film and I'd try and remember the song-list/playlist from the film and sing some of those. Have even had other cyclists sing along with me after coming up from behind me

Safe n Happy Cycling out there,
kerry4sam

fixie fox

Folks differ. Some are not too keen on their own company. For me cycling is one of the few ways to be truely alone.

Bloggsie

jane82 wrote: »

I went out today for 2and a half hours solo. Way more than the usual for me. What I found the toughest part was the lonliness/boredom. I used to run alot and used headphones but I dont feel safe with them on cycling.
What do people do to combat the boredom on the long distance cycles? I hear of lads out there for 8 hours and the likes.

I do 2-3 hours most weekends around Meath/Kildare & I love the head space the solo journeys give me, being stuck in office 5 days a week I find it a fantastic release. I see groups out every weekend, Im sure that if you search your area you will find others who are going out for a spin but not competitive!

Happy trails!

jane82

The group things dont work for me. I have a pile of kids so can only grab a few hours on short notices or during unsociable hours.

Lusk_Doyle

jane82 wrote: »

The group things dont work for me. I have a pile of kids so can only grab a few hours on short notices or during unsociable hours.

They should really be stored hanging up in a press to avoid a trip hazard!

.ak

cdaly_ wrote: »

I wear noise isolating headphones and don't find I'm any deafer than usual with them in. Indeed, they cut some of the wind noise. I've found that, with or without headphones, the notice I get of an approaching vehicle from sound is very little and that regular shoulder checks work just nicely.

I'll listen to music or audiobooks/podcasts to while away some of the time but I'll also find that I've ridden an hour or two with no sound as well...

That would absolutely freak me out. I need to use my ears to keep a good track of the traffic around me.

jane82

Lusk_Doyle wrote: »

They should really be stored hanging up in a press to avoid a trip hazard!

The social workers keep telling me not to.

Bloggsie

.ak wrote: »

That would absolutely freak me out. I need to use my ears to keep a good track of the traffic around me.

I agree, using headphones while cycling is just daft. I see cyclists in the citycentre every day not clued in as they are away in planet i-pod or whatever. Just Daft! Funnily enough, I have yet to see one out on my weekend spin wearing any!

Stone Deaf 4evr

.ak wrote: »

That would absolutely freak me out. I need to use my ears to keep a good track of the traffic around me.

I'm the same, of course, there have been a number of cyclists hit by cars in the area so now herself gets worried when I'm out for anything over 2 hours.

does anyone else get the "phantom car" thing? where the wind noise in your ears makes it seem like theres a car coming, but everytime you check, theres nothing there........ :eek:

quozl

Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »

does anyone else get the "phantom car" thing? where the wind noise in your ears makes it seem like theres a car coming, but everytime you check, theres nothing there........ :eek:

Yes, on long descents like Stocking Lane I'm often sure that I can hear a car behind me.

Thing is, when they are actually behind me, I can't hear them anyway with the wind noise

Bristolscale7

Cycling solo may take some getting used to but it is the preferred option for many people. Ever see the movie Thin Red Line?

Private Witt: Do you ever feel lonely?
First Sgt. Edward Welsh: Only around people.

Bloggsie

dont get the phantom car thing, yesterday i did get 2 "mature cyclists" go past me like I was stuck cycling in treacle & they were gliding on air.

jane82

Stone Deaf 4evr wrote: »

I'm the same, of course, there have been a number of cyclists hit by cars in the area so now herself gets worried when I'm out for anything over 2 hours.

does anyone else get the "phantom car" thing? where the wind noise in your ears makes it seem like theres a car coming, but everytime you check, theres nothing there........ :eek:

I thought it was a mental thing but near the end yesterday my hearing started to disappear for a second or two at a time. It may have been heat exhaustion and brain fairies though.

NeedMoreGears

Mostly I cycle solo and now and again i find it a bit dull but not very often. It did take me a while to build up to that. I find that concentrating in a particular effort or thinking about the next hill enough to keep me busy so to speak. Generally I really like the "me time"

zindicato

90% of my rides are solo ones tis ok getting out with the group but sometimes you just dont want the hassle of people being late, the waiting the excuses why they cant make it after 2 weeks of planning :-P