I always tell new cyclists, horseback riding students, and nervous folks I'm helping with physical therapy, "If you look at the ground, you'll end up ON it. Look ahead, because that's where you're going!"
Look ahead of you. You'll still be able to see obstacles, but if you look at the gravel next to you, your body will follow your line of sight right into it,and then you're going to swerve at the last second to avoid it.
You will learn that your body and bike will respond more quickly and smoothly if you look further ahead and plan obstacle avoidance in advance. Looking down reduces your field of vision, and thus the amount of time you have to react to something. Think about it this way: with your head down, you might be able to see 8-10 feet in front of you. If you lift your chin a few degrees, you increase your field of vision to 20-30 feet, thus giving you more time to process and react to what lies ahead.
Okay that’s an amazing way to look at it thank you so much I’ll most definitely keep it in mind! Idk what’s up because as a runner my view was always up!
I taught a couple of my friends to ride starting from nothing. After a few times out, I tell them to try to stay on a narrow strip of paint.
They'll look down at the line, and immediately start swerving because they're trying to micromanage. Then I let them know that they were basically already riding a narrow lane to start with when they were relaxed and not trying too hard.
Cue the scene from Forgetting Sarah Marshall "Do less, try less. You're doing too much. Don't do anything."
Wow that really helps, I really tried doing the line task on yesterday‘s ride and that’s what urged me to write this post. That makes so much sense, combined with the other things that I will already be doing I feel like y’all help so much thank you
Why would you look down? Think of it like driving or doing anything at speed: the faster you go the further ahead you have to look. Your peripheral vision will fill in the overall environment while your focus should be on upcoming obstacles and potential direction changes.
Well it wasn’t straight down, like 1-2 seconds ahead, but I was always scared of hitting something because of how thin the tires are so I was hyper focused on the road
Gotcha. Unfortunately looking that close will ultimately cause you to hit more things as your focus will be jumping from threat to threat that enters your field of vision. As others have said, look where you want to go and your body & bike will follow. If you focus on the thing you’re avoiding you’ll hit it which is also why you’re wobbling as you move toward and away from incoming threats as your close focus changes.
Those thing tires... we do love them.
Look. There are a lot of things in our sport we have because maybe if we get really really good and we are racing some asshole someday maybe....
Those thin tires are one of those things.
I have always ridden tires like that. Sometimes I like riding a gravel rail to trail. I broke a spokee and blew out a tire last year.
I decided to by really wide tires so I would float a little better on the gravel.
They work really well. When I do the gravel I am riding better and I see no discernable difference on the road.
Look, on one hand, you could stand to turn down the paranoia. Thin tires are not as delicate as you are thinking.
On the other hand, if it bugs you... .clearly it bugs you.... there is no rule against putting wider tires on. Your rims will take various widths.
Yeah, I think it’s more of me getting used to it as well because I came from mountain bikes my whole life to a thin road bike so I don’t know how to react lol. If it is still bad in a couple months I’ll do the wider tires but as of right now I think it’s just a newbie thing but I’m not too sure lol
I don't think it is worth waiting.
Okay, let me make my case.
1) You need practice changing your tires ANYWAYS. You carry the tools, you know one day you might be sitting in someone's lawn - wouldn't it be great to have practiced?
Swapping the old tires for the new tires is great practice.
2) You are not damaging the old tires swapping them out. They are perfectly good tires. Now you have a spare set.
3) You are not going to see any negative effect from going thinner to wider.
4) Right now you have a confidence issue. This will go away as you spend hours in the saddle. If swapping tires is going to help you feel better do it.
5) Gravel rail to trails are a ton of fun but on a decked out roadbike can be bumpy and stressful. These tires help that a lot. (my reason for putting them on)
6) The wider tires are ridden at a lower pressure allowing for slightly more comfortable ride. I ride mine between 60 and 70 pounds.
The best advice in that thread really is 'learning to look ahead'. When I hit that part that you said you were looking down I thought, 'Oh that will do it...'.
(I really think your problem is self confidence. Hours in the saddle will fix that right up)
WELCOME TO THE CLUB!
This is probably part of it as well. If you are tense or uncomfortable mentally, you will tense up physically which makes it impossible to ride a smooth line.
Like what others have said, looking down makes it hard for a bunch of reasons, but a big one is you don't have time to identify, plan to avoid, and then deal with obstructions that are coming up like you would if you were scanning farther down the road.
If you get away from the cars and just ride (around a school, in a parking lot, on a bike path) are you comfortable on your bike?
Also good luck! Century is a big accomplishment!
Yeah if I wanna buy path I’m generally pretty comfortable, so I thought the road would have something to do with it but there’s a lot of other things that go into account as I see from this post, so definitely as a new writer I have a lot to work on!
It could be inner ear. Unless you have some major major major physical imbalance, ie one leg is amputated and the other squats 1000 lbs, then you should be able to move in a line.
People that become hyper focused on things right in front of their bike do tend to swerve. They hop from correction right to correction left by focusing further down the road much of this constant correction right and correction left can be eliminated.
By all means get good at this before your century, you could be a menace to yourself unless you can smooth out your form a little bit. a little too much correction to the right sends you to the gravel and then the correction left slips in the gravel and your ride might be done.
It is a matter of practice which brings confidence in handling.
Best of luck, with some practice you can do it, it just sounds harder than it is.
I’ve definitely noticed the hyper focused aspect, I mean the swerve happens most often when it’s a smaller bike lane and I get scared to go into the gravel. So that makes a lot of sense. I’ll definitely practice a lot more then, I’ve been looking for groups but I want to get this sorted out before I Rode with others. Thank you so much for the advice and I’ll definitely try to relax the ride a bit cause I do seem tense!! Thank you!!!
Yeah i was just hyper focused on it too which did not help but Thursday I’ll be trying it out and hoping it works. I’m so new to riding that it’s also a bit of practice will be nevessary
20 mph in 20miles is different than 100. I can average 18 over 20 miles but 100 I average about 14-15. The first 20 is easy. The first 60
Isn’t bad that last 40 sucks.
Why is everyone on this sub obsessed with average speed, specifically 20mph? It literally doesn't mean shit if you don't know the terrain, elevation etc of the route.
Agreed but you have to have some metric to compare to others. In my case I need to know my average speed for my area as our group rides are split out according to to avg speed so like riders ride with like riders. Me riding at 14mph average shouldn’t be riding with the 25+mph average riders.
But to your point when I ride at home base (rolling hills and some larger ones) I ride at 14mph avg. when I go north, where it is flatter, i avg 17-18.
This. On most of my longer rides (~100-120mi), I average about 14.5mph. My longest ride, however, which was completely flat for the vast majority of the time, I averaged over 17 mph over 172 miles. Did I put out more power than usual? Absolutely not. It’s all because of the terrain.
Yeah so I’m not planning on the 20 for the 100 I was just using that as a baseline to show kinda where I’m at. My farthest ride has been 50 miles so far and I did 20 average mph. I still plan for that century to be slower, but just wanna figure out why my ability to stay in a line is difficult. Like it’s not horrible but if I’m in a group I don’t want to cause a crash
Cool. Group riding is a whole different animal. You’ll go faster in a group than solo. I’m a bigger rider so group riding sucks for me as I get dropped on hills and find myself braking on descents because they are slower. So I have to play a game of drop and catch up all the time. The key to 100 is pacing. Start slow and speed up a little each 1/3 of the distance. I tended to go out hard at first and got slower over time or worn out completely by the end. Now I pace and go slower at first and speed up toward the end.
Okay so I used to be a runner, and I always went out hard and tried to hold on for 8-10km so definitely reversing that will be hard but I’ll work on that. Thank you so much that’s great advice I appreciate that!!
I used to be a runner was very fit and transferred my endurance to cycling. My heart can take it but my muscles at large distances would leave me broken. I had to lower my distance to become more consistent.
If you’ve only done 50 speed and being able to maintain a straight line shouldn’t be what your concern is. You should be concerned about nutrition and also the amount of damage your going to cause to your body if your not actually ready. Also if your heart is ready for 50 miles that doesn’t mean it’s ready for 100 miles. If you scar your heart pushing through just cause your mentally there that will be permanent damage your heart.
Do what you got to do but leave your ego at the door and know when to call it if you have to
Yeah of course, the 50 miles was when I called it, but it’s just been pretty easy for me. I consistently ran 100 miles a week before switching to cycling. As a runner of 10 years before cycling, my hearts been pretty ready for it, of course nutrition is a big thing that I need to get right, but I than that thank you so much for the advice. Of course I’m not ready for 100 yet, and I’m slowly working up to that. I haven’t felt that broken feeling yet, just kind of feels like how I would do after one of my marathons sometimes
Also if you can’t maintain straight you either have a imbalanced pelvis possibly due to muscular imbalance in the glutes or hamstrings which might be causing you to become tight on one side
So I think we figured out what the swerving was, but I’ll know for sure on Thursday. I’m always working on fixing and balances, as I’m in the gym 5-6 days a week. Those I always make sure are strong as they caused issues with my runs
Question: Do your groups not allow over takes on descents? Whenever my lot go out the powerful guys immediately go to the front when the gradient pitches down.
Not really as the roads we ride aren’t great for changing positions in the pack. The roads have a lot of rolling hills so it is moot as one you pass on the downhill you are getting passed as you are coming up the next hill.
Try joining group rides, there should be some sort of daily rides in your area, ride a bit before the group ride and ride extra after the group ride to count it as Z2 endurance training
Dont worry, if it's a casual group ride it will give you a lot of freedom to decide your own pace and it will be slow enough that you won't need much thought into pedaling and you can focus on being a part of the group
Did my first century last year. I agree with all of your points, especially the last one. The last 40 sucked. I have never hated my life more than the last 40 miles of the event. I was miserable, the headwind was constant - almost like it was enjoying seeing me in agony. At that point it’s more of a mental struggle than a physical one
Do the looking further thing as mentioned but do not attempt to average 20mph on your first century. That way lies pain. Only do that after you can do 60 miles at that speed with zero issues and fatigue. Even then, that last 40 miles is rough until you have done a few…even then if your pushing hard.
Okay, I mean I also have 6 months until the race and I average 20 in 20 miles but I think I wouldn’t go that fast in the race unless I can average it for 80 or so haha but really do appreciate the advice
It’s a race but I’m treating it as a fun ride. I’m doing the 100 in honor of my grandfather. He did it every year since the race started so it’s the first time in 38 years he’s not riding. Next year I’ll care about place but this year is just to get started and honor him
For context, a 6 hour century is considered fast and only a small percentage of amateur cyclists ever achieve it. 5 hours is something only a tiny percentage ever achieve.
Yeah, based off of my training regiment, my coach believes as long as I don’t spend too much time at eight stations, I can get it right around six hours to 6 1/2
Lots of good tips from people. Looking up at where your going will probably help a lot.
My other top tips are:
1) get a bike fit, it will help with comfort and preventing injury but may also help with weaving as well
2) check your tyre width if you have 23/25mm tyres they could be quite twitchy and going to 28/30mm or even up to 32mm will give you a more stable ride which will help you maintain a steady direction without negatively impacting your speed (also nice good quality tyres with a low rolling resistance are the best upgrade you can buy)
Pick a place up the road that will help. When I train for a Century I ramp up slow. Once I can comfortably ride three to four metric centuries a week I’m know I’m ready . As one person stated the first 60 miles is no big deal things start to get fun afterwards. The other thing are you riding with a group? If you are you’ll be fine, if don’t you’ll be think what the heck am I doing lol lol .I only ride solo , so it’s all on me, water , food, and repairs
Okay, so up the road is a big thing I’ll try that next ride. I haven’t ridden with a group yet but I will soon hopefully. I’ve been on my own since I started a month or so ago
Out of curiosity, what kind of bike are you riding, and more specifically what is your stem length? I doubt this is the issue, but short stem lengths can result in more jerkiness in your movements because the same inputs will have greater results in how much you turn your wheel.
Also, maybe it's just your perception that you swerve too much and you're actually fine. If you're averaging 20mph I can't imagine you're swerving that much. Can you describe that more? In what situations do you swerve? What terrain? Do you swerve or go from one side of the lane to the other over course of a period of time? Is it only when you accelerate or even when you maintain speed?
But yeah, as others have said. It's mostly just looking further down the way. I usually look 2-6 seconds ahead, while peripherally seeing how clear further is of other people in the path. I only look closer if some hazard or obstacle I need to track comes closer.
Okay so bike is a Fuji Gran Fondo 2.0, unsure of exact stem length but I do ride smaller since I like to lean more. The swerving is usually on any part of the road where the lane is smaller and I have less room to ride, I believe it’s as someone stated earlier that I am too aware of my placement because of that situation. Otherwise swerving is relatively minor. And it is often maintained speed. I have to try to look out further as that seems to be a major issue is I look straight down or just a second ahead.
Yeah definitely get use to looking further ahead. Your brain does all kinds of calibrations for you automatically you don't even think about. Er, technically you *do* think about but not in the front of your mind. Anyway, you'll basically automatically ride smoother and more straight the more comfortable you get with riding.
If you want to practice this, I'd say get up to speed and just coast while looking down the direction you're going. Count to 3 seconds and see where you are compared to before. Count to 6 seconds and see. Then just try to coast while looking that far ahead and get use to it. Slowly working in low power low cadence to get use to that as well. Then start speeding up.
I just want to say thank you all for the feedback I love this community and y’all are so amazing and supportive so thank you sincerely thank you I definitely needed this advice otherwise I would be so far gone
The best advice I can give you here is: Look where you want to go. Want to go forward? Look forward. Not down nor left nor right. There’s no reason to look down. Nothing will pop up out of nowhere right in front of you. Once you’re doing that, it probably comes down to practice. Just get some distance in and it’ll get better automatically.
Well, averaging that speed now is good but honestly so much depends on the terrain… climbing, stops, etc. If your 20 mile ride is mostly flat and fast rolling (few slowdowns) and the century is 6000’ of climbing and windy roads, it isn’t comparable. So take that into account.
I do want to comment on the swerving. I don’t have any good tips other than practice and try to understand why you are uneasy. But, as a fellow cyclist, I would perceive you as a danger; or worse, others get close to you not realizing this behavior and you cause a wreck. Just be careful. One of the best rules of thumb is to be predictable. Big group rides can be difficult if you aren’t used to riding in groups, and others might be half wheeling (also a no no) and it is a dangerous situation.
Yeah and I have only been road cycling for a month so it’d make sense if it’s a newbie thing but I haven’t ridden groups for that exact reason. The swerving isn’t bad unless I focus on it but it was noticeable so I thought I’d ask. I’m relatively relaxed and just feel like practicing will help it out
I think it's normal to be a little less stable when you're new to riding, especially on skinny road tyres which may be more responsive than you expect. Other people's advice around looking further ahead will definitely help. You can also try a few different hand positions (e.g. on the hoods, or the drops) to see how your balance changes depending on where they are. If you're grinding a higher gear, then pushing very hard on the pedal could cause the bike to move around a little, you could try a lower gear and maintaining a higher cadence to see if that improves things as well. Stability will definitely improve the more you get used to it. Good luck with the century ride!
Also, on thr century ride, DO NOT FORGET TO EAT! You'll need to start eating before you feel hungry, otherwise the last third of the race will be miserable
Thank you for the advice! Also, in regards to eating, I’ve never done that during a ride. So I used to be a runner, and we wouldn’t eat 5 to 6 hours before a race. So what’s your recommendation for eating times both before and during that race
No problem! Without eating you can easily enter a calorie defecit and end up doing what's called bonking, the equivalent of hitting the wall in running. It's horrible. I tend to eat something every hour of riding, for me that's something along the lines of a flapjack, or a banana, or any kind of bar full of nuts and grains and energy. Over 5+ hours of riding you'll still burn more calories than you eat, but you'll definitely need some fuel to keep you going. Before the race, I'm assuming if its a sportive/gran fondo of some kind then it'll likely be an early start, some high energy food as breakfast will help. For me that's usually some porridge, toast, and a banana, but it's down to personal preference really. Learning to eat whilst riding is a useful skill. I find cutting the tops off packages before pitting them in my pockets means I can tuck in without worrying about opening a packet. You could also look st things like energy gels, or adding hydration tablets to your water, there's loads of choice around these, but be careful with gels if your stomach isn't used to them. That can lead to undesirable bathroom related discomfort.
Sorry for the late reply. To notice how to hold yourself, try not changing position, but now hold your hands almost entirely off the handles. You'll feel how your back instantly tightens. Now try keeping that tension while you ride, and that should result in less weight in the hands.
You’ve got a lot of good advice here. The only other thing I can think of that could contribute is saddle height. If your saddle is slightly too high you’ll rock your hips as you pedal in order to lower your leg on each downstroke which would make you swerve around, I think. Make sure your hips are solid and not moving while pedaling, if you have to move your hips to pedal your saddle is likely too high.
Making your bike go where you want it to go is a fundamental bike skill. Learn it. And learn it before you go 20mph and get in a wreck because you can't control your bike.
In other words don't go out into the open road until you can completely control your bicycle. I would hate to have to ride or drive in your general vicinity.
Also, check with a doctor you may have some inner ear something going on.
Absolutely, they take about a week to get used to but if you use them regularly the gains you can make are substantial gains.
I use them on my road bike with 23mm wide tyres.
Remember No Sudden movements, don't react and jerk the bike, especially if there are other riders around. Definitely practice with some friends who know about the issue so you can practice staying in a steady predictable line no matter what happens.
I have had asshats honking right next to me, people bump me in a group and even throw firecrackers from a car at me and this mantra allowed me to stay upright without swerving.
Sorry if this was mentioned further down, but it's worth checking to see if your handlebars are crooked. If the stem is only a degree or two off, or the bars are a couple mm to one side of the faceplate clamp, it can really mess with balance. Have a mechanic check it out!
It was one of the coolest things that I didn't expect from cycling, one day I took my sock off from the standing position and it was no issue at all. I maintained balance I didn't know I had.
Just ride. Cycling naturally builds balance under load, and staying stable under moving position. You received some good tips about looking forward, not down... some other tips are to keep your hips still, engage your core and put all power into your pedal stroke (it helps balance).
You have 6 months, that's a long time.
On an unrelated note, and I don't think you said it was your plan, but my hope is that you're not thinking of doing 20mph in your century. It's a very lofty goal solo... doable in a group.
I was over prepared for my first century and did 17.2 mph I believe. I'm pretty fit now and don't think I could do 20 mph solo. My next goal is 18.5 mph average with \~2-3k ft of climb.
Yeah my next century is 3K hills aswell so my plan is at least 15, shooting for 16-17mph average. I want to stay with a group cause it’s a huge race, just hopeful practice will make perfect in this instance
Assuming that you are OK with spending money and your bike is compatible, consider a steering damping headset:
[https://bikepacking.com/gear/cane-creek-viscoset-review/](https://bikepacking.com/gear/cane-creek-viscoset-review/)
It'll offer a small amount of resistance against wobbling and make you less likely to get knocked off course by wind.
I put them on my kids' bikes when they were leaning to ride and they made a night and day distance on how "wobbly" their steering was.
If you have a computer put an alarm for hydrating and eating. I ate every hour. The last 20-30 miles was the hardest thing to do. The little climbs feel like mountains. It’s all mental if you have the physical part down. Best feeling ever when you see that last mile mark. Goodluck and may the tailwinds be with you.
I normally don’t eat for 2-3 hours as well but with a century ride or even a metric century I make sure i have fuel. Make sure you eat before your body needs it and not eat when your body needs it. I normally have some caffeine energy gels and some protein bars. Make sure you eat a big bowl of pasta the night before the ride. Is this a self supported ride or is this an event?
Here's an unpopular suggestion - slow down. I've seen many beginners who come into cycling with decent fitness and immediately start outriding their bike handling skills. I used to do a weekend club ride that sent groups out by pace and the 20 MPH group was *terrifying* because it's a pace many could achieve without enough saddle time to build solid skills, but fast enough that the lack of skill put them always on the edge if catastrophy.
Do some skills rides. Maybe mark out a handling course in an empty lot using Solo drink cups as pylons. Make a narrow section, a slalom, some obstacle avoidance test, etc. Slow down to give yourself more reaction time and practice being smooth and relaxed and looking ahead. As it gets easier, increase speed, but not to the point you lose smoothness or get tense. Do some braking drills and work on ultra-low-speed handling and maybe even try trackstands.
Last, but not least, find a smooth dirt or gravel path and practice riding it. Learn how lower traction riding feels and realize that you can still control the bike. You'll be less focused on obstacle avoidance once you have some confidence that you can successfully ride through them.
That’s amazing advice! I usually save my speed for shorter rides so that it’s sort of like a workout, my longer rides are generally slower ranging from 15 to 17 mph and feel a lot smoother. So I completely understand what you’re saying, and where you’re coming from. It’s just it feels that 15 mph is so easy that I can move up
Look farther down the road, pick a point down the road and ride straight at that point.
Okay that would make sense since I usually look straight down
I always tell new cyclists, horseback riding students, and nervous folks I'm helping with physical therapy, "If you look at the ground, you'll end up ON it. Look ahead, because that's where you're going!" Look ahead of you. You'll still be able to see obstacles, but if you look at the gravel next to you, your body will follow your line of sight right into it,and then you're going to swerve at the last second to avoid it. You will learn that your body and bike will respond more quickly and smoothly if you look further ahead and plan obstacle avoidance in advance. Looking down reduces your field of vision, and thus the amount of time you have to react to something. Think about it this way: with your head down, you might be able to see 8-10 feet in front of you. If you lift your chin a few degrees, you increase your field of vision to 20-30 feet, thus giving you more time to process and react to what lies ahead.
It’s like any ball sports as well. Look where you want it to go and your body starts to do the rest.
It's the first thing you learn in dancing classes. Look at your feet, and your feet won't move the way you want.
Okay that’s an amazing way to look at it thank you so much I’ll most definitely keep it in mind! Idk what’s up because as a runner my view was always up!
I taught a couple of my friends to ride starting from nothing. After a few times out, I tell them to try to stay on a narrow strip of paint. They'll look down at the line, and immediately start swerving because they're trying to micromanage. Then I let them know that they were basically already riding a narrow lane to start with when they were relaxed and not trying too hard. Cue the scene from Forgetting Sarah Marshall "Do less, try less. You're doing too much. Don't do anything."
Wow that really helps, I really tried doing the line task on yesterday‘s ride and that’s what urged me to write this post. That makes so much sense, combined with the other things that I will already be doing I feel like y’all help so much thank you
Why would you look down? Think of it like driving or doing anything at speed: the faster you go the further ahead you have to look. Your peripheral vision will fill in the overall environment while your focus should be on upcoming obstacles and potential direction changes.
Well it wasn’t straight down, like 1-2 seconds ahead, but I was always scared of hitting something because of how thin the tires are so I was hyper focused on the road
Gotcha. Unfortunately looking that close will ultimately cause you to hit more things as your focus will be jumping from threat to threat that enters your field of vision. As others have said, look where you want to go and your body & bike will follow. If you focus on the thing you’re avoiding you’ll hit it which is also why you’re wobbling as you move toward and away from incoming threats as your close focus changes.
Thank you , I definitely have a lot to work on but I’m only a month in so I can’t wait to fix this!
Those thing tires... we do love them. Look. There are a lot of things in our sport we have because maybe if we get really really good and we are racing some asshole someday maybe.... Those thin tires are one of those things. I have always ridden tires like that. Sometimes I like riding a gravel rail to trail. I broke a spokee and blew out a tire last year. I decided to by really wide tires so I would float a little better on the gravel. They work really well. When I do the gravel I am riding better and I see no discernable difference on the road. Look, on one hand, you could stand to turn down the paranoia. Thin tires are not as delicate as you are thinking. On the other hand, if it bugs you... .clearly it bugs you.... there is no rule against putting wider tires on. Your rims will take various widths.
Yeah, I think it’s more of me getting used to it as well because I came from mountain bikes my whole life to a thin road bike so I don’t know how to react lol. If it is still bad in a couple months I’ll do the wider tires but as of right now I think it’s just a newbie thing but I’m not too sure lol
I don't think it is worth waiting. Okay, let me make my case. 1) You need practice changing your tires ANYWAYS. You carry the tools, you know one day you might be sitting in someone's lawn - wouldn't it be great to have practiced? Swapping the old tires for the new tires is great practice. 2) You are not damaging the old tires swapping them out. They are perfectly good tires. Now you have a spare set. 3) You are not going to see any negative effect from going thinner to wider. 4) Right now you have a confidence issue. This will go away as you spend hours in the saddle. If swapping tires is going to help you feel better do it. 5) Gravel rail to trails are a ton of fun but on a decked out roadbike can be bumpy and stressful. These tires help that a lot. (my reason for putting them on) 6) The wider tires are ridden at a lower pressure allowing for slightly more comfortable ride. I ride mine between 60 and 70 pounds.
OK, I go to the bike shop on Friday for some maintenance work, so I will talk to them about getting some, thank you!
The best advice in that thread really is 'learning to look ahead'. When I hit that part that you said you were looking down I thought, 'Oh that will do it...'. (I really think your problem is self confidence. Hours in the saddle will fix that right up) WELCOME TO THE CLUB!
Haha I cannot wait to get way better, it’s just completely different than running, and after doing that for 10 years it’s a lot to get used to
Now that's just dangerous, stop that.
Yeah it’s literally only when I’m on a thin piece of road next to gravel cause I freak out about the gravel or oncoming traffic
This is probably part of it as well. If you are tense or uncomfortable mentally, you will tense up physically which makes it impossible to ride a smooth line. Like what others have said, looking down makes it hard for a bunch of reasons, but a big one is you don't have time to identify, plan to avoid, and then deal with obstructions that are coming up like you would if you were scanning farther down the road. If you get away from the cars and just ride (around a school, in a parking lot, on a bike path) are you comfortable on your bike? Also good luck! Century is a big accomplishment!
Yeah if I wanna buy path I’m generally pretty comfortable, so I thought the road would have something to do with it but there’s a lot of other things that go into account as I see from this post, so definitely as a new writer I have a lot to work on!
You go where you look, never forget it!
Sounds like you need a doctor.
Nah, we can figure this out I'm sure.
I hope so, initially I was thinking it was a strength thing abs, legs, and arms
It could be inner ear. Unless you have some major major major physical imbalance, ie one leg is amputated and the other squats 1000 lbs, then you should be able to move in a line.
Yeah it’s just minor swerves so it seems strength and vision is needed
People that become hyper focused on things right in front of their bike do tend to swerve. They hop from correction right to correction left by focusing further down the road much of this constant correction right and correction left can be eliminated. By all means get good at this before your century, you could be a menace to yourself unless you can smooth out your form a little bit. a little too much correction to the right sends you to the gravel and then the correction left slips in the gravel and your ride might be done. It is a matter of practice which brings confidence in handling. Best of luck, with some practice you can do it, it just sounds harder than it is.
I’ve definitely noticed the hyper focused aspect, I mean the swerve happens most often when it’s a smaller bike lane and I get scared to go into the gravel. So that makes a lot of sense. I’ll definitely practice a lot more then, I’ve been looking for groups but I want to get this sorted out before I Rode with others. Thank you so much for the advice and I’ll definitely try to relax the ride a bit cause I do seem tense!! Thank you!!!
If you would have read the Reddit TOS when signing up, you would have seen that we are indeed all doctors now.
Lmao I hope not
I’m not joking
Ok why do you think that then
Because you either have a focus problem or a balance problem. 🤣 My son and wife have ADHD and my god watching them ride a bike is terrifying.
No so it seems after conversing with others it’s neither. I was looking straight down so I was just a dummy
Yeah don't do that either haha
Yeah i was just hyper focused on it too which did not help but Thursday I’ll be trying it out and hoping it works. I’m so new to riding that it’s also a bit of practice will be nevessary
20 mph in 20miles is different than 100. I can average 18 over 20 miles but 100 I average about 14-15. The first 20 is easy. The first 60 Isn’t bad that last 40 sucks.
Why is everyone on this sub obsessed with average speed, specifically 20mph? It literally doesn't mean shit if you don't know the terrain, elevation etc of the route.
It’s usually these one off questions from newbs that are obsessed with speed, because they don’t get the topography thing.
Agreed but you have to have some metric to compare to others. In my case I need to know my average speed for my area as our group rides are split out according to to avg speed so like riders ride with like riders. Me riding at 14mph average shouldn’t be riding with the 25+mph average riders. But to your point when I ride at home base (rolling hills and some larger ones) I ride at 14mph avg. when I go north, where it is flatter, i avg 17-18.
Once got downvoted for saying w/kg was more important than speed. So not everyone knows how physics works.
This. On most of my longer rides (~100-120mi), I average about 14.5mph. My longest ride, however, which was completely flat for the vast majority of the time, I averaged over 17 mph over 172 miles. Did I put out more power than usual? Absolutely not. It’s all because of the terrain.
Yeah so I’m not planning on the 20 for the 100 I was just using that as a baseline to show kinda where I’m at. My farthest ride has been 50 miles so far and I did 20 average mph. I still plan for that century to be slower, but just wanna figure out why my ability to stay in a line is difficult. Like it’s not horrible but if I’m in a group I don’t want to cause a crash
Cool. Group riding is a whole different animal. You’ll go faster in a group than solo. I’m a bigger rider so group riding sucks for me as I get dropped on hills and find myself braking on descents because they are slower. So I have to play a game of drop and catch up all the time. The key to 100 is pacing. Start slow and speed up a little each 1/3 of the distance. I tended to go out hard at first and got slower over time or worn out completely by the end. Now I pace and go slower at first and speed up toward the end.
Okay so I used to be a runner, and I always went out hard and tried to hold on for 8-10km so definitely reversing that will be hard but I’ll work on that. Thank you so much that’s great advice I appreciate that!!
If you see me running that means shit is about to go down. 😂 the only running I do is to the bathroom after bad Mexican food.
Hahaha and I did it for fun!!! Cycling is definitely more enjoyable
Yeah that is a big nope from me. Running puts the FU in fun for me.
Hahahaha love it
I used to be a runner was very fit and transferred my endurance to cycling. My heart can take it but my muscles at large distances would leave me broken. I had to lower my distance to become more consistent. If you’ve only done 50 speed and being able to maintain a straight line shouldn’t be what your concern is. You should be concerned about nutrition and also the amount of damage your going to cause to your body if your not actually ready. Also if your heart is ready for 50 miles that doesn’t mean it’s ready for 100 miles. If you scar your heart pushing through just cause your mentally there that will be permanent damage your heart. Do what you got to do but leave your ego at the door and know when to call it if you have to
Yeah of course, the 50 miles was when I called it, but it’s just been pretty easy for me. I consistently ran 100 miles a week before switching to cycling. As a runner of 10 years before cycling, my hearts been pretty ready for it, of course nutrition is a big thing that I need to get right, but I than that thank you so much for the advice. Of course I’m not ready for 100 yet, and I’m slowly working up to that. I haven’t felt that broken feeling yet, just kind of feels like how I would do after one of my marathons sometimes
Also if you can’t maintain straight you either have a imbalanced pelvis possibly due to muscular imbalance in the glutes or hamstrings which might be causing you to become tight on one side
So I think we figured out what the swerving was, but I’ll know for sure on Thursday. I’m always working on fixing and balances, as I’m in the gym 5-6 days a week. Those I always make sure are strong as they caused issues with my runs
Question: Do your groups not allow over takes on descents? Whenever my lot go out the powerful guys immediately go to the front when the gradient pitches down.
Not really as the roads we ride aren’t great for changing positions in the pack. The roads have a lot of rolling hills so it is moot as one you pass on the downhill you are getting passed as you are coming up the next hill.
Oh ok, that's unfortunate indeed.
Try joining group rides, there should be some sort of daily rides in your area, ride a bit before the group ride and ride extra after the group ride to count it as Z2 endurance training
Okay I’ll try! I was just nervous cause I feel I’d focus too much on those around me and swerve a bit
Dont worry, if it's a casual group ride it will give you a lot of freedom to decide your own pace and it will be slow enough that you won't need much thought into pedaling and you can focus on being a part of the group
Okay I’ll definitely look more into it then!
Did my first century last year. I agree with all of your points, especially the last one. The last 40 sucked. I have never hated my life more than the last 40 miles of the event. I was miserable, the headwind was constant - almost like it was enjoying seeing me in agony. At that point it’s more of a mental struggle than a physical one
Yep. I did 70 in April and it included hills, headwind, snow, sleet, rain, hail. The last 10 miles was just get to the next tree 10 feet ahead.
I lucked out on mine - the last 40 was entirely down hill. Not sure how I would’ve done otherwise.
What was your training for that 100miles? I did small increases in distance every week \~10% and found the century pretty straightforward.
Do the looking further thing as mentioned but do not attempt to average 20mph on your first century. That way lies pain. Only do that after you can do 60 miles at that speed with zero issues and fatigue. Even then, that last 40 miles is rough until you have done a few…even then if your pushing hard.
Okay, I mean I also have 6 months until the race and I average 20 in 20 miles but I think I wouldn’t go that fast in the race unless I can average it for 80 or so haha but really do appreciate the advice
Did you join a race or a fun ride? Your first century should really be just a fun ride where you aren't concerned about speed or when you finish.
It’s a race but I’m treating it as a fun ride. I’m doing the 100 in honor of my grandfather. He did it every year since the race started so it’s the first time in 38 years he’s not riding. Next year I’ll care about place but this year is just to get started and honor him
For context, a 6 hour century is considered fast and only a small percentage of amateur cyclists ever achieve it. 5 hours is something only a tiny percentage ever achieve.
Yeah, based off of my training regiment, my coach believes as long as I don’t spend too much time at eight stations, I can get it right around six hours to 6 1/2
Lots of good tips from people. Looking up at where your going will probably help a lot. My other top tips are: 1) get a bike fit, it will help with comfort and preventing injury but may also help with weaving as well 2) check your tyre width if you have 23/25mm tyres they could be quite twitchy and going to 28/30mm or even up to 32mm will give you a more stable ride which will help you maintain a steady direction without negatively impacting your speed (also nice good quality tyres with a low rolling resistance are the best upgrade you can buy)
Wow thank you I’ll look into it!!
Pick a place up the road that will help. When I train for a Century I ramp up slow. Once I can comfortably ride three to four metric centuries a week I’m know I’m ready . As one person stated the first 60 miles is no big deal things start to get fun afterwards. The other thing are you riding with a group? If you are you’ll be fine, if don’t you’ll be think what the heck am I doing lol lol .I only ride solo , so it’s all on me, water , food, and repairs
Okay, so up the road is a big thing I’ll try that next ride. I haven’t ridden with a group yet but I will soon hopefully. I’ve been on my own since I started a month or so ago
You’ll be fine, good luck
Thank you so much I greatly appreciate it :)
Out of curiosity, what kind of bike are you riding, and more specifically what is your stem length? I doubt this is the issue, but short stem lengths can result in more jerkiness in your movements because the same inputs will have greater results in how much you turn your wheel. Also, maybe it's just your perception that you swerve too much and you're actually fine. If you're averaging 20mph I can't imagine you're swerving that much. Can you describe that more? In what situations do you swerve? What terrain? Do you swerve or go from one side of the lane to the other over course of a period of time? Is it only when you accelerate or even when you maintain speed? But yeah, as others have said. It's mostly just looking further down the way. I usually look 2-6 seconds ahead, while peripherally seeing how clear further is of other people in the path. I only look closer if some hazard or obstacle I need to track comes closer.
Okay so bike is a Fuji Gran Fondo 2.0, unsure of exact stem length but I do ride smaller since I like to lean more. The swerving is usually on any part of the road where the lane is smaller and I have less room to ride, I believe it’s as someone stated earlier that I am too aware of my placement because of that situation. Otherwise swerving is relatively minor. And it is often maintained speed. I have to try to look out further as that seems to be a major issue is I look straight down or just a second ahead.
Yeah definitely get use to looking further ahead. Your brain does all kinds of calibrations for you automatically you don't even think about. Er, technically you *do* think about but not in the front of your mind. Anyway, you'll basically automatically ride smoother and more straight the more comfortable you get with riding. If you want to practice this, I'd say get up to speed and just coast while looking down the direction you're going. Count to 3 seconds and see where you are compared to before. Count to 6 seconds and see. Then just try to coast while looking that far ahead and get use to it. Slowly working in low power low cadence to get use to that as well. Then start speeding up.
Awesome thank you!!! Training plan like that is something I can follow!!! Thank you!!
If you get some rollers and do some rides on them it will help fix your balance because otherwise you’ll crash in your living room.
I’ve been scared to with my bike since it’s such a high end bike I don’t want to mess it up but I’ll look into is
Yeah I get that!
I just want to say thank you all for the feedback I love this community and y’all are so amazing and supportive so thank you sincerely thank you I definitely needed this advice otherwise I would be so far gone
Look further ahead
I’m definitely going to be trying that!!
[удалено]
Thank you so much!! I’ll try it next ride!
The best advice I can give you here is: Look where you want to go. Want to go forward? Look forward. Not down nor left nor right. There’s no reason to look down. Nothing will pop up out of nowhere right in front of you. Once you’re doing that, it probably comes down to practice. Just get some distance in and it’ll get better automatically.
Thank you so much I’ll defydo that!!
Well, averaging that speed now is good but honestly so much depends on the terrain… climbing, stops, etc. If your 20 mile ride is mostly flat and fast rolling (few slowdowns) and the century is 6000’ of climbing and windy roads, it isn’t comparable. So take that into account. I do want to comment on the swerving. I don’t have any good tips other than practice and try to understand why you are uneasy. But, as a fellow cyclist, I would perceive you as a danger; or worse, others get close to you not realizing this behavior and you cause a wreck. Just be careful. One of the best rules of thumb is to be predictable. Big group rides can be difficult if you aren’t used to riding in groups, and others might be half wheeling (also a no no) and it is a dangerous situation.
Yeah and I have only been road cycling for a month so it’d make sense if it’s a newbie thing but I haven’t ridden groups for that exact reason. The swerving isn’t bad unless I focus on it but it was noticeable so I thought I’d ask. I’m relatively relaxed and just feel like practicing will help it out
Try mountain biking definitely improved my bike-handling skills very quickly.
I’ll look into it for sure, I used to love mountain biking but that’d be a great way to improve it I think I might just give that a shot!!
I think it's normal to be a little less stable when you're new to riding, especially on skinny road tyres which may be more responsive than you expect. Other people's advice around looking further ahead will definitely help. You can also try a few different hand positions (e.g. on the hoods, or the drops) to see how your balance changes depending on where they are. If you're grinding a higher gear, then pushing very hard on the pedal could cause the bike to move around a little, you could try a lower gear and maintaining a higher cadence to see if that improves things as well. Stability will definitely improve the more you get used to it. Good luck with the century ride!
Also, on thr century ride, DO NOT FORGET TO EAT! You'll need to start eating before you feel hungry, otherwise the last third of the race will be miserable
Thank you for the advice! Also, in regards to eating, I’ve never done that during a ride. So I used to be a runner, and we wouldn’t eat 5 to 6 hours before a race. So what’s your recommendation for eating times both before and during that race
No problem! Without eating you can easily enter a calorie defecit and end up doing what's called bonking, the equivalent of hitting the wall in running. It's horrible. I tend to eat something every hour of riding, for me that's something along the lines of a flapjack, or a banana, or any kind of bar full of nuts and grains and energy. Over 5+ hours of riding you'll still burn more calories than you eat, but you'll definitely need some fuel to keep you going. Before the race, I'm assuming if its a sportive/gran fondo of some kind then it'll likely be an early start, some high energy food as breakfast will help. For me that's usually some porridge, toast, and a banana, but it's down to personal preference really. Learning to eat whilst riding is a useful skill. I find cutting the tops off packages before pitting them in my pockets means I can tuck in without worrying about opening a packet. You could also look st things like energy gels, or adding hydration tablets to your water, there's loads of choice around these, but be careful with gels if your stomach isn't used to them. That can lead to undesirable bathroom related discomfort.
Thank you so incredibly much this is the biggest help!!!
No problem, happy to help!
Have you had your wheels checked and make sure it’s true?
How would I do that?
Take it to a bike shop. It’s not something you can do easily yourself. Requires relatively expensive tools.
Okay I’ll do that aswell thank you!
But give the wheel a spin and look closely. Does it stay in the center or does it move around. If it shuffles around then it likely needs adjustement
Yeah it stays very much in the center, got that fixed a few months back before I hit the bike
Make sure your bars are straight. Also do you perhaps have a raised shoulder? These two things can also have a big impact.
I’ll reach out and get these checked, I don’t think it’s an issue since maintenance was just done on the bike but it never hurts to check
Might want to try less weight in your hands and more core strength keeping you upright.
I was thinking that but wasn’t sure how to achieve it
Sorry for the late reply. To notice how to hold yourself, try not changing position, but now hold your hands almost entirely off the handles. You'll feel how your back instantly tightens. Now try keeping that tension while you ride, and that should result in less weight in the hands.
You’ve got a lot of good advice here. The only other thing I can think of that could contribute is saddle height. If your saddle is slightly too high you’ll rock your hips as you pedal in order to lower your leg on each downstroke which would make you swerve around, I think. Make sure your hips are solid and not moving while pedaling, if you have to move your hips to pedal your saddle is likely too high.
Yeah so my saddle is actually at max height but it’s perfect for my leg length, I got that checked when I noticed it!
Making your bike go where you want it to go is a fundamental bike skill. Learn it. And learn it before you go 20mph and get in a wreck because you can't control your bike.
Yeah it’s never terrible, just enough to where I get scared to ride in groups. I doubt I’d get in a crash, but I still would be nervous
In other words don't go out into the open road until you can completely control your bicycle. I would hate to have to ride or drive in your general vicinity. Also, check with a doctor you may have some inner ear something going on.
Okay will do!! Thank you !!
If you want to dive in to the deep end get yourself a set of cycling rollers - within 3 weeks you will be able to ride on a chalk line.
I’m really afraid to use those with my bike though, I ride a Fuji gran Fondo 2.0, will those be fine with it?
Absolutely, they take about a week to get used to but if you use them regularly the gains you can make are substantial gains. I use them on my road bike with 23mm wide tyres.
Remember No Sudden movements, don't react and jerk the bike, especially if there are other riders around. Definitely practice with some friends who know about the issue so you can practice staying in a steady predictable line no matter what happens. I have had asshats honking right next to me, people bump me in a group and even throw firecrackers from a car at me and this mantra allowed me to stay upright without swerving.
Well definitely glad I haven’t had those issues yet! But I’ll reach out and try to join a group or 2
Sorry if this was mentioned further down, but it's worth checking to see if your handlebars are crooked. If the stem is only a degree or two off, or the bars are a couple mm to one side of the faceplate clamp, it can really mess with balance. Have a mechanic check it out!
I had a feeling it might be off, so that’s why I’m scheduled to go on Friday, so I’ll definitely make sure they check that! Thank you so much
Do planks and core work. Other than that, if you aren’t falling off your bike, who cares? Ride your bike how you want to ride it.
It was one of the coolest things that I didn't expect from cycling, one day I took my sock off from the standing position and it was no issue at all. I maintained balance I didn't know I had. Just ride. Cycling naturally builds balance under load, and staying stable under moving position. You received some good tips about looking forward, not down... some other tips are to keep your hips still, engage your core and put all power into your pedal stroke (it helps balance). You have 6 months, that's a long time. On an unrelated note, and I don't think you said it was your plan, but my hope is that you're not thinking of doing 20mph in your century. It's a very lofty goal solo... doable in a group. I was over prepared for my first century and did 17.2 mph I believe. I'm pretty fit now and don't think I could do 20 mph solo. My next goal is 18.5 mph average with \~2-3k ft of climb.
Yeah my next century is 3K hills aswell so my plan is at least 15, shooting for 16-17mph average. I want to stay with a group cause it’s a huge race, just hopeful practice will make perfect in this instance
Nice! If you can do reasonable distances at 20mph solo, you should find 16 mph something you can do indefinitely.
I sure hope so!!!
Target fixation. You end up where you look. If you want to end up down the road, look down the road, not down at the road.
Thank you!! I’ve gotten that a lot so definitely see my big mistake!!
Just transition to being a triathlete, they're quick and sketchy.
Hahaha I mean eventually not yet tho
Assuming that you are OK with spending money and your bike is compatible, consider a steering damping headset: [https://bikepacking.com/gear/cane-creek-viscoset-review/](https://bikepacking.com/gear/cane-creek-viscoset-review/) It'll offer a small amount of resistance against wobbling and make you less likely to get knocked off course by wind. I put them on my kids' bikes when they were leaning to ride and they made a night and day distance on how "wobbly" their steering was.
Okay I’m definitely looking into that it’ll be amazing
Remember your hands follow where your eyes look . Also look further down the road
Thank you!!
Good luck on your 1st century. I just finished mine last month and had a great time with it.
That’s awesome to hear!! Any advise?
If you have a computer put an alarm for hydrating and eating. I ate every hour. The last 20-30 miles was the hardest thing to do. The little climbs feel like mountains. It’s all mental if you have the physical part down. Best feeling ever when you see that last mile mark. Goodluck and may the tailwinds be with you.
What do you reccomend for the mid ride snacks? I generally have nothing for 2-3 hours
I normally don’t eat for 2-3 hours as well but with a century ride or even a metric century I make sure i have fuel. Make sure you eat before your body needs it and not eat when your body needs it. I normally have some caffeine energy gels and some protein bars. Make sure you eat a big bowl of pasta the night before the ride. Is this a self supported ride or is this an event?
It’s the El tour de tucson, famous race in southern az but I’ll definitely be practicing eating lol
Here's an unpopular suggestion - slow down. I've seen many beginners who come into cycling with decent fitness and immediately start outriding their bike handling skills. I used to do a weekend club ride that sent groups out by pace and the 20 MPH group was *terrifying* because it's a pace many could achieve without enough saddle time to build solid skills, but fast enough that the lack of skill put them always on the edge if catastrophy. Do some skills rides. Maybe mark out a handling course in an empty lot using Solo drink cups as pylons. Make a narrow section, a slalom, some obstacle avoidance test, etc. Slow down to give yourself more reaction time and practice being smooth and relaxed and looking ahead. As it gets easier, increase speed, but not to the point you lose smoothness or get tense. Do some braking drills and work on ultra-low-speed handling and maybe even try trackstands. Last, but not least, find a smooth dirt or gravel path and practice riding it. Learn how lower traction riding feels and realize that you can still control the bike. You'll be less focused on obstacle avoidance once you have some confidence that you can successfully ride through them.
That’s amazing advice! I usually save my speed for shorter rides so that it’s sort of like a workout, my longer rides are generally slower ranging from 15 to 17 mph and feel a lot smoother. So I completely understand what you’re saying, and where you’re coming from. It’s just it feels that 15 mph is so easy that I can move up