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So, just had my first longer bike ride in a long time, it was about 15 miles to work. Seemed easy enough . Road was pretty flat most of the way.
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The worst is when they pass you right at the exact time an oncoming car is passing you on the right lane. I think of it as a sandwich , they are the jam and you end up bring one of the slices of bread. It seems like it also encourages other drivers behind to squeeze through too.
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Ok so I have about 12 weeks to get ready to go to John o groats
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If I did about 70 mile a day (which I can spilt up through the morning/afternoon /evening) I think that would be a good balance between not being away from the family too long and landing in good locations for hotels or camping
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I also need to get my diet in order. I’m pretty knowledgeable in this department, research a lot about food and fasting etc. did a 9 day water fast a while back. So the discipline is there. At times ! I do love carbs tho. Thinking about keto or low carb diet to help lose weight as well as keeping my calorie intake consistent and not too high. Saying that , I love carbs 😄 and I kind of feel like my body likes carbs and I may need them for energy while riding long days. I dunno. Part of the fun is knowing in 20 miles youl be sitting down at an Indian buffet for supper 😄
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If a long ride is 15 miles, in 12 weeks you might find a 70 mile ride in a day to be quite difficult. If that is every day, that could be murder. But it depends on hills. If you can't enjoy a bike tour, it will be your last bike tour. Maybe you can get to that point, it depends on your age and fitness level.
19 years ago for me, a 6 mile ride was a long ride.
But I worked on it. A few years later, got to the point were a 20 mile exercise ride was pretty good, but a 35 mile ride was a chore.
Then 14 years ago I did my first loaded bike tour with camping gear, a 50-60 mile ride each day was tough, but do-able and not bad enough to make me stop bike touring.
Then 4 years ago (just before Covid), did my first 200k brevet (126 miles). That was the same year I did my Canadian Maritimes tour. One fourth of my days on that tour were over 60 miles, those were the longer days. I would not have wanted to do a 70 mile a day average. You might instead think of a maximum that you want to do in planning, and then add a few zero distance days.
My Canadian Maritimes tour, it was 33 days on the bike, I had three days that I did not travel due to high winds and no travel for three days of rain. Two of those three rain days, when I saw that much rain was in the forecast, I changed my plan and stayed at a hostel in Charlottetown for three nights to avoid the worst of the rain, did some sightseeing in a historic community instead.
Most of the snow has melted here, two days ago I did a 33.3 mile exercise ride, trying to get ready for another 200k brevet that is four weeks from today. To be followed by a 470 mile bike tour. Unfortunately for my exercise ride, I found one of the bike paths had not been snow plowed, was nasty ice (first photo) where it was shaded from very much sunlight. But I could ride a 200k last year, so I think I can build up to it in four weeks.
My planned bike tour next month would be with an old friend that I have bike toured with before. He has not bike toured since 2017, I have not since 2019. We are planning an overnight in about 2 or 3 weeks, short distance, but enough to remember what it is like. And to test our gear. Plan is 20 miles each of two days, but on gravel so it would be slower than pavement. We will be bringing our touring gear for that, as a test.
You might want to add an overnight tour a couple weeks before your trip.
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Regarding being passed by a car at the same time that a car is coming from the other direction and for a split second you would be three abreast on the road, two cars and your bike, that is tough. A couple times a year I pull off the road and stop if I see a car ahead and another car behind in my mirror where it looks like they will both get to me simultaneously. Sometimes you can't get off the road if there is a steep embankment or something, you just have to hug the edge as close as you can. It is worst if you are approaching a hill or curve where you can see both cars, but neither car driver can see the other car, for them it is a surprise when they get to both you and the other car and they have no time to think in advance what to do. If I see a huge truck approaching me on a windy day, there have been a few days I stopped and pulled off the pavement so that the wind blast does not suck me into the traffic lane behind them as they pass.
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Diet? I am not sure if you are talking for the next 12 weeks or if you mean food for the trip.
One pound of body weight is about 3500 calories that you removed from your normal diet. It is not too hard to cut 500 calories a day which is one pounds per week, but more is harder and if you are trying to build up muscle at the same time, that is difficult.
After my Iceland bike tour, my physician diagnosed a bad protein deficiency. I try to make sure that I get enough protein every day that involves significant exertion. On a bike tour, I try to eat a protein bar with 20 grams of protein after I finish my riding each day. Physical trainers will tell you that you need protein after a hard workout for muscle recovery.
For other foods during your bike tour, it is not a race so your exertion level will be low to moderate. Thus, trying to only eat carbs like a racer is not necessary. The article at this link is old and has old data but it is still one of the best articles that I have seen on the types of food needed for different exertion levels. At low exertion, your body fat stores is enough.
https://www.roadbikerider.com/energy-sources-exercise-intensities/That article was silent on electrolytes. I try to keep some salty snack food in my handlebar bag in case I feel that I am just running out of energy where calories and water don't fix it, the next option I try is something salty for electrolytes.
Second photo, this is a great meal (fish and chips) for after a long day in the saddle. I ordered it with double fish for more protein. From the map I have on the table, I can say I ate that on Prince Edward Island.
