The Eleven Cities Bicycle Tour - which bent to take?

[UpWrong]

I’m entered for this 235 km cycle event in Friesland, the Netherlands, in early June https://www.fietselfstedentocht.frl/en/ ... cycle-tour

That’s around 150 miles, a distance I have never completed before. I participated in the 2019 event and dropped out early on. TBH, I’ve put on weight and I’ll be 3 years older this time. Going with a friend and am pondering which bike to take: Stratus XP, Nazca Paseo or P-38. I was on the Paseo last time.

I also have this idea of cycling from Hook of Holland to where the event starts in Bolsward, Friesland; 192 km according to Google. Realistically that’s 3 days there and 3 days back, with a day for the event. Which means carrying clothes for 8 days or so, or doing a wash somewhere..

Thinking of taking the XP. It’s comfortable, and reliable. Don’t think it will fit on a Dutch intercity train though, with small end of coach bike cupboards. Probably be ok on their slower commuter type trains which have more open compartments with a large space at the end

Or the P-38 which is much lighter and fits on trains ok, though I’d be nervous of it getting bashed. Neither the P-38 or the XP are aero though, and Holland can be notoriously windy. And if it rains, heaven help me on the P-38 which has a sponge seat pad which will take days to dry.

[belgiangoth]

P-38 as it's your new bike. Pack a something to over the seat in case of rain.

[UpWrong]

P-38 as it's your new bike. Pack a something to over the seat in case of rain.

I'll have to give it a try loaded up with some panniers.

I still have some concerns about the seat cover coming off or ripping apart. I'm not convinced I was sent the right size cover for the seat. Guess confidence will only grow with a lack of such failure as the weeks go by.

[yostumpy]

Why did you pack in last time?

[UpWrong]

Why did you pack in last time?

I was just feeling very tired. I think getting to Friesland and getting to the start line for the very early start had exhausted me, The weather had been poor during the journey there (we took two days cycling it) and I hadn't been sleeping well. I pulled out before the ride got too far away from our accomodation, so there was a psychological factor to pulling out so early. To an extent I had gone in for it to give my mate moral support. He finished the whole thing.

The ride is done as a figure of 8, the top loop first then the bottom loop. I think the top loop is 85 miles, the bottom 65. I pulled out only at the second checkpoint in the top loop I think. Realistically, I'd be happy to complete the top loop which brings you back to tthe starting point. If I go with that in mind, I can make a more leisurely start and ride myself in.

It's a mass event wiith something like 15,000 participants and it takes about 3 hours to get them all underway. You are given a time slot for the start, which is not yet allocated. At least this time I know how the event is organised, where it is and what to expect. The nearest accomodation I could find is about 8 miles away from the start.

[Tigerbiten]

Speed vs comfort ??
If your fastest bike is a good 4-5mph faster than the others with the same effort then I'd go for speed.
Being able to cut 25%-30% off your time/effort is not to be missed.
But if only ~1 mph faster then I'd probably go for comfort.
Remember that comfort does not only cover how smooth the ride is but also how twitchy the steering is.
Nothing beats being able to just sit there and relax when you're running on empty towards the end of a long day in the saddle.

Luck ............

[UpWrong]

Good question. If you are going to be riding for 10+ hrs then comfort really matters. The speed differences between my recumbent bikes is 1 or 1.5 mph. The P-38 is significantly better for climbing but may be only 0.5 mph up on the RANS average.

The RANS wins the comfort stakes. The seat is the winner. It's comfortable and I can shift around on it to maximise my power output. Plus the low BB means better blood flow to the calf muscles. Interestingly, I have shortened the seat stays by one hole (maybe 1.5cm) and my comfort and my power output have both increased I think. I feel I am more perched on the saddle horn with less weight on my glutes.

[UpWrong]

I have a start time for the ride, 5:56 am. Will aim to get up at 4 and leave the accommodation at 5 am I think.

I did a ride on the P-38 this morning. It felt good but I might be prone to leg cramps on it, possibly because of it's more closed riding position and higher BB. I'll aim to get a longer ride in next weekend to see if that's a risk.