A Long Recumbent Bike Ride - Plus a Tortoise

I headed out one morning with a loose plan: get at least 60 miles in on my Bacchetta Giro recumbent, with a shot at 75 if I was feeling good. By 7:30am I already had eight miles behind me, snacks and electrolytes packed, and a couple of turnaround points in mind depending on how the legs held up.

Fueling the Ride

For a ride this long, nutrition matters as much as legs. I went with a cold-soaked lunch of dehydrated refried beans - light to carry and good for a few hundred calories of solid carb energy. Trail mix came along too, doctored with extra chocolate chunks since the store-bought mix didn't have any, good for another few hundred calories. For hydration, I carried three bottles, mixed with electrolytes, with a planned refill stop along the way.

Grinding Out the Miles

By 23 miles in, conditions were warm - upper 70s with 65% humidity - but I was still feeling good, riding at what I'd call about 60% exertion. I stopped at a set of ball fields to stretch my legs, refill water bottles at a nice cool fountain, and grab some trail mix before deciding to push further than planned. At 36 miles I found my turnaround spot, which would make it a 72-mile round trip - a number I was happy to commit to as my legs started sending the first signals it was time to head back.

The Tortoise and the Hare

Somewhere along that long, steady grind - no standing sprints, no bursts of speed, just consistent effort mile after mile - this ride turned into its own little version of The Tortoise and the Hare. Slow and steady really does cover ground: 72 miles isn't won by going out hard, it's won by pacing yourself and trusting the process, one pedal stroke at a time.

Back Home

Rolling back into the driveway felt great. I want to be clear - the point of this ride wasn't to brag about distance. It's really a testament to what a recumbent bike makes possible: that level of comfort lets you rack up serious mileage without beating up your body the way an upright bike can over the same distance. If you're curious about long-distance touring on a recumbent, hopefully my nutrition and hydration plan gives you a good starting point for your own big ride.