I wake up to the sound of my alarm. It’s still dark outside; everything in me wants to go to bed after being up until 11pm riding my bike the previous night. After silently acknowledging the pain my legs are in from the previous 3 days of riding and how much my body and mind are begging me for more sleep, I drag myself out of bed. Squinting in the dark, I locate my biking shorts, a sports bra, and socks, and sluggishly put them on. Eyes barely open, I skulk into my kitchen where my bike is set up as a stationary bike, open my iPad to the Zwift app and begin pedaling.
This year alone, I was one of over 270,000 people who hopped on their bike with the hope of completing one of cycling’s best known challenges, Rapha’s Festive 500. The goal is to ride 500 km (310 miles) in the eight days between Christmas Eve and New Years Eve. The Festive 500 grew from the mind of Rapha’s former lead designer, Graeme Raeburn, who based the distance on an estimate of what pros were doing during winter training. To put 500 km into perspective, driving to the Canadian border from Providence is about the same distance. At this point, you may be wondering why anyone would put themselves through the hours of riding, often in the freezing cold or staring at a screen on a stationary bike- for little more than the satisfaction of completion, a digital finish trophy for your Strava profile, and a 20% coupon.
For me, after years of hearing about my friends doing it, I decided to participate on a whim – I wanted to know what it was like to do that amount of mileage, and see if I had the discipline needed to finish it. For Matt Reinhardt, it’s about doing things by bike he might not otherwise – like riding to Christmas brunches, meeting up with friends for coffee, and delivering presents. He recalls one year when he met up with friends to start a 100 mi ride as the clock ticked midnight on December 24. While Raeburn insisted in his 2019 article that the heart of the challenge is about getting outside and sharing time with people, rather than mile chasing and head banging, my first attempt at the challenge involved a significant portion of the latter.
Many people who attempt the Festive 500 have extra days off for the holidays, but I was working an 8 – 5 retail job which meant I had to be very intentional about my attempt. To keep the 310 mi attainable, I decided to do about 40 miles a day. To accomplish this, the bulk of my miles were alone on my bike trainer and almost every day involved dragging my butt out of bed at 5am for a one hour ride before work, and immediately hopping on my bike for another 2 hours when I got home from work around 6pm. Most days I woke up exhausted and put homework and housework on the back burner, but around 6 days in, when the end was in sight and my legs had started to adapt to the mileage, I experienced a mental shift. And now, a week past, I can look back with (mostly) fond memories because I achieved my goal – to do the mileage, and keep disciplined in riding. Just don’t ask about the state of my house. If I were to do this challenge again, there are a few things I would do differently.
My favorite parts of this year were when I was riding outside. I rode to my friend’s house for a board game night – about 4 miles each way. While we were playing Wingspan, I heard the faint sound of rain hitting the roof and realized I was going to have a wet ride home. And sure enough, when I went out a few hours later, it was still drizzling and both my bike and the roads were drenched. Yet, as I flew home in the pitch black, dodging bunnies along the way, I found a sense of joy that I hadn’t experienced in a long time. There is an unexpected sense of catharsis and play that came with riding along the rain soaked bike path. As I approached my house, I found it hard to part ways with my bike, so I just rode past and continued on until the reality of the dreaded 5am wake up set in.
As much joy as riding outside was, the reality of my work makes it unrealistic for me to do all of the mileage outside. As we enter this new year, I would like to create a checklist of things to do by bike which includes things like drop off a present, get coffee, complete 2 rides with friends or family, explore a new location, and pick up groceries. I encourage you to do the same. If you are someone who is intrigued by the Festive 500, but hasn’t built up the bike fitness, or doesn’t have the time around the holidays to complete all 500 km, remember that it’s okay to create your own version – it’s just about getting out there and feeling the rain, even if you get a little wet. •
Photo by Emily Boardman
