My buddy and I (39M) are planning on doing the [Green Mountain Gravel Growler](https://bikepacking.com/routes/green-mountain-gravel-growler/) in just over six months. I’m super stoked about the idea but also wondering if maybe it’s too much for my first bikepacking trip. I’ve never bikepacked or toured before, but have backpacked and I ride my bike regularly. However, my riding is frequent but pretty short distances in total, like last year I was probably on my bike 150 days but my total mileage was only about 1.1k miles (\~1.7k km). The riding I do is a combination of commuting and cross country/singletrack MTB.
I’m just worried that trying to do 21,000 ft (\~7000 meters) of gain on mostly unpaved roads over 5 days is too much. I’ll train as much as I can and can try to do a shorter trial trip before the big one in early fall, but I have a couple climbing trips in between I need to train for as well so it’s not like I can just ride my bike for 6 months straight.
Thoughts? Does my ambition exceed my means here or is this a reasonable stretch?
Also if anyone has done the route before is my [Haanjo trail gravel bike](https://www.rei.com/product/108761/diamondback-haanjo-trail-ultegra-bike-2017) up to the task? I might have to put fatter tires on it.
by Ozymandian4
7 Comments
Train with your bike loaded!
My partner and I did an abbreviated version a couple of years ago. The hills are no joke but the beers are great, especially Hill Farmstead
Well you have six months, get out there for an overnighter to see if you like it. I’d also say you should work up to 100-mile days on your bike before you go to build your understanding of water, calorie needs, and saddle sores.
Bike looks fine; I too agonize over it since my bike has only 36mm gravel tires. The smooth gravel portions are nice and fast, and the loose gravel is annoying, but it’s all part of the experience.
Figure out your nutrition and fluids. Bike packing is about the fun of being out there, so forget how fast you want to do it and just have fun with your buddy. You’ll find it’s a lot less stressful mentally and physically.
The route is planned for 50 mile days. A weekender or two on a fully loaded bike with similar elevation gain could teach you a lot about how ready you are. Are you able to do, say, a 120-140 mi (total) hilly out-and-back where you are? If you did something like that, averaging 60-70 miles a day, you’d get a sense of what needs tweaking. It’d be a couple of days longer than the average you’d need on the Gravel Growler, which would help you plan and adjust.
Sounds like you’re fit and comfortable on a bike. Practice a little, then go for it.
Am I reading this correctly that you have an average ride distance of about 10km? (1700km over 150 days…)?
In your current state, yes the gravel growler is above you capacity ilI would say. You need to train for longer rides and with load. Do you have a smart trainer? Or access to a good hill close by?
Start by doing longer rides on average (at least 70km) regularly. Your ass will appreciate the training too…
Then I’d say pick a hill, and go up and down it… Repeatedly. A lot.
Make sure you fuel right during those efforts. Training on empty isn’t good for you.
I did the Green Mountain Growler a few years ago. My post at the time is here:
[https://www.reddit.com/r/bikepacking/comments/ozccev/green_mountain_gravel_growler_complete/](https://www.reddit.com/r/bikepacking/comments/ozccev/green_mountain_gravel_growler_complete/)
I was not nearly in good enough shape. I was exhausted every night after the first night, sleeping like 11 hours a night. Looking at my cycling log from back then, the previous two months I biked 11 times for a total of 360 miles – a mix of flat gravel and mountain biking. Not nearly enough. I’d ballpark that if I want to be in decent shape, I would have had to bike at least twice as much in the previous two months. And more hills and with weight on the bike.
All that being said, the trip was simply awesome. It is a real sense of accomplishment for me – partially because I wasn’t in good enough shape. I highly recommend it.