Should Saturday Rides Build to Race Distance

I am on the 18 Week SS plan and have the Triple Bypass loaded up next, but I notice that the Saturday rides never really approach the time that will be spent in the saddle during the event.
Questions;

  1. Should I add distance/time to my Saturday ride so that I can get comfortable with the distance?
  2. Assuming the answer above is yes unless the fatigue impacts the next workout, can you explain the concept between the Saturday and Sunday ride splits I.e. sometimes Saturday is 4 hours and Sunday is 2 hours and other times they may be split equally for 3 hours each.

As always, I appreciate all of the information you provide and am stronger now than I have ever been at this time of the year thanks to your training plans.

Jim

Yes but no. Your Triple Plan has the right amount of riding for the 6 weeks prior to the event. You could adjust up in May but before then stick to the periodization provided in the plan.

Frank,

The longest ride in my Triple Bypass plan is only 5 hours. I’m not slow, but finishing a century with that much climbing will probably take me two times as long.

Jim