A year of miles

The view from in back

This being the last day of 2014, I thought I would recap my year on the bike.  It seems to me, like I did not ride a lot, this year.  Mentally, I don't recall a lot of riding, though Strava says otherwise.  Yes, I use Strava to keep track of mileage, and performance, on my rides.

Since we started riding again, back in 2011 I have wanted to increase my total mileage ridden each year.  I have tried for 4000 miles for a couple of years.  I did not hit that goal, yet again.  Perhaps 2015 will be that year...

I don't know why exactly, I seem unable to hit that mileage goal.  It really isn't all that difficult to do, and it need not involve lots of really long rides to do it.  Just lots of rides period, will get me there.  This year, I got into a real funk about riding (same as the end of last year, after my October crash).  Partly, it was related to DH's health issue over last winter.  Partly it's the fact I don't feel right riding, if DH can't ride.  I know, I'm just weird that way.

This year saw me sell one bike of mine, and buy two others.  Yes I have two singles to ride, plus the tandem, and I guess the mountain bike still counts as a third single, though it only gets ridden far enough to run the dogs, as it just isn't comfortable any more.  I spent more miles on my Specialized Roubaix than I thought I would.  It is a good bike, though my max on it is about 40 miles before it just gets uncomfortable to ride.  It is a good bike for doing hill torture on, as you can power it uphill pretty easily.

I didn't do any solo t-shirt rides this year.  In fact, I think I only did two, Tour De Paris, on the tandem, with DH, and Octoginta.  We had planned and paid for the Turkey Roll in November, but for the second year, bad weather forced us to cancel.

Paris, not Paris.

Who's that good lookin' guy?  Wonder if he needs a stoker?

Finally, here this December, my dream bike, my carbon Encore, arrived.  So far, it is everything I had hoped it would be.  Light, fast, and comfortable.  It's way more comfy than I had imagined it would be.  I had always expected carbon to give a harsh ride, due to its stiffness, and coupled with a hardshell seat, I imagined some issues would crop up.  I am SO happy to be wrong on that count!  This is one sweet ride!

One happy Encore owner!

I did actually succeed in one biking goal this year, sort of by accident.  I had not kept up with my total mileage until I looked at it this month.  I actually did set a new mileage record for myself!  2170 miles so far this year.  I may have to add to that today**, on this last day of the year 2014, just for grins.  Now, that isn't really a lot of miles, when you consider DH doubled me, and he lost the better part of 4 mo riding due to illness and injury.  But for me, I still managed to beat my previous mileage high, so I am happy.

Next year, we are planning a cross-state ride with the Monkeys, and I plan to put a lot more miles on the Encore.  I need to get my recumbent-legs back, so I can see what this bike is capable of, with this engine on board.  I am again hoping to top 4000 miles in 2015, maybe I can even double this year's total!  That would a pretty good goal for 2015 I think.

May you all have smooth roads, sunshine and tailwinds in the new year!

**Year end total after today's short subfreezing ride: 2182.5 miles.

***My year in review via Strava