Late Season Push

My goal every year is to ride 6000 miles. 6000 miles is a lot of miles, and a lot of things have to go right to be able to get that many miles in. Some of those things are under your control--fitness, discipline, dedication and consistency. Some are not like weather, health and work and life commitments. I've cleared 6000 miles 4 times before, one time ending the year at an incredible 7150 miles. Some years, I don't quite make it, finishing somewhere in the 5000's. Its not that 5500 miles is a bad year--its not. It is more than a lot of people ride. But I set the bar high at 6000 miles to give me self a goal for each year.

One of the hardest things about logging that many miles is being consistent. There comes a point, typically in late July or August when you are just a little burned out from riding. It is hard to find the time every weekend to go out and log 100+ miles. By this time, many of your other season goals have been accomplished, so it just gets hard to go sit on your bike for 5 or 6 hours. Its not that I don't enjoy it, but when you've been riding 800-900 miles a month for 4 months, you are just a little tired of it. So for me, I always seem to have this dip in my miles in late summer. And that makes it hard to get to 6000.

Weather and health are both big factors too. Catch a cold or the flu, it wipes out riding for a week. That happened to me twice this summer. I look back and wish I had those miles now. And in Wisconsin, there are months you simply cannot ride. Cold and snow don't make good riding conditions. I got one ride (10 miles) in during February, but otherwise we couldn't ride until mid-March. And typically in November, the weather deteriorates enough that riding just isn't pleasant. In 2008, I rode only 4 times after November 3rd.

That is where this year has been different. October was poor for riding, with the Appleton area receiving double its normal precipitation. But November has been fantastic. The daily highs have been around 50-55 degrees. Last weekend, both days were in the 60's. And for the most part, things have been dry. So you can get in a 50 or 60 mile ride on both days of the weekend without feeling like an icicle.

Warmer temperatures also mean warmer temperatures in the evening. Typically, it has been in the 40's during the evenings. If you have arm and leg warmers, full finger gloves and a cycling jacket, riding is very comfortable. I have set up the Serotta with two headlights and two taillights, so riding at night is no problem. I've got in about 7 additional rides I otherwise wouldn't have by riding after dark.

As of today, I sit at 5588 miles. Tomorrow (Sunday) I'll get about another 50. And then it will be up to the weather. If I can get a couple more decent weekends and fit in a few more rides at night, I'll be able to get close. The forecast for the next week calls for highs in the upper 40's to low 50's, so I am hoping that holds.

With a little luck, I'll sneak over 6000 before the weather forces me onto the CompuTrainer, because in my book, indoor miles don't count towards this goal.

Cycling Goals for 2009 Season

So here are my goals for the 2009 calendar year as it relates to cycling

Complete the Ride Across Indiana (RAIN) 156 mile ride in 7 hours, 45 minutes of ride time or less.
When: July 18, 2009 (http://bloomingtonbicycleclub.org/tours/rain/rain.html)
Why: Three times I've completed Seattle to Portland in a day, though the last time was in 2005. This is just my kind of event. Long ride, relatively flat, get in your big chain ring and let it rip. Team tactics will be critical. Find a good group of riders that that will trade off at the front and keep the pace high. Plus, its riding all the way across a state in one day. How many people can say they have done that. And I've never done a ride in Indiana before, so this will be a first. This is the goal I am really looking forward to-- a long distance endurance event, just what I like.

Earn a 1000 km RUSA Distance Award
When: 2009 Calendar Year
Why: I earned a 1000 km distance award in 2006, my first year of doing brevets. The last couple of years, I've been too busy to focus on doing brevets. I'd like to change that in 2009. This goal is really about season long fitness. Unlike goal number 1 being a one day ride, doing 1000 kms of brevets will require rides and fitness from spring to fall.

Win the Recyclist Indoor Cycling Miles Competition
I've already put a lot of work into this one. I'm leading the CompuTrainer competition with 330 miles. My closest competitor has 197. So yes, a big lead already, but this goal is more about staying active through the winter. I want to continue what I have been doing, a ride a week of about an hour and a two hour ride on the weekend. I feel like riding the CompuTrainer has already improved me as a cyclist, and if I keep it up over the next two months, I should have a nice foundation to accomplish the above goals. And hey, nothing wrong with a new bike either.


What This is Going to Take

Prepare a Solid Foundation in the Winter
It is going to be pretty much impossible to ride outdoors until sometime in March. Snow and cold have a way of doing that to you. But I need to go into March with a solid foundation, so specifically for the next two months I need to

• Ride the CompuTrainer twice a week for a total of 3 hours of bike time
• Make my way to the pool and swim for an hour twice a week
• Work on my core strength. Maybe I should actually do that Power Yoga DVD I bought a few years ago. Or the core strength program Bicycling Magazine has

Learn some Discipline in the Diet

• I drink way too much soda. Always have. But that means a lot of calories. Time to discipline myself. I did this successfully a couple years back and it helped a lot
• Minimize the fatty food I eat. Chicken and Rice, Chicken and Rice, must remember chicken and rice. Minimize the beef, the brats, the mashed potatoes. I love them, but need to cut the fatty meals down to a couple times a week

Hit the Base Training Hard Come March and April

• As I look back to when I was doing STP a few years ago, I'd have weeks in April where I would put in 200 miles. That is a lot of volume, but it also provided a solid foundation. Those will be some hard weeks, but they will set the stage for the goals above

Fix My Hotfoot Problem

• I've been battling hotfoot (a burning, numbing sensation) in my right foot for 3 years. I need to get this figured out. Hard to go fast when you are in pain.

So there you have it. The 2009 goals. Goals are great, but now its up to execution. With that said, where is that Yoga DVD anyway?