Whether I shall turn out to
be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody
else, these pages must show
Charles Dickens
OK, perhaps somewhat melodramatic for a ride plan but it
seems that each year for the past several I’ve put together a plan that includes a number of longer
rides I want to do for the year and always end up falling short of the plan by either not finishing or not starting some of the rides.
This has mostly been due to injury (back) with the majority of these injuries
caused by me doing something stupid (a persistent failing).
So the question presents itself: why do I keep making these
aggressive plans when I’ve historically not been able to fully realize them? Good
question! Here are a few answers:
- I choose rides that interest me because they take me to places I've not been or to places I want to visit again.
- I want to ride with friends that I've made around the world. It turns out that there's a small (but deeply disturbed ;-) ) group of people that do 1200K's so you tend to see a lot of the same people at different places around the world. One of the things that I like about the shared struggle that is randonneuring is the friendships that are formed.
- To continue to challenge myself. Although I hate a DNF as much (or more) as the next person, the truth is that you don't really know how any long ride is going to go so you just toe the start line and give it your best. If in my post ride analysis (which I do a considerable amount of) I can say that I did the best I could that's enough for me regardless of whether I finished or not. Having said that, I'm perhaps foolish enough to say that if I'm healthy, I finish. There's really only one ride (Hound Dog 1200K) that I didn't finish because I managed the ride (heat) poorly. Other than that, I've mostly been laid low by back pain, usually on rides that I started with my back hurting. Over the years I've learned a few things that trigger it and/or make it worse and have learned to avoid doing those things but despite this there's no guarantee it won't recur.
- March - Murray 1200K (Australia). I'll be starting the year in the land down under. This one is fairly flat (just under 12K feet of climbing) so plan is to take it easy ride myself into shape. The year has gotten off to a fairly bad start with a strained soleus and I've not done much in the way of longer rides thus far barring a single 200K which was the cause of the soleus strain. I'm hoping to get in a few longer rides before I leave but given that's only three weeks away time is getting short. I'm also planning on a fléche while in Australia. Looking forward to seeing my Aussie friends!
- One "for sure" and one "probably" for April:
- HCR 1000K. I did this one in 2019. I always enjoy riding with the HCR crew and like the route so I'd like to go back and do it again. If I do, it'll be enroute to returning home to Wisconsin from Texas. I'll decide depending on how I feel after the Australia trip
- Okayama 1200K (Japan). I've wanted to ride in Japan for a number of years. I've been there a few dozen times but always on business trips. Although I did manage a bit of sight seeing on those trips, seeing the world at bike speeds is definitely a lot more enjoyable.
- May - brevet series in Wisconsin. Not a complete series but the 200K-400K over three weekends. I'll need to get an ACP 600K somewhere to finish the series.
- June - a big month!
- Northern Virginia 1200K. My friend Hamid is putting this one on. I've ridden in Virginia and Maryland several times but have never done a 1200K there.
- Sandhills Tour. Spencer Klaassen has put together a 4 day loop through the Sandhills of Nebraska with each day being approximately 200K.
- Tour of the Driftless 1000K. My annual 1000K that I actually plan on riding this year!
- July - Colorado SR600K. Going to take another run at it after my DNF last year. Hoping for better weather - and a better back! This is the remaining thing I need for the ACP R10000 award.
- August - Hokkaido 1200K. Back to Japan! The Okayama and Hokkaido are on two different islands of Japan so I expect they'll be completely different experiences. Although I've been to Japan a number of times, my visits have been to the mainland and predominantly to the larger cities (Tokyo, Osaka, etc). Hokkaido is more rural so it should be an interesting contrast.
- September - motorcycle trip. Destination unknown. Drink beer and gain weight. Recharge the batteries.
- October - plan still in the works.
- November - Great Southern 1200K. I was DNF last time with back issues on day two after a pretty good first day so I've got some unfinished business to attend to!
Stay tuned!
