For various reasons, I haven’t been very active on the bicycle the last three years. When I finished my birthday ride back in 2006, my bike computer read 15,795 miles. That’s cumulative mileage since I got the computer in 1999, I think. I’ve not done a whole lot of riding since then. When I dusted off the bike on Saturday for my ride to the office, the computer read 16,788. Figure a thousand miles in three and a half years.
Yeah, I’ve been lazy.
Ever since I got a road bike, I’ve wanted to ride the Hotter’N Hell Hundred, which is something of a rite of passage for Texas cyclists. But every year I’ve made tentative plans to do the ride, something has come up. My friend Frank Colunga, who did the third Gunny Ski ride with us, has been doing that ride the last few years, and this year he laid down a challenge. Craig (my other friend from the Gunny Ski rides) and I have accepted the challenge and will be heading to Wichita Falls at the end of August. That’s the plan, barring any unforeseen circumstances. This year I’m going to register for the ride in advance so that I have more incentive to go.
Today, the bike computer says 16,839. My goal is to have it read 20,000 by the end of the year. 3,200 miles seems like a lot of riding in nine months, but it really isn’t. For example, it’s right at nine miles from home to the office. In a couple of weeks I’ll be in good enough shape to do that ride every day. If that 18 mile round trip commute five days per week was all I did, I’d have 3,200 miles in just 35 weeks. There are 39 weeks left in the year.
So the goal looks like it’s too easy? Not necessarily. The hard part is sticking to it. If I stick to the training plan I’ve outlined, I’ll be at 19,000 miles before I even start the Hotter’N Hell ride. I’ll re-evaluate my end-of-year goal when I get home from Wichita Falls.