How's your year panning out?

[gairym]

Mine is a year of two halves.

Life went a tad sideways this year with baby #3 5/9ths of the way to completion, our old house finally selling (went through yesterday), our current landlord informing us that we have to move out a month before Mrs Gairys due date as well as my work getting busier and busier - fun times ahead!!!

So far this has all had minimal impact on my planned trips.

I've managed about 10 of the 24 weekly centuries my plan says I should have completed by now but that's no big deal, I've still been riding plenty.

The Fatbiking Europe Camp in January was a hoot - much fun and games in the Jura (Swiss not Scottish).

I did a version of the Veneto Gravel event route solo as I couldn't make the group start - it's an amazing part of the world to ride in!

Despite GPS troubles (and so officially a DNF) I kept on truckin' and finished the Tuscany Trail this year. Once the pressure was off due to having to go off-route to sort my Garmin out I felt a lot more relaxed about the whole thing and ended up just enjoying myself and yet still putting in a lot of effort to get the thing done in such insane heat - a really, really great trip.

As for the rest of the year, I've cancelled everything and I'll just have to see what time life allows me between everything that's going on.

Hoping to do a few gravelly long day overnighters in the coming month or two but then once we get to August it'll be all hands on deck for moving house and getting ready for the new arrival.

Oh and I also entered my first ever alpine trail running (or any running) event next month. An odd move as I don't run but I just fancied a change of scenery and thought that I'd give it a shot - wish me luck!!!

[DrMekon]

Obviously still recovering from big RTA.
Done
200km in spring - awful
DKTTR on / off road audax - first back by an hour. Real confidence boost (albeit "winning an audax" is about the wankiest boast possible)
Bryan Chapman - 28h38m - felt great
200km at the weekend - first back, felt strong

To do
600km (3 coasts) at the weekend - am prepped, weight and other metrics where I planned. Can I go sub 28h so I am doing it r70 style? http://cyclosmontagnards.org/R80Rules.html
Pendle 600 - still scared
LEL1400 - would like to be brave and try for 76h
Night start 600 - for shits and giggles in September - whatever

[ianpv]

Great so far on a biking front. HT550 entry meant that everything has been frontloaded. Highlights:

Transcambrian way in a day
Braunton 150
Lakeland 200
HT550

plus LVIS audax in Bristol, a scott mtb marathon, and a bit of XC racing, and some chaingang riding desperately holding on to the fast lads in Bristol.

Not sure what to do now - not really done anything since HT550 but may do a local time trial tonight. Will probably do a couple more short mtb races, maybe the CL again in September?

[whitestone]

Just got an email from Stuart Rider - the YD300 is in 9 days' time not 16 as I thought

I've only done two rides since the HT550 and have felt tired after both of them. Oh dear!

[Cheeky Monkey]

Broadly speaking not to plan and not such a great year but whining about it (to myself or anyone else) won't funkin' help

Looking forward to this broken knuckle healing and getting back to stuff. In typical silver-lining style am finding that running (very early stages) isn't absolutely awful or ruining me as badly as it used to - very expensive trainers may be helping - so will just keep on keeping on

[Richard G]

Just got an email from Stuart Rider - the YD300 is in 9 days' time not 16 as I thought

I've only done two rides since the HT550 and have felt tired after both of them. Oh dear!

Still most definitely the 1st/2nd. lol

[whitestone]

Shows my state of mind

[Scattamah]

A year of ups and downs here...

Ups: Met Mike during brekky @ Winter Event. Winter bivvies. Made it to Braunton again. Got to ride across Spain. Made it to WRT (hyperlite edition).
Downs: Cracked tailbone 2nd Jan. on black ice - Winter Event was tough going due to this. DNF'd Braunton again. Got crook before Spain. Missed WRT (full edition).

As long as I make it to TNR again and I'm good health, I'll be a happy Scattamah. Hello, Molini Pools.

Greetz

S.

[jameso]

Doing ok here. Made it to Nepal for 2 weeks in April so can't top that during the remainder of the year, but there'll be so many good folks to ride with along the TNR that I'm looking fwd to that as much as I was to Nepal. A friend is coming over from Canada and a couple of guys from Israel/HLC'14 are riding. Molini pools would be good, indeed. Could stay there a day or 2 happily.

As for the rest or the shorter trips, just fitting in those long rides from home I hope. A couple of 3-4 day rides on the rando bike, hopefully one into Wales. WRT was great, glad I got that in, cheers Ben and Zippy, really got my enthusiasm back for rides closer to home.
Scotland was a bonus, 3 days soft-packing for a Pinnacle film trip, really enjoyed that. Plug - the film featuring me and Stuart among others is on the Evans site. Thankfully neither of us feature heavily : )

[slarge]

Done ok so far this year. Winter event with Mike, Zippy & Scott, then a cracking weekend in Edinburgh; a couple of Sportives organised by friends, lots of riding but not enough social riding, then finishing the HT550 at last - not quite sub 4 days unless I round it down optimistically. Got a holiday to Ireland in a week, then a 12 hour race.

Turns out 50 isn't too bad, although there's a few grey hairs now.

[AlasdairMc]

I'm having a good year too.

I finished 9 months of working in London in October, and I've been recovering my fitness ever since, so it has been good to get back onto top form.

Strathpuffer - third time riding it, first time enjoying it. Everything went so well until I got injured, but even then I have no regrets.
Cairngorms Loop - finished it for the third time, but the first time in three years for a number of reasons. Faster than before, but moving slower due to weather, so I was properly happy with that. Also riding it with mates was good.
Highland Trail - I set an ambitious (to me) target of sub six days, with a secondary goal of enjoying it. I achieved both, didn't burst myself, and really enjoyed it all the time I was out there.

Next - originally I had thought about a fun paced Capital Trail in early July with a mate but this is unlikely to happen, so I may ride something else different that weekend.

After that, in September it's the Black Hills Expedition in South Dakota, which I'm feeling really confident about given where my fitness is now.

So far, so good...

[Richard G]

Got a holiday to Ireland in a week

Funnily enough, I'm over there as of next weekend. Where are you heading?

(I'm in the general Limerick area)

[ctznsmith]

I've ridden off road twice and bivvied for three nights (at an event).

Quite a change to the last few years but this year is all change (new house, city, job).

Have scaled back my thinking a bit as I realise my priorities have (needed?) to change being more static with more responsibility.

However with better planning I hope to get out more in the second half.

[burty]

whitestone wrote:
Just got an email from Stuart Rider - the YD300 is in 9 days' time not 16 as I thought

I've only done two rides since the HT550 and have felt tired after both of them. Oh dear!



thanks bob you just gave me a heart attack , thinking I had got all my dates mixed up ,
wales next weekend then dales after that

[Ray Young]

Effin rubbish. Plagued by a trapped nerve in my neck which the position you are in on a bike often brings on or makes worse if i'm already suffering with it. Very,very unhappy.

[sean_iow]

Mine's going well, from the 2017 Plans thread my aims were:-

Braunton 150 - My first event, went way better than I hoped
Downs 300 - Think I might do a SDW double instead but undecided.
Either Lakeland 200, Cairngorms Loop or Yorkshire Dales 300 - Planning a YD300 ITT next month
At least one BB event, BB200 is the most likely assuming I can get a place - I have a reminder in my phone ready for when entries open for the BB200.

The year is going quickly, half way through and only 1 ticked off the list so far but it was always likely to be that way as wanted to get the Braunton done first and see how I got on.

Still on course for a full year of BAM as well.

[ZeroDarkBivi]

Missed more events than I made, but still been good so far, finally cracking the HT550 being the highlight, and even enjoying it too!

Don't want to jinx things, but yet to have that mid year injury/ mechanical that blights the summer, but clearly still time for that!

Not sure how the rest of the year will pan out, with quite vague ideas of what I can do as and when I can convince my over zealous new boss to let me have the time off I am due. Hopefully that will include at least one overseas trip, probably TNR again.

[slarge]

Richard, getting the ferry to Rosslare, then driving to Waterford for a day, then working our way to the Ring of Kerry and then up to Galway, then across to Dublin for a day or so and the ferry back from Dublin. Camper vanning it so no firm ties or plans.

[Fat tyre kicker]

Bike wise....pretty crap.....health wise......worse.......will I give up.... no
Fitness wise, on the up despite some issues, recent tragic news brings things
Home.......this is not a rehearsal...

[fatbikephil]

No bad
2016 was the year of back pain for me and I'd hoped that 2017 would be pain free but as it happens this is not the case. However I've learned to live with it.....
Highlights so far have been a couple of good weekend trips, the fat bike weekend at North Berwick (usual mental beach riding chaos plus vast quantity of fine ale drank) and yon cycle tour of the West and north West highlands which went much better than expected.
Borders 350 coming up which will be another excercise in (knee) pain management and got some cycle touring planned plus a nice decadent week in the Yorkshire dales stopping in my folks static caravan and doing some fine day rides and drinking some fine ale.
Could be better but could be (much) worse so all in all

[Mart]

My years not so bad.... but have done less cycling than expected. I'm enjoying being active and doing a variety of stuff. Managed the WRT but also being doing longer day rides at the weekend to keep me trundling along

I'm 10kgs lighter and fitter than pre-Xmas, which is a real positive for me. Back doing my swimming and also had a few surf trips to Nth Devon
Still planning on a few longer trips but not making any definite dates, just grab them if there is an opportunity

[Dan_K]

My year started in the worst possible way. Found out that the wife was having an affair with my mate since last summer. Went off the rails, gave up on everything really.
Kids gave me a reason to pull myself together so I spent a lot of time on my bike getting perspective while being around for them.
Back at work now. Have lost over 3 stone and we're all thriving. Kids are with me full time and I'm managing to cope really well and hold down a full time job. Work have been amazingly supportive.
I'm riding faster and harder than I ever have, looking great and I've met someone new who's incredible and someone who I'd wish I'd met long ago. Life is good.
January 0/10
June 10/10.

[gairym]

that's a hell of year so far.

Top marks for keeping your sh1t together and getting on with making life good - chapeau!

[Richard G]

Richard, getting the ferry to Rosslare, then driving to Waterford for a day, then working our way to the Ring of Kerry and then up to Galway, then across to Dublin for a day or so and the ferry back from Dublin. Camper vanning it so no firm ties or plans.

Sadly it looks like we're getting distinctly average weather for our trips. =/

Make sure you wave when you pass by Ennis on the M18 heading towards Galway.

[HaYWiRe]

Never as much riding as i like, winter was tough dealing with the cold (and non existent circulation on the bike) camping has close to non existent but im getting into more trail riding now.

Fittest ive ever been, doing a greater mix of outdoor stuff with hiking and running.

Diabetes is well under control with zero help from my doctors as i haven't seen anyone since last November! They keep forgetting i exist!

Things never go to plan which is a great excuse not to plan.....infact myself and my fiancé spent all our savings in new bikes rather than wedding planning.....still dont know if ill regret that one. Priorities right?

Dispite much less distance my actual mountain biking skills are progressing rapidly and able to ride more challenging terrrain*

(Note the use of "more challenging " rather than just "challenging" as im better than i was...but far from any good!