To the Ride, Not a Resolution

By Brandon Roach January 1, 2013

Pillaging through another year I come to a point of my year starting to be planned around bike rides.  The rides I do every year are getting so popular that if you don’t register right away you are out of luck.  So instead of pondering resolutions, it is a great way to start off the year.  Filling my calendar brings a mapped adventure for my usually unplanned weekends and northwest summers.  It tends to lead to so many adventures I would’ve never had any other way.  Visiting little towns I had no clue that existed, with people excited that you are buying local goods or having a cup of coffee with them.  Some people actually give their time to riders and enjoy the presence of the whistling bikes that run through.

Just got through registering for three rides with the Cascadia Club.  Added a new one this year and it all starts off in second week of February.  I plan on doing a bit better than last year but time will tell.

Looking ahead into this year the Timbers again have a game over the Seattle to Portland Bike ride.  Happens to be against the Galaxy again.  Hopefully I will get to see it on the flat screens under the stars in Centralia.

For Christmas I got a new toy to document my riding this year.  The Gopro Hero Black, will be riding with me and I bought a bento box to put my Iphone in.  I can control the camera from my phone.  I ended up with shots last year that I could of not gotten any other way.

There is a lot of fun not knowing conditions of the ride, having to prepare for multiple things.  You could have a tailwind that helps you or the opposite and it is an even a harder ride.  Equipment might fail or pull over to meet someone new and help them out.  What bikes people will be riding and challenging themselves with.  What you will feel like at the hills.

For myself I know when signed up that I will have to do these.  But it is a progression that I must stay prepared for and get my mind ready for.  I admit I know what I am walking into which is a little relief from previous years.  There is also anxiousness to start and get active, because before you know it the back to back centuries will start coming.

Now that days are starting to hit upper 50 degree territory that is almost my favorite weather to ride in. add another 5 degrees.  My body heats up enough to be comfortable as long as I don’t stop for long periods.

Every ride I fall a little more for the Northwest, there is just so much character and personality to still be discovered.  As every turn discovers sections I haven’t seen before or to see improvement in a big section of the country.

My year again is setup with key long distance rides that I will have to prepare for.  This strategy has helped me a lot of at least being active 8 months out of the year and gives me a good base to add more challenging activities.


To the ride,

Brandon Roach