To make my goal of riding 4,000 miles this year, with 4,000 kilometres within that being loaded touring…
I need to ride 350 miles each month, including 350 kilometres of touring: 350 miles/kms x 12 months = 4200 miles/kms
So for December I rode:
December Unloaded Miles: 124 miles
December Loaded Miles: 121 miles (195 kms)
December Total Miles Ridden: 245 miles
Year to Date Unloaded: 1373 miles
Year to Date Loaded: 2776 miles (4468 kms)
Year to Date Total Miles: 4149 miles
December was a fairly average month for riding. Each spring, we have a few hot spells for a few days mixed in with cooler days. Then one day, it gets hot and stays hot. Last year it did that in October. Luckily, this year it was the second week of December. Most of the time it is sometime in November.
So I’m a heat wimp. I don’t like riding when it is over 30C. I generally don’t even think about it if it is over 35C (95C). So I didn’t ride much this month. I was just lazy for most of it. We don’t have A/C, so the best sleeping time matches when you should be out riding early in the morning to beat the heat. I chose sleep over riding this month! After all of the craziness at work and two tough loaded rides at the end of Nov/beginning of December, I just enjoyed not doing much at all.
At some point, I’d thought about trying to make 4500 miles for the year, but the rides that I really wanted to do (the last two posted) had shorter mileages but higher difficulty. If I’d really wanted 4500 miles, I could have done easier but longer rides on those weekends and done a few more day rides.
The mileage also would have been higher this month had I been able to do the 4-day ride between Christmas and New Years that I had planned. Alas, the weather forecast was for temps over 35C all four days with hot northerly winds. No deal for me. It’s too hard to stay hydrated and enjoy yourself, and the chance of bushfires starting just too high. I’m hoping to do that proposed ride in March or April instead. It involves geology and other nerdy stuff, so it’s high on my list, of course!
So considering everything going on in life, I’m happy to end the year on a lazy note and a low December average. Kudos to those that are more disciplined than me!