200K Brevet

This is the time of year folks talked about goals, GOALS. The turning of the Gregorian calendar implies that one should turn the page, temporally speaking, into a new earthly orbit. I fear so many resolutions fail because we are such creatures of habit, that to change one's habit energy is to change one's being, to get out of our rut.

I'm babbling.

2010 was the year of the First Century for me. It is understood that all "real" cyclists ride a century at some point, no different than those runners who must run a marathon to be self-realized in their avocation of choice.

I'm still talking mystical verbose shit.

Michael recently expressed an interest in riding a 200K Brevet during this new year at some point. Last year he rode centuries for the first time, as did I, and rode RAIN, which is to me a monumental achievement, all 160 miles of it. He did the early research to learn that the closest RUSA Brevet series- and 200K- is in February here in Louisville/Shelbyville, one sponsored by the LouisvilleBicycleClub (Brevet Series), of which I've been a member off and on through the years. Another possibility is in early May in Carbondale, IL. Both he and I liked the idea of 122 miles in May instead of February, but the first Saturday in May is a holiday here in Louisville, the Kentucky Derby. A gentle, reasonable discussion with the good wife put any Derby ride plans to rest. Therefore, the next best options reverts to February 19th, the first brevet in the Louisville series. The entire series has been pushed early in the calendar so riders can take in the full 200/300/400/600K series in order to qualify for the famous Paris-Brest-Paris being held in August of this year. I personally approach this with trepidation. I achieved my solo century in September after a productive-but-not-amazing August. The weather, though, in August is much better for being on your bicycle for such periods of time. Training for 200K in February will required mental feats of endurance, the cold wind bitterly biting the face and numbing the fingers and toes.  Just thinking about it makes me cringe.

A GOAL, none-the-less, seems like a fun, invigorating way to start the year. I finished '10 very positively after losing some weight and enjoying such an excellent cycling experience at Big South Fork. This 200K can be a means to kick-start 2011 and to provide a base for future 2-wheel adventures. And adventure is what it's all about.