Dark nights are and frosty mornings have arrived, along with shorter weekend rides, so after the night rides and weekend jaunts we have already started planning 2020
Abigales final year at Uni so she has had to limit the competing and so only 5 Enduros in the calendar so far, 2 Tweedloves and 3 PMBAs means some good riding to be had whilst she is out on the trails.
After a disastrous start to our Autumn holidays due to the gearbox failing on the camper its been rescheduled for the same time next year, I cant wait for Sospel, San Remo and Finale.
The tunnel allowed us to move the tickets on till next year however they need to be used by the 12th July so hopefully will be travelling through Switzerland, Italy and the French Alps for a couple of weeks lift assisted riding.
In between going to try and get some riding in Wales as its been neglected for quite some time.
What have you got in the pipeline.
Already booked a weekend in North Wales to do Snowdon again with the local riding group at the end of April and me & the Mrs are both doing the Ard Rock.
Also planning a Boarders/Lakes trip in May for our anniversary and a week in the Alps again with White Room. They'll also be numerous weekends away in the tent. Roll on Spring!
I shall be doing one or more of Charlie's Dirt Dashes - probably the Wales one is favourite so far. That's probably it for organised events.
I want to ride my Brompton to Paris, and get the train home.
I have an inkling of an idea to ride the Great North Trail, but I have a feeling it won't be all of it and I need to work out the logistics.
Mrs Dubs is not officiating on any school trips this year, so we might head back to the Alps for a bit of lift assisted and a bit of mountain air. But, she's also got to have knee surgery again so we might just be sitting on a beach...
Back to Basque in the Spring/Easter is my next plan for holidays.
Currently putting in the hours on the rollers as it's so wet where I am I can't face it at the minute! Hoping that a few dry weeks will drain the worst of it away before I venture out again!
It'll be 40yrs since I last rode 150 miles in a day, hoping to better that in 2020. Hoping to surpass the century on our tandem at some point too, had hoped to do that on a gravel dash but not sure if Mrs dB is quite up for that.
Tour Of Flanders Sportive on Saturday 4th April is my only definite at the moment. That should motivate me to keep some kind of fitness over winter. I have been toying with taking a few days off work in June to drive up to Scotland and ride all of the 7 Stanes. But like most of my vague plans, life will probably get in the way.
Not much really, frankly the rest of my life is so frantic at the moment the idea of adding more into the mix does't appeal much.
That said, I'm doing number 286 in the series I like to called "stuff I said I'd never, ever, ever do again" and riding Passportes next summer. To be honest it's more of an excuse for a Lads trips to the Alps than anything else, but I do intend to finish this year, last time was 2012 I think, we started in Morzine and headed on the big loop, got back to Morzine half a day later considered the options at hand ride to Les Gets and back and finish the event that isn't timed and no one records what you rode or didn't or get tucked into some beers and burgers. We chose the latter and I regret nothing.
Other than that it's going to be a case of getting involved in more group rides, there seems to be loads of groups on Twitter, YT and FB, I've been to a couple some good, some less so, but it wasn't really the fault of the group per-se, but I'd avoid numbers over about 15 if I can.
Lanzarote 4 stage race in Jan all booked and training underway.
I did around 14 XC races last year so will do pretty much the same but in different series and then should be in Spain early Oct for another stage race.
Training, solo trip to Wales in Jan, training, all the Scott Marathons, the National 12hr and maybe Big Dog again.
Really want to do some Audaxes and longer gravel rides. Would love to do Charlies events, but realistically they're £££ and I'm on £ budget so will be doing the Moors 100 and some of the racing collective events instead.
Fancy giving the GBDuro a go, liked the look of it but haven't done anything similar so it's a bit of an unknown. Organised an off road ride for the roadie club and turns out I now know Angus who came 2nd last year so I'm in good company! Would also like to do the HT550 as a possible reccy to doing it in 2021.
Also now have my first proper mountain bike for ages, since the Pitch in fact! So planning on taking that on a few good trips around the country too.
I think I'm going to give the Cairngorm ITT a bash, and try and ride a few enduros.
Edit - and hopefully a few more cheeky bivvies and bothy trips 🙂
Cycling the Hebridean Way in june for my birthday with Mrs Blackflag.
Three Peaks CX, so everything else I do will be preparation.
Couple of CX races over the winter (Macclesfield and Monster Cross).
Couple of the Scott MTB Marathons.
Some long "gravel" events.
Lots of "felljogging" (not quick enough to be called running).
Lots of carrying my bike 🙁
Maybe no alcohol since this is my 90th day without a drink and I'm tempted continue. Weight loss can only help the crawl up Simons Fell.
More bivvies/longer 2/3 day rides and trying to get better at slow tech.
Belgium at the end of march for Sportive.
BPW at least 3-4 times
Jedi for my boy for the day
Morzine in August.
260 miles on three wheels in 12 hours. There. I've said it. That won't make it any easier though.
I just envy all of those who can make plans for events next year. I just find it really difficult to do that (an anxiety thing). However, I've been talked into trying a (short/easy/fun) triathlon in the summer so my immediate plan is to learn to front crawl.
260 miles on three wheels in 12 hours. There. I’ve said it. That won’t make it any easier though.
Seems as good a place to ask as any, but why is 3-wheeled TTing a thing?
Going to try bike packing. Starting along the Icknield Way riders route to Thetford and back, then extending that to include the Peddars Way to Hunstanton and back. Might look at doing the South Downs Way too.
I also fancied doing the Dirty Reiver 200, but it clashes with my big goal for next year, the Guildford 12 (swim a mile, once an hour, every hour, for 12 hours).
Peddars Way as I've never done it.
SDW in a day. Stay at dawn and finish method midnight hopefully. That will be epic if I can do it.😳
SDW over 3 days because it's too beautiful just to rush through it. Wild camp the 2 nights on the Way.
Ridgeway as it looks great but slightly put off as a lot of it will be road?
Zwift is key to the above, doing lots of Zwifting and intend to do even more....
Not missing real riding in this weather at all.😃
All the things I didn't get done this year due to ride leading the first few months and then getting injured.
So, no ride leading while I concentrate on getting fit again, getting back up to 200k audax, nice long weekend riding with a mate to celebrate our 51st birthdays, few local events on and off road, maybe get my track accreditation.
Edinburgh for a stag do. Posh house in Lakes for a week with a chef booked in for a night instead of back of the van. Moore’s 100. Cairngorns bike packing route. Week biking in Spain with some company not decided yet. Trip to Kyrgyzstan or India biking, still dithering on that one. Moving house after lots of building work so many weekends away.
VeloBrum (booked)
Dunwich Dynamo (probably)
Big Boys Rufty Tufty Mountain Biking Weekend 2020 (when we get our arses into gear to agree a date and location. Involves considerably more drinking, talking bollocks and eating bacon sandwiches than actually riding bikes)
Will be doing the 'lads' MTB weekends again - we did April and October this year. Deggers and Gwydir in April and Coed y Brenin and Deggers in October (I had a stinking cold and suffered). Might aim for a Clywdian Range ride and maybe Snowdon, but Snowdon is weather dependant. We got away with the weather this year.
I have a caravan in North Wales, so it was a cheap weekend for everyone. Drank too much booze having a good chin wag !
Plan more socials (rides) with some local mates and more Friday's booked off to ride, can't beat getting up at normal time, realising no work, then jump on bike for 4-6 hours.
Month in Spain in May,week with Seirra cycling doing a tour of White villages, long weekend with Ride Sierra Nevada and then slowly making our way back to the Uk.
Ard rock enduro in August,and thats it so far
Hit the north, PMBA gisburn, week in the lakes in May, then go on a, belated, honeymoon to Whistler.
2 x Jennride for me and then the main focus is mountain mayhem in June. Will be the first ever race event for me. Already prepping with training on trainer road!
Had a crap year this year, less than half the riding of the year before and only one race, due to a really crap work/life balance and some personal issues. Hoping to hit reset for 2020 and am planning:
Scott Marathon series (or at least some of them), Southern Enduro QECP and Head Down ‘mash up’ events as I prefer the format and the dates are convenient.
Also planning on a SDW double towards the end of the year but will be doing a couple of ‘1/2 double’ rides through the year to see if I’m up to it, so Winch-Amberley-Winch and Amberley-Eastbourne-Amberley, at least one of which will be overnight to help with nav practice for the double.
Ridgeway as it looks great but slightly put off as a lot of it will be road?
Not a lot
Week in Aviemore in April and 2 weeks in Les Arcs in the summer. Both with family/young kids but still plenty of biking opportunities during each both solo rides and family rides.
No events for me - I don't race, unless it's to the pub/chippy.
Hmmm, what I'd like to do and what I will do are two vastly different things. no particular order:
Pass my MTB L2 Assessment
Lakes 3 Peaks IAD (High Street, Helvelyn, Skiddaw)
Four Passes Lakes
Peaks 100
C2C in 3 days
quad century (road)
Sub 24:00 5K (hours not minutes, vertical not horizontal)
Survive a club run on my full suss without getting dropped
Do my MTB L3
Snowdon with the wean.
Get the elder son back into biking.
Return to the alps with the family and do some good stuff
La Varda
Lots of training as well as Kielder chiller, dirty reiver and SDW double then will hopefully be ready for the tour divide in June going to be a big year.
Just booked place on"5 forests MTB" event for 5 th Jan.
Get out and do my first solo bike packing trip on Exmoor and actually manage to stay the night. I'll plan it for a weekend with decent weather forecast this time.
A few more impromptu trips up the M5 to Cwmcarn...once i have sold my daily driver T4. I always am relieved when it starts every morning!
Tour of the peak sportive to keep grim winter weather motivation. And to see what a few years and knee op have done to my performance since the last time.
Fort Bill World Cup (spectating obvs), but will try and attempt the red xc from the top. And ride Bealach na Ba while I'm up there.
I had no plans this year but it's been fun.Managed 20 consecutive days of riding/touring in the van/tent and staying at friends in Wales this June-met lots of cool peeps along the way so maybe hope to do more of the same next year a bit further North or maybe a lot further North .
Having spent the last 4 plus weeks in a shoulder brace after crashing 10 minutes into first ride on my new bike, I am hoping to get it off in the next month and have enough movement and ability to do enough physio to get on the bike again in 2020..
Just to get my fitness back to where it was before I had 2 years on the bounce that turned to crap. The gauge is to do the SDW again but in a faster time. Managed it in 13.6 hrs but got my pacing wrong so aiming for a sub 12 HR this time.
Training starts in December with gym work and base miles then ramps up a bit after new year. Hope to get a decent level of fitness to build off after Easter with hopefully an attempt in May/June time depending on the weather. Will need to get a few things sorted bike-wise too so plenty to aim at.
Does that mean no summer tour for 2020 Iain?
scotroutes, I hope I will be up for it, especially as its all booked, with a big 4 day clockwise loop starting at Glencoe village, usual squad, overnights in Oban, Strontian, Fort Bill, Loch Ossian... I may have to take ebike and a charger 😂
Finger crossed for you Iain!
Now I have a car that doesn't cost £80 to go 250 miles, I'm planning lots of short UK trips.
I'll do a week or so in Spain around Feb/Mar to ward off the winter blues, then some 2/3/4 day trips to north Wales, Yorkshire, peak district (cut gate!), lake district, maybe some of scotland too. Basically as much of the best riding in the UK as humanly possible! Camping/AirB&B with the odd guided trip.
Sounds like the SDW is going to get a hammering in 2020 from us lot.😀
Good luck with everyone's personal journeys into next year. Literally and metaphorically.
Seems as good a place to ask as any, but why is 3-wheeled TTing a thing?
Trikes have a long and venerable history in cycling and racing. They require handling skills that defy conventional bike riding. And errrr because you can#. When racing to age standards, a tricycle gets you an additional 20 year handicap. So I’m racing as a 72 year old. But 260 miles is the target. Managed 231 without really trying (or training) this year.
#259 is the current all time greatest. I’m not going to break any two wheeled records, but discovered by chance I am rather good at 12hr TTs. So I thought “why not?”. Then I bought one. And then I raced it over 12 hrs and found I was still good. So a winter of training at tempo.
Foot-bike (kick-scooter) the streets and pavements by night to fight fatness, gain fitness and build core so I can hopefully get past injury and begin introducing MTBing and touring again in the spring. 4 years of being forced off bikes stuck indoors is doing my head in I’m really going mad as can’t run or even walk far. Imagunakickit back into shape. Then maybe next year finally get to try some bikepacking, planned SW Ireland/Cork-Kerry.
Meanwhile
(wot no pedals?)
