Looking Forward to the Season

The new cycling season is starting! As we start to train again, we are making plans for another great season of riding. Not all these plans will come to fruition, but it’s nice to dream, plan and look forward to some amazing rides.

The Flèche is a highlight every year, and I look forward to riding for 24 hours with my friends iso early in the season. As a bonus, all the teams congregate at the finish, and we get to meet with people we haven’t seen all winter.

In May is the Oregon Outback, a Tour Divide-style 360-mile ride/race across Oregon’s dirt roads. It promises to be an amazing experience of beautiful roads and solitude. I very much look forward to this ride. (Photo: Critical Dirt)

I also hope to do another ACP Super Randonnée 600. With at least 10,000 m of elevation gain, these rides are truly challenging, but also offer a great sense of accomplishment. And the scenery usually is breathtaking.
I look forward to other randonneur brevets as well. Randonneuring is a wonderful way to challenge yourself in the company of supportive riders. At the finish, there is a real sense of having worked together as a team. I am also very tempted by the 1200 km California Central Coast Randonnée, which allows “allure libre” riding on your own schedule, rather than on a pre-set schedule with sleep stops.

Apart from these big rides, there will be many impromptu rides with friends. Last year, we headed to the San Juan Islands in early spring (above), and I hope to repeat that trip this year.

There are many small roads in the Cascades that we haven’t explored, and others that we want to revisit. There is a lot to look forward to!

Autumn is still a long way off, but my son and I are already looking forward to the cyclocross season. The ‘cross season is short and intense, just like the races, which makes it all the more exciting.
What rides do you dream of this year?