2014 Goals

Those sound like great goals. You’re ahead of most people our age and even younger! As you say, there’s nothing to prove.

Going out, having fun, and taking only well-calculated risks is what will allow us to keep doing this for years.

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Yea I enjoy the technical trails too, but I hit them easy at my own slow pace. No shame in walking either. I also spent a couple of months off the bike this year and at 56 recovery time is way longer than it used to be. I love watching all the free ride guys do their thing, but I live vicariously through them.

Good luck on staying healthy and enjoying the ride in 2014. 😃

My goals this year.

1. Cohutta 100 regardless of the weather.
2. A second ultra-endurance race most likely Fools Gold 100.
3. A couple of 6 hours races strategically placed after the 100 mile races.
4. I will not nail down number of miles and elevation change but just will beat this years 2,011miles /220,000 elevation gain.
5. Continue to work on my technical skills on which I really improved this year.
6. Buy a full suspension bike. Probably won’t happen still working on my twin girls college funds and they just turned 17 ARGHHHH…but I can dream! Where does the time go!
7. Hit as many IMBA Epic Trails as possible East of the Mississppi.
8. RIDE WITHOUT MY HEARING AIDS! My balance sucks with them and really sucks to the max without them. I can’t wear them in inclement weather and I think it is time to just ride consistently without them. It does suck on group rides however when someone wants to chat with me.
9. And the most important just continue to have fun because that is what it is all about!

Also I would just like to say…as most of you already know, Singletracks really is the best site. Every now and then I will look on others for the heck of it and there is just so much noise and crappy attitutes there is just no comparison. Great job Singletrack team! 😃

Great goal, MTI, to stay healthy and keep pedaling instead of collecting medical bills. Unlike You, there’re so many people who forget about their mortality just to prove something. Have fun riding out there 😀

I have been doing a lot of trail running in the last few months. With that in mind, I just started a training plan to do a 50k trail run in March. Trail goals.
1. 50k trail running race
2. try bikepacking
3. continue riding with my wife/kids
4. some long rides (rumor has it there will be a mt bike marathon race in my area in the fall)
5. explore more gravel rides in my area
6. just ride, ride, and ride.

Absolutely! Now that my kids are older and since I am self-employed I definitely plan on continuing to keep my heart in shape. My health is everything to me. I should have added better nutrition as a goal as well. Also like Revans below, I was a little to ambitious this year. I only had about 800 miles in 2012 and most of them were in the first half of the year so I went into 2013 way to hard. Not so this year I have a great base.

However, unlike revans I took technical rides with caution. If I get hurt I can’t work or play and that is no fun. One thing is for sure I never do anything just to prove something to anyone. I have been wanted to do certain things for years but circumstances always prevented me from achieving them. Hopefully the time is right this year.

Great goals, everyone. I hope we’ll check in and celebrate reaching the milestones (and also keep each other accountable 😼 ).

I’m just getting back into MTB shape after a six-year hiatus. Work, part-time school, and other things made me lose focus on fitness for the most part.

So here are my goals:

1. Lose about 7 pounds. Takes a lot of work since I only weigh about 120 now. My target weight of 113 is where I feel best.
2. Increase my bone density and iron levels. I’ll have to incorporate more strength training.
3. Cross train by running and hiking a few times a week.
4. Take a weekend MTB skills course.
5. Get more aggressive and confident with my riding. I have to concentrate on the attack position and jumping over things 😃
6. Learn how to maintain and service my bike. I like the mechanical aspect, I just have to put in some time learning and doing. I’m thinking of volunteering at one of the community bike maintenance places in Atlanta to learn some skills.
7. Increase my endurance and go out for long rides.

Just ride and have a good time in general. Stay injury free.

Problem? What problem? You say obsessed, I say dedicated 😉

Awesome goals! And thanks Matt… stoked that you continue to love the website. Thanks for being a big part of it!

As for my personal goals, I don’t really have many big ones:

1. Ride all of the bike-legal singletrack on my local Salida/Buena Vista map… and a bunch of the doubletack as well. This is my biggest goal for the year–everything else is secondary.
2. Try enduro racing. I’m not sure if I’ll do an entire series or just one or two races, but I want to give it a shot.
3. Ride 4,000 miles (road + mtb). Since I did over 3,500 this year, 4,000 is the next big milestone. However, this might not happen, as I’m actually skiing again for the first time in 5 years, and I’m not planning on doing any ultra-endurance races.

Basically, my main priority for the year is to explore my new home. If I hit 4,000 miles along the way, that’ll just be an awesome bonus!

Although I’ll be turning 50 this year, my goals have nothing to do with throttling back. I’m determined to regain full health and get back to some of the longer rides I was doing in my late 30s when I started riding–maybe not quite as long or not as fast, but I gotta’ get back to the epics.

The one specific goal I have is to do a race with my son, preferably as a team, but if that opportunity doesn’t present itself, I’ll settle for us just doing the same race in our own respective divisions. I know I won’t be anywhere near the podium, but I gotta’ get back to pushing myself.

Great goals. There are so many older riders who crush and are inspirations for us all. No need not to go full throttle at 50!

1000 miles which would be double the 500 I rode this year – all on the mountain bike, and to shave 25 minutes off my Iceman time. My wife was sick last year, so getting 500 miles in was an accomplishment in itself. Her getting better should allow me more trail time & I just bought a fat tire bike this week, so suddenly the months of December through March have opened up as prime riding time for me.(went out twice today it’s so much fun! 😃 ) I also picked up a single speed recently. Everything I’ve read says a single speed makes you a better rider. Guess I’ll find out!

Well, I’m committed now.

Miniskibum and I are each racing (separately in our own divisions) in the Rumble at 18 Road in April.

We have also teamed up together and with another father son duo to form a four man team for the 12 Hours of Mesa Verde. I’m now officially accountable 😮

Congrats, Skibum!

Goals for 2014:
– Ride at least 1k miles. I’d love to at least match last year’s total (~1300.) I had two months of 200+ while I was in California so it’ll be tough to match it
– Ride in Whitefish, MT, both the XC/AM trails and at the resort
– Ride in more places in MT (mainly ride outside of Great Falls/Helena)
– Race/ride (cause I can’t exactly race) in an enduro. I’m helping organize one in August so this one shouldn’t be too hard
– Add more trails in MT to the Singletracks’ database
– Learn how to coasterwheelie and eventually manual longer
– Get more comfortable at the skatepark/in the air
– Buy a new bike (checked this one off yesterday 😆 )
– Organize a group ride that has more than the "usual suspects." Consistently get the same 3-4 guys, would love to add in a few more

I’m pretty new here so this thread seems as good a place to introduce my self as any. Some of you may have seen me on the STRAVA club page and may be familiar with the name. I’m also one of the STRAVA Ambassadors so if you have any questions, complaints, suggestions, feel free to throw them my way. I’ve been an ambassador with them for three years so I’m pretty up on what is going on and what new features are in the works.

Since I’ll be traveling this year, it may be a challenge to hit last year’s mileage/elevation, but I’ll give it my best shot.

Some general goals:

1. Keep hitting my 250-miles per week goal (combined Road/MTB).
2. More IMBA Epics (10 or more would be good).
3. New trails – I’d like to ride at least 1000 miles of new trail this year.
4. Hit at least 20 more of the toughest road climbs in the U.S. (Yeah, its a road thing).
5. More group rides – I may be coming to an area near you. Show me your trails.
6. Top 10% on all STRAVA Challenges.
7. Ride my age (50) at least once a month on the MTB and 2x my age on the Road Bike.
8. White Rim, Kokopelli, Maah Dah Hey, AZT
9. Finish top 10% (overall) in any race I end up in.
10. Stay healthy.

Most important goal – Have fun!

Woa those are some awesome goals Eric! Sounds like a ton of riding in some fantastic locations… I dig it!

Also, welcome to Singletracks! I’ve been enjoying checking out the new California listings and trail maps you’ve been adding–look like some fantastic trails! I spent a month riding in California last summer, and I was almost overwhelmed by the sheer number of trails to choose from… it’s crazy, but in such a good way!

Thanks Greg – I saw you had been out our way. I’m always surprised at how many of the locals don’t even know what is available. Orange County, where I’m from, has probably the largest inter-connected trail system in the country. If you know your way around, you can connect all the county wilderness parks with the state parks and the National Forest for some really huge rides.

I’ll keep adding gpx files as I get time. I’ve got tracks from all over the country dating back to 2006 so I’ll have to compare what I’ve got with what is already up.

Great job on the site. I look forward to watching it grow.

Yeah, I remember looking at the map down that way and just being overwhelmed! If I ever make it back out there, I know who to look up for a guide now 😀

And thanks, I’m stoked that you’re enjoying the website! I’m looking forward to checking out all of your past GPS tracks.

Also, we’re currently finishing up/testing a cool new feature that will make it very easy for Strava users to send their map files to Singletracks… stay tuned!

…and, of course, socaltrailriders as well 😉

1. Race more. XC, DH, duathlons, Ragnar, half marathon, maybe a tri?
2. Weigh less. (sub-20% body fat. Not too concerned with lbs anymore)
3. Lift more weights.
4. Speed up. I’ve lost triple digits in weight and I’m still slow as balls. 😆

What trails are you guys looking forward to riding in 2014? http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-tr … e-in-2014/

I agree. I’d love to do a multi day biking trip out west or in Scotland where you can ride all day and take in the scenery.

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If you get bored, here’s my journal from a little multi-day ride I did a couple of years ago…

[url:3t2w9rtb]http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/5841[/url:3t2w9rtb]

If you get bored, here’s my journal from a little multi-day ride I did a couple of years ago…

[url:2hd36myf]http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/5841[/url:2hd36myf][/quote:2hd36myf]

Just a little ride across the country?

Thanks, same for you.

My goal this year is to cross the 3,000km (1860 miles), which I came 20 mi short last year. Since we didn’t have any winter this time, I’m confident to cross that mark again.
My main goal is, to stay healthy, something I didn’t do over the last years
Another one, is to loose more weight. I lost like 28 lbs last year, but gained 9 back over the holidays. Already lost 5lbs again and hope I can get under 198 by the end of the season.
Some more goals are a vacation at the Lake Garda, Italy (already booked) and trips to Bavaria and Spain, while the first is more likely to happen
Another important goal is to have as much fun as I can on the trails

Wow Eric, How do you find time for work! Heck my goal is to learn to stay on the darn thing! 😆 Seriously I do want to learn how to ride much better! Will take time and I need to try not getting in over my head!

I’m a self-employed photographer. I live on the road for long periods of time with lots of free time during the day.

2014 so far: [url:3qwp128p]http://app.strava.com/athletes/4398/heatmaps/157fc3ea#7/35.10193/-116.83960[/url:3qwp128p]

Sounds like a good gig. Most of the time i am to tired when i get and don’t really have the time to hit much. Maybe as the days get longer it will come. Hope so!

If you’re looking for another riding goal for 2014, consider taking the 30 Days of Biking Challenge with us! Details here: http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-ev … challenge/

Wow you guys are all super motivated, I want to shoot for a 1000 mile year as well as 10,000 feet of climbing or more. I ride local Marin trails mostly and recently started a new job and time might be hard to come by soon. I also want to participate in at least 1 race, I am already signed up for the Tamarancho Dirt Classic so I guess that one has been met.

So, we’re a quarter into the year. How is everyone doing on meeting their 2014 goals?

Wow, hard to believe we’re that far in already!

My main goal has been to explore my nearby trails and dirt roads, but thanks to how much snow is in the mountains, I haven’t been able to cover much new territory. However, I’ve knocked out a few hidden trails, and some new-to-me doubletrack. I think last weekend signaled the end of my ski season, thanks to a broken binding, so this month I’m diving head-first into mtbing! Now the snow just needs to melt!

Well beyond where I thought I would be at right now. Getting a fat bike was a game changer for me. I’ve been able to get a lot of rides/miles in already. Plus I’m in much better riding shape than I normally would be at this point in the season. I should easily surpass my 1000 mile goal.

Well beyond where I thought I would be at right now. Getting a fat bike was a game changer for me. I’ve been able to get a lot of rides/miles in already. Plus I’m in much better riding shape than I normally would be at this point in the season. I should easily surpass my 1000 mile goal.[/quote:2e3tpuvh]

Right on man, congrats!

Had a good year at the Snake, got 2nd in my age group for the 17 mile distance, and set a new PR on the big-boy 34 mile course.

Knocked out my first 100 mile ride, all on the pavement, but still.

Several good big mile dirt road rides.

Put on a 50 mile ride here in town that was successful.

570 miles so far for the year, even with several weeks with no riding at all.

First big MTB ride of the year in a few weeks, metric century almost entirely on singletrack.

Six months down. How is everyone doing in 2014?

My report:

169 rides
7638 miles
500,531′ climbed

Lots of new trails. Best of the year so far was probably the Black Canyon Trail in Arizona.

Woa, fantastic! Thanks for the reminder… always fun to reevaluate goals. Here were mine:

How I’m doing:

1. I’ve set a secondary goal to ride at least one new chunk of trail per week. That’s been super easy to do, but that’s because there are SO MANY trails in my new area! Considering that many of the ones I haven’t ridden are at super high elevation and STILL haven’t melted out yet, I think this goal probably won’t be finished by the end of the year. See #2 for more reasons why.
2. Done! I’m 2 races into the Big Mountain Enduro Series, and am absolutely loving it! However, all this traveling to ride means less local rides, so accomplishing #1 is proving difficult. However, the upshot is that I’m exploring tons of trails farther afield than just my home county. It’s always nice to have unridden trails nearby that you can get to easily, so right now I’m not super rushed to check off everything at home and am enjoying traveling and riding.
3. 1,139 miles, 114,000 feet of climbing so far this year. Unless I triple my mileage in the second half of the year, I won’t be making 4,000. Part of this was all the skiing over the winter, but I’ve also been dealing with physical ailments for the past two months that have kept me off the bike way more than I’d like. I’m trying to power through, so we’ll see where the mileage ends up.

In light of the above struggles, here are my revised goals:

1. Explore as many trails as I can. Of course, this is always a goal, and I have plenty of lifetime milestones I’m aiming for in this respect, but I want to continue to ride at least one new trail per week.
2. Complete the Crested Butte Ultra Enduro. 5 days of riding, an average of 28 miles per day with 5,300 feet of climbing and 6,700 feet of descending (per day on average), this race in early September will be no joke! I need to figure out how to train for such a beast…
3. Do a 50 miler (MTB). I’ve done plenty in the past, but not lately. I’d just like my fitness to be at this sort of level (see #2 above).

How’s everyone else doing?

Good call on a progress report!

– Ride 1k miles: I’m currently at 683 miles on the mountain bike so 1k should be attainable.
– Ride in Whitefish, MT: I had plans to knock that out this weekend, but we’re pushing it back a bit. Hoping to hit it when the trails won’t be so busy.
– Ride in more places outside of GF/Helena: Um, not so much. I’ve only done one trail in MT that’s not in either of those cities, but I’m hoping to do more soon. I did hit some trails in WY and CO. While an absolute blast, they don’t count for the goal. 😆
– Race/ride in an enduro: Still on track for the August one.
– Add more trails to the database: I’ve added one so far, need to add more and get more pictures for the ones currently in the database.
– Coasterwheelie/manual longer: Not yet, but my balance has definitely increased.
– More comfortable in the air: Still working on it.
– Buy a new bike: Cheated on this one, but it’s done 😃
– Organize a larger group ride: Still working on it, unfortunately.

While looking for the "latest injury" tread, I figured I’d update this one also.

Ride 1k miles: I’m at 957 so far, not sure if I’ll make 1k.
Ride Whitefish, MT: Won’t be happening this year.
Ride more places in MT: I was able to add three trails to the database. Not as many as I had hoped for, but I added a great "go to" trail (Bender Creek) and the BEST trail I’ve ridden in MT (Muskrat Creek) so I’ll count this one as a success. 😃
Race/ride an enduro: The race went off without a hitch! I had a lot of fun designing/marking the course and racing in it. Unfortunately I kept slipping out of "race mode" and into "enjoying the ride mode" and missed 3rd by just under a minute. Some media coverage: Short trailer and the 30-minute episode
Add more trails: See above.
Coaster wheelie/manual/get more comfortable in the air: not this year.
Buy new bike: Checked off before this started, need to ride it more.
Larger group ride: We maxed out at 11 folks! It really surprised me we had that many people out for a group ride. We have a lot of 1s and 2s here, no real "groups."

I hope I’m able to heal up before the end of the year, but only time (and the doctor’s appt on Tuesday) will tell.

Time to go find that wreck/injury thread now.

Well this is all on my Kona Mountain Bike Hardtail. The only goal I missed was the Cohutta 100 because my twin daughter’s first prom fell on that date. I think I will smash my 3,000 mile goal no problem.
2,548 miles
254,852 feet of climbing
123 rides
Averaging 97 miles a week
Just did a 90 mile gravel grinder yesterday. I took it a bit slower cause I did not know the course and did not want to bonk out I was not really planning on doing it.

http://www.strava.com/activities/188144160

The exciting news is I am ordering my cross bike next week. As much as I love singletrack I find myself doing more gravel and road due to time constraints to get to the singletrack. I also love the ultra-endurance and well here is my new bike. Hopefully NORCO can ship it before their Oct 15, 2014 projection. Other than the wheels being on the heavy side it all looks sweet. I would upgrade any wheelset in this price range anyway. Maybe a Christmas present for me? I need to log back onto the singletracks website more often i have gotten lazy and have just been FB’ing. The website is much better.
http://www.norco.com/bikes/road/cyclocr … shold-105/