Goals/aspirations

Really inspiring thread . I ride loads but don't do enough towards specific goals. Although I do every now and then, and ride with mates a lot, I need to get out with clubs more for sure.

Am doing Liege bastogne Liege and quebrantanhuesos next year, but might try to get back into running half marathon again. Fuck 26 miles though!

Just keep improving. If I make a similar improvement I have last year to this year over the next 12 months, I reckon I could have a reasonable season of racing.

I'd like to get to 82 kg.

OK, for those of you who want to swim the Channel, I'm sat in Dover now waiting for the weather to change. 3 of my mates are waiting to go on this tide, 2 of whom are doing Arch to Arc, 1 of whom I am crewing for (so haven't slept for 40 hrs, pardon me if I'm not sounding positive).

I've trained with all 3 of these guys for the last few years as they've built up for this - the 4 degree swims in the January storms, the 12 hr swims in the spring, the mind-expanding trips to really bad nightclubs in Folkestone. They've all laid out at least £2500-3000 for the pilot alone (one of them bought a caravan down here as a training base). They all could make is across easily with decent weather.

Anyhow, this is a dogshit week weatherwise. We've just heard that the window we thought was open tomorrow is closing swiftly, and all 3 of the guys may miss their slot without swimming a stroke as the weather is shite for the rest of the week. And this is the guys who know their stuff, and can't be stuffed by the handful of unethical pilots (there are 12 pilots, some are fantastic, a few are despicable).

On the flipside, me and my mate (both godawful swimmers) made it across last year after getting pretty lucky with weather and tides. It was awesome. Basically, I'm too sleep-deprived to make much sense right now, but know a fair deal about Channel swimming, so feel free to PM me if you're thinking about it.

I achieved my goal in middle of July, rest of 2014 is shits'n'mickeys&giggles doing some indie Cyclocross races around the country.

You have a spreasheet. That's all the goal I would ever need.

Swimming off the headland at Booby's would be daft. Head over to Lundy instead - it's a sheltered, and you're not going to have a huge rip.

Booby's. Heh.

• My new year's resolution for this year was to do a longer ride than I'd ever done before each month, working up from 225km to 500km over the course of the year: #workupto500. When I started this it scared me and I had no idea if I'd be able to do it. It's gone pretty well so far, I'm up to 400 now and baring injury failure seems unlikely.

• Learn to ride a unicycle. If having a unicycle in the shed and occasionally thinking "I really must get that thing out and learn to ride the bastard" counts as trying to learn to ride the unicycle, then I've been at it for over a year. Recently I've actually started trying again, and last week I made it the full length of the lawn for the first time. Longer distances are a way off (if I'm ever able to do them) but now seem like they might eventually be possible. Richmond Park 3-lap challenge here I come.

• Do an end-to-end, probably in the JOGLE rather than LEGOJ direction. This was originally planned for this year, but the #workupto500 displaced it. It'll probably feature my house as a stopping point (there's nothing like your own bed) and a final Epsom -> Lands'End leg of about 500km to finish off.

Swimming off the headland at Booby's would be daft.

Last time I was there I had a chat with the lifeguards down there (well, the hut at the top of Booby's was shut but the one on Constantine was open) and they didn't think it was silly as long as I was confident about such a long sea swim and I had backup (ideally someone on a jetski) and someone who knew the local tides.

If it's not the Quies then it's nothing.

It'll probably feature my house as a stopping point (there's nothing like your own bed) and a final Epsom -> Lands'End leg of about 500km to finish off.

Sounds nice.

500km will mean making a few detours as a direct-ish sensible cycling route is ~450km. I say "senible" but that would include going over Dartmoor (which I find sensible).

A 500km route could look like this:-

http://goo.gl/maps/ijlIS

Bit of an ugly start heading West through the edge of Woking and North of Aldershot and Farnham. You'll know the best roads. Whatever you do aim for Crondall.
Through Crondall, South Warnborough, Upton Grey, Herriard, B3046, turning off to keep North of Winchester, South Wonston, Crawley and onto the A30 at Stockbridge.
The A30 is a surprisingly nice road to cycle on, even for 100km+. When I rode down to Cornwall I used it all the way from Stockbridge to Honiton.
Stay on the A30 through Salisbury (the one way roads can be confusing in town), Shaftesbury, Yeovil, Crewkerne, Chard and onto the bigger A30 on the approach to Honiton.
Turn off through Awliscombe, over the M5, Thorverton and into Crediton.
Bow, Exbourne, Hatherleigh, Holsworthy and almost to Bude (you can go into Bude or Stratton if you need to find a cafe).
Turn South into the hills for Lawannick, Upton Cross, through Liskeard and down to Looe.
West towards Polruan (this bit dictates the timing as you'll be getting the ferry across the River Fowey to Fowey itself).
From Fowey through Par, Snozzle, Truro and into the odd Cornish moorland between the coasts.
Baldhu, Carharrack, Four Lanes, Leedstown, Goldsithney, Marazion, Longrock and to Penzance.
From there it's just a short bimble to Sennen and job done.

This is a combination of my London to Cornwall route, and part of the Kernow & South West 600 Audax route.

London to Cornwall: http://www.strava.com/activities/163177115 (this one I stopped at Honiton due to lack of HTFU spray)[1][2][3][4][5]
K&SW part 1: http://www.strava.com/activities/163170921
K&SW part 2: http://www.strava.com/activities/163180541

You'd need to time it for the Polruan to Fowey ferry but it runs for nearly 2/3 of the day May-September. http://www.ctomsandson.co.uk/polruan-ferry/ferry-fares-and-timetables/

It's about 400km into this route so work back from there. If it were me I'd be setting off at ~10am-ish to avoid the rush hour, that would see me at Polruan early morning day 2 and a finish just after lunchtime.

1. It was fine all the way to my parents in Dorset but I was looking forward to a shower and some food. Unfortunately they'd just had their bathroom and kitchen retiled that day so I could use neither. Selfish parents. There had also been torrential rain and localised flooding so I did about a mile of the road through Drimpton through water that was over the wheel axles.
   
2. Do not take that road from Crondall to Well. Take the more Southerly road. The road I took was a rocky riverbed but the OS map said it was a "single width track with passing places". Still, it was a nice 30 minute long walk.
   
3. The detour to avoid Yeovil isn't necessary, it involves more climbing too.
   
4. The detour between Crewkerne and Chard was to drop in on my parents, just stay on the A30. They will not be expecting you.
   
5. Do not detour off the A30 at Yarcombe. By this point I'd decided to give up and get the train from Honiton. As punishment I took in the hills near Stockland rather than the one final climb up to the main A30.
   

Events that rely on good weather in Britain >>>
#fml

500km will mean making a few detours as a direct-ish sensible cycling route is ~450km. I say "senible" but that would include going over Dartmoor (which I find sensible).

A 500km route could look like this:-

http://goo.gl/maps/ijlIS

Thanks, #rep, I'll make a note of that. I'm not dead set on it being 500, I just thought it would work out about that far. I'll be on gears, so going over Dartmoor seems pretty sensible.

I want to make it my desk at work on time everyday for at least a week. Insha'Allah I can do it.

2014:
20 minute 10 (Should manage this on Monday, currently on 21:32)
55 minute 25 (did 54:18)
Sub 2 hr 50 (Race cancelled)

2015
Sub 20:30, maybe a 19 if Monday goes well enough but I think that'll be a big ask
Short 52 25
Sub 1:52 50
Sub 4 hr 100

I'd also like to ride the national 10 and/or 25 if I can get a ride and they're not in the middle of nowhere.

What were you targeting this year?

As for hating it, I hate running now because I'm fat and running is
horrible when carrying extra weight (whilst cycling is easy). It'll
get less horrible when I get back down to a more sensible weight, but
running (amongst other exercise) is one of the best ways I've found of
getting my weight back down. I'm hoping that once I get my weight down
enough it'll transition from "hate" to "mild dislike" and I can put up
with "mild dislike" for 4 hours. I've "hated" 10+ hour stretches of
some Audaxes I've ridden. A lack of bloody-mindedness is not a problem I suffer from.

fair dos...I'm just of the mindset of thinking that life is too short to waste on doing things you hate (but are optional, obvs)

Al, what's the Olympic park TT thing? Have you started TT'ing?

Goals for the rest of the year:

Set a decent (sub 90) time for a half marathon, then break it. (Got two coming in the next three weeks).

Get as close as I can to 3:30 at Beachy Head Marathon.

Do some 'cross racing.

Next year, I want to try road racing, just to see what it's like. I'll also run a road marathon in spring with the aim of cracking 3 hours.

Next two or three years I'd like to increase distances and do some trail ultras.

quality thread and sorry to hear Hippo, you were flying last year, when youre as old as we are a year goes like nothing- keep the TTS up maybe?
I havent got time to race bikes within teaching biking every day.
15 summer is gonna be in Inverness area for the WOC world Orienteering champs, aiming for good times.
15 would like to do the Tio Mila 10 mile night orienteering relay in Scandanavia.
thats about it so far

Another one I forgot.

24 hour TT. Probably unsupported/Audax-style (but a few of the Audax lot do this so there's unofficial support from various people). Would aim for 500.01km (so @hippy is ~1.6 times better than me.)

I would like to do the Mersey Roads at some point, but a more realistic goal for the coming year would be to complete a 400 or, ideally, a 600. I have a lot of issues to sort out with pacing / nutrition / bike fit to get to that point, though.

Ishmael rode 480 miles unsupported in 2012 I think it was. 24 hrs * 25kph = 600k so you may as well aim for a nice round 400 miles. :)

Remembered this old thread...

Marathon: Did Brighton 2016. Signed up for 2017.
Ironman: Doing IM Wales in September.
Mersey Roads 24TT: I'm off at 13:11 on Saturday.

Get weight down: Oh. Still 86kg. Want to be under 76kg.

2015
Sub 20:30, maybe a 19 if Monday goes well enough but I think that'll be a big ask
Short 52 25
Sub 1:52 50
Sub 4 hr 100

20:40
54:18, still,
1:50:50
3:49

Work up to a 500k ride

nope

Learn to ride a unicycle

nope

End to End

yup

24 hour TT. Probably unsupported/Audax-style (but a few of the Audax lot do this so there's unofficial support from various people). Would aim for 500.01km (so @hippy is ~1.6 times better than me.)

470.56km due to lack of preparation and feeding issues requiring an unwanted 75min sleep stop, otherwise I think I would have been bang on the money.

Definitely will be back again in 2017 or 2018. Still unsupported (mostly) but with a better plan, feeding on the bike, better kit (bike and wheels), improved fitness/training and more time in the aerobars I'll aim for 400+ miles.

IM Wales next in September. Better get back in the pool and pounding the streets.