The Annual Lunacy (aka "I Don't Do Winter") Challenge Chatzone

[bluenotebob]

Congratulations @Sea of vapours ! Well done - a splendid effort.

Will you try and 'relegate' some of your earlier rides ? or just put your feet up in front of the fire for the next 4 months ?

 

[Sea of vapours]

Lunacy 2020 completed.

Just under three calendar months again, though the 'wrong' ones due to the June start - it feels much more pressured, with sunset getting earlier, than last year when available light was always later, up until my last ride. I may well not do any more qualifying rides this year, though there's a month or so when I'd still consider them possible, albeit with an unappealingly early start (before 1100).

I keep toying with the idea of upping the target to 200km next year, but I seriously doubt I'd manage it. Maybe a stretch to an imperial century might be viable. Aiming for the same distance does simplify the signature though ...

Thanks @bluenotebob . I was just typing this as you posted. I probably will relegate at least one of them, assuming fine weather (huge assumption, that !), as there's a planned route I've not done which I'd like to. Thereafter, my break from Lunacy rides will be until at least the end of March, when the clocks change !

 

[ColinJ]

Lunacy 2020 completed.

Splendid effort, especially considering everything else that has been going on!

I am actually finding the challenge a DISincentive to doing long rides this year... I have left things so late that it would take a really determined effort to get the required remaining 12 rides done before winter. If I carry on like this then at some point I would have to just accept that it wasn't going to happen, but if I go and do 4 or 5 qualifying rides then I am going to feel a big pressure on me to get the others done, even if I am not enjoying them!

I think the best bet is to just get one more done ASAP and see how I felt about it. If I enjoyed that ride, then bite the bullet and carry on. If my heart wasn't really in it, then accept defeat (again!) and look forward to a future vaccine-enabled, forum ride-friendly year (hopefully 2021).

 

[Sea of vapours]

Thanks Colin. I won't 'like' the above though, other than hoping for a better 2021 of course.

Yours is definitely a pretty major conundrum. Personally, I'd have no hope of doing it starting from one ride at this point. At least, I could do it on something less than my 150km target, but then I'd think that "if I can do this in December then it's too short for the challenge" .... Sooo.... I'd not start!

 

[ColinJ]

That is what I'm thinking. The fact that I have been considering how many times I can face whizzing up and down the A646/A6033 if things get tight, tells me that I should just rule myself out and enjoy what I choose to do between now and the winter.

Oh, blow it - I'm out for 2020!

Right, now that I am no longer doing the challenge, I fancy going out and doing a no-longer-qualifying metric century!

 

[Cranky Knee Girl]

That is what I'm thinking. The fact that I have been considering how many times I can face whizzing up and down the A646/A6033 if things get tight, tells me that I should just rule myself out and enjoy what I choose to do between now and the winter.

Oh, blow it - I'm out for 2020!

Right, now that I am no longer doing the challenge, I fancy going out and doing a no-longer-qualifying metric century!

Rather that than a report of strawberry jam on the A649
I'm just not sure, I didn't manage to restart RRtY in August, the restart can be delayed for up to 6 months and the thought of another winter ...but it keeps my fitness up. will see how September goes.

 

[bluenotebob]

It’s been such a messy, fractured year that it makes @Sea of vapours achievement even more impressive.

Lockdown in France meant effectively no cycling for 8 weeks so that completely screwed my plans for 2020. I had to pull out of the HMCAM challenge and I had a late start to my Loony Challenge too.

The one thing I’ve been determined to do is to complete 9000km this year – I’ve had a year-on-year improvement since I re-started cycling in 2015 and I didn’t want to let the damn virus spoil that. I cycled 2615km in July/August which has got me back on track – and getting to 9000km is my prime focus for the rest of the year.

My ride on 24 August was my first ever 100+km ride over hilly terrain (I’ve done lots of hilly rides and a few 100+km rides – but not a 100+km ride that involved lots of re-ascent). I want to continue and do more of these in the rest of 2020, and I’ll post them as Loony Rides, even if I don’t get up to 13 (I’m only on 6 at present).

My thoughts have turned to 2021 (and yes, @ColinJ – let’s hope for a vaccine-enabled year). I will challenge myself to ride 10,000 km – complete the HMCAM challenge, get some Loony Rides in early next year – and perhaps try for the Metric Century A Month Challenge too.

There’s little or no point in doing rides that you don’t enjoy – but as @Cranky Knee Girl says, let’s all keep our fitness up – and have a great year’s cycling in 2021.

 

[Cranky Knee Girl]

It’s been such a messy, fractured year that it makes @Sea of vapours achievement even more impressive.

Lockdown in France meant effectively no cycling for 8 weeks so that completely screwed my plans for 2020. I had to pull out of the HMCAM challenge and I had a late start to my Loony Challenge too.

The one thing I’ve been determined to do is to complete 9000km this year – I’ve had a year-on-year improvement since I re-started cycling in 2015 and I didn’t want to let the damn virus spoil that. I cycled 2615km in July/August which has got me back on track – and getting to 9000km is my prime focus for the rest of the year.

My ride on 24 August was my first ever 100+km ride over hilly terrain (I’ve done lots of hilly rides and a few 100+km rides – but not a 100+km ride that involved lots of re-ascent). I want to continue and do more of these in the rest of 2020, and I’ll post them as Loony Rides, even if I don’t get up to 13 (I’m only on 6 at present).

My thoughts have turned to 2021 (and yes, @ColinJ – let’s hope for a vaccine-enabled year). I will challenge myself to ride 10,000 km – complete the HMCAM challenge, get some Loony Rides in early next year – and perhaps try for the Metric Century A Month Challenge too.

There’s little or no point in doing rides that you don’t enjoy – but as @Cranky Knee Girl says, let’s all keep our fitness up – and have a great year’s cycling in 2021.

Very well said, even if it does all sound ever so sensible it's the best approach, for all of us. The way you are making a positive plan is very motivating. I find I need something to motivate me, even if it is a change to the original plan that's been scuppered through no fault of our own, or anyone. It is what it is.

 

[Dogtrousers]

RIde number seven done. I was hoping to squeeze 2,000m of climbing into my 100km ish ride. Fell a bit short at 1,995m*. I even tried keeping the GPS running until I was on the footbridge at the railway station where I finished.

Took in some of West Kent's best loved climbs - Toys, Carters and the beast that is Vigo Hill. Lovely day, lots of cyclists out. No hideous interactions with motorists. In between the climbs lots of nice tootling along quiet lanes.

* Edit: Uploaded it to Strava, which awarded me 2,054m of ascent. Unfortunately RideWithGPS is my system of record and that leaves me 5m short.

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Another one bagged for me yesterday which should leave five to go - still eminently doable but not where I wanted to be at this point in the year. I repeated the route I did last month (mostly) as it's fairly easy going and used the Raleigh for its longest trip of the year. Ride report here: https://www.cyclechat.net/threads/your-ride-today.173254/post-6124391

 

[lazybloke]

My first puncture of the year on a v early lunacy ride this morning.
It was the back wheel, and deflated slowly. I noticed it only whilst swerving through a mini-roundabout at 25mph (it's at the bottom of a hill). The sensation of the wheels trying to go in different directions was both fascinating and terrifying. That got the heart going.

One repair later, and I was on my way.
Home for breakfast, with a grand lunacy total for 2020 of er, three rides. Not very impressive!

BUT... I'm not giving up. The whole point of this challenge for me is to motivate me (to make more time for the bike).

(Why the hell didn't I do longer rides during lockdown?)

Edited for a gazillion typos. Yes, i'm sure there are more.

 

[Cranky Knee Girl]

I am trying to learn. I set myself up to do Not All Points North last weekend over 6 days. An event normally given a time of 72 hrs to do but this year not a race, no entry fee, anyone can ride it. So I had a go. i had 3 x roughly 100 mile days (first and second and final) and 2x200km I was behind before I started, had a lot of bad weather AGAIN from Sheffield via Dales to Lakes, and by Monday morning after only 250km 25% complete I scratched from a very wet wild camp high above Kendal to Oxenholme and went to my parents in Penrith on the train. my main worry was my knee that until a couple of days before was definitely not up to it after the fall at the end of Lon Las 3 weeks before.

I learnt a lot, I'm glad I did what I did, I'm so cross with myself for not just getting over Kirkstone Pass and finding a cheap bed for the night to totally dry out, have a shower, wash the soaking wet shorts etc I could only focus on how behind my plan I was. So another two lunacy rides down, I think I won't make it now but not admitting it as I must carry on to maintain some fitness.

But mainly why do I always get such awful weather?! so gorgeous now, if only if only

 

[lazybloke]

Yesterday's small-hours ride gave me wonderfully quiet roads into and back from London.
Today, I decided i'd do the same in rush hour traffic!
Yuck, traffic levels have jumped hugely since I last drove to work back in early August. Schools are back too.
Wasn't a bad route with two Royal Parks, but did have to tangle with some jams elsewhere. Was also fairly laden down with laptop & charger, other equipment for work, change of clothes, tools, etc, so the bike felt heavy and sluggish.

Took a meandering route home to ensure I achieved my lunacy distance. So that's two qualifying rides in 2 days!

 

[Aravis]

As I've reported elsewhere, I did my ninth qualifying ride on Wednesday. Never can I remember finishing a ride more tired, but it feels to have done a lot of good, and I definitely didn't push it!

For the "rolling lunacy" challenge I had just two days to spare this time - a bit close for comfort. The next critical date is October 5th, and after that the 15th. Naturally I'd expected September to be more productive so I thought I'd have a bit more time in hand. It's a fun challenge though.

 

[lazybloke]

Added 3 rides this week. Legs now need a holiday.