On the morning of December 31st, there were 6968 year-to-date miles in my cycling log. Several months earlier I set a rather arbitrary goal of 7000 miles. That specific distance isn’t a big deal. (It would only be 270 more miles than last year.) I’m sure many randonneuring and/or super-commuter cyclists routinely exceed that. But to be so close. It would be a lot easier to say “I biked 7000 miles” that to say “I biked almost 7000 miles” or “I biked six thousand nine hundred eighty five miles in 2008.”
But still, I was only marginally motivated to ride the necessary 32 miles on New Years Eve day. I had to work. And on this cold and rainy day, it would double my normal commute. If I’d been more motivated, I would have gotten up an hour earlier in the dark and ridden over the Sylvan Hill. As it was, I did my normal ride-to-Gosse-Hollow-take-the-Max-to-Beaverton thing (still in the dark). By the time I arrived at work, I had 28 miles to go. And by the time I left, it was nearly dark again.
From work I headed west, bought a last-minute holiday gift at New Seasons in Cedar Hills, dropped it off at a friend’s house near Elmonica, and continued west on Baseline to about 205th St. The bike lanes were pretty sketchy (remnants of “snowzilla”), and the debris hard to see. I sought out lesser traveled streets, and ended up “taking the lane” quite a bit. I avoided Cornell, wound up behind the Evergreen Cinemas in Hillsboro, and crossed over Hwy. 26 on 185th St.
The most pleasant part of this nocturnal excursion was the meander on NW Park View Blvd. and Sommerset Dr. between 185th and West Union Rd. Traffic was minimal. The residential streets wide. When West Union turned into NW Thompson Rd, I set my sights uphill. And for the most part, the ascent up to Skyline Dr. was manageable. Most of the traffic was local and unhurried. The decent down Thompson Rd. to Cornell Rd., on the other hand, was a bit scary. Snow and gravel along the right shoulder. Wasn’t real confident of the road surface. Used my brakes a lot!
On Cornell, I took the lane through the tunnels, and appreciated the brief respite from the rain they provided. Got off Cornell at Westover, climbed, and then braked a lot into NW Portland. Stopped at Whole Foods (near Powell’s) for a few groceries and a bottle of cava with which to bring in the New Year. By the time I got home, my trip computer said 31. One mile shy of 7000 for the year. And still a tango dance to go!
After an hour-long dinner and pit stop at home, I met my friend Jeff at Staccato Gellato on NW 28th. It was here that I reached my 7000-mile goal. Jeff usually enjoys an espresso at this establishment while he waits for other cycling tango dancers, but Staccato Gellato closed early on New Years Eve, as did the nearby Starbucks. Fortunately, though, Blue Monk on SE Belmont was open, and we shared a terrific Spanish coffee before heading to Tango Berretin (on SE Foster at Holgate), where we danced in the new year.
Here are a few personal (Lynne-inspired) cycling stats from 2008:
~ Total logged miles (including commutes): 7,004
~ Rides of 100 miles or longer: 20
~ Longest (and most epic) ride: Desert River 600k (376 miles)
Randonneuring:
~ 2008 RUSA total: 4,296 km (2,669 miles)
~ Super Randonneur award
~ R-12 award
~ One DNF: stopped after 200 miles of Seattle’s “4 Passes” 600k
Cumulative odometers:
~ Mountain Cycle Stumptown: 11,996 miles
~ Ideor Asso (fixie): 4,229 miles
~ Lemond Buenos Aires: 2,572 miles
A few organized rides:
~ RACC (Ride Around Clark County)
~ Tour de Blast (Mt. St. Helens)
~ STP (Seattle to Portland)
~ RSVP (Seattle to Vancouver, BC)
Hottest ride: STP
Coldest rides: Scio Covered Bridges, & Clatskanie-Cape Dissapointment permanents
OBRA participation (Oregon Bicycle Racing Assn.)
Road races: 5
~ Cherry Pie
~ PIR (Portland Intl. Raceway): 2
~ “Rehearsal” RR, Rainier
~ Mt. Tabor (fixed gear)
Time trial: 1
~ Jack Frost TT (Vancouver, WA)
Track races (Alpenrose Velodrome): 16
~ Fast Twitch Fridays: 6
~ Masters/Juniors (Wednesdays): 7
~ Other: 3
Cyclocross: 5
~ Cross Crusade : 4
~ Heiser Farms (Dayton): 1
Happy New Year, everyone!
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