January (You're All I See)

January is a funny bugger for cycling. You come off Christmas with all the extra padding that brings, having lost some of your fitness that regular exercise gives you, and yet you want to get back on the bike and get some miles in. It's not just the extra weight / lack of fitness that you have to contend with, the weather is generally rubbish, with ice, strong winds and heavy rains abounding, not to mention the generally poor state of the roads at this time of year ; floods, hedgerow detritus, potholes - all can put a real damper on riding when you do actually manage to get out. And if you puncture, on a cold and dismal day, it seems the very worst ever type to fix.

So how do you approach the month? I find that a laid back approach works best, take whatever good weather days come along and listen to your body, just go with the flow. Some of the Strava challenges can also be useful as well, as long as you don't become a slave to their completion - it's great if you can ride 600km in the month, but it's not the end of the world if you don't. Feel it - rather than force it. I've managed my best ever January in terms of mileage, and had fun while doing it. One of my rides covered new roads, and my monthly 100k ride turned into a fun game of working out how many turns I could take to get a good mileage whilst remaining close to home. Anything to avoid the feeling of just plodding out the miles for the sake of it.

It can also be useful to think longer term, and think about what the coming year will bring. I've booked on Sundown 60 (again) in May, and have also entered the two day Yorkshire Wolds Way Challenge in June, a bit like riding the Sundown 60 twice, on consecutive days. I've explored logistics and information around the Traws Eryri route, and have looked at more routes in Scotland. Now it's February, the days are getting noticeably longer and hopefully brighter and warmer. The promise of a good year of cycling is in the air - thank you January!

Incidentally, the post title refers to a track by the excellent Scottish band Call To Mind, who hail from the Scottish Highlands where I want to ride this year. Worth checking out.