2011 Goals

It’s almost a new year.  Here are my goals for the next year.  This is not a “resolution”.  These are goals I can re-visit, track progress, and modify if I need to.  🙂

• Train for and complete an Olympic Triathlon on 7/31/2011
• Weight lifting for upper-body strength (I’m pretty pathetic above the waist now)
• Get to my goal weight of 175lbs by 7/1/2011, and never go above 180 again (at about 216 today)
• Ride at least 5000 miles for the year
• Drive fewer miles than I ride (this could be hard due to most driving being longer trips)
• Do at least three overnight bike camping trips
• Start riding with the local club – on my single-speed (I’ve done that once this year)

Old Goals

Let’s look at some goals I posted on 2/28/2009

• Goal weight will remain at 175 lbs (for now).  I hope to reach that goal by the end of August.
  Didn’t happen.
  
• Ride a century this year (100 miles in one day).
  Didn’t happen until 2010.
  
• Raise $3200 for The Ride to Conquer Cancer, and complete the entire ride under my own power.
  I raised over $2500 and completed the ride.  I’ll call that success.  I did not participate in 2010.  The fundraising part really is the hardest.
• Learn to ride my new unicycle, and complete a ten-mile ride on it by June 2010.
  I gave up the unicycle.
  
• Juggling?
  Didn’t bother.  Without the unicycle it wouldn’t be as cool.  🙂
  
• Ride to work more often.  I had hoped to average 3 days per week, but I’m not even managing that right now.
  This was up and down for a while, but I moved to Louisville, and I ride (almost) every day.
  
• Ride to work five days a week at least 3 weeks per year.
  See above.
  
• Increase my average speed on the bicycle a little bit.
  Hasn’t really happened, although the triathlon training should help that.
  
• Learn to kayak this year.
  I still haven’t touched a kayak, but I did take a canoe trip.
  
• Get a rod, reel, and fishing license, and spend some time relaxing and fishing.
  I didn’t do this either.  Most of my free time is gone.  I have been reading a lot though.
  
• Find new fitness activities.
  I guess training for a triathlon counts.  I’m also starting weight lifting.
  
• I had made a goal to live-car free.  I think I’m giving that up.  I do want to drive less, but realities of the modern world make this a very unpopular choice.
  I wrote this when I had an old car that was paid for.  Then it died.  Then I bought a truck.  I seldom drive now, but I’m now married, and have a car payment.  It’ll be a while before I can become car-free.
  
• Ride 5000 miles this year.  I’m way behind on this so far.  I’m two months into the year, and I’ve only ridden 541 miles.
  I did not make 5000 miles in 2009.  I did in 2010, and hope to in 2011.
  
• Get better about riding in cold rain.  I often use this as an excuse not to ride to work, but I have the gear to do so.
  I ride in cold rain.  I still don’t care for it, other than the “crazy factor”.
  
• I had planned to try to drive less than 3500 miles per year.  I’m giving up on this also.
  I’ve modified this to simply ride more than I drive.
  
• Ride in a roller coaster this year.  I’ll actually fit now.
  I didn’t get a chance for a real roller coaster, but I did ride in a number of other amusement park rides.  Yes, I fit.
  
• Go skydiving in the summer of 2010.
  Didn’t happen.  I still want to do it someday, but I’ve got too much else going on financially and time-wise.
  
• I want to be a better cook.
  I may be slightly better, but only slightly.  I still don’t cook often enough.
  
• I want to find a wonderful woman to enjoy these activities with.
  I did.  I met her shortly after writing that blog post.