Yes the monthly update post is back now I’m actually doing enough riding to register on my Strava progress page…. First lets grab the stats: Total ridden – 320.63 km, On road – 224.37km, Off Road – 78.44, Zwift – 17.82km. So I’m pretty happy with that considering the almost total lack of biking action over the preceding 4 or so months. My backside certainly let be know that it hadn’t seen a saddle for awhile after the first couple of excursions.

I managed 3 days out on the mountain bike last month and moving into this summer I really think that I’m going to attempt a really decent year off road for the first time in ages. Now I’ve said this before and for various reasons it’s just never quite happened. This year I’m determined it’s going to be a different story and the excuse jar is looking pretty empty if I cant follow through on my good intentions. There’s three good reasons for off road optimism this year – Firstly – Time, I’ve just got a bit more of it now. After changing jobs about 18 months ago I’m now nicely settled in at my new employer, all those tiresome onboarding and company training courses are done and I’m actually on a better shift pattern which gives some longer stretches of time off between shifts a couple of times a month. Add to this the distinct lack of dependant children living at home now our youngest is away at university means no more unpaid taxi services or meal prep hoovering up my time. Secondly – touch wood the creaky old bones are at present all working as well as can be expected. Last year as detailed in previous posts my dodgy shoulder was most crimping what little off road style I still possessed. Now it’s had a full rebuild at eyewatering expense (thank the lord for company health cover) I’m happy to report its not bothering me at all pain wise when riding the MTB. There is still a bit of weakness on my righthand side shoulder/arm mostly from the holes they had to make through my upper arm and shoulder to get the old bone nibbler in, but time exercise and visits to the much hated gym should fix this hopefully. Thirdly – after all the soul searching, gnashing of teeth and general whinging about not being happy with the way my bike rode I’ve got a bike underneath me that I’m more than happy with and no longer feel like is holding me back. The Santa Cruz Bronson I finally acquired last year is still making me smile every time I ride it.

So to sum up with no real excuses for lack of time, injuries or bad equipment this really should be a good year for me off road. There will of course still be a lot of time on the road bike because I’ll still always be a roadie at heart and its still imho the best and quickest way to build fitness, but I’ve set myself the target of getting back to being able to ride all the black trails comfortably again at my local trail centre by the end of the summer.