2016: The Preview

As mentioned, 2015 was a great year for me. It's going to be difficult to top it. As soon as I rode across America in 2015, one of the first things that crossed my mind was the simple question of where do I go from here? I still don't think I have the complete answer.

As it stands now, here are my goals for 2016.

• One century per week
• Century in 5 new states
• One international century
• 12,000 miles
• One Everest

2015 was the year of one single goal and that goal dominated everything. This year I have a longer list of goals that aren't necessarily related to one another. The first is to ride a century every week. I did it in 2012, 2013, and 2015. It keeps me in somewhat decent shape all year long and I enjoy doing it.

The second goal is to ride a century in 5 new states. I've done a century in 26 of the 50 states and last year was a slow year for me with only 2 new states. I want to get closer to the end goal of riding a century in all 50 states. On top of that, goal #3 is to ride a century in a different country.

My mileage goal for the year is 12,000. Last year I did 15,000 and I think that was a little too much. I want to focus more on quality than quantity in 2016. The mileage goal isn't a high priority, really. It's more of a reminder to make sure I'm riding for a purpose, not just riding for mileage.

Last but not least, I want to complete another Eversting attempt. So far I've done 3 and there's nothing quite like it. It's the best way I know to test your mental and physical limits. What I love about Everesting is that, during my 3 attempts at least, there is always a moment when you want to quit because the whole thing just seems impossible. (Full disclosure: I've quit at that moment a few times.) But somehow, some way you just keep going. "One more repeat" becomes your mantra and before you know it you're piling up the repeats and getting close to the finish line. The sense of accomplishment at the end is incredible. I want to feel it one more time.

Those are the goals for 2016. They may not feel as exciting as they felt in 2015, but you never know. I might add something else along the way.