First ride of 2013

A new year, time for a new venture.

Last year was an atrocious one for cycling. February and March were fine, although farmers were worried about drought. But then the rain started in April and barely let up for the rest of the year. The Saturday of the Men's Olympic Road Race sticks in the memory as possibly the nicest day of the summer. It didn't last of course. Marianne Vos won her gold medal the day after in the pouring rain.

So after a dismal 2012 I'm in search of motivation for 2013.

Enter a brand new Garmin cycle computer and Strava.

For the first time in over 20 years I'm riding with out a little magnet attached to a spoke and a sensor on the forks. The Garmin uses GPS to track one's progress but that's just the start. It records each ride which can then be uploaded for analysis and comparison with one's own previous efforts and that of others along the same course or segments of a course.

Already I'm more motivated to ride in less than pleasant weather than I have been in ages. Seeing that my cycling friends are out gives me a much needed boost. "If they can do it…" I'm still not as keen/crazy as some but I'm riding on the road more than I was this time in recent years.

So first ride of the year; first ride with the Garmin; first ride uploaded to Strava.

No pressure just a gentle ride to work trying to avoid the massive puddles which had built up after the Christmas deluge. Didn't manage it though. The 'B' up road from Walderton was kerb to kerb 4 inches deep in parts. I turned left up the lane rather than negotiate the ocean in front of West Marden.

A reasonable start. 30 miles covered.