Good bye 2021...you will not be missed!

My beautiful pink yeti!

This is my first blog of 2022...a year that I sincerely hope is better than 2021. As usual I'll do a family based update and then drift into my cycling stuff. The break will be in bold.

Lee dropped her phone in hospital...

It's no exaggeration to say I nearly lost my wife in 2021. If I were to positively reframe that...in 2021 Lee survived Covid19 despite being as ill as it gets, lung failure and weeks in ITU. She has now been off work for a year as the long road to recovery continues. I know she'll get there because she is brave, strong and determined.

As the new year starts we are facing another tough situation. Lee's dad, also called Richard has been battling cancer since 2017. In those years he's done really well but it's not looking too great now. Christmas day was really tough but at least we had the chance to open presents together.

I read a great quote from the Dalai Lama. It's about hope and I find it helpful.

This is the break

The cycling bit isn't going to be long. For one reason and another my 2021 cycling wasn't as I'd hoped. There's good bits in there. I'm happy with my progress in cyclocross. I didn't race today but I am looking forward, covid conditions, permitting to the last race of the season on the 16th. I wasn't fit enough at the start of the season and the same can be said for the Dartmoor classic in June. I'm not beating myself up about this. I wasn't in the right place to train hard and follow a healthier lifestyle.

That leads me to my ambitions for 2022. As usual I'm taking part in Red January, Dry January and #NHS1000miles. My plan is to really go for it and try to cycle 1000 miles in the first 7 weeks of the year. Until I get to that magic number I will be abstaining from alcohol. I'm also going to cycle to work as often as I can. If I do this I'll kick-start the year with a healthier lifestyle and a really good base miles. training block.

Big shout out to all my cycling friends who achieved amazing things on their bikes on 2021. 

Happy Pedalling