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Cycling to Disney (A progress thread)

Some of you know that I was able to acquire a great bike (Cannondale R200) last year, and have been trying to set up an exercise regimen for myself. For the longest time, I found that whenever I would bike, my 5 year old (now 6) would tag along. While the Father/Son time is wonderful, and I wouldn't trade it for anything, I wasn't getting any real exercise. So, since my wife and I are both trying to take control of our health, she's working out in a program led by a friend of ours, and I decided to start riding my bike at night once the kids are asleep. There is a well-let street with a bike lane nearby, and about 2.5 miles down that road, I can get on the nicely paved Mississippi River levee (which is not lit, but there's no traffic).

Taking a queue from a "Walking to Disney" thread I saw on a popular Disney World forum, I decided to set a goal for myself:

According to Google, WDW (Magic Kingdom, specifically) is 697 miles (cycling route miles, not interstate/driving miles) from my house. Assuming an average of 7 miles per ride, it would take 99.5 rides for me to get bike there. With 10 months, 3 weeks, and 5 days till our next WDW trip, I should be able to ride 7 miles per trip, 2 times a week and "arrive" on time!

I took my first official "Cycling to Disney" ride last night and easily rode 6.83 miles in 43 minutes. It was rainy and foggy, so I was a little slower than what I'll likely achieve on subsequent trips. As I condition my body to these rides, my time and distance is sure to improve.

If there are any other cyclists here, I'd LOVE for you to either join me in my journey, or set your own destination and track your progress here!

I'm still pretty new to cycling, and can use all the advice and motivation you folks can offer!


Here's my progress through one night (prepared in Excel... if anyone is skilled at creating HTML progress trackers, I'd be interested in learning!)

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What a great idea, its a good way to see a goal and work towards it. Having worked in a bike shop for almost 10 years I have seen many a customer come in and explain how they want to improve their health. Its really great to see people get into the sport and regain their fitness.
It wont be long and you will notice yourself picking up the pace and going further, easier. My cycling has sloped off for months now and I'm really wanting to get back on the saddle but Im lacking motivation, I should try and chip in too and get my arse in gear.
All the best.
 
What a great idea, its a good way to see a goal and work towards it. Having worked in a bike shop for almost 10 years I have seen many a customer come in and explain how they want to improve their health. Its really great to see people get into the sport and regain their fitness.
It wont be long and you will notice yourself picking up the pace and going further, easier. My cycling has sloped off for months now and I'm really wanting to get back on the saddle but Im lacking motivation, I should try and chip in too and get my arse in gear.
All the best.

Do like me, and pick a place you'd really like to go, then track your progress there. That should help motivate you, right?

I was really looking forward to going riding last night, but hail, tornadoes, and plummeting temperatures had other ideas. Today's high temperature is 24 degrees colder than yesterday's! :w00t:
 
Do like me, and pick a place you'd really like to go, then track your progress there. That should help motivate you, right?

I was really looking forward to going riding last night, but hail, tornadoes, and plummeting temperatures had other ideas. Today's high temperature is 24 degrees colder than yesterday's! :w00t:

I dont blame you, its cold here but minus the rest of that weather.
Its a great idea, I just may do that. Really I should ride to work then I have little choice but to ride home ha.
 
Enjoy your ride! My oldest son and I did the GAP trail, from Maryland to Pittsburgh, a couple of years back. The joy is in the journey!
 
10 more miles yesterday. I found out it's a lot easier ride harder and faster when the sun is shining.

This picture was taken near the refineries along the Mississippi River about 3 miles down river from the Bonnet Carre spillway. I think it nicely illustrates the importance of the spillway. My house is about 2 miles away from the river (as the crow flies). If there were no levee, the river would easily be flowing through my house right now. If the spillway hadn't been opened a few weeks ago, the river would likely be near the top of the levee, or possibly already topping it in places like the French Quarter.

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Going to enjoy this thread for the scenery and your rapid cycling fitness progression. I only started road cycling in May 2015, and I was disappointed in my early pace and endurance. However, it didn't take long to really improve. I'm clipped in now and wear padded shorts and still enjoying the miles. Have fun and be safe!

Let me add that because it's dark by the time I get home this time of year, I do a bit of night riding. It looks like you have a safe place to log some night miles with some cheap lights. Have to be focused, but it's a blast!
 
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Going to enjoy this thread for the scenery and your rapid cycling fitness progression. I only started road cycling in May 2015, and I was disappointed in my early pace and endurance. However, it didn't take long to really improve. I'm clipped in now and wear padded shorts and still enjoying the miles. Have fun and be safe!

Let me add that because it's dark by the time I get home this time of year, I do a bit of night riding. It looks like you have a safe place to log some night miles with some cheap lights. Have to be focused, but it's a blast!

This stretch of fence at the top of the levee serves only to secure a refinery area on the river-side. Falling into the river is a definite possiblity, so yeah, being focused is a necessity! :lol:
 
Enjoy your ride! My oldest son and I did the GAP trail, from Maryland to Pittsburgh, a couple of years back. The joy is in the journey!
On the list! I just ran across a woman and her husband who traveled from CO to make this ride on Ritchey Breakaway bikes. What a cool trip! How many miles did you do a day? Any tips?
 
Cool idea. So are you planning on taking your family to Disney once the goal is achieved?

Well, the idea started because of a "Walking to Disney" thread I saw on disboards, which works the same way. I stumbled upon that because we were already planning a trip to Disney World in December. It was kind of easy for me to adopt the "Walking to Disney" idea in my cycling, and it seems like a very reachable goal to achieve by the time we head that way.

Last night I added another 8.47 miles. And it was probably my hardest ride yet. The wind was directly against me from the time I topped the levee, until I turned around to head home. It really killed my pace. But, with the wind to my back on the way home, I was able to really move, posting my fastest speed yet (18.8 mph!). I ended up making it back home under an hour, but under 10 miles.

Riding at night presents an additional challenge I hadn't previously considered. My visibility to drivers is, of course, number 1. My own visibility is right up there too. However, because of the late hour, I like to have a set time, so my family will know when to expect me home. So riding to time makes sense. But in the case of wind conditions, my time and distance get all thrown off. I can't just make up the time on my street by riding around the block a few times, because if I hit a piece of rock or a crack in the road just the wrong way, I'll be ordering tires again. My neighborhood streets, though in great condition for cars, are NOT great for road bike's tiny 120 psi tires!

Side note: on the levee I definitely saw a pair of eyes staring at me from under one of the pipes that goes to the river from the refineries. I coud see them staring from at least 300 ft away, all the way until I passed. Whatever it was, it was really close to the path, too. Creepy!


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