This was an excellent year for me for total cycling, but a tough year for commuting. My commuting mileage was about 1,000 miles less than it would have been under better weather conditions, but the entire year seems like it has been a never-ending procession of cold fronts and drizzly rain. This week has been a perfect example as it rained my final two potential commuting days. We should end up about 12" above normal for the year. With more typical rainfall, I probably would have topped 10,000 total cycling miles for the first time. Despite that, I should end up with my highest total mileage in a year, if the incessant rain ever stops and I can squeeze in one more ride by Dec. 31.
That said, it was a great year for touring and recreational cycling for me. I rode two week-long tours and three weekend tours, totaling more than 1,200 miles. These included my first extended load tour, riding 400 miles from Pittsburgh to Washington DC on the GAP-C&O Canal trails. It was so much fun that my friends and I are planning to do it again in 2015. My weekend tours included the Cycle NC spring ride and the New River and Virginia Creeper trails in Western VA. I also rode 500 miles in the Cycle NC fall ride from the mountains to the coast.
My city has recently completed several long bike paths - MUTs that make it possible to ride nearly car-free throughout much of the metro area. I have taken full advantage of this and my weekend rides from shifted from strictly road to largely MUTs. I have particularly enjoyed riding downtown with my friends, eating brunch, and then back home for a nice 50-60 mile loop. One of these paths is the 30+ mile Neuse River Trail, which is an incredible recreational resource for our area. Not only is the trail very scenic, but the construction is top notch, and I can ride to it from my house in about 15 minutes.
My bike fleet has evolved to adapt to my new riding preferences, and I now have two touring bikes, a sport tourer and a cyclecrosser in addition to an Italian racing bike. All of my bikes can be ridden on unpaved trails and roads except for the Italian. My average speeds are down but I am enjoying riding more than ever.