Doldrums

[Jay Lonner]

Over the years my cycling has increasingly tended toward commuting/utility. Bike-centered vacations/tours remain on the menu, and are still very enjoyable to me, but the day-in, day-out feels like a chore. Part of this is seasonal — I have an easier time dealing with cool, wet conditions than hot, sticky weather. So maybe this problem will solve itself with the autumn rains imminent. But I’m wondering whether others ever get a case of cycling burnout, and maybe have some tips to work through it.

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

[Eric Daume]

Come ride in the Midwest or South, and then you’ll appreciate your “hot and sticky” Bellingham summers :)

I like to have made up goals for my riding. For a while, it was reading and returning books to my local system of little free libraries. This year, I used wanderer.earth to target riding all of my local town roads and paths. That was a good experience. 

Eric

Now in Ohio, formerly of Seattle

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[Jon Dukeman]

Where in Ohio?

On Tue, Sep 6, 2022, 2:44 PM Eric Daume <eric...@gmail.com> wrote:

Come ride in the Midwest or South, and then you’ll appreciate your “hot and sticky” Bellingham summers :)

I like to have made up goals for my riding. For a while, it was reading and returning books to my local system of little free libraries. This year, I used wanderer.earth to target riding all of my local town roads and paths. That was a good experience. 

Eric

Now in Ohio, formerly of Seattle

On Tuesday, September 6, 2022, Jay Lonner <jay.l...@gmail.com> wrote:

Over the years my cycling has increasingly tended toward commuting/utility. Bike-centered vacations/tours remain on the menu, and are still very enjoyable to me, but the day-in, day-out feels like a chore. Part of this is seasonal — I have an easier time dealing with cool, wet conditions than hot, sticky weather. So maybe this problem will solve itself with the autumn rains imminent. But I’m wondering whether others ever get a case of cycling burnout, and maybe have some tips to work through it.

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

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[aeroperf]

When I get a case of cycling burnout, I tend to find and read a book about touring.
“Signs of Life” by Stephen Fabes is a decent one, if you’re looking for a recommendation.
Pretty soon I’m itching to ride a tour again.

Or I check the internet for a new bicycle wrenching “skill” that I could learn.
I have 3 bicycles, but there’s always something that needs doing.  My touring bike is a 9x3 speed.  What would it take to make it a 10x3 speed?
The front wheel on my road bike needs new spokes.  How does one size the spokes and lace a “cross 3”?  OK, go do that.
Before too much time goes by, I’m ready to ride a measured course to see how 10x3 differs from 9x3, or whether the spokes are all properly seated.

And, of course, there’s nothing wrong with occasionally thinking “Low wind, good temperature?  Think I’ll go fly an RC airplane”.  Heresy, I know, but alternative hobbies are OK.

[Eric Daume]

Near Dublin, OH, a suburb of Columbus. According to wandrer.earth, Dublin has just over 400 miles of bike paths and accessible roads (it doesn't count interstates, etc). It took me from November through July to hit my target for riding these roads (blue is ridden, red is unridden):

It's a fun app. I found I was riding longer distances to get out to new roads, so I ended up in better than usual shape for mid summer.

Eric

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[Richard Rose]

Good to know there are more Riv riders in Ohio. I am in Toledo. And do similar rides but that’s a cool app.

Sent from my iPhone

On Sep 7, 2022, at 6:14 AM, Eric Daume <eric...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Bill Lindsay]

Eric described and showed some of the fun one can derive from wandrer.earth.

I concur wholeheartedly that wandrer.earth can add another layer of fun to cycling for some people.  I tend towards the compulsive, and so when I can planfully do something, I am generally more likely to follow through with that something, or at least stick with that pursuit for a longer period.  In short, wandrer.earth got me through the pandemic, because it added a layer of fun for rides that were all solo, and were mostly not far from my front door.  I got pretty hardcore with it, and am very proud of my footprint in the SF Bay Area (Contra Costa, Alameda and Marin Counties mostly).  My job has me travel to Michigan almost monthly, and my presence in Wayne County is preserved on wandrer, and that helped shape many of the hours that I would otherwise have spent watching TV in a hotel room.  I just returned from a three week vacation in Europe and one of my digital souvenirs is a solid footprint in Stockholm, Sweden, Copenhagen Denmark, and Amsterdam.  

Bill Lindsay

El Cerrito, CA

[Jon Dukeman]

Nice.

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[Brian Forsee]

Commuting and erranding also makes up the majority of my cycling here in Saint Louis, MO (where the hot and sticky levels are properly high). I have 3 or 4 bikes I'll do my 4 mile one way commute on. I find changing up bikes every few weeks (as weather allows... fender season is fender season) keeps things fresh and fun. Same could be said for a handlebar change or some other component change. One of said commuter bikes is fairly new and is an Omnium cargo bike. Expanding the amount of errands I can accomplish via bicycle has been enormously fun. I encourage anyone who thinks they could make use of a cargo bike to pull the trigger.

Brian F

[J J]

Jay, sharing here in case you have not seen Russ's (Path Less Pedaled) video, "Recovering from Burnout". It might resonate.

[Patrick Moore]

Oh yes. But both utility -- riding for a purpose (I do errands) and variety -- off road and on road help: looking for new trails and streets (it's interesting to come across neighborhoods tucked away away from major arteries; and I'm always finding or re-finding different irrigation system roads and trails. I very often turn grocery runs from a minimum 2 mile rt (well 1/2 mile rt to Albertson's; but I mean the nicer Sproutses) to 12 or 15 or 20 miles by taking scenic detours.

And overcoming the habit that every ride must be a time trial. That has taken me 15 years and I still have to force myself to slow down during the first few miles.

We're hot, but we're very fortunate to be dry.

Patrick Moore, who must ride to daughter's mother's house tomorrow to pick up and mail things daughter left behind during visit.

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Patrick Moore

Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum

[Scott Luly]

Jay:

I must say I found comfort in you sharing your state of doldrums. It's comforting knowing I'm not alone. I'm 53 and have been in same state for a few years now. It's unsettling. I have to really push to scare-up desire and passion towards hobbies/adventures that used to be abundant and readily available. I develop levels of self-frustration because I'm largely a content, happy person. That is to say, I have much to be thankful for and don't struggle to make ends meet. Before this spell I always found joy in the contagious nature of my enthusiasm towards my recreational activities. Where it went exactly, I don't know. Simply said, I'm not a depressive person, so it's not that. I'm a productive person. It's just that I've noticed I have more of a "chore" view towards considering new adventures. I look back at the level of effort and enthusiasm I used to put forth into planning, prepping for, and successfully completing adventures and it tires me out.

For me, I think it's a phase in life thing: kids moving on to start their own lives, career, monotony, etc.

Again, I've had a great life: much to be grateful and thankful for. I resigned from a long-held position 4 months ago and have been intentionally unemployed since, taking some time to refocus. I find the enthusiasm and passion cups gradually refilling.

Anyways, I don't want to ramble on. But I felt compelled to reply. You're not alone. It's a life philosophy tour. For me it's a lot about the unsettled phase in life I find myself in and locating the desire/courage to MAKE change in the interest of destroying monotony.

I never regret partaking in my hobbies: gravel rides, dirt biking, wing shooting. I just get frustrated being the impediment to doing same.

Over the past few months, I get the feeling it's beginning pass, which is welcome.

Best of luck my friend! Everyone has to deeply consider their own sources and solutions. Force yourself to do what you KNOW you love. Recognition is a great start! I'm getting better at conquering myself.

Best,

Scott in Montana

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[Eric Marth]

Thanks for starting this thread, Jay. I had considered voicing some similar feelings but never started a thread. 

As far as my riding goes, I do anything I can by bike. I can get pretty much everything done in less than six miles, round trip. Most errands under two miles. I work from home but with groceries, post office, job site visits, stopping by the office, I'm riding every day, often four or five trips. 

I do road rides throughout the week and average about 100 miles per week. Longer rides on the weekends out in the mountains if I can find the time (more on this below). 

The things I feel keep me from riding more: Oppressive heat and humidity; not great riding from my door; better riding being a long drive from home; not having other people to ride with. 

I'm in Virginia. By August I am throughly exhausted by the weather. We've had some nice bits here and there but the overall heat and humidity situation seems to never end. Until it does! 

The riding from my front door is not great. Lots of stroads and highways and it takes some work to get out to where the riding is better and the traffic is more calm. I'm limited in where I feel safe riding and going the same routes over and over gets a bit tiresome. I'm not interested in doing dozens of miles on the shoulder of a two-lane road where the posted speed is 45 mph. We have some multi-use paths that are separated from car traffic but they add up to less than six miles and they're pretty dinky. 

I ride solo functionally 100% of the time. It seems having a riding partner or group would make it a lot more fun and easier to get out the door. 

The riding that I love (on quiet roads in the foothills of the mountains) requires at least three hours of driving to access and doing a 35 or 50 mile ride takes up the entire day. 

I've often thought that if there were better roads around me I'd ride a lot more!

I think aeroperf's suggestion to read about riding is a great one. I recently read Ray Hosler's Once Upon a Ride (thanks again for the rec, Rich!) and that was fun and inspiring. Reading Bicycle Quarterly and old Readers is pretty fun and inspiring, too. 

Whenever I really don't feel like riding and I force myself to go I am always glad that I did. Sometimes it's hard to keep that in mind and sometimes I forget and talk myself out of it. But for me, riding is almost always the right choice. 

[George Schick]

I blame the "pandemic" lockdown a couple of years ago for much of this disinterest, not just in cycling, but in much of anything at all.  We've moved beyond that now, but there is still a lingering hesitance to do anything much. I rode a reasonable number of miles last year, but during 2022 the numbers dialed down to next to nothing.  Some of this had to do with pressures associated with yard and landscaping maintenance - as soon as the weather became hospitable back in May I had to spread 10+ yards of mulch over all the flower beds and it seemed like that type of activity continued on into the Summer months and the cycling miles dwindled down to next to nothing.  And so it goes...

[Jay Lonner]

It’s interesting to consider the age/phase of life angle. I’m 54, and I recall seeing a graph some years ago about self-reported quality of life, which hits a nadir in the early to mid 50’s before creeping back up. There’s probably something to the “sandwich generation” phenomenon, which is to say feeling squeezed by the needs of kids transitioning to adulthood on the one hand, and aging parents on the other. 

It’s also true that I just don’t have the physical resilience that I used to — my job requires long hours, with occasional overnight work. It takes me a while to bounce back from a bad weekend of being on call. It makes it harder to muster the activation energy to get on my bike and go for a ride, but I almost always feel better when I do.

So no magic elixir to rebottle the enthusiasm and vigor I used to have, maybe just a resigned yet optimistic acceptance of what this new phase of life has to offer. I very likely am veering well off-topic with these sorts of musings, but thanks for the replies and reassurance that I’m not alone in the struggle.

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

Sent from my Atari 400

On Sep 7, 2022, at 4:10 PM, 'Scott Luly' via RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com> wrote:



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[Jay Lonner]

It’s interesting to consider the age/phase of life angle. I’m 54, and I recall seeing a graph some years ago about self-reported quality of life, which hits a nadir in the early to mid 50’s before creeping back up. There’s probably something to the “sandwich generation” phenomenon, which is to say feeling squeezed by the needs of kids transitioning to adulthood on the one hand, and aging parents on the other. 

[Richard Rose]

I am not immune to this. However, I have found a solution. For now at least. Retire & buy a new bike. I cannot stop smiling & I think at age 67 that I have never enjoyed riding more.

Sent from my iPhone

On Sep 8, 2022, at 12:23 PM, Jay Lonner <jay.l...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Eric Norris]

Richard:

I started working 4 days a week a few months ago, usually using my new day off to ride. I suppose I’m 20% as happy as you, which gives me something to look forward when I switch to 100% retired in a few years!

--Eric Norris
campyo...@me.com
Insta: @CampyOnlyGuy
YouTube: YouTube.com/CampyOnlyGuy 

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[Patrick Moore]

If you find your energy low in the early to mid 50s, I'm sorry, wait until you get into your late 60s (me: 67 and a half). I commuted across town 15 to 20 miles each way from 42 until 53 -- I was slower in 2008 than in 1997! -- but I think I'd need an e-bike to do the same distance regularly now, at least if I wanted to get to work on time. 

Even 6 years ago I was grunting a 65"- 70" fixed gear up the long Tramway hill, tho' suffering for it the next day but one. But the miracle of shiftable gears makes up for my growing weakness.

But though I'm so much slower now than as a young 50-something, and -- worse -- over doing now it can be almost literally crippling for a couple of days, I have to say that I enjoy cycling at least as much as I did in my 50s, 40s, and 30s. For one thing, I've learned how to ride energetically but sustainably; no more time-trials starting at driveways' edge. 

Again, for me, errand rides are the most motivating; other motivations are the lovely bosque dirt trails and roads, and switching amongst very different bikes. When I get back onto the 1999 Joe Starck gofast fixie -- I tend to ride that least even though I love it most; see errands and bosque -- I feel (almost literally) as if I have the energy of 10 years ago. 

Patrick Moore, who himself has a child transitioning to adulthood (and who would like to retire when she's done that).

[Robert Tilley]

I recently signed up with Wandrer to force me to take some different routes. I've worked from home for the last 4 years or so and have no free time so all of my rides tend to be errands and also tend to be along the same routes. 

It's been fun so far but I have come to really hate the inventor of the cul-de-sac. My area is full of them and it's a real pain to "bag" them all. One short road section here has eight cul-de-sacs sprouting off of it. I've gotten a lot of odd looks in the week that I've been trying to clear them all. I keep thinking I'm gonna get beat up since I likely look like some kind of weirdo riding into and out of all of these small neighborhoods. I've started using my Brompton so I look more like a harmless creep than a creepy creep. I'm waiting for someone to post about "some weird old guy riding through our neighborhoods" on the Nextdoor app.

I make double sure that my watch is recording my ride before I take off. I can't even imagine going through some of those routes only to find I didn't hit "record". My wailing would be heard for miles and would be the source of much consternation I am certain.

I have my area about clear so I'm now heading out into the unknown...

Robert Tilley

San Diego, CA

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[Eric Daume]

With wandrer, even worse than cul-de-sacs for me are apartment complexes. Tedious architecture and lots of dead ends. 

I had one ride where I spent about 1.5 hours riding (in the rain!) through several apartment complexes, trying to finally close out a section, only to find my phone had stopped recording a mile into the ride. Doh!

Eric

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[Jeffrey Arita]

Jay,

I've definitely been in your place - the 3 R's: the same roads, routes or routines.  Day in, day out.  One might suggest a way to get out of the doldrums is to engage in 'voluntary hardship.'  Perhaps a cycle-touring trip to a place/locale you have never been.  One such route that is kinda close to you is the Oregon Outback, partially inspired by Jan Heine's trip report (and no, we did NOT do it as a FKT).  In fact, we did it extremely slowly.  We hit frost, rain and heat all in the same trip.  Definitely something that might take you out of the doldrums.

Good luck,

Jeff

Claremont, CA

[Jay Lonner]

I think the 3 R's capture my sentiment nicely. We've done a number of credit card tours in Europe, which have been uniformly fantastic. Bikepacking routes like the Oregon Outback are super appealing, but also a little intimidating, and would also exclude my wife, who humors my biking fantasies but only to a point. Still, I keep reading Adventure Cyclist magazine and finding inspiration, so maybe mixing it up a little is what's called for. I periodically go to the Tumbleweed website and ogle the Prospector, but have yet to pull the trigger, which in a way is silly since bikes are super cheap compared to operating and maintaining a boat! Thanks for stoking my daydreams...

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

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[Piaw Na]

Europe is super cheap right now because of how low the Euro is. If you can find cheap tickets it's an amazing time to go. 

We went this summer after the COVID pandemic put an end to our touring plans for a couple of years. It was definitely worth it: https://blog.piaw.net/2022/07/tour-of-alps-2022.html

[Bill Lindsay]

Regarding cul-de-sacs on Wandrer, you skipped over the interesting part that is a lot more general for cyclists:

Cyclists, as a general rule, avoid cul-de-sacs almost entirely.  Why?  Because by definition they don't go anywhere.  Maybe without even realizing it a "normal cyclist" couldn't draw a picture of the triangular "No Outlet" sign, but when riding they recognize it in their spinal cord and stay away from the dead end therein.  Wandrer totally flips that.  When a wandrer sees that triangle on their "regular route" it's like an Easter Egg.  That's a section you've passed dozens, even hundreds of times and never bothered to explore.  I've found it super rewarding to go down those unexplored dead ends.  I'm an amateur architecture buff, and some of the most interesting houses have been down those dead ends.  Also, I've found a number of interesting urban trails at the ends of cul-de-sacs which I imagine only the locals know about.  That binary switch from "cyclist" to "wandrer" is interesting on its own, IMO.

In the East SF Bay, some of those tiny side streets and cul-de-sacs are also among the most strenuous cycling one can find.  I've learned that all the "main drags" through the East Bay Hills are practically flat in the gradual ways they go up and down the hills.  The residential streets which shoot off those main drags are far steeper.  For a short, very strenuous workout that is still not repetitive, there is not much better than a Wandr in the Oakland Hills.  Those rides kick my butt.  

Regarding apartment complexes and other maze-like structures, those can be super challenging to get all the bits.  I usually make a cue sheet when I wandr, and that task can get tedious when it's a million little turns.  One way I've approached those structures has been in the simple ways mathematicians traverse mazes.  One way to cover a loopless maze is "right hand on the wall".  If a maze has no loops, then RHOW will cover the maze.  It's pretty easy to recognize such a structure on the map and then a whole housing development can be knocked out on the cue sheet with a single "RHOW" entry.  

These are some of the ways that Wandrer has opened up using my brain on my cycling in ways that I hadn't bothered before.  For some people that may "take the fun out of it", but for me it gave me new ways to derive more fun in my cycling.

Bill Lindsay

El Cerrito, CA

[James M]

Interesting on Wandrer.earth - I'll have to check that out.  I've been manually mapping new roads here in NJ post-ride in Google Maps for a few years, which is it's own kind of fun as I walk back through my recorded routes on RWGPS to see what new segments I picked up.  I love a good dead end that there's no reason to go down - *especially* the times when you discover a cut-through at the end to another block.  This is the stuff that makes me feel like a kid again, not a forty-something dad :)

[rlti...@gmail.com]

I definitely agree those dead-ends can result in some nice finds. I’ve found some interesting hidden trails and pedestrian bridges close to my house that I never knew existed.

Most of my area is modern suburban SoCal homes so not much character. Just more tract homes in Stucco-ville. Here is some of the area I’ve cleared. The pedestrian bridge over the canyon sits right next to some of the cul-de-sacs that haunt me.

Robert Tilley

San Diego, CA

Sent from my iPhone

On Sep 15, 2022, at 9:37 AM, Bill Lindsay <tape...@gmail.com> wrote:

Regarding cul-de-sacs on Wandrer, you skipped over the interesting part that is a lot more general for cyclists:

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[Josh Brown]

I love looking at the circle I made around Taiwan this summer so much that I'm going to share it here.

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[Jay Lonner]



So I’ve been mulling this over and am thinking that the Oregon Outback sounds like a good goal for me. I’ve never done any bikepacking but have extensive backpacking experience in the North Cascades, so a venture like this would marry two lifelong interests. More to the point, it would demand training and a number of shakedown rides, which would break me out of the three R’s and get me back onto my bike.

Apart from rides with my wife and family I’ve mostly been a “lone wolf” cyclist, which is inadvisable in the backcountry. How does one break into the bikepacking scene? A “companions wanted” ad in Adventure Cyclist magazine? Can anyone point me in the direction of clubs/communities of likeminded souls? Or do any of you in the greater PNW region feel like signing up for a little adventure?

Jay Lonner

Bellingham, WA

Sent from my Atari 400

On Sep 16, 2022, at 9:10 AM, Josh Brown <joshm...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Garth]

Jay, people go into the backcountry all the time, alone. Is anyone ever truly "alone? Even our former friend here Deacon Patrick, he always ventures deep off the reservation and always alone. I'm sure you can find out how to contact him in Colorado. His last name is Jones.

It's like a photograph, you have what's in the frame, and ALL that's around it, above it and below it !   If all you saw was the frame, you'd be apt to think that poor little frame and it's contents are all alone, so puny. Expand the frame, little by little..... keep going ..... keep going ... and soon you realize that the frame, those borders, those that seemed to be limits, are but like a metaphor for our own sense of self and World, of who we believe ourselves to be in relation to "everything else". Expand the borders, better .... drop all sense of any border..... of isolation and separation....  and what do I you see ?    I see for all in-fin-i-ty !  The Infinite  is all of ME as all of ME is The Infinite.

[Piaw Na(藍俊彪)]

It's OK to be concerned with safety in the backcountry. I carry a Garmin Inreach Mini for those purposes: https://blog.piaw.net/2021/07/review-garmin-inreach-mini.html

The Garmin blog has a ton of rescues, some of which are interesting reading. Its cheap insurance.

On Fri, Sep 16, 2022 at 1:40 PM Garth <gart...@gmail.com> wrote:

Jay, people go into the backcountry all the time, alone. Is anyone ever truly "alone? Even our former friend here Deacon Patrick, he always ventures deep off the reservation and always alone. I'm sure you can find out how to contact him in Colorado. His last name is Jones.

It's like a photograph, you have what's in the frame, and ALL that's around it, above it and below it !   If all you saw was the frame, you'd be apt to think that poor little frame and it's contents are all alone, so puny. Expand the frame, little by little..... keep going ..... keep going ... and soon you realize that the frame, those borders, those that seemed to be limits, are but like a metaphor for our own sense of self and World, of who we believe ourselves to be in relation to "everything else". Expand the borders, better .... drop all sense of any border..... of isolation and separation....  and what do I you see ?    I see for all in-fin-i-ty !  The Infinite  is all of ME as all of ME is The Infinite.

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[rlti...@gmail.com]

I also carry an Inreach when off the grid. It also allows others to see where I’m at when they want to check on me.

Robert Tilley

San Diego, CA

Sent from my iPhone

On Sep 16, 2022, at 1:47 PM, Piaw Na <pi...@gmail.com> wrote:



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[Jeffrey Arita]

Hi Jay,

I will send you a PM on the Oregon Outback (since I suggested it).  Be on the lookout for it as it may go to your spam folder....

Jeff