It has been less than a week since I ended my season in the North Georgia Mountains. This week has been quiet, with plenty of time for reflection on what has been an amazing season.
My early season goals were to complete the toughest mountain centuries in the Southeast. The four I singled out as my A rides were the Assault on Mount Mitchell, Blood Sweat & Gears, Bridge to Bridge, and Six Gap Century. All were completed, and I added a few others along the way, such as Blue Ridge Brutal, Tour de Cashiers, and Issaqueena’s Last Ride. To top it all off, I explored some of the majestic climbs in Colorado.
As for my personal performance, I dramatically exceeded my expectations. I improved on last year’s Mitchell time by nearly an hour, yet still felt like I could have done better. Even though I lost some fitness towards the end of the season, I was still satisfied with my performance. It has been a good year.
How can I top 2012? Haute Route will be a good start. I have already started planning my ‘training rides’ for next year, which should be exciting. Winter training begins in a couple weeks. There will be plenty about that later.
For now, you can find me on the couch.
SteepClimbs.com 
October 6th, 2012 at 8:50 am
Aaron, Sounds like a great season. I still am impressed with all the great climbs you worked into your time in Colorado. Some August you have to come join the Colorado Rocky Mountain Bike Tour and check out some of the rides you have yet to do. Every year they’ve taken me to new places, and even made repeating some climbs enjoyable. Geneva to Nice should be epic!
October 6th, 2012 at 9:34 am
Hey Jeff, had an amazing time in Colorado. Cannot wait to get back there, but probably not in 2013 because of France. Definitely want to try Rocky Mountain Bike Tour, was inspired by your blog and someone else. Someday I might also try Ride the Rockies or Triple Bypass.
October 6th, 2012 at 9:14 am
‘Winter training begins in a couple of weeks’…Wow, you’re almost as keen as Rob is (just finished 1500km in 15 days in AZ). Is ‘winter training’ actually riding, or will you be doing some cross training?
Congratulations on a great year, too, by the way.
October 6th, 2012 at 9:36 am
Go Rob! There will be some easy riding, but after this rest period I’ll start out in the gym doing some strength exercises. I’m working out the details of the plan with my new coach and will probably blog about it soon. Look forward to hearing about your training.
October 6th, 2012 at 11:45 am
Sounds similar, except I won’t be hitting the gym, I think. Haven’t down strength training since I starting cycling, so looking forward to seeing the results. Cheers.
October 6th, 2012 at 10:40 am
Another amazing season. Well done. You are an inspiration to all of us in the HS category – hill slugs!
Can’t wait to hear about your journey to France next season!
October 6th, 2012 at 6:53 pm
Way to go ! When u get off the couch come on over ! Gi John. Vork cycling
October 7th, 2012 at 9:55 am
An excellent year! Thanks for bringing us along in a figurative sense with this great blog.