A peek behind the curtain!
So where do I go from here? I’ve talked about my goals for next season on the bikes, with my running, and at the gym. But what is to become of all this? This little project has developed a small, but devoted following. It’s become important to me and to more of you than I ever would have guessed, over the past 12 months. A whole lot of you have asked what will happen when the year is out, and expressed hope that I’ll continue.
Well, I think that I will. Daily posts aren’t very likely, but I intend to shift the focus from quantity to quality. There will be fewer “this is what I did today” posts, and more posts commenting on industry happenings, trends and news. More posts about training philosophy and motivation. I’ll still write about my races, and keep you all well appraised of what I’m doing, what I have planned, and where I’m going, but I want to broaden my subject matter by adding stories about other athletes as well.
Another thing I’ll be doing more of, with my sudden influx of spare time, is reading. My writing has only become what it is because I read a lot, but that’s had to take a back seat to the sheer volume of writing I’ve had to do as part of this project. In an effort to continue my development as a writer, it will be nice to be able to read, and by that to study the styles and techniques of others.
I’ll also be pursuing other writing opportunities, in an effort to broaden my skill set. You may see me linking to things I’ve written for other sites more, and hopefully one day I might even make a few bucks for what I write. There is a large gap between here and there, but it’s a possibility many of you have encouraged me to explore, and I want to.
In that vein, I’ve accepted a post as Communications Director for the Miami Valley Mountain Bike Association. I’ll be in charge of newsletter stuff, website stuff, social media stuff… In short, doing for them what I’ve done for myself all year this year. It’s a volunteer position, but an important step forward in my media career, if I’m to have one.
And what of this project as it sits? I’m not sure yet. It’s been suggested that I work it into book format. I may shop some of the articles out for republication. At the very least, it will serve as a memento of the year that has been. And if that’s all it ever becomes, it will have been worth the effort.