My year in cycling 2024
I had planned to write a few more blog posts by January 1st, reflecting on parts of my 2024. The idea so far is not to make them overly profound, but rather something trivial yet hopefully entertaining — for myself and anyone who happens to read my blog. Because I finally have some time off since this weekend, I’m starting my year-in-review today. I'll begin with cycling, for which I’ve selected my ten favorite photos!
PS: Hover on the photos to see them in color. If you're on mobile...uhm..sorry.
January 2024
First, There Was a Flood
The year began with floods in many places, and my city and the surrounding areas were affected too — especially the rural areas with dikes, where a very well - known and popular cycling route passes through. The first time I went cycling during the flooding in January, the water had already receded a bit, but I still got to see some of it.
February 2024
April 2024
As you can see from the sign (if you understand German), the flooding persisted. At that point, there wasn’t really any new water coming in, but it had pooled in fields and ditches, among other places. Many people and animal-people were affected. Luckily, I wasn’t.
This ride in April was, to my recollection, the longest of the year. I’m glad I did it. I remember getting rained on a few times and that the weather was very changeable. But I was able to take some nice photos; the colors in the fields really stood out against the gray skies. That was lovely to see.
May 2024
I don’t remember why this ride was so short, but you can tell because I’m wearing casual clothes instead of cycling gear. I still really like this photo with the artwork on the asphalt.
I think May was when the so-called “trial period” for my retraining program took place. It lasted two weeks, half-days, so I already had less time for cycling then.
June 2024
Apparently, I didn’t cycle much in June. I think that’s when my rash started to get worse.
In July, my retraining program started, and I was out all day. So cycling was really only possible on weekends. Since I didn’t have much time for road cycling, I started commuting to class by city bike to get some extra kilometers in. By August, I think I had already stopped that because the rash got too severe. Especially in the heat, I would get covered in red, itchy spots on my way home.
October 2024
Not only because of the rash but also due to a lack of time, I barely got to cycle toward the end of the year. The weather also plays a role, and it’s not always nice on weekends. Often, it was rainy or windy to the point of being stormy, so I preferred to stay home. I did manage a few short rides, though.
December 2024
This might be my last cycling photo of the year. It was already a bit late that day, and the light was beautiful.
Looking Ahead to 2025
To be honest, this cholinergic urticaria really depresses me. Some days I can forget about it, but when I see other road cyclists speeding by outside or notice my road bike neglected in the corner, it makes me sad. But I don’t want to give up.
I’ve read several articles online and found people on Reddit who share the same curse as I do. I’ve even found people on YouTube who have battled the exact same thing. A few of them managed to get rid of the urticaria in one way or another. I want to be one of them.
This isn’t a New Year’s resolution, because I don’t make those, but I plan to start cycling to my retraining program again next year. Not right away, but when the weather is okay and it’s no longer so dark outside. Right now just isn’t a good time. There’s a major construction site on the route, and as a cyclist, you have to share the road with buses and cars. That can be quite scary, even more so in the dark.
What I’ve learned from all my research is that doctors won’t help. None of the people who overcame their urticaria owe it to a doctor or medication. I must not give up. Here’s to improvement next year.
Music: -
Mood: introverted