New year's resolution: more miles, more asphalt, more dirt, more racing! With Team Health Warrior p/b RK&O spread from the Hamptons to the West Coast, the UK, and other fun destinations for the holiday season, Meg (Team CityMD) and I wanted to take advantage of the unusually warm weather in the Northeast to kick off the year with some good miles.

And so we started the year by sitting in front of a warm fire with a glass of single malt and a computer, mapping out a 60-something mile loop with as many dirt sections as possible in Westchester's Horse Country. Our objective was to leave the house and hit as many of the famous and scenic dirt roads as possible. We were also chasing good climbs where we could set a nice consistent training tempo for several straight minutes. After a good amount of research, the GXP route was finally ready… And, despite the dark clouds and constant drizzle, it did not disappoint!

The first 20 miles accounted for a majority of the elevation gain on the ride and took us up to the Sal J. Prezioso Mountain Lakes Park. We knew that we'd hit some gravel getting across the park, but the rocky terrain was almost too much for our road bikes - we had to dismount a handful of times to avoid potential flats. From there, it was a straight shot down to Sleepy Hollow in North Salem… Sounds like a spot we should be riding on Halloween hunting witches! This was the most amazing part of the ride: rollers upon rollers of dirt, mud, puddles, and gravel roads past horse farms on both sides as we criss-crossed between the New York and Connecticut state lines. The darkening clouds and increasing shadows served as our cue to start making our way back home. The early sunset had caught me by surprise the day before and today I did not feel like rolling in the dark again...