I suspect there are other threads relating to Strava somewhere around here, but I haven't been around a lot lately. In fact, since I'm just now starting to do rides that make me feel like a "real cyclist", I'm giddy over Strava and simply have to share.

For anyone who doesn't know what Strava is, it's a site (strava.com) where you can download your ride stats and see how you compare to other riders who have done the same ride, or parts of that ride. People create "segments" of rides and try to beat their previous times, beat their friends, or become King of the Mountain (KOM) if you're a guy and Queen of the Mountain (QOM) if your a gal. You can compare your time to men and women combined or just women, etc.

I started by downloading all my old rides from my former "glory days" and had so much fun finding segments that I had earned a "crown" for (QOM).

And today I went and did a flat route where I knew there were two segments I could probably earn crowns for and I done did it. Hee hee!!! I suspect the other gals on the list weren't trying to kill it on those specific segments, but I don't care. I earned two QOM's for the first time in 2012. They can now go out and beat my time if they care. (You get an email when you lose a QOM letting you know someone beat your time.)

Now I can finally get back at my husband who has been coming home for months giddy over all his KOM's, which he has LOT of. I could hardly ride at the time and sometimes had a hard time hearing about all his achievements. Now I get to squeal over mine.

I've always been a stat freak, trying to best my previous times and all, comparing mine to others I rode with, but Strava adds a whole new dimension to my addiction. Muahahahaaaaa!!!