January 7th, 2023:

I'd posted earlier on Mastodon that "My bike season is still a couple of 
months away, but I really should start preparing," prompting friend 
@cosullivan to ask "How do you prepare for bike season? Do you have a 
phlog post detailing preparation?".

A fine question!

I'm not a year-round cyclist.  My cycling season usually runs from the 
first ice-free day of spring to the last ice-free day of autumn... at 
least, that's how it was before 2020.  I can count on one hand the amount 
of rides I went on between 2020 and now, which is sad because I'd been an 
avid cyclist since the mid-aughts.  So, part of the preparation I 
mentioned involves making sure my out-of-shape 50 year-old body is 
physically prepared for riding after three long, sedentary years.  Hopping 
into the saddle without so much as a stretch will probably ruin me.  Thus, 
I'm starting an exercise regimen the moment I find my copy of The 
Pain-free Cyclist (Matt Rabin & Robert Hicks), which I found invaluable in 
the past.  If I can't find it in the next day or so, I'll probably end up 
buying a copy from BezosCo if McNally-Robinson doesn't have it.

After the physical aspect, there's the mental preparation: psyching myself 
up for the ride.  If I'm going on a recreational ride, I prefer doing 
"Dawn Patrol", or heading out just after sunrise and riding for a few 
hours before the roads or trails start getting busy.  Some days, though, 
it's tough convincing myself to get out of bed on my days off, especially 
after a harrowing work week.  It's just as much effort to convince myself 
to ride to work, having to get up an hour or so earlier than normal to 
ride through cyclist-hating industrial park traffic to a job that stresses 
me out.  But in both cases, once I'm *on* my bike and riding, it's like 
therapy.  Part of the preparation is remembering how much I enjoy cycling 
when I'm actually out riding.

After physical and mental, there's mechanical preparation:  the routine 
maintenance of cleaning, greasing, lubing, patching, and adjusting.  
Gotta make sure the bikes in my stable are ready to ride!  This year I'll 
be overhauling my commuter bike completely and (hopefully) adding a front 
rack w/decaleur, and rebuilding the freewheel on my Auto-Mini folding 
bike.  I also need to replace the bearings in my road bike, but it might 
end up being overhauled completely as well before riding season.

Then, of course, I need to make sure I'm stocked up on consumables like 
patches and making sure the rubber cement in my patch kits hasn't dried 
out, making sure I have enough CO2 cartridges for my inflator, that my 
water bottles aren't moldy, and that my first aid kit is stocked.

That's about the extent of my bike season preparations.  Does anyone else 
go to this much trouble... or perhaps more trouble?