I thought it would be fun to rank the Top Ten posts again. This time from the blog during the calendar year 2023. These posts are ranked according to what Blogger stats tell me were the most read posts of the year.
I'll start with #10 and work up to #1. Each post will be linked so you can go back and read it if you so choose. Then I will comment a bit on each post.
#10: GCHoF 2023: Inductees & Comments - June 3rd, 2023 -
This was a post from my reports on going to the Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame induction ceremonies. The 2023 class was an interesting one and in this post I gave my comments on each person. And then the "thing" category, which was a surprise to most there, which was the Salsa Cycles Chaise Lounge. The "Gravel Icon" category will be noted again for 2024. What will it be this time? Who knows..... Apparently a lot of you folks were interested to read my take on the GCHoF Class of 2023. You can read this post HERE.
#9: Entry Fees Up - January 26th, 2023 -
This post was done after I did some research into what gravel event fees were for 2023 events. A small survey of events was done according to my criteria. Then I showed my results and gave some commentary on them. This post stirred up the bee hive! It's probably why it got enough hits to show up on the Top Ten list this year. This post can be seen HERE.
#8: Country Views: Smoke, Dogs, & Wind - April 8th, 2023 -
Last year I had a few "Country Views" posts hit this list. But this year this post from early in April was the only Country Views post to come close to being in the Top Ten. Maybe it made it because I had "Dogs" in the title. Or maybe "Smoke". You never know what "The Algorithm" will pick up on! You can read this post HERE.
#7: A Search For "Gravel" Geometry Part 2: Myths & Traditions, September 20th, 2023 -
I ran a series of posts concerning the background and history of geometry for gravel bicycles. This particular post in the series received more than three times the hits that the rest of the series posts did. I would imagine that some ruffled feathers may have posted links on a forum somewhere that drove the numbers for this particular post higher. You can see this post HERE.
#6: A Search & Rescue Mission - April 4th, 2023:
This one was a spiritual journey aboard my Dorado Sherpa in the mist to find a pair of eyeglasses. You can see this post HERE.
#5: Velo Orange Utility Bar & Utility Rack Review - June 24th, 2023:
This, along with the next two posts in the countdown, were about the Velo Orange Utility Bar and Utility Rack. Velo Orange linked to all three of these posts on their social media and on their site. Obviously it drove the traffic to those posts! You can read the review HERE.
#4: Velo Orange Utility Bar & Rack - May 18th, 2023:
This short little blurb about the Utility Bar and Rack drew an unprecedented amount of views. It is a bit of a mystery why that is, but as I said, it very well may be because of Velo Orange's pushing the post on their end. You can read the post HERE.
#3: Going Flat: Velo Orange Utility Bar & Utility Rack - May 10th, 2023:
This was the initial post on the Utility Bar and Rack which came out of my deciding to run the Karate Monkey as a flat bar bike again after many years of it being fitted with a drop bar. You can read this post HERE.
#2:When Gravel Was Trying To Find Its Way, The Cross Check Helped It Get There - October 4th, 2023:
If it hadn't been for the top post of 2023, this would have been the #1 cycling related post of the year by a long shot. Surly Bikes decided to discontinue the venerable Cross Check model after a 24 year run. This post details why I think this bike deserves a place in the Gravel Cycling Hall of Fame. You can read this post HERE.
#1: The Six String Side: Roland Jazz Chorus JC40 Amplifier - January 14th, 2023:
A huge surprise to me, but this post took on a life of its own during 2023. The links back to that post must exist on some music/gear page because the post gains about 10 - 20 views per week, right up to this very time! Heck, maybe I oughta be a music gear reviewer. Ha! This amplifier was my 2022 Christmas gift and my 2023 Anniversary gift all rolled into one. I decided to write up the review thinking it might get a few looks. I hadn't ever dreamed that anyone would find that review and spread it to wherever it got linked at. You can read the amplifier review HERE.
Comments: So I think this year's posts on this list were greatly affected by outside influences. It's hard for me to peel out those influences to see what you, the actual day-to-day blog readers really liked. That said, these posts listed here represent hit counts multiple times that of the average daily count here. Not all ten were driven up by algorithms, I wouldn't think, but perhaps they all were.
At any rate, I assume that "real" people were looking at the blog and even with a conservative view to these numbers, the views were up from 2022. Noticeably higher counts on all the posts on the list, and most days on the blog, there were more people checking in.
What will 2024 bring? Can the end of 19th year of the blog in May and the start of the 20th year measure up against the growth over the last several years? We will see.....
As always, thank you for reading Guitar Ted Productions!
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