Today was the day.
10,000 Miles
Three years in a row. And very nearly four but for some nasty blood clots in my lungs in December 2017.
It was mentally much harder to do this without a tour or rides with a purpose. From 2017 to 2019 I’ve done 9,000 miles on tours. Riding to Friday Coffee Club is worth about 1,000 miles a year. And Nationals games are another 900 miles or so. In 2017, when I missed 10,000 miles by 89 miles, I did 3,912 miles just riding to and from work.
I’m not done yet. I am chasing one more milestone in this godforsaken year.
A Few Spokes Shy of a Wheel 
Congrats John! I only got in about 4600 miles. You’re doing way better than I.
That’s fantastic!
Congratulations! I can’t imagine – I log around 2500 a year, if I’m lucky (weather and work-permitting). Well done! 🙂
That’s awesome!
That is quite amazing. Congratulations! Or as the French say, chapeau. To have missed that one year by just a bit must have been heartbreaking. But you’ve come back, and not without a host of challenges.
But here’s the thing about bicycle mileage numbers: If you don’t ride a bicycle long enough to understand what those miles mean, it’s rather abstract and almost meaningless. If you do ride, and for most of us mere mortals, it will be far less than Rootchopper (who is, as his title says, a few spokes shy of a wheel). And everyone’s mileage may vary (sorry about that).
Putting our numbers next to others is inevitable to some degree, I suppose. Just remember, we are each doing way better than our lazier versions of ourselves if we were sitting on the couch. However, the Buddha said, “Comparison is the death of joy.” Do your best and forget the rest is how I phrase it. That’s not to take anything away from RC, but hopefully he’d agree that while he’s awesome, so are we, in our own ways. (My total mileage this year should be 6,666.66, riding every single day.)
The real question is: Did any of us have fun along the way?
I love that quote. It’s absolutely true.
Congratulations John! That had to take real determination this year.
Congrats!
Congratulations! With all those miles originating a mere 15 miles from my home in Reston, I am certain we have passed each other once or twice. I’ll keep a look out for you during my considerably-less than 10,000 miles/year!