After 35 years of road cycling, I am now in unfamiliar territory. I’ve never been here before. The ‘road maps’ of life have never been detailed enough to tell me what it’s really like. I have, for the first time in my life, bypassed the 10,000 mile milestone for the year 2012………..
Now some of you may be muttering to yourself: “Well, that’s peanuts. That’s hardly more than a warm-up session”. Or: “So what? I’ve usually passed that by the summer solstice”. I do appreciate there are some phenomenal mile-eaters out there who cycle the equivalent of 10-15 Tours de France each year. They are mostly super-dedicated cycle-commuters who may be doing 20-40 miles 5 days a week, then going out with the club at the weekends and putting in another couple of good rides.
My commuting life never surpassed 2 miles return………..yes, I said 2 miles return! If I was lucky, I could add a total of 500 commuting miles to my annual total, and my annual total seldom exceeded much more than 5000 miles (but still more than I would drive in a year). I have absolutely no complaints about having lived so close to my place of work……but it did have its consequences for a keen cyclist like myself.
Of course, hitting 10,000 miles is not just a by-product of enthusiasm/determination/nothing better to do/servile addiction (or any combination of the aforementioned and the unmentioned), but is also a consequence of having a greater measure of time-richness and flexibility in retirement. But these very same assets sadly allow me the unfortunate discretion to indulge in a little stats-mongering by adding date, time and place of the very moment when I passed the milestone. This all sounds very sad………..and you’re right, it is all very sad. But I plead guilty!
The precise moment was in Oundle, outside St Peter’s church, on Sunday December 16th at 11am.
St Peter’s Church, Oundle
Well done. 10,000 miles is nothing to shake a stick at! I didn’t even come close this year.
Thanks Anita. That’s the great thing about cycling…….create the targets as you go!
Why are you NOT writing a novel? YOU WRITE REALLY WELL. I love the witty writing style and it captures my attention.
Thanks Olivia…..but I need to stop riding the bike and sit down to do something about it. One day…………..:)
That is impressive. You should certainly be fit.
Thanks! Well most of the time fit…………to drop!
Boy that’s impressive, Frank! It would be nice to see you when you’re in the Southern Hemisphere, but I’m not going riding with you until you get old and fat.
Well…..trying hard to stave off the ‘getting old’ bit, but unfortunately the calendar never lies! Must try the Dorian Grey trick (ie.of Oscar Wilde): sell my soul for some kind of eternal youth. But that could be a hell of its own kind……….
That is impressive! Congratulations on such a great achievement. What’s next? Have you had a look at this club?
http://judithswallow.wordpress.com/300000-mile-club/
Thanks Alberto. Yes I do know about the 300,000 mile club. I posted something a little while ago: http://frankburns.wordpress.com/?s=300%2C000+mile+club&submit=Search
But, apart from the last 10 years, I cannot verify my total mileage…..which is probably a blessing, because I’d hate to become fixated by something so all-consuming. The guy on the website you quote can be doing over 16,000 miles per year. That is HUGE! He probably needs to get a life! (But then some would say that about me ;0) )
Oh yes, I remember reading that post.
That person on the website is a woman who I’ve cycled with on a few brevets, and who holds various long distance records…so not surprised she’s clocking up more than 16,000 miles in one year…!
Wow! Talk about an impressive feat! Good job…and I’m jealous.
Don’t be Tracy….your life is probably brimming over with rich variety, some of which has nothing to do with two wheels. We both know there is a life out there that has nothing to do with cadences, heart monitors, average gradients and PBs.
Nice one Dad!
If you keep increasing your miles every year that means at the age of 70 you’ll be aiming for circa a whopping 17,000! 
Yeh, right……..I know your secret plan: persuade him to pedal into an early grave and inherit his bikes
That’s pretty awesome Frank. It averages out at about 30 miles a day, which is about what I drive in the car.
Ana Cecilia says: “Bien hecho Mendez”
Muchas gracias a los dos! A ver si te coges una mania en tu retiro………
Awesome Frank! You are giving us a bit of motivation to chase you now. And don’t feel bad about the stats, keeping numbers is what us riders always do.
You’re right Chris, like everyone I’m motivated by numbers………but I try not to become a victim of the stats. Long live the sheer enjoyment of just turning those pedals!
Congratualtions! Thats a really impressive achievement, well done!
Thanks Alex, but when you’ve got the LEL (London-Edinburgh-London) under the belt next year, you will be well on the way to doing an annual personal best. Good luck with it.
wow! relax for Christmas….