Commuting Numbers

[pfunkallstar]

5,200 miles last year and I’m on track for another 5,200 this year. I deserve a new bike.

[JeffC]

You all have some longish commutes or else get in a lot of rec rides to rack up so many miles. I have a wife, two young kids, an old house and I am the main chef, gardener, and handyman so if it was not for commuting I would not be riding my bike at all, ok well on a vacation with my dad I biked about 15 flat miles on a rental bike but that’s my only rec riding for all of 2012.

I only track mileage and based on that, I’ve done around 90 to 95 round trip commutes (22 miles roundtrip from Falls Church to downtown DC). When I take the subway, I also do a short commute (3 miles roundtrip) from my house to EFC metro which I also log for miles.

I have a lot of other physical interests like training with kettlebells and weights and if I bike too much my 40ish body gets too tired to do my weight training. Unfortunately if I bike too much, I’ve found that my muscle mass tends to decrease and while I get lean it can be on the skinny/fat side so for me it is all about balancing physical pursuits and having 2 to 3 days per week where I do my biking with the other days for rest and weight training.

Also having commuted now for five years, sometimes (I know this sounds like a travesty) I get bored on the same route. Just knowing I have options helps, even if I then get tired of riding the subway after a few days too. I’ve put more miles on my bikes than on our secondary car (a 13 year old Honda Accord). When I got the oil changed on it the other day, the guy was shocked that I only put 1500 miles on it in 9 months.

I get the transit subsidy at work but now what you don’t use is forfeited back so I just get the maximum and rarely use it all. Sometimes with crazy work and home schedules I can only bike a few times a month (usually in winter) and use most of it, but not so often.

[dasgeh]

@JeffC 35775 wrote:

You all have some longish commutes or else get in a lot of rec rides to rack up so many miles.

Your post sounded a little defensive, but I think your yearly riding sounds awesome.

[JeffC]

@dasgeh 35781 wrote:

Your post sounded a little defensive, but I think your yearly riding sounds awesome.

No, I am just in amazed that somebody could get 5000 or more miles a year. I seem tired enough doing not even half of that.

[vvill]

@JeffC 35775 wrote:

You all have some longish commutes or else get in a lot of rec rides to rack up so many miles. I have a wife, two young kids, an old house and I am the main chef, gardener, and handyman so if it was not for commuting I would not be riding my bike at all, ok well on a vacation with my dad I biked about 15 flat miles on a rental bike but that’s my only rec riding for all of 2012.

I try to combine my commutes and rec rides when possible (I’m not the main chef but otherwise I’m in the same boat as you). I’m lucky in that my wife is very supportive of all my riding, as long as I don’t crash too much. She hasn’t been too keen on my quality of gardening lately though.

I hit the 10 000 km mark for 2012 recently. Last year which is when I started riding “full-time” I only managed around 1200mi (didn’t track all my mileage). Numbers like 5000+mi seemed crazy to me last year, but it’s easy to rack up road miles.

@pfunkallstar 35723 wrote:

5,200 miles last year and I’m on track for another 5,200 this year. I deserve a new bike.

If I divide my miles by the number of bikes I have I won’t be on track for deserving a new bike anytime soon.

[Greenbelt]

Just checked my miles on Strava — about 4,700 since mid-May when I got the Garmin. Looks like the average mileage for a full month is about 800. Commute miles on Metro since April 2011? Zero.

I have the best commute I could imagine, really.

[ShawnoftheDread]

Since early July when I started using Strava, I’ve had 190 rides for 1700 miles. Before that I estimate I had 150 rides (75 or so commutes) for 1200 miles. So I should pass 3300 miles for the year. I’m hoping for 5000 next year. I’ve had five flats (all on the front), four broken spokes (all on the back), one new back wheel (on the way), and one broken grip shifter. I’ve saved about $2100 in commuting expenses, and spent about $200 on equipment and repairs. I’ve also lost about 20 pounds this year and am almost impervious to weather.

[FFX_Hinterlands]

I commuted every day this summer and I average 2 days a week during the school year. My company paid me $240 to bike commute this year. How awesome is that? Thanks, bicycle commuter benefit! Oh, I broke a spoke and stripped an axle nut this year (total $60 in repair). And I spent about $80 on generator lighting (bottle dynamo). Not bad!

[Greenbelt]

Oh yeah, on the cost: This year I’ve replaced both wheels on my commuter bike ($$$), and I’m on my second set of Schwalbe marathon tires ($$), 2nd cassette and 3rd chain ($). Plus a minor adjustment or two (). And a broken fender (not yet replaced).

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