Road Cycling - Poll: Ever ride your bicycle more miles than you drove your car in a year?

I did it once. 9000+ miles back in 1996 or so. That year I only drove my car 8000+ miles.

I may ride 10K miles this year - but I'll still do 12K+ miles on my car. So that may never happen again. But at least I can say I did it one time in my life : ).

Before I had wife, kids and when I lived on the CBD fringe, I used my car maybe once a fortnight for shopping trips. It was a low Km's 1964 ford sedan, I put around 7-8000 km's in 5 years. Sold it because it started to rust.

I still ride each morning and come straight to work rather than go home first. Car gets used more now running the kids around and living about 10Km's (maybe 6-7miles) from work.

EDIT: sorry double post.

I drove 66k miles last year. My 2003 Mazda MPV has 204,000 miles so I doubt that I will ever ride that many. Hopefully, when I retire, I can ride more than I drive.

So far, I think I'm about even this year. We'll see if I can keep it that way for the next 10 months!

I don't drive much...maybe 30 miles a week, all done on weekend errands. I ride my bike at least that much, and frequently more, because I go to work on my bike, and run many of my light errands on bike. It is more like when I have to haul groceries, home-improvement supplies, or heavy, awkward things that I will take the car.

In 1990 I rode 12k miles and only drove about 8k. I loved that.

Just did it in 2005. And that was a year that included 2.5K of driving in one shot alone for a bike ride in Colorado! Ended up with 9,500 on the bike and 8K on the car. Helps that my commute, when I don't ride it, is 9 miles RT. The vast, vast majority of the driving in the Octopus household is for getting to and from local bike rides. We're lucky!

Last three years.

I drive about 8000 miles a year and have ridden ~ 8500, 10,000, and 11,000 miles

ridden more miles than i PERSONALLY drove? well then ya... last year... cuz when we go to bike rides.. shopping.... etc... hubby drives... i only drive back and forth to work and to the grocery store...

trick question... I ride more than I drive, however, my car gets more miles than my bikes in a given year because my wife and son both drive the car. I try to minimize my use of the car.

train safe-

My last car was totalled in February 1999. I haven't owned a car since then. However, I have cycled the following distances in the years since then:

1999 - 9431.7 kms
2000 - 8910.2 kms
2001 - 8959.9 kms
2002 - 8512.8 kms
2003 - 11725.5 kms
2004 - 14588.4 kms
2005 - 10401.2 kms

So I'd have to say I've cycled further than I've driven my car at least 7 years (possibly even more in the years before that ... I've never driven much).

Funny you are asking because this is the goal I have set for myself this year. Goal is to drive my car <5K and ride >5K. I'll post again on this thread on 12/31/05 :D .

2004 - 14588.4 kms
2005 - 10401.2 kms


You mileage dropped significantly last year, did you car pool? :D .
Congrats, these a big numbers!

You mileage dropped significantly last year, did you car pool? :D .
Congrats, these a big numbers!


In 2004, I did a three month cycling tour of Australia from Sept-Dec which significantly increased my cycling time and distances. :D
http://www.machka.net/australia/ride.htm

Sadly, I returned to Canada at the end of December 2004, and was faced with WINTER ... followed by one of the most horrible summers on record. :(

I miss Australia!!! :cry:

six years running. Never more than 6000 miles on my car. My cycling usually doubles that.

Well....I drive a lot; my closest commute to work in the last 11 years has been 70 miles a day, furthest being 240 miles.

Unless I win Powerball, I don't see myself riding more than driving.....and even then, I'd still probably drive more (I like traveling).

Yes, every year of my life up until I was 25, when I got a job that required about an hour a day of driving for the commute. I didn't get my driver's license until I was 20 (avoided driving for personal enviromental reasons, walk-the-walk kind of thing) and even after that I tried to minimize the amount of driving that I did. I rode anywhere from 4,000 to 10,000+ miles per year from 7th or 8th grade through my mid-20s. I don't put in many bike miles these days because my main competitive sports are running and cross country skiing, but I do more miles in those activites than I do driving.

Currently, I commute to work by running and drive mainly for getting the groceries and for when I want to go running or skiing in places other than right out my front door (though I run and ski out the front door more often than not). Biking has always been right out the front door kind of thing for me... I've never owned a bike rack. Since the first of September last year, I've only filled up the tank in my Subaru four times, about 11 or 12 gallons each time. That's about 1000 miles of driving in 6 months.

I don't drive much...maybe 30 miles a week, all done on weekend errands. I ride my bike at least that much, and frequently more, because I go to work on my bike, and run many of my light errands on bike. It is more like when I have to haul groceries, home-improvement supplies, or heavy, awkward things that I will take the car.

I am the same way. I commute to work by bike and only use my car on the weekends for shopping. The last couple years I easily rode more than I drove.

Well....I drive a lot; my closest commute to work in the last 11 years has been 70 miles a day, furthest being 240 miles.

Unless I win Powerball, I don't see myself riding more than driving.....and even then, I'd still probably drive more (I like traveling).


I have a similar problem. :(

My latest commute is 125+ miles one way, but I hate traveling my car. Someday, I hope to get out of this rut.

1983 through 1991. Only owned a car occasionally during those years. I'd 'like' to get back to riding to work, but the route is a bit iffy in spots, and it's ~30 km. We'll see.

Lets see....

I bike 4000-6000 miles per year.

I drive 200-300 miles per year. I think the bike wins.

I'm 35 and have never driven a car. So yeah, bike wins.

I'm 35 and have never driven a car. So yeah, bike wins.

Out of sheer curiosity, where can you live without driving a car until age 35?

Let us know so we can all MOVE THERE....

I drove 66k miles last year. . JEEZUZ!!! That's over 2000km a week!!! :eek:

I always ride more than I drive.

I don't have a car. :)

Well, I have no car here in the UK, though I drive when in the USA. That is mostly in my wife's car - my car is a restoration project, and I've only done about 200 miles in the last year....

On the other hand, bike miles for the year are usually >4000. Not surprising when you figure in a daily commute of 20 miles round trip.

Cheers,

Ed

JEEZUZ!!! That's over 2000km a week!!! :eek:


That's UNDER 2000km per week. i.e. 52 weeks x 2000km = 104km. It's more like a tick over 1000km per week. 66,000km is about 40,000 miles. Not atypical here in NY's Hudson Valley. My wife is good for 25,000 miles annually. Hey, the supermarket is 4 miles away and my kid's school is 11 miles down the road... When gas hits $10 per gallon we'll all be riding mopeds and driving electric cars around here...

Well I did ride my bike further (4K) then I drove (2k) my hobby/project car 80vette.

Man I wish I could ride nearly as much as you guys. I did 3700 miles on my bikes last year and was pretty happy wiht that other than that it was my goal to ride more miles than were put on my car. Due to a trip or two I took plus my wife using my car a couple of times to save money (my car gets almost 10 MPG better fuel economy) my car got right around 3850 miles on it...which should have been easy to beat.

Honestly it was Nov and Dec that got me...I don't ride in the rain and it rained a LOT in Nov and then got stupid cold right after than and then snowed a ton...so all that got me off the bike and in the car...sorry I am a wuss. :D

Man I wish I could ride nearly as much as you guys. I did 3700 miles on my bikes last year and was pretty happy wiht that other than that it was my goal to ride more miles than were put on my car. Due to a trip or two I took plus my wife using my car a couple of times to save money (my car gets almost 10 MPG better fuel economy) my car got right around 3850 miles on it...which should have been easy to beat.

Honestly it was Nov and Dec that got me...I don't ride in the rain and it rained a LOT in Nov and then got stupid cold right after than and then snowed a ton...so all that got me off the bike and in the car...sorry I am a wuss. :D

But who can blame you? I've never been this motivated to ride, so since Thanksgiving I've logged about 3,000 miles - by riding in frigid weather, rain, snow, etc. And it has been pretty sucky. But NOT as sucky as not riding - at least for me. And now they're predicting 60º for the upcoming weekend. But I'll be riding today. And it's only in the 30's. But at least the wind calmed down...

But who can blame you? I've never been this motivated to ride, so since Thanksgiving I've logged about 3,000 miles - by riding in frigid weather, rain, snow, etc. And it has been pretty sucky. But NOT as sucky as not riding - at least for me. And now they're predicting 60º for the upcoming weekend. But I'll be riding today. And it's only in the 30's. But at least the wind calmed down...
See I don't mind the 30° weather...the rain and snow scare me off...and single digits...I got a sweet ride in yesterday and the rest of the week looks great...will be doing the commute again and hope to get several rides in as well.

age 18-34, 1.1 million miles driving, 0 cycling
age 34-present, 61,000 miles cycling, 0 miles driving---I ride more than some people drive AND ride

age 18-34, 1.1 million miles driving, 0 cycling
age 34-present, 61,000 miles cycling, 0 miles driving---I ride more than some people drive AND ride

Age 34 to 'present'? And how old are you today, i.e. how many years did it take you to roll up that 60K mile figure?

Sure...usually about 1.7 to 1, bike miles to car miles each year. Between bike commutes and nearby access to light rail, my car doesn't figure in as much as it used to.

What is this thing called car (said in mock Russian accent)?

I don't have a car neither. Although with road-tripping to California with my brother, I may end up driving more miles (the # that I'm actually at the wheel) than I'll bike for awhile. But it won't be my car.

Age 34 to 'present'? And how old are you today, i.e. how many years did it take you to roll up that 60K mile figure?

about 5.5 years, I turn 40 in May

about 5.5 years, I turn 40 in May

Is most of that in the course of urban bike messengering? That's a ton of miles in heavy traffic. Be careful out there.

Most of it is work, some is just errands being car free, and maybe a couple thousand is rec riding just for the heck of it. About 3-400 miles of it is alleycat races. Traffic here isnt all that bad really, and even when it is, that just adds to the fun factor.

I've had a driving licence for 9 years.

I've had a racing licence for 33 years.

This is the extent of my mathematical expertise.................

Out of sheer curiosity, where can you live without driving a car until age 35?
Let us know so we can all MOVE THERE....

New York City, baby!! And to clarify, I'm 35 and I *still* don't know how to drive a car.

Just once and just barely: in '03 I put 5500 miles on my bikes and maybe 5000 on the cars. My wife was pregnant for most of that year and we didn't take any big trips and I was riding every morning before work

New York City, baby!! And to clarify, I'm 35 and I *still* don't know how to drive a car.

In that case when you DO start driving in NY you'll fit right in : ).