Old Coach, that's a great story. Thanks for your encouragement. How do you get on your bike at this point? What did your surgeon say about swinging your leg back over the seat? I haven't been able to do that in years.

Some people suggest mounting with the good leg but that doesn't help, in fact it's worse because the new hip won't bend out to the side enough. Hard to describe but maybe you can picture it.

At this point, what's your main limitation for mileage? Is it your hip or overall fitness?

I don't feel motivated to do high mileage anymore. I suspect that pushing myself too hard in several sports (especially biking, backpacking, running, and weightlifting) led to premature arthritis at age 50 that turned severe pretty fast. My doctor says that's not what caused it but I can't let go of my feeling that I just did too much, and it wasn't all fun. A lot of it was grueling. At this point I want to be healthy and enjoy biking for the landscapes and the joy of riding, not the miles. 1000 miles a year will probably always be in the back of my mind though because it's just so satisfying to see that number on your cyclometer, eh?