My previous post was titled “A Fellow Blogger Interviewed Me! And What Shall I Do After 10 Years and 52,000 Miles Bicycled?
Apparently, the answer to that question is: A Lot Less. I did far fewer miles in the first two months of 2026 than I have for quite a while. Without researching my statistics in Strava, I could guess that it’s been if not a decade, at least half of that time. In January and February I totaled just over 600 miles, which is about 10 miles a day, down from over 14. Not big daily difference, but it adds up to about 250 miles. And that translates into less muscle, aerobic capacity, endorphins, and fun. But I did gain two things: a paycheck, and weight gain.
“Universal sadness al around us…the universe is just one big practical joke.”
–“Dostoyevsky Wannabe,” from the cult film Slacker, 1989, by Richard Linklater
There is a formula in cycling called the Work Equation. It goes like this:
Cycling Satisfaction = Distance x Effort / Work Responsibilities + Account Balance
And another called the Cyclist’s Trilemma, which is as follows. You can have two of the three, but no more.
Such is the nature of being a goldfish, swimming in the dirty water of its own filth, excrement, sweat, labor, and death that is late market capitalism aka neoliberalism aka oligarchy. I owe, I owe, so off to work I go. (Yes, I bike to work, but barely over 2.5 miles each way.)
WORK IN PROGRESS… PLEASE CHECK BACK… MORE THOUGHTS LATER…
A Dude Abikes 
The only way to evade that trilemma is to… become a bike mechanic! (But then you won’t really have $ for other things, like a car. Or a mortgage.)
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Not bad advice, although I’m not as skilled with my hands as you are. And there’s still the time factor of having a job.
Old car that has sent amount of value but nothing major breakdown. A mortgage in Austin? Hahahaha!
I guess I have to settle for quality over quantity, and I’m slowing down anyway thanks tonight and my diminishing power to weight ratio. (Not that it was ever high.) How old is the goal, but it kind of also sucks.
Eventually we all stop biking anyway, don’t we? Thanks so much for reading and commenting. I do intend to add more to that post.
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Fortunately, I’m only required to work 4 days a week (I could work 9-hour days, but… fuck that), so I have more leisure time than most people.
I knew next to diddly fuck about bike maintenance when I started working in a bike shop back in 2015. I was working for the Canadian equivalent of REI: they were looking for bike builders and were willing to train. As an internal applicant, it was an easy job to get, but not to learn!
It took a good 3 years before I could confidently declare myself a bike mechanic.
I’ve only just started to check the Reader tab in the WordPress app regularly. I don’t follow many blogs (it’s a mostly dead art form, after all), but those I do follow seem to have become more active recently.
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Always glad to hear from you. Thanks for sharing, sharing is caring. That’s cool you got into this job. I try to learn stuff at the community bike shop but I’m not great at it. I lack the patience and dexterity.
I’m full time temp now so my writing and reading blogs have sadly taken a back seat. Work from home once a week and all spring break. Then it will be over and I’ll have to start looking again.
I have this fantasy of visiting all my bike blogger friends around the world. I would have to learn to sign first at least somewhat. If you’re ever in Texas… but why would you be? Why am I still? It has its decent parts like everywhere.
Happy Hump Day!
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