24,901

24,901

I think I’m just hardwired for activities that can be accomplished by being intentional, and plodding, over long periods of time.

• 26.2 miles – 2008 Portland Marathon.
• 968 miles – 2007 Oregon/Washington Pacific Crest Trail.
• 211 miles – 2014 John Muir Trail.

With those distances in mind, back in 2019, I found myself pondering just how far is 4,000 miles?

At the time, I had been regularly biking to work for a bit more than a year. While pondering the meaning of the mileage, I set an arbitrary goal of completing a figurative trip around the globe on my bike. How far is that? 24,901 miles (at the equator). Well, it’s about 4 ½ years later and the pedal strokes have slowly accumulated! I can finally report that I’ve reached the “finish line”!

What have I learned during my time in the saddle?

• Audacious goals take time – Wayne often asks “how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!” If you are trying to become debt free, it won’t happen overnight. If you’re trying to become financially independent, it will likely take decades. Take the first step, and then the next!
• The goal has been my motivation on days where I didn’t “feel like it”. In the cold, dark & wet winters, knowing I was getting a bit closer to spring and motivated me to “power through” another slog.
• (Small Steps) * (Many Repetitions) = Significant Outcomes
  • What can I say? I’m still an engineering “nerd”/math guy!
• Reward yourself along the way. For me it has been listening to audiobooks (mostly of the free variety from the local libraries – if you live in Multnomah or Washington counties, look into their amazing digital collections!)
  • If you’re a reader, I’m always looking for recommendations!
• Flats happen. Be prepared. Have an “insurance policy”. For me it means carrying a spare tube, a hand pump, and a wallet in case I need to take TriMet.
  • The financial analogy: we need an emergency fund, and risks that we can’t afford to retain should be transferred by having the “right” amount of insurance.
• There are risks.
  • The cars are expected and anticipated. And yes, there have been close calls.
  • It’s the unexpected risks that are more “surprising”:
    • I’ve been chased by a coyote (but returned the favor a few days later!).
    • I’ve been chased by someone not exactly “all there” mentally (who happened to be on an eBike – but that’s a story for a different day).
    • And then there was the patch of ice on a chilling morning on an overpass. My dad’s words of wisdom from my childhood of “watch out for overpasses. That’s where ice will accumulate first” was on my mind, and yet it didn’t prevent me from losing control. That one left a bruise!
  • People are largely helpful and accommodating.
    • A homeowner early one morning, seeing a stranded bicyclist trying to change a flat offered me the use of his pump in his side yard. Another bicyclist stopped to help me with another flat offering his services when he saw me struggling with tire levers.
    • Don’t be afraid to ask for help! Be discerning, but ask for help!

Many of the above “lessons learned” have financial planning and investment corollaries. One thing that my mileage doesn’t benefit from? Compounding. Each round trip is roughly 30 miles. Those miles don’t “beget” more miles. In the financial realm, with time on our side, we get the power of compounding which is *HUGE*.

As I write this, I just received a picture from Melinda. Emilia (age 8 ½) just reached 2,222 miles on her bike! She’s covered that distance in about two years. I’m 44. Emilia could reach my total mileage at a much younger age than me riding fewer miles annually because she started sooner.

Whatever your goal is, get started sooner than later. Don’t put it off!

Finally, and most importantly, I’ve found myself wondering what’s next? What’s the next goal? What’s the motivation to keep going? What metric am I going to track? It’s clear to me that I need the goal, I need the focus.

Melinda and I have enjoyed long-distance adventures as a couple. We’ve jokingly, but with some seriousness, been laying the seeds of a family adventure in a handful of years. Don’t be surprised if in the next decade you’re hearing about a bike adventure from the Oregon coast to the Atlantic Ocean, WITH the family! 

Sincerely,

Craig Smith, CKA®, CFP®, CFA® 

The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual. To determine which investment(s) may be appropriate for you, consult your financial advisor prior to investing.