Nicknamed "Flatbed," Lu Binggen is 28 years old this year.
A solo thousand-mile ride, with unique scenery along the way.
One bicycle, a journey of nearly a thousand kilometers, and a determined heart. What kind of story unfolds when these three elements come together? Yesterday, a young man from Yichun, Jiangxi, chose not to take conventional transportation such as trains or buses... He set off alone on a bicycle from Yichun on the afternoon of the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, heading back to Shishi for work. The trip took seven days, and at 12 noon on the twelfth day of the Lunar New Year, he arrived in Shishi, with the bicycle's odometer finally reading 990 kilometers.
Nicknamed "Flatbed," Lu Binggen is 28 years old and has been working as a fashion designer at a company in Shishi for two years. Office workers rarely get the chance to cycle long distances, so the plan for a “solo thousand-mile ride” could be described as “long in the making.” Originally, he had planned to cycle back to his hometown of Yichun, Jiangxi, for the Lunar New Year before the holiday, but on the night before departure, an elderly family member passed away, forcing Xiao Lu to change his plans and take a bus home. However, he didn’t forget to bring his beloved bicycle, packing it and taking it home in the cargo hold of the bus. On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, Xiao Lu embarked on his return journey, using the wheels of his bicycle to measure the ride he hadn’t completed before the holiday.
Yichun, Ji’an, Ruijin, Longyan, Zhangzhou, Xiamen, Quanzhou... On Xiao Lu’s travel map, this was a wavy line stretching from northwest to southeast, but for his feet, it was a winding, rain-or-shine cycling trail. When reporters met Xiao Lu on Donggang Road that day, he and the dust on his bicycle bore witness to the hardships of the journey.
“The rear tire alone punctured four times!” Xiao Lu told reporters. The first two days after setting off from Yichun were rainy. Although he wore a raincoat, the rain still affected visibility and road conditions somewhat. When he reached the section from Longyan to Zhangzhou, the mountainous route and high altitude meant limited visibility amid foggy clouds. “Overall, it went quite smoothly.”
How did he prepare for the 990-kilometer journey? Before setting off, Xiao Lu, who had no experience with long-distance cycling, created a detailed “Journey Plan”: the cycling route was mapped out to the meter, the supply list included even minor items like gentian violet solution, and daily goals were set down to the township level. Although most of it wasn’t used, it was essential preparation for long-distance cycling. “The road is in your mouth!” This piece of advice from Lao Ding, a veteran cyclist from the Shishi Cycling Enthusiasts Club who had cycled to Tibet, proved very helpful to Xiao Lu.
Mountain roads, flat roads. Provincial highways, national highways. The wheels and the road continuously collided, intersected, and frictioned... Over seven days of cycling, covering about 140 kilometers per day was necessary to reach a nearby town before dark and find a place to stay for the night. That meant Xiao Lu had to cycle for seven hours each day. He used his phone to document the journey. “I took more photos during the first two days, and fewer as time went on,” Xiao Lu said. Because of the long hours of cycling, the scenery along the way became monotonous, and under the pressure of the ride, it was hard to find the mood to enjoy the views. He only occasionally stopped to take photos at iconic landmarks, but mostly just pressed the camera shutter on his phone while cycling.
Though the thousand-kilometer ride held no extraordinary encounters, two things left a deep impression on Xiao Lu. One was occasionally meeting other cyclists heading to different destinations, taking commemorative photos together—those were the happiest moments. The other was that at some of the accommodations along the way, the hosts were mostly warm and hospitable, with some even inviting him to share dinner.
A solo thousand-mile ride has revealed the beautiful scenery of life. Xiao Lu said this cycling journey made him more confident—there’s nothing he can’t do if he sets his mind to it.