On June 19, Mr. Hu, a cycling enthusiast in Taiyuan, happened to meet an elderly Sichuan cycling friend, Mr. Jin Hongyuan, who was nearly 80 years old and cycling alone at a bicycle shop in the provincial capital. At such an advanced age, the experience of cycling into Tibet five times solo and covering 100,000 km across China left Mr. Hu in awe. "Even we young people don't have such experiences. And he's an elderly man—this is probably unparalleled nationwide."
So what kind of cycling journey does this elderly man have? On June 20, the reporter invited Jin Hongyuan to the office to hear about his daily experiences and feelings on the road.
78-year-old cycles solo for 17 years
Around 9:30 a.m., at the newspaper’s entrance, Mr. Jin Hongyuan, dressed in cycling gear, pushed a bicycle over. He looked vigorous and light on his feet—it was hard to believe he was 78. "Don’t believe me? Look at my ID card," he said, pulling out his ID from his bag: born in 1934, indeed already 78 this year.
Mr. Jin Hongyuan is a retired employee of a state-owned enterprise in Chengdu, Sichuan. After retiring at age 60 in 1994, he originally planned to enjoy life at home as his daughter wished. But by chance, he fell in love with cycling. In 1995, he cycled to Guangyuan to see off an old friend. This act of seeing his friend off sparked the idea of cycling across China. "At that time, I had just retired and felt very lost. After working hard for most of my life, stopping abruptly made life feel unbalanced. Cycling made me feel fulfilled," said Mr. Jin.
Since 1995, Mr. Jin has gone cycling almost every year, as far east as Shandong, as far west as Tibet, as far south as Hainan Island, and as far north as Mohe. He has pretty much covered the entire country. Among these trips, he has cycled into Tibet five times, taking the Yunnan-Tibet, Sichuan-Tibet, and Qinghai-Tibet routes. Even more remarkably, all of these rides were completed solo.
The reporter observed that despite traveling all the way from Chengdu, Mr. Jin’s gear was simple: a bicycle, a raincoat, some changes of clothes, and maps. "In summer, it gets hot, so I didn’t even bring a tent or sleeping bag this time," said Mr. Jin. "When tired, if there’s a hotel or a local’s home, I stay the night. If not, I can just spread the raincoat on the ground and get by."
There are dangers, but also joy and touching moments
"Are your children at ease?" "Is it safe on the road?"
These are the questions Mr. Jin is most often asked.
He says he doesn’t think too much about those things when cycling. Mr. Jin has a daughter in Shenzhen. The first time he cycled to see her, she was shocked to hear her father was coming all the way from Sichuan by bike. "She was worried about me, but seeing that I was getting healthier, she stopped trying to stop me—though she still gives me plenty of advice each time."
Since starting to cycle in 1995, Mr. Jin has covered over 100,000 km. Along the way, there have been challenges, but more memorable are the joys and kindness he’s encountered.
In 2007, Mr. Jin cycled solo through the desert, facing temperatures above 40°C each day. "It was so hot, I’d crawl into roadside drainage culverts to look at the sky. The sky I saw there was the bluest and most beautiful I’ve ever seen—crystal blue with not a single cloud."
On two separate rides, he broke both collarbones. "The first time was in Guizhou. It was okay—I got bandaged at the hospital and could go home by car. The second time was in Tibet, where I ended up staying in the hospital for over a month. Both times, kind strangers helped take me to the hospital."
Once in Heilongjiang, his bike tire burst. Mr. Jin fixed it in the rain by the roadside, getting completely soaked. "A car drove past, then turned back. The driver said there were no houses for another ten-plus kilometers. Eventually, he brought me to his home, helped fix the bike, served dinner, and let me stay the night. We talked and became friends—we still keep in touch to this day."
Mr. Jin pulled out a notebook. Its contacts page was filled. He said these were all friends he’d made along the way.
Finish visiting all unexplored places before 80
During the conversation, Mr. Jin took out a map of China and a small notebook—his prized possessions from years of cycling. The map recorded the routes he had traveled, while the notebook contained his cycling logs and postmarks from post offices at his destinations.
Flipping through the notebook: "May 30, 148 km," the postmark "Feng County, Shaanxi"… Mr. Jin recorded his daily itinerary. He said he didn’t know better in the beginning, only cycled. Later, he started bringing a camera to take photos along the way, as well as a notebook to record his journey and emotions. Each photo seemed to tell the rich story of Mr. Jin’s adventures.
Unfolding the map, Mr. Jin grew even prouder. Pointing to the web of lines on the map, he said, "Red is where I’ve already been, black is where I flew, and dashed lines are places I plan to visit next. My final stop this time is Heihe. I estimate it’ll take another month or so."
The reporter saw dense red lines covering the whole map—most provinces had been visited multiple times. "I aim to cover the remaining places before I turn 80. I may not have much money, and my stamina might not be as good as the young, but I’ve got the courage."