London #ride5000miles member triples his normal mileage in 2020

With Covid-19 and lockdowns causing all kinds of chaos, it would’ve been easy to write off this year’s #ride5000miles challenge in favour of a bigger, better 2021.

However, despite the disruption, London-based Tomasz Kolodziej managed to purchase a new bike, take on his first trackday, enjoy regular weekend rides and smash the distance total – covering more miles in 2020 than he did during the past three years combined.

Related articles on MCN

• #Ride5000miles member goes on first solo biking camping adventure
• Quadriplegic biker gets back on the road
• From pillion to rider on multiple continents

“I didn’t expect to cover so many miles and I was surprised when I saw the clock,” Tomasz confessed. “It happened so naturally. I don’t have a car, so I use my bike for everything, including just having fun.”

Previously working anti- social hours in the restaurant industry, before swapping to a role at Dainese London, Tomasz changed his Ducati Monster 821 for a Yamaha FZ6 back in March – with a lack of use and hefty insurance premiums prompting the change of machinery.

“I thought I should spend the money saved on petrol and trackdays,” he joked. “The Yamaha is surprisingly good and so comfortable for the longer commute because it’s smooth at lower revs. For London, it’s better than the Monster.”

With more time on his hands and a new bike to explore, Tomasz has now covered 5100 miles in around nine months, including two days scratching around Brands Hatch Indy and countless weekend blasts to places such as Finchingfield and Southend-on-Sea with friends.

• What to expect on your first trackday

Speaking about the track time, he added: “This was my first time on track on my bike and it was a real eye-opener! You think you are going alright on the road and then on track it’s all different. After commuting in London, there is a very big difference in speed on track.”

Tomasz’s distance count would’ve been even higher had his March tour to France gone ahead as planned. He continued: “We bought the tickets in January before anything started with Covid. We were supposed to go on March 26 but on March 23 we were put into the first lockdown.”

Tomasz now plans to visit in April 2021 instead, as well as riding into Italy to visit a former colleague who now works at an Italian Dainese branch in Verona. That’s a really good ride.