We are fascinated by the diverse goals of VeloViewer users, with every story revealing unique and inspiring dedication to personal achievement. Tiler Stephan van Hienen caught our eye when he casually dropped in a 2861 day cycling streak with his 2025 yearly infographic on Instagram.
This enviable streak of consecutive riding days deserves to be showcased, and at the time of writing Stephan was well on his way to the 3000 milestone, yes read it again, that’s eight years!!
We dug a little deeper with Stephan to find out more about this impressive feat, which we’re sure will motivate others along the way.
VV: What is your current activity streak?
Stephan: As of March 2nd, 2026, the streak is 8 years (2,921 days). I’m almost hitting the 3,000-day mark.
VV: How have you maintained such a strong activity streak without illness or injury?
Stephan: The streak started 8 years ago in March 2018.
The idea for the streak actually came a bit later when I realized I had already been cycling for quite a few consecutive days.
My initial motivation was to cycle 365 days until March 2019, and after that, I took on the challenge of doing a full calendar year in 2019.
2020 was a leap year, so 366 days naturally became the next goal. And stopping after that? No way.
Fortunately, I haven’t had any serious illnesses. Sometimes I catch a minor cold, but you can still ride perfectly fine at a slightly lower intensity.
Luckily, I’ve avoided major injuries too. I did have a crash late last year which left me a bit stiff for about two weeks, so I just stuck to shorter rides during that period
VV: Has your activity streak included activities other than cycling?
Stephan: My streak consists entirely of cycling, specifically riding outdoors for at least an hour.
I don’t use indoor training as a backup because I don’t really see that as “cycling”—I just call that exercising.
Sometimes this is quite a challenge, like this January when we had icy roads.
To stay motivated and for my own safety, I bought studded tires a few years ago.
This allows me to go outside even in freezing conditions without the risk of sliding out.
Riding with studded tires actually makes it pretty fun to cycle while other people are struggling to move around.
VV: What has been your focus with tiling and how have you achieved this?
Stephan: Tile hunting can be a tricky motivation. Where I live (North Holland), I am pretty closed in by water, which limits my max square.
I did enjoy expanding my cluster quite a bit over the years, but once you reach the point where you need to do 200km+ rides straight from home, it becomes less straightforward.
In 2023, I found renewed motivation by relocating my square to the South of France (the Drôme department), which is currently at 29×29.
From time to time, I still expand my cluster here in the Netherlands, which currently stretches to the Ardennes in Belgium.
This coming summer, I hope to increase my square a bit more when I’m on holiday for a few weeks.
VV: What is your motivation to ride and your plans for 2026?
Stephan: Besides keeping the streak alive and reaching a minimum of 40,000 km for the year, my main goal is simply to enjoy beautiful rides.
Trying to set a pure distance record depends too much on the weather.
Last year I cycled 45,248 km, and my record year was 2024 with 47,161 km.
My daily commutes also keep me motivated, especially when the weather is nice and I can take a scenic detour on the way back home.
Last year I hit an Eddington number of 230 (km) and 160 in miles. I’m looking to increase these even further this year.
Do you have a daily cycling streak to rival Stephan’s?! Get in touch to share your story at veloviewer@gmail.com.