What if I'd cycled those 10,915km of the New Zealand coastline... in a straight line?

According to me, the "cycleable" coastline of the North, South and Stewart Islands of New Zealand is 10,915km long. That's 6,782 miles or 3,581,0367 feet or 10,915,000 metres, if you're that way inclined. It's also somewhere in the region of 4,802,022 wheel revolutions (I rode a 29er).

The NZ coastline is gnarly, twisted, straight, rocky, jagged and all the other adjectives you like. Seldom did I get to cycle in a straight line and, when I did, it was usually tiring, dull and involved head-winds and staring at a junction for 20 minutes before actually reaching said junction. Fortunately, 98% of Bike Ride was far more interesting than that and took me across beaches, down tracks and up and over hills, bluffs and the occasional mountain.

But, what if I just rode all 11,000km in a straight line? Where could I be right now, all penniless and stranded, trying to blag a lift home?

In a straight line, 10,915km gets you from Mission Bay, Auckland to:

Santa Isabel do Sul, Brazil Presidencia Roque Sáenz Peña, Argentina Villazón, Bolivia Socoroma, Chile Huaraz, Peru Nowhere in Ecuador Nearly Mexico City Phoenix, Arizona (incidentally, one of the few places I've actually been to in the USA) Vegas St Matthew Island, Bering Sea Baotou, Inner Mongolia Imphal, India Chittagong, Bangladesh Dambulla, Sri Lanka Not quite the Maldives Mauritius

Maybe next time!