University of Regina professor rides across Canada—without going outside

It’s not exactly indoor training she’s doing, but what a University of Regina professor is doing as part of her research might inspire a few ambitious ideas for trainer-bound riders this winter—especially if the notion of cycling across the country appeals.

Megan Smith, a fine arts professor at the university, has already biked a considerable distance over Canadian soil, which is impressive given that she hasn’t once left her own studio. Her project, “Riding Through Walls,” focuses on how to engage more effectively with technology in direct ways, and in pursuing that research, she’s decided that a bike is the best way to explore the idea. Even if it means that the bike she’s riding doesn’t move an inch.

Smith paired a stationary bike with Google Maps through a program she developed herself, and she plans to virtually take it across Canada. It’s a simulated journey she expects to take approximately a year and a half, based on a rate of eight hours per week, Global News reported. Each pedal stroke amounts to a single virtual step in Google Maps, and she’s already put a bit of distance—mostly on the west coast—under her virtual rubber.

As the trip takes her through Google Maps, she’s also able to connect with communities en route—making the journey a more social, personal experience than you might think.

“It’s one of our roles as artists to question technology and new technology and systems to document and photograph,” Smith told reporters, describing the program. When her great, motionless cycling experiment is complete, she plans to release the coding for the program to anyone interested in trying it out for themselves, she said.

We can think of worse ways to keep yourself entertained while training indoors than simulating a trip by bike across the country. What do you think?