Link: A Physicist Rigged His Pet Hamster’s Wheel to Upload to Strava. It Runs Surprisingly Far Every Night

Thijs de Buck, an MRI physicist in the Netherlands, created a Strava account for his hamster Mollie, equipping her wheel with a tracker to upload her nightly runs.

Mollie's impressive efforts, like a recent 6.06-mile run in over four hours, highlight her consistent activity. The data is collected using a sensor and a tiny computer, which processes and uploads it to Strava.

Originally, de Buck used a simple bike computer for tracking, but upgraded to ensure continuous monitoring, despite Mollie's breaks. Wanting a full Strava experience, he included features like live speed tracking and automated personal-best updates.

The hamster's account quickly gained popularity, amassing followers and kudos on Strava, compelling de Buck to sign her up for challenges, which she completed swiftly. Mollie's regimen, as described by de Buck, is practically professional: eat, sleep, and run.

The quirky project began as a fun way to monitor Mollie's activity but evolved into a detailed recording of her training stats. With Mollie running almost 10 kilometers a night, de Buck is humorously concerned she might outdo his own running records.

De Buck, also a running enthusiast, is recovering from an injury, which lent him time to enhance Mollie's tracking setup, and he plans to compare his mileage with Mollie's when he resumes running.

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