Here’s a story to make you go “awww” and “whyyyy?”: Aussie Michael K. Sheridan and his son Oscar Sheridan are taking on the challenge of riding the entirety of Beijing’s newly-expanded subway system. And they’re doing it today. On a Saturday.
On their website, Beijing on 2 Kuai, the Sheridans lay out a rough itinerary for the journey, which they’ve dubbed “Beijing Subway Saturday”:
- Line 15 international exhibition center to FengBo then from FengBo to WangJing West transfer to line 13.
- Line 13 to LiShuiQiao then transfer to line 5 and go to TianTongYuan North and then down to SongJiaZhuang and transfer to line 10
- Line 10 to ShuoJingMao then back to JiaoMen West and transfer to line 4
- Ride Line 4 to TianGongYuan and turnaround and ride to AnHeQiao North then turn around and ride to HaiDian HuangZhuang transfer to line 10.
- Ride line 10 to HuJiaLou turn around and ride it to CiShuoSi and transfer to line 6.
- Ride line 6 to HaiDian WuLuJu and turn around and ride it to CaoFang then back to HuJiaLou And transfer to line 10
- Ride line 10 to SongJiaZhuang then turnaround and ride back to GuoMao and transfer to line 1.
- Ride line 1 to SiHui East then turnaround and ride it to PingGuoYuan then back to GongZhuFen and transfer to line 10
- Ride line 10 to CiShuoSi then get off and turnaround and ride it to XiJu then turnaround and back to LiuLiQiao and transfer to line 9.
- Ride line 9 to GuoGongZhuang then turn around and ride it to National Library and transfer to line 4.
- Ride line 4 to XiZhiMen and transfer to line 2 and head to GuLouDaJie and transfer to line 8
- Ride line 8 to HuiLongGuan DongDaJie then turn around and ride back to HuoYing and transfer to line 13 and ride to XiZhiMen then ride line 2 to GuLouDaJie and turnaround and ride back to DongZhiMen and transfer to line 13.
- Ride line 13 to HuoYing Then turnaround and ride back to WangJing West and transfer to line 15.
- Ride line 15 to international exhibition center get off and feel as though you got your 2 kuai worth.
The Sheridans will be taking photos of the sign for each subway stop as proof that they covered the entire network. A friend helped them translate an explanation of Beijing Subway Saturday to show other passengers:
We are a father and son team from Australia.
We are attempting to ride the entire Beijing Subway system in one day.
It is a feat that has never been done before.
We are therefore Record Makers!
You can find out about our challenge on subwaysaturday.com and we would love your support.
We need to get on and off the train to take a photograph of the sign at each station to prove that we really visited every station.
If you smile and treat us nicely we will take your photo and remember you forever!
Thank you for your support and your friendliness.
We love Beijing! We love the Subway!
Two years ago, two Global Times reporters – Alex Taggart and Chris Hawke – completed a similar exploit based on the rules of the London Tube Challenge. Hawke ended up winning the race with a time of 16 hours and 12 minutes (versus Taggart’s 16 hours and 56 minutes). The story was picked up by the Beijinger and The Huffington Post.
This year, the Sheridans are raising the stakes by taking the subway on a Saturday – as opposed to Taggart and Hawke’s Wednesday foray. Plus, the recent expansion now gives Beijing the distinction of having the longest urban subway network in the world. If you see the Sheridans on the subway today, be sure to say hi, get a photo, and cheer them on!
Photo: Gabriel White via Flickr
