In Episode 010 of Bike Tour Adventures, I interview Harry and Roelie. They are a Dutch couple that cycled the Great Divide from San Diego to Banff, Canada and then realized they didn’t want to go back to regular life, and have since sold all their belongings and are now doing a world tour by bike.
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ITUNES: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bike-tour-adventures/id1464406852
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Show Notes
~ 30 sec Episode Intro
~ 1m30s Who are Harry and Roelie? Past bike touring experience
~ 5m45s Why Western Europe is a good starting point for bike touring and why Eastern Europe is the best for experienced travellers/bike tourers. Favourite places to bike tour and why the plan to cycle 3 weeks in Turkey turned into 9 weeks and getting off the beaten path in Serbia.
~ 17m Cycling the Great Divide, the types of riding being done, what they liked most, how the landscape changed as they went North, and about their encounters with bears
~ 25m30s Encounters with bears and other wildlife
~ 32 min The most difficult part of the Great Divide for Harry and Roelie
~ 37 min Talking about the difficulties of going back to “normal” life
~ 41 min Harry’s multiple bypass heart surgery, and bike touring two months later
~ 49 min Back to discussing the world tour, why they skipped certain countries, having his coffee grinds read in Turkey, and hiking in the Anapurna Circuit
~ 1h1m30s Discussing budgeting, killing iphones, and the costs of visas
~ 1h6m30s Getting a free place to stay in Singapore, the next part of their journey through Indonesia and Australia
~ 1h15m30s Plan to cycle to Alaska but dealing with visa limitations, discussing Adam’s plan to cycle to Tuktuyuktuk
~ 1h18m Discussion about Pilot bikes, pinion gearbox, and belt-drives. Some of the advantages and disadvantages
~ 1h24m What they’ll do in case of major breakdown of the gearbox
~ 1h27m Why they are using different luggage configurations, and how much water they carry
~ 1h33m Cost of bikes and equipment, how to get sponsorships, what gear they love and hate
~1h46m Back to discussing Heart to Beat, fundraising goals, and how they also donate 10% of the value of all sponsored gear to the foundation as well.
~ 1h53m30s Saying goodbye and conclusion of the episode.