Cyclist Kevin Shannon is in the final stages of preparation for his attempt to circumnavigate the globe on the back of his bike.
The British adventurer will set out from his home in the village of Mobberley, Cheshire in the UK at the end of August with an eye on returning some 720 days later. Along the way, he’ll touch five continents, cross two oceans, and cycle through more than 30 countries. He also expect to deal with weather that will vary from sub-zero, arctic conditions all the way up to incredibly hot and dry. Kevin will be making this incredibly long and tough journey in support of a great charity known as Combat Stress, an organization whose purpose is to help veterans of all services and ranks in the U.K. to deal with the psychological issues they suffer due to their service.
What I find interesting about Kevin’s expedition, which you can read more about here, is the route that he has planned. While he admits that due to the nature of his journey, his route may have to be rather fluid, the plan is for him to ride through the U.K., into and across Europe and Asia, then drop down to cross Australia before proceeding to New Zealand. From there, he’ll continue across the Pacific, then ride up the west coast of South America and on into North America, crossing the U.S. before turning north into Canada, then crossing the Atlantic and returning home.
And what what will Kevin be riding on this epic adventure? His bike of choice, according to his gear page, is a Hardrock 08 from Specialized, with a few modifications thrown in. A trust steed that hopefully will see him complete his journey in one piece.
If everything goes as expected, Kevin should be hitting the road next month, and hopefully will be updating his website with information from the road as he travels. It should be yet another great expedition to watch unfold, and wish that we were all on ourselves. Good luck Kevin!
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Very ambitious. I have so much respect for people who can just go out there and do something as grand as this.
I am right there with you SG! It takes a lot of heart and nerve to set out on an adventure like this one. I have major respect for these guys too.
And I'm a bit jealous as well! 😉
Jealous – yes, lot of heart and nerve – not really, sponsors-yes.
Give me a laod of money, and I will go around anything on anything
(Specialized ? $ 3-5K ?) to support anything.
Sorry, just being honest here.
I used to work in a national park the Chilean Patagonia and remember meeting two Belgians who were cycling from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. On the day I saw them, there were 50mph gusts of wind and they were almost going backwards, despite their legs being the size of tree trunks!
Good luck, hell of a feat! Come visit our project sites in South America if you fancy a break.
http://www.questoverseas.com
JonJon: Your story is what I'm talking about when I say they have a lot of heart and nerve. It's a long road to ride, and being away from home, living on the road, for two years, take a lot out of someone, and doing it under trying conditions is not easy either.