Season 5. Episode 16. End of Adventure Reflections.

Season 5. Episode 16. End of Adventure Reflections.

Since wrapping up our riding, we enjoyed some relaxing time in Porto and some days at home to consider this trip. The most common question people have asked us is: how does this trip compare to the others?

The reply is much like that of a parent – we love all our children equally. Each of these adventures is great in its own right.

Here’s a quantitative snapshot to consider:

• 1,737 miles biked.  By this measure, this trip was the easiest of our 5 self-supported bike expeditions as it was the shortest distance. But that’s too simplistic.
• 68,690’ accumulated elevation gain (2,290’/day)
• 58 miles average per riding day, (past averages were 53, 63, 65, & 72)
• 40 feet of elevation to climb per mile. This slope of 40’ of elevation per mile was the 2nd hardest of our 5 trips. (past averages: 28 Northern Tier, 51 Pacific Coast, 27 East Coast, 29 Southern Tier).
• 30 days of riding and 4 days of rest – makes me all the more stunned that last year we endured 64 days of riding with only 4 days of rest – I seriously question if we could do that again.
• 10 days of rain (from brief drizzle to continued downpour) – makes last year’s 64 riding days with zero rain seems even more miraculous than we thought. This year’s rain magnified the challenge of the slope.
• 2 collisions – by Mark
• 1 fall – by Heather
• ZERO flat tires between us! Heather once again riding on Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires, and I switched this year to Girona tubeless. We prayed daily for our bikes and tires, and our prayers were answered.
• ZERO dog chases! Do the French, Spanish & Portuguese love their dogs more than Americans to keep them from running loose on the road?

And some qualitative reflections:

This adventure felt like 2 separate trips in one. France felt like a vacation as we enjoyed near perfect weather our first 2 weeks, it was relatively flat, and we both speak French so felt no limitation. In Spain and Portugal, the language barrier had an isolating effect at times to me, limiting my social interaction. The climbing in the last 13 days (3,179’/day) was nearly double that of the first 17 days (1,609’/day).

Europe offered so many more points of touring interest that we wished we had shorter riding days at times. We also enjoyed way better food overall. In fact, after the opening week of overindulgence in croissants, baguettes, and pain au chocolat, we had to intentionally cut back.

On our final day, I welled up with tears. Even though that has happened in the past, it took me by surprise. I forgot how much constant determination, resolve and concentration on the goal it takes to make it through several weeks of daily cycling against the elements and challenges. And then at the end, the emotional relief felt overwhelming.

Celebrating the end in front of “Time Out Porto”.

It is indeed time for a time out. Time out from adventure and time in to reconnect in person with loved ones.

On that note, one of the harder parts of this trip, that I’ve yet to blog about was simply being away during the time my dad buried his brother. My uncle passed away. I saw my cousins (his children) just before we left, and my dad had the support of my 3 sisters with him. Nobody expected me to come home. Yet I felt I wasn’t in the right place. Heather and I ate dinner in the historic Place Louis XII in Blois, France and watched a Zoom funeral. (As it turns out, 1 of 2 funerals by Zoom on this trip.) It was a challenging few days with my head elsewhere. On other days, a dear friend had an injury and surgery, and we weren’t home to visit or lend a hand. A nephew had his first child and we were so far away. These are not complaints. Just some of the tradeoffs of being far away for an extended time.

We feel so grateful for our health and well-being that allow us to experience such adventures. We feel even more grateful to return home to our loving children Sydney, Jamie & Matt, our extended family, friends and community.

Thank you to The Reeve Foundation for helping us grow and giving purpose to our riding ambition.

Thank you to all who donated! Family, friends and complete strangers have generously donated nearly $34k to the Reeve Foundation to help care for and cure spinal cord injuries. Donations may still be made here.

Finally, to Lenny and Ernie: you inspire us by your example of living positively in the face of continuing adversity of paralysis. You helped us get this done! 

Several friends have already greeted us with: so, what’s next? I think it’s time to rest! But Heather just sent me an article on hiking in Albania so maybe not 😊. We also met several people along this adventure who suggested hikes and rides, all entered in notes on my phone to research. So, who knows?  In my mind, I don’t remember the wet and windy days or hard climbs. I picture myself cycling, it’s a sunny 70° and glorious, I don’t see a cloud and I’m next to the ocean. Why not do another trip? Pourquoi pas?

Thank you for reading!

 

© Copyright Mark Segal 2025.