Cyclist finishes global journey
HE crossed the Mojave Desert, rode through a monsoon in the Indian subcontinent and braved the chaos of Hanoi’s traffic system, then found the greatest welcome in the world in the Gulf troublezoneofIran.
Cyclist Markus Stitz, 37, tookayearouttopursuehis dream of circumnavigating the globe and has now completed his epic journey in Scotland, where it started a year ago. The Edinburghbased long-distance biker told how he was hounded by guard dogs in Illinois, savoured the Northern Lights in Iceland and crossed the Australian Outback’s treeless plane of Nullarbor.
Mr Stitz said his most emotive moments came when he was offered a “cup of tea at every door” in Iran.
Camping out most nights and only using agencies for a room in people’s homes from time to time, the reception he received in the Gulf was a major boost.
“Iwasn’tsurewhatto expect and had really mixed feelings about going through the region and then I was just blown away”, said Mr Stitz. “It is an amazing country. They would stop me to offer me tea. They welcomed me into their homes and gave me a bed or a space on the carpet. It is how they welcome strangers.”
Mr Stitz, who is Germanborn, travelled an average of 60 miles a day to cover about 21,000 miles on his bike.
The route from the Scottish capital took him through Europe, then by plane to New York, crossing the United States to Los Angeles, flying from there to New Zealand and then to Sydney, cycling across Australia, flying to Singapore and back to Scotland via Glasgow to Edinburgh. The marketing executive will write a book about how he found attitudes to cyclists varied from place to place.
Stonehenge didn’t have any facilities for bikers, New York provided well-used cycle lanes but San Francisco’s custom built paths were rarely used by cyclists.
Mr Stitz, who received sponsorship for the £600 a month it cost for his global adventure, wore out three sets of tyres on his Surly Ogre bike.
Fully self-sufficient, he carried everything he needed on the bike, from camping gear to spare parts to a USB battery to charge his electronic devices.
Mr Stitz added: “I simply wanted to see what cycling around the world was like and whether it was possible to do it with only one gear on my bike.
“For years I carried around the feeling that I wanted to do this. I’m looking forward to carrying around the knowledge that I’ve done it.”