CharityBikeRide.Net have recently seen Mark Beaumont who is touring the UK speaking about his adventures. I suspect you may be wondering who Mark Beaumont is? If I was to mention the man who cycled around the world, now you know. Mark’s talk, with projector, with pictures and video clips was fascinating. I was struck by Mark’s sense of humour and how down to earth he is. None of the trappings of TV and fame have affected him.
The first half of Mark’s talk covers his round the world trip covering 18,296 miles in record time in 194 days 17 hours, beating the previous record by an astonishing 81 days. The highs and lows during the trip can only be expressed as extreme and that seems an understatement. Anyone who has done a bit of cycling will realise how hard 100 miles a day actually is, now over 194 days, ouch! Over some of the most rugged terrain in the world, how? There is a 4 part BBC series covering the trip showing battles with the elements, bicycle problems and extreme isolation.
The second half of Mark’s talk covers his recent trip cycling the Americas expedition. The striking difference between trips is the involvement of the BBC. When Mark cycled around the world, BBC Scotland gave him a camera, during cycling the Americas, Mark was carrying a mobile film studio and frequently meeting up with a film crew. He explained his rapid learning curve from Cyclist to Cyclist and reporter. Both roles shouldn’t be underestimated and although Mark was cycling 75 miles a day filming took up a lot of time. The cycling expedition started from Anchorage, Alaska to Ushuaia in Southern Argentina. Following the line of the mountain ranges which form the American Cordillera, he also climbed the two highest peaks Mount McKinley and Aconcagua, on foot.
After the lecture Mark answered questions and signed his book. He answered all our questions, discovering he doesn’t like spicy food, gave up on being a vegetarian for his expeditions and Guinea Pig tastes like chicken. He had the battered bicycle he cycled around the world on display where Mark gave us an impromptu chat about how the gearing system worked during the interval.
CharityBikeRide.Net would recommend Mark’s UK tour which continues to the end of May 2010 to anyone interested in Cycling. The presentation is interesting and inspiring combined with Mark simply being down to earth and very approachable, I guarantee you will be tempted to queue at the end of the evening to get his booked signed.
