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A chat with world record breaking cyclist, Scott Napier
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Scott Napier at the end of the world.
On October 25, 2009 Scott Napier considered himself the happiest man on earth - and with good reason. The Scottish cyclist just broke the world record after a whopping 125 days on the Pan American Highway.
Scott left Prudhoe Bay, Alaska on June 22 and cycled a total of 14,050 miles before he arrived at the southern tip of the world in Ushuaia, Argentina after averaging an astounding 112.4 miles per day. His longest day - 165 miles - was on the great plains of Canada with a huge tailwind, and he took three days off - two while sick and one when everything seemed to be going wrong and he needed time to get his head straightened out. (See photos of Scott's ride here.)
World Bike Touring Examiner (WBTE): How did this journey start? Why did you decide to break the record?
Scott: I had done a couple of cycle trips before (John O'Groats to Lands End in the UK and a trans Australia trip) and the Americas seemed like the next stage, a bigger challenge. I wanted to push myself to the limit so I checked up on what the record was and thought, I can have a ping at that.
WBTE: What kind of training did you do beforehand?
Scott: I did about 7 months of focused training. Lots of medium lengthed cycle runs mixed in with some interval training and some core muscle work. I also sorted out my diet a bit, fish and chips aren't too healthy aparently...
WBTE: What was going through your mind as you pedaled away from the shores of the Arctic Ocean and pedaled through the vast glasslands of the Arctic tundra?
Scott: I kept telling myself just to focus on small chunks. Get 100 miles today and get down to Fairbanks. But I'll admit the mind did wander to the big picture, it was pretty scary and pretty exciting all in one!
WBTE: What was going through your mind when you finally - after so many days and miles - saw that sign at the end of the earth?
Scott: YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAS!!!!!!! Mission accomplished. It was a mega rush of elation and ecstacy, I couldn't get the smile off my face :)
WBTE: Tell me about some of the hardships you endured - cold, hot, winds, hills, or emotional strain.
Scott: Through the trip I had all kinds of weather. Whenever things got extremely hot, cold or windy I just tried to adapt to it. I find wind the hardest, you're working so hard and just going nowhere! There were plenty hills and mountains but for some reason I quite like going uphill - the further up you go the further you get to fly down the other side! Psychological problems were probably a bigger obstacle than the weather or terrain. Once or twice I got really low on the bike when the relentless nature of the ride became too much. But when this happened I would call home and the support from my parents really pushed me through.
WBTE: There are obviously great parts of the trip as well - those times when you are blown away from scenery or the kindness of people. Tell me about some of those.
Scott: I had some trouble in Colombia with my back wheel. I ended up having to ditch the bike and all my kit and jump on a bus to the nearest city and bike shop. I approached a house in the middle of nowhere and the guy and his wife were so happy to help. They kept the bike inside whilst I went to the city. When I got back they cooked me a meal and gave me a bed for the night. All this with almost no verbal communication; my Spanish is terrible. Many people had told me that Colombia would be dangerous but all I found was kindness.
In terms of scenery I was blown away when I crossed over the Andes into Argentina. The area around San Carlos Bariloche was amazing. Snow capped peaks and blue lakes, fantastic.
WBTE: What did you carry with you? Anything you probably should have left behind? Did you find anything you should have taken, but didn't?
Scott: I started with a fairly heavy rig but as the trip wore on things started to get thrown away. I used my stove up in Alaska but after that it was just sitting in my panniers so it ended up in the hands of a bewildered Peruvian. I probably could have used a kick stand on the bike but apart from that I was pretty comfy with the kit that I took.
WBTE: What did you eat? How did you manage to pack in the amount of calories you needed?
Scott: I kept things pretty simple, especially in the central and southern American countries where communication was a problem. Try and get bread for carbs, some meat at night for protein and plenty of biscuits to keep the sugars up during the day. I tried to get plenty fruit as well. I just listened to my body - if I was hungry then I would go and eat. Lots!
WBTE: I can only imagine the level of determination and perseverance you must have had to pull this off. What kept you focused through all those days?
Scott: Simple: Break. The. Record. All the motivation I needed.
WBTE: What next? (Besides eating and sleeping and eating some more!) Any ideas what your next adventure in life will be?
Scott: It's all a bit of a blur at the moment. During hard times on the road I would tell myself I was never doing anything like this again. But now I'm done I feel like another big trip could be just what I'm looking for. Antarctica anyone?
WBTE: Many congratulations to you Scott! Bask in the glory for a while!
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Meet another world record breaking cyclist, Mark Beaumont. He is known as the fastest man in the world, and is currently cycling the Pan American Highway.
If you enjoyed this interview, you might enjoy these other interviews with world cyclists:
Goat from Riding the Spine - Alaska to Argentina on dirt roads
Sean from Riding the Spine - Alaska to Argentina on dirt roads
Jacob from Riding the Spine - Alaska to Argentina on dirt roads
Friedel from Travelling Two - 3 years around the world
Sonya and Aaldrik from Tour.TK - 3 years on the road, currently in South America
Alastair Humphreys - 4 years on 3 continents - Africa, Asia, America
Peter Gostelow - pedaled from Japan to England; now headed toward Africa
Tim & Cindie from Down the Road - 7 years on the road and no plans to stop
Jaime Bianchini of Peace Pedalers - nearly 8 years through 77 countries on tandem picking up strangers
There are also a number of families who have adopted a life on the road with their children:
The Williams family is on a open-ended tour on a triple bike with their 9-year-old son.
Rebekka and Florian traveled the Pan American Highway to Tierra del Fuego with their small son in a trailer.
The Verhage family with sons aged 11 & 13 have cycled south from LA. They are now in Peru.
My family is currently cycling the Pan American Highway - we've cycled 16,000 km from Alaska to Colombia so far. You can find us at Family on Bikes.
Contact me via email at familyonbikes@gmail.com
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