Guy is a local legend in Tongeren, a small town in the south of Belgium and HQ of Pure·E, known for his yearly long-distance bike journeys to support the charity foundation ‘Kom op tegen Kanker’. His previous performances include biking from Tongeren (BEL) to St-Petersburg(RUS),to Nordkapp (NOR) and to Gibraltar (ESP). This year his journey will bring him to Slovenia and back, passing through the Italian Alps.
As a tech savvy person and endurance sport enthusiast, Guy is drawn towards innovative products that improve his performance or make his -what most consider- torment more comfortable. Knowing Guy used to participate in Triathlons, we reached out to him to test our latest version of Pure·E pouches. From the start, he was a big fan of our product and we knew Guy would be the first brand ambassador. We supplied him with a healthy amount of our all natural pouches for the long journey ahead.
If you are seeking inspiration or motivation for your own long bike trip, you can read more about Guy’s adventure below.
So, you are planning a long-distance biking, running or walking trip for the first time? You are probably asking yourself following questions:
What equipment do I need?
What is the weight I can easily carry?
Can I carry it during a climb too?
Where do I sleep?
How much food do I bring?
While each trip requires an in-depth research on weather, equipment, nutrition and many more, Guy told us how he prepared and things he wished he thought off before starting his journey.
Everybody’s method of packing is unique, but let’s see what essentials Guy brought on his trip:
When everything is tightly packed on his bike, the weight ads up to 17 kilo’s.
“After a day many kilometers in the Alpes you are really looking forward to have dinner. First I had to set up my tent before I whipped out my cooking gear. I usually made a good portion of pasta for dinner and an extra portion for lunch the next day.” Guy brought 12 pouches of Pure.E’s test batches with him when he started his journey. In the middle of his trip we made sure he was restocked for the rest of his journey by sending him a package with 12 more pouches and a clean T-shirt.
“I am a big fan of the Pure·E pouches, which is a contrast with the different energy gels I used to take. They just gave me a sugar rush and after 10 minutes, I felt ‘empty’ again. The gels also really upset my stomach even when I was used to them. I took the Pure·E pouches at around 30% and 80% of the daily distance. After approximately a kilometer I felt my batteries were immediately recharged and It gave me a prolonged energy boost. They are very effective and they didn’t upset my stomach at all.”
Slovenia known for its love for bees (there are around 90.000 beekeepers in a population of just 2 million) and thousands of kilometers of hiking trails in beautiful nature, was definitely on the Guy’s countries-I-have-to-cycle-to list. “I have never been to Eastern Europe before and a few people I know recommended me to go hiking there. The rustic village sand nature are absolutely stunning. The country is also very bike-friendly, even Ljubljana. You can just bike through it on bike lanes without having to stop for traffic to often.”
Guy decided to plan his trip during the wettest July month in 40 years. During the summer of 2021 a lot of floods happened because of the massive rainfall throughout Europe. “In the mountains it was extremely cold. I was constantly wet because of the rain and the wind felt like needles in my face and hands. During the climbs, I encountered a lot of people who were hypothermic. Luckily, the majority brought some extra dry clothes, which is absolutely crucial.”
The Großglockner climb was the toughest part of the trip. A slope of 12-13 degrees for miles, height of 3.798 meters and it became extremely cold in the evening. If you go on these long and challenging trips by yourself, it can be hard to stay motivated. Luckily, you meet a lot of interesting and kind people.
“I was slammed after reaching the top but I still had to descend. I was gaining some speed downhill and in a hairpin bend my tire blew out. If the guardrail wasn’t there It could have been a serious accident. So you are standing in the rain, unpacking your stuff to look for your small bicycle pump and you can’t help but feel demotivated. Suddenly a car stops and the chauffeur gave me a big pump, which saved me a lot of time. These small encounters give you enough stimulus to finish those last miles.”
According to Guy, long distance biking has a big community, where one can find support or just a friendly conversation in along their travels.
“ 5 kilometers from the top I saw some 2 cyclist struggling. They were asking roadworkers for some food. I gave them some extra fruit I was carrying and motivated them to continue. In these couple of minutes we felt as a team and we didn’t even knew each other. You are in this together you know. At the top we talked for a while and took this picture. Some days later in a local café I met some Belgian girls who were doing a long distance biking trip for the first time. We exchanged tips &tricks about equipment and food… Of course I told them about Pure·E.”
