Seems like every day I meet amazing people at work; customers, vendors, cyclists at events all have pretty interesting stories to tell if I take time to listen. But one individual stands out — with one of the most interesting and memorable stories — and he is Alastair Humphreys. A few years back I had the honor of meeting Alastair as he passed through Portland on his round-the-world bike journey. My husband had been following Alastair’s progress through South America and as he neared North America and then Oregon, we offered our home in Portland as a rest stop.

Alastair stayed 3 weeks in our home. Some of that time we were on vacation, but the time we did spend getting to know him and helping him prepare for the chilly arctic conditions to come were quiet memorable. I learned a lot in the very short time he stayed; I learned about other cultures, about the highs and lows of solo bike travel, and about travel as a way to make a meaningful difference.

Throughout his 4-year, 46,000-mile journey, Alastair was raising awareness and money for a charity called Hope and Homes for Children. Whenever he could, he’d arrange to talk about Hope and Homes at the towns where he stayed. I remember the night he returned from his talk in Portland. He emptied all of his pockets, down to the very last penny, gave us the cash and asked us to write a check and send it to the charity ASAP. We did. He took not a cent of the donations to finance his travels, every cent went to Hope and Homes. I also remember asking him, “Why are you riding to raise funds?” He looked at me a bit perplexed and asked, “How else would I do it?” To him the idea of making a difference while achieving his own personal goals seemed as natural as breathing.

Alastair's well-worn Bike Gallery water bottle in Paris.

That bike journey ended a few years ago and while Alastair did try to settle down a bit, it wasn’t long before he started tackling other challenges. He’s currently planning for and working towards an expedition to the South Pole. He’s also used the time since his journey to write a trio of books. Two are about his round-the-world ride: The Moods of Future Joys and Thunder and Sunshine. The most recent is an inspirational book, Ten Lessons from the Road, which I think really captures the essence of Alastair’s spirit. Take a look at this preview and see what you think. And while you are looking take a close look at the water bottles on pages 7 and 8. They are a bit hard to recognize but those are Bike Gallery water bottles in the photos. I’m pretty stoked to see these in his book. We were only a blip on Alastair’s long journey but boy am I proud that our water bottles made it from Portland through Alaska, Siberia, Japan, China, Western Asia, Eastern Europe, and then to Paris!

I also hope you check out Alastair’s books. He writes well, has many fascinating stories to tell, and now 10 great lessons to share, all observed from the seat of a bicycle.

Alastair’s website