Buck Benson is spending 4½ months pedaling over 4,000 miles through four South American countries. Although he is with a tour group and several riders are racing, Benson and most of the 40 bicyclists choose to stop and look at the scenery, eat the local fare, and as this picture taken in a remote village shows, visit with the children and adults as they pedal into an area.
“After two days of desolate scenery through litter-strewn desert where not even sagebrush could survive, we sensed the sea air. What a change in attitude this nice little seaside Peruvian village brought to us as we rolled into Pacasmayo. Our hotel is on the ocean—the moist air filled us with new optimism and life.”
So writes Buck Benson of Grand Marais, as he chronicles his 4,200-mile bike ride, which began in Quito, Ecuador in late July and will end in Ushuaia, Argentina mid December.
Benson is traveling with a group of 40 riders—men and women—who hail from around the world. About a dozen riders are racing the distance, the rest, like Benson, are seeing South America from their bike seats and in their walk-about after their ride is done for the day. A company from the Netherlands arranged the trip.
After three weeks Benson has gone to his first soccer (futbol) game, visited the magnificent churches of Loja, spent a couple of days in Cuenca, a World Heritage City, walked through open air crowded markets filled with fruits, vegetables and meat, attended festivals with music and dancing, fought off dogs that chase the riders and crossed from the lush forests of Ecuador into the, “dry dusty, littered towns and byways of our new temporary country,” Peru, where he will face long climbs into thin atmosphere and view majestic cities, meet people young and old and see the country side as only one traveling on two wheels could see it.
After spending three days in Quito, an Ecuador city of 3 million people living at 9,600 feet surrounded by mountains rising to 13 and 14 thousand feet, Benson and his crew finally got rolling.
“Here is our typical schedule when cycling. Arise at 6, dress for cycling, shave etc. Breakfast is at 7 and can be hit or miss depending on the hotel or hostel. When our crew makes breakfast it is always filling and nutritious. Then we get our maps and profiles for the day’s ride.
“The truck and crew of Ellen our cook, Elena, our doctor, and Robert and Walter our drivers, meet us about halfway with a great little lunch. We refill our water bottles and are off again. Most days we are at our location by 3 or so, and then usually find our bags, take a shower when available, and have soup, fruit salad, etc. before taking it easy for awhile. I like to hike through the town, find the square and watch my new surroundings, then dinner and bed. Of course we squeeze in a lot of visiting amongst ourselves in all our activities. I’m lucky to find myself with such an interesting group,” said Benson.
At age 62, Benson is fit, having trained hard for the expedition. A longtime trail runner, cross country skier, hiker, biker, canoer and kayaker, Benson is no stranger to activities that test one’s endurance. Still, this ride will test anyone’s limits.
“The terrain has precipitous drops and steep climbs but much of the land is terraced and farmed nonetheless. They seem to be very strong people. I watched men unloading 50 lb. bags of concrete out of dump trucks, another carrying what seem to me to be huge rocks by hand out of a construction area, and men and women working their fields by hand as they have for who knows how long.
“Much of the grade we pedaled today was up to 12 percent on the Garmin and some of it hit 17 percent. That’s steep. At the top of the passes there are big views down long valleys with mist trailing through much of them.”
Some days are easy; some days are filled with challenges. On one of the tougher days Benson writes, “On our ride the next day to Ona there were 12 cyclists riding in the truck as a wave of intestinal problems has swept through our ranks. My friends Barry and Terry from Australia, both very strong riders, were among the indisposed. I was sick myself but decided to try to get through the ride anyway. We had a wind in the higher elevations driving rain into your face and cooler temps. My left hand got so cold I had trouble shifting gears. It was really tough. My head was swimming with nausea and my body with fatigue. When I rolled into Ona, they helped me with my bike and got some soup into me. I took a couple of prescription pills that Dave Jorde had supplied and was much better for the big ride today to Loja.
“We are in Loja now after the biggest ride yet, over 8,900 vertical feet of climbing and 109 Ks (about 70 miles). I couldn’t have done this on day three or day six but managed it today.”
To follow Benson, visit www.buckbenson.org. His writing is clear, concise, filled with vivid imagery and includes some of his humor too.
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