"Shenzhen Special Zone Daily" Starting from Shenzhen, cycling 11,000 kilometers in 5 months, Shenzhen University graduates rode to Paris to watch the Olympics
2024-08-07
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After cycling 11,000 kilometers and crossing 11 countries, 25-year-old Shenzhen University graduate Ming Ge (pseudonym) took five months to reach his destination before the opening of the Paris Olympics. In front of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, he wore a blue-black cycling helmet and took a circle with a sports camera to record the moment.
In the past two days, the cycling video footage he posted on Bilibili became popular on the Internet and became a hit.
"Isn't this a kind of Olympic spirit?" B station netizens left comments in the comment section of Mingge's cycling video, admiring his perseverance and courage. This five-month long wonderful journey not only left Mingge with precious memories, but also inspired countless netizens.
"I am actually quite calm because I know I will come here sooner or later," he said in an interview with our reporter. Since graduating from Shenzhen University last year, the idea of riding to watch the Paris Olympics has gradually taken root in his mind. On February 23 this year, Ming Ge set off from Pingshan, Shenzhen, and on July 23, he successfully arrived in Paris, France.
▲Starting from Shenzhen by bike, Minggo arrived in Paris smoothly on July 23. (Photo provided by the interviewee)
Turning ideas into reality
Riding to Paris was not a spur-of-the-moment decision for Mingo.
In March 2023, Mingge, a third-year graduate student, saw a video of a ride from Beijing to Paris shared by the famous Up Master "Zhu Zhiwen's Global Cycling", which gave him the idea of "seeing the world by bike". Until he saw another video of a British youth's cycling trip - the young man rode from Shanghai to the UK along the Silk Road in just 4 months, which once again made him firm in his mind and cycling plan.
Preparation before departure does not happen overnight.
Mingge had ridden the Sichuan-Tibet line during his postgraduate studies, so he had a lot of riding experience. He knew that this time he was facing a bigger challenge, so six months before departure, Mingge began to consciously do some physical training, such as running and cycling. "I exercised five times a week on average, running for half an hour each time, and persisted for half a year. Before departure, I also ran a marathon."
On February 23 this year, Mingo officially set out from Shenzhen and embarked on the first leg of this journey. He then passed through 10 countries including Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Italy, San Marino, Switzerland and France, and finally arrived at the Seine River in Paris to welcome his own Olympic opening ceremony.
"It was raining in Paris that day, and I watched the show until the end wearing a raincoat. The atmosphere at the opening ceremony was very warm. When I saw the Chinese team appear, I cheered excitedly for a long time," said Mingo.
You can stop but don't give up
Mingo admitted that he was not completely sure that he could reach Paris within 5 months, so he chose a route that seemed to be the fastest. But it was more difficult than he had imagined. He said that this was a "monk-like" ride, and the physical and mental energy consumed by the ride was difficult to express in words.
Before July, Ming Ge rode about 150 kilometers a day on average, sometimes up to 160 or even 180 kilometers. No matter how long the journey is, he will ensure 10 hours of riding time every day. When he is in China, he usually stays in hotels; when he is abroad, he needs to set up a tent to stay. In order to travel faster and save as much money as possible, Ming Ge often buys fruit bread in the supermarket. "As long as it can fill my stomach, it's fine."
The first time Ming Ge felt that his body had reached its limit was when he rode to Azerbaijan. It was rainy in Azerbaijan in May, and the blurred vision and slippery road conditions made the entire ride uncertain. He had to face the risks of riding brought by these natural factors.
"I have to move forward, because it is impossible to turn back." In this way, Mingo endured the pressure and insisted on riding until he arrived in Tbilisi, Georgia, where he spent several days resting and recovering.
It was a tough journey, but it also reshaped and enriched his world. Recalling the most difficult time, Mingo said with emotion: "When you decide to do something but find it difficult to stick to it, you can stop for a while and slow down a bit, but it's best not to give up."
"Exploring the way" for more cyclists
If we use quantitative indicators to measure Mingge's cycling journey, his efforts seem to be easy to measure - five months of cycling, spending nearly 30,000 yuan, and losing more than 10 pounds; but the gains cannot be measured by a few data.
Mingge did not think too much about whether the gains were proportional to the efforts. He said that as long as he was determined to do something, he should stick to it and do his best no matter what the final gains were.
"Although some of the gains are difficult to express in words, they have influenced my life and world view in a subtle way," Mingo admitted.
These precious memories are not only stored in his mind, but also recorded by him as vivid images. Previously, Mingge posted some of his cycling highlights on Bilibili. The last video of arriving in Paris has been viewed nearly 500,000 times. "I don't care how many fans and views I get. After all, my original intention is to simply record and share."
After watching Mingo's video, several cyclists contacted him and had some cycling exchanges. This made Mingo realize that his records and sharing were meaningful. Mingo also came up with the idea of making a documentary about his cycling journey, hoping that his personal experience would provide motivation and examples for other cyclists pursuing their dreams.
(Shenzhen Special Zone Daily reporter Luo Yali Zheng Ming)
