Monday, May 18, 2009

WT: 175Km Weekend Highlights - Shuutak takes on his World Tour













Shuutak takes on his Cycling World Tour WT cutting across South Korea (Busan to Gangneung to Incheon), then ferrying to China (cycling to northern parts I was told) and on to Europe and Africa as part of his WT by bicycle. He is 25 years old, already ridden across/around Australia in 2007, he was plodding away gracefully against a stiff head wind...towards Gangneung, Korea today. We met yesterday while I was heading South to Uljin and he was heading North to Gangneung. It was great to cross paths again, ride together, and snap some photos for his WT 2009-2011. Best of luck on tour, "we must be strong" were his last words when I saw him, better believe it on his bike around the world. He seemed to be doing fine on his own, cycling a steady 9 Kph against the hungry headwinds, he had his ZEN in order. ^^!!! Shuutak has an amazing blog to look at [if you can read Japanese Kanji] but I think he will find a tweak for Wordpress that allows International translations, a Widget or Code could help with that. I know Nicholi uses it when blogging in Danish [ http://www.worldtravellers.dk ] and I have really enjoyed following his progress from South America months ago. Shuutak and I both rode the rains on May 16th which opened up my start from Gangneung to Donghae on the night T/RAIN (cycling in the rain at night). I cycled for 3 hours, covering a wee 45km from 9pm-12am Saturday on long ascending grades and short/steep descents into Donghae. Sunday/Monday combined I cycled 130Km (not-much-there distancewise) but the terrain was 4/5 on difficulty, mountains & more mountains!!! I should be talking about "Wordpress" right now because it would be easier to write and add photos, I've been tweaking this site for an hour, losing photos, moving bits and pieces, but I still haven't situated everything right :( Shuutak gave me his card, link to his blog is order (keep track of this WT Rider, as his tour has just begun!), http://shuutak.com short & easy enough to remember. We played the name game today, and finally I had Shuutak spell it out for me...TAK for short...I can't read his name card, but I'm sure he'll contact me for corrections & I'll fix things up a bit. The photos speak more than words, cycling after a days rain, stunning...but we found ourselves in clouds of pine pollen (my favorite allergy), but Shuutak wasn't bothered. Cycling for this weekend is over, but I wish my WT friend a safe, adventurous, and memorable trip of a lifetime! Finally bits: Shuutak rides a Surly - Long Haul Trucker, he built it up from parts he bought through online auctions, Ortieb front panniers, Japanese hardware (Nitto Racks), Shimano XT/LX components, heavy-spoked wheels, array of bottle carriers, front trunk/map holder, mats, MSR stove, and everything you'll ever need around the world ^^! Looked like a great kit, much to haul, but places will come when he'll use every bit he's got going with him...Great job Shuutak! ~Please correct me if I have your name spelled incorrectly! ^^Cycling on, and on with endless POWER my friend, Cycling on to your 100,000km, 100 countries goal, that's a load of traveling my cycling man! Good luck on days ahead! ^^!

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About the Korean-World Author

Brian Perich was an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) lecturer for a decade, father, and adventure cyclist based in South Korea.

Previously, Brian has led Canoe adventures in Quetico Provincial Park, Atikokan, Ontario, Canada (1993/1999); led Grand American camping adventures (2000); lived at Paramahansa Yogananda's SRF Ashram for 5 months (see the film "AWAKE"), formerly worked in titanium welding at Agilent Technologies, formerly worked in Winery industry in Marin County with Kendall Jackson in California; Surfing and Meditation continued for several years in California, British Columbia, South Korea, Yoga training in California 1999-2000.

Between 1994-1998 - Brian completed his own adventures with motorcycles. His motorcycling marathons took him across the United States and central/western Canada, while traveling solo over an astounding 24,000km in 60 days! Brian endured 900 mile/1300km average days in the motorcycle saddle and apparently loved every minute of those adventures.

Today, he has given up motorcycle adventures altogether, but finds an outlet for his enthusiasm in outdoor recreation while bicycle touring and micro-blogging about those experiences on his mountain bikes.

While employed as an English teacher in South Korea, Brian has became an advocate for bicycle touring on his mountain bikes. The Korean-World blog originated from those small adventures in Korea, now expanded to cover his recent trek down the TransMongolian highway to the Gobi Desert, cycling 900km east through the Khentii grasslands and in 2012 crossing Mongolia in 45 days, 2500 kilometers 1553 miles. HimalayasX expedition Brian previously cycled across western China, the Taklamakan Desert, the northern Himalayas of East Turkestan Xinjiang/Uyghur Autonomous Region, the corrugated back roads and mountains of Kham Tibet. Brian successfully completed his 2011 mountain bike expedition with 3200 kilometers / 1988 miles unsupported, on/off road MTB adventure cycling.
Brian has completed his second mountain bike journey, MongoliaX expedition - Crossing Mongolia 2012, an unsupported mountain bike MTB expedition across 2500km of Outer Mongolia from Ulanbaatar to Altai Taven-Bogd National Park bordering China, Russia and Mongolia.


In 2013, as a sequel to a trilogy of cycle tours, Brian enjoyed a more leisure bicycle tour onboard his Koga-Miyata World Traveller seeing the northern tier of the United States and western Canada covering 3400 kilometers / 2000 miles in 30 days. This North American cycle tour was called Totherocktour. Enjoying the adventure of bicycle travel and every great conversation started while traveling on the road - has refueled his inspirations to cycle around the Earth. In 2013, while he cycled solo from the Great Lake State of Michigan, United States to Banff National Park in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. He weaved through local communities and reconnected with friends, family and community after spending almost a decade in Asia.


Brian is now supporting several non-profit foundations through expeditions: IDEAS Foundation of Canada IDEAS is the acronym for Intestinal Disease Education and Awareness Society which supports the IBD community, those suffering from IBD-inflammatory bowel disease, also known as Crohn's and Ulcerative Colitis.


The second non-profit foundation is ETE.ORG - Education Through Expeditions, UK which supports educational outreach programs inside schools around the world. ETE connects explorers with students in the classroom, through an interactive online program in development (Beta).


Brian is researching support for a 18000 kilometer bicycle expedition across the Americas: North, Central and South America - ONE -Arctic to Argentina
Please contact him if you are interested in helping out.

Twitter: Cycleagain
Location: Gangneung, Gangwon-do, South Korea or southern Ontario, Canada.

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Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Brian's friends have also been...Cycling in Korea!

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

Cycling in Korea, Warning: always wear a helmet! (I gave mine to my friend)

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