An Italian ultra-cyclist is to climb more than 50,000m over the course of a 3,000km ride through the Himalayas to raise awareness of climate change.
Omar Di Felice - a former Continental level pro - is due to set off on Thursday aboard his Giant gravel bike and ride the colossal distance between India and Tibet in China as part of his Bike to 1.5 project, which aims to highlight the role that cycling can play in reducing global warming.
"The Himalayas is one of the most affected areas by climate change, particularly in the mountains," Di Felice told Cycling Weekly. "The purpose of this adventure is also to tell the story of how people live here, how they are facing this big challenge of climate change and what they’re experiencing."
Di Felice will tackle some serious climbs as he crosses the mountain range - starting from India and passing through Bhutan and Nepal on his way to Lhasa, the capital of Tibet in China. He will be supported by Giant bikes and his clothing partner, UYN, who has equipped him with plenty of gear for the variety of conditions that he expects to face during the challenge ahead.
"I will expect 50 to 55,000 metres of elevation gain on the 3,000 kilometres which I will ride," he said. "I should be riding for 20 to 25 days and it will take more or less three weeks to cover the entire 3,000 kilometres with maybe one or two rest days, especially when I have to cross some of the borders."
"For this kind of adventure I will use a gravel bike," he added. "That’s because I will mostly, I hope, on standard roads. But in India and especially Nepal, standard roads are not usually all covered with tarmac. So I think gravel is the best choice, trying to be as fast as possible and also lighter than a mountain bike. But also it will be more comfortable for me."
Di Felice says that completing the ride will enable him to educate young people in his home country of Italy, but also across wider Europe, on the severity of the climate emergency and the impact on people in remote communities around the globe.
"Another thing is the possibility of people having access to drinkable water which is a big problem in the Himalaya range," he said. "So after I have completed the ride I will do a lot of visits to schools in Italy trying to raise awareness of this problem and show kids what’s happening. That’s because in Europe I don’t think we have the idea of what climate change is like for people who live in very poor conditions."
