Hello! I'm Veronica, a second-year Geography PhD student at the University of Exeter. By taking you through my cycling journey, I hope this post will help you learn a bit more about me and why I've chosen to undertake my PhD fieldwork by bike.
2000
I spent the first years of my life in North Carolina, in the United States. I can still remember my first bike – a Little Mermaid bike with training wheels and tassles on the handlebars. Although I can't remember this particular moment, this photo was taken during my first time riding a bike! Look at that smile!
2005
As we prepared to move to the Netherlands, it quickly became obvious that I was going to need to learn how to ride a bike without using training wheels. I remember taking my bike out to a local high school on the weekends and practicing on their fields, where this photo was taken. We were meant to go camping in the mountains, but when Hurricane Katrina hit, my dad decided we should try bikepacking in a local park instead. When we set off, I still didn't know how to ride a bike without training wheels, so we spent a lot of the trip walking our bikes. I remember a kind man cycled my tiny bike and changed the gears for me because I didn't know how. But by the end of the day, I was riding confidently – it was truly a trial by fire!
2010
Living in the Netherlands, cycling was an everyday part of my life. My family never owned a car, so we got used to getting around by public transport and on our bikes, made simple by the country's incredible public transport and cycling infrastructure. From the age of 12, I was cycling eight kilometres round trip to school each day. Riding so regularly, I got very comfortable on my bike – I could ride while carrying an umbrella in one hand, or here, carrying a bean bag on the back of my bike!
2015
In September 2015, I moved to England to start my undergraduate degree in Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia. I brought my bike with me on the ferry and then walked it to campus from the train station because I was too terrified of cycling on the other side of the road to even attempt it! I gradually built up some confidence, and although I didn't cycle much in Norwich, I would regularly cycle to campus or the city centre for nights out so I wouldn't have to wait around for a bus at the end of the night (also my saddlebags were a perfect place to store warm clothes, so I never had to pay for a cloakroom!). My bike followed me around the next few years as I moved between Norwich and London, and eventually to Exeter.
2019
In September 2019, I moved to Exeter to do my MSc in Food Security and Sustainable Agriculture. Brett and I met in the first week of term and after he bought a bike in October, we went for our first cycle ride together. We rode to Topsham before crossing the estuary on the ferry and making our way back to Exeter. It's the only time we've taken that ferry, but we've cycled the Exe Estuary Trail many times since!
2021
When my student visa ran out in 2021, I moved back home to the Netherlands. Before leaving the UK, I donated my bike to Ride On, an Exeter-based charity and social enterprise that refurbishes donated bikes in an effort to get locals more active. This photo was taken on my last ride on the bike before I dropped it off. I'd had the bike for over ten years! (Yes, I did cry when I handed it over).
2022
I was back living in the Netherlands and Brett visited from the UK. We borrowed my parents bikes and went for our first bikepacking trip – one night on the Dutch island of Texel (you can read more about that adventure here).
2023
In September, I moved back to Exeter and returned to Ride On, this time to purchase a second-hand bike! Over the next few months, I fitted out the bike with features I wanted, starting with mud guards. Alongside hikes on the South West Coast Path, Brett and I began to explore more of Devon on cycle rides, following traffic-free routes near Exeter (you can learn more about our favourite local rides here).
February 2024
As soon as I started brainstorming the big cycle ride for my PhD, I knew it was important to start training! In mid-February, Brett and I set off for my first "training ride," cycling 50 kilometres between Bristol and Bath along the railway path. Although the route was almost entirely flat, I was definitely feeling the distance on the way back!
May 2024
Cycling longer distances is important, but so is cycling with a fully loaded bike! So, in May, Brett and I went on our first bikepacking trip in the UK, cycling from Okehampton to Plymouth along the National Cycle Network route 27. It was our first time cycling on country lanes and although I had been terrified, my confidence grew. That month saw us cycle over 500 kilometres in England and Germany, with a new cycling adventure each weekend!
July 2024
Brett and I cycled 150 miles from Exeter to Falmouth for my master's graduation – our longest bikepacking trip to date. It was great to see the media interest in the trip and I was very excited to get interviewed on BBC Radio Cornwall! This trip was a big confidence boost for next year's trip and I learnt a lot about the logistical aspects of bikepacking.
August 2024
And finally, last month, I did my first solo bikepacking trip, cycling along the NCN 28 from Totnes to Ivybridge in Devon. I've learnt a lot about cycling over the last few months, but I know there's plenty more to learn!
Comments