I’d like to share with you the words of acclaimed bike tourist Iohan Gueorguiev when he first set off on his PanAmerican tour in the dead of the Canadian winter. I’ve modified them slightly to fit my own trip, but the sentiment stands:

“Let me take you along for a ride.

But not the kind you would see at the movies, on TV,

Or on the cover of National Geographic.

There is no pack list, rationed food

Or a breakdown of where I’ll sleep every night.

The set is the vast expanse of Central and South America,

The director, the unpredictable weather,

The stars, the people I meet on the way,

And the script, the open road,

and whatever it throws at me."

Iohan tragically took his life in 2021 following a battle with insomnia. Despite his passing, his words continue to ring true, and I will use them as my own form of guidance and inspiration as I set forth on my own adventure and draw my own line on the map.