Description

In December 2012, Juliana Buhring became the first woman to circumnavigate the world by bicycle. With only a few months of training and little sponsorship, support or money she left from Naples on 23 July 2012 to cycle the world.

Raised in a religious cult as a child, Juliana finally broke away as a young adult and found her soul mate – an explorer seeking the source of unmapped rivers in Africa. When he was killed by a crocodile, her world went dark. To escape her grief, she decided to set herself a challenge. Having never seriously ridden a bike, she set out to ride around the world.

18,000 miles, 152 days, 4 continents, 19 countries, 29 punctures, 6 big mountains, 1 desert and a cyclone later, she made it back just days before Christmas with a Guinness World Record. Empowering, inspiring, often humorous, This Road I Ride is testimony to the power of sheer will to overcome any obstacle.
Discover a true story of adventure, blood, sweat and gears.

Publisher Review

Escaping a cult, grieving the loss of her soulmate to a crocodile and then becoming the "fastest woman to cycle the globe" seems like fantasy, but the story Juliana Buhring tells in This Road I Ride is all true. Inspirational * Women's Fitness * No woman had ever bicycled around the world when Buhring decided to try. With only a few months' worth of training and the support of a good friend in Naples, she would set out to pedal more than 18,000 miles across 19 countries. She was driven to such an extreme endeavor after the death of her soul mate, an adventurer, had immobilized her with grief. As she describes in this plainspoken memoir, once the idea for the ride across the globe took root, any negative reactions she received only added to her determination to see it through. Buhring takes the reader on the trip with vivid vignettes, including meeting friendly people and unfriendly dogs, across cultures and through headwinds, mountains, rain, and freezing cold. Just as compelling as the adventure, however, is her internal journey to manage her grief, deepen her understanding of the man she lost, and reconnect with the world. Buhring insists she is not extraordinary, just an ordinary person pushing outside her comfort zone. That is exactly what makes her story so amazing. -- Bridget Thoreson * Booklist * Buhring's book is a testament to the human will to overcome and survive as well as a moving portrait of a woman on a deeply personal quest to define the meaning of her life. A searching, engaging memoir from an author who "can be at home no matter where I am in the world." * Kirkus * This is an inspirational memoir about the power of one's undefeatable determination that will appeal to adrenaline seekers * Publishers Weekly * I read this book in a single sitting, transfixed by Juliana's incredible story . . . The physical achievement of riding around the world pales in comparison to the mental achievement of holding herself together and staying the course through such hardship. This is one of those stories that just pulls you along for the ride. Once I embarked, it just whisked me along until the end. * Alex Honnold, author of Alone on the Wall * The story of Juliana Buhring's record-setting trek around the world by bicycle is impressive in itself. She endured fear, doubt, and pain to achieve a truly remarkable feat. But Buhring is more than an athlete - she's a phoenix, who rose from the ashes of a horrific childhood and a devastating personal loss to test herself against the unknown. You'll be amazed and inspired by this book. * Daniel H. Pink, author of Drive * An incredible journey that is awe inspiring and completely captivating. I couldn't put the book down, couldn't wait to find out how Buhring would overcome the next barrier! She makes one realize that great dreams are possible to achieve. One of my all time favorites! * Lynne Cox, author of Swimming to Antarctica *