Climbing Mount Huashan at 1 a.m. to watch the sunrise, admiring the night view of the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda and Asia’s largest musical fountain, tasting yak yogurt and butter tea at Tibetan families… Wuyiming said these were the sights she saw during her over 1,500-kilometer cycling trip with friends in the past month, and also the first gift she gave herself for her university life.
Wuyiming, a 20-year-old student majoring in Labor and Social Security at Shanxi University, cycled through more than 20 counties and cities and three major cities this summer with over 20 other college students, fulfilling their dream of a first “expedition.”
“Once you’ve made up your mind, just go for it—don’t let your youth be full of regrets,” said Wuyiming. Because her family didn’t support her, she saved up 5,000 yuan from scholarships and part-time jobs to buy cycling gear. To ease her parents’ worries, she patiently persuaded them, and finally received a text message from her mom before departure saying, “Let you fly.”
There are quite a few Chinese college students who share Wuyiming’s passion for cycling. In recent years, as cycling activities have gradually gained popularity across China, university cycling clubs have sprung up like mushrooms after rain. According to incomplete statistics, there are now over 500 college cycling clubs nationwide, and the number continues to grow. Taking Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi Province, as an example, there are more than 10 university cycling associations.
Yang Qian, deputy secretary of the Youth League Committee at Shanxi University, said that the university’s cycling association has been around for 15 years, and the school allocates certain funds every year to support their “expeditions.” At the same time, before students set off, the school prepares safety plans, including purchasing insurance for students, providing safety education, and assigning experienced students as team leaders.
“The ‘expedition’ allows them to endure hardships in practice, temper their willpower, and cultivate a sense of social responsibility and practical skills,” said Yang Qian.
Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. Shi Yukuo, a college student, told reporters that along the way they experienced torrential rain, scorching sun, exhaustion, and injuries, but when everyone got tired from cycling, they would shout out loud and use music to boost morale.
What impressed him most was the rain on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Their clothes were drenched, and they shivered from the cold, but even during this most miserable rainy ride, he saw deserts, grasslands, oases, rapeseed flowers, lavender, lilacs, and Qinghai Lake. Eventually, they found a small eatery where everyone gathered around the stove to dry their soaked socks and gloves. Such experiences brought endless laughter.
“Enduring hardship is also a kind of training. When you’re young, you should dare to chase your dreams. It’s been a few days since we got home, but the encouragement from everyone still feels so warm in our hearts,” said Shi Yukuo.
Besides just cycling, they also engaged in public welfare activities. Li Weiting, a sophomore, said she participated in a forest conservation awareness campaign during the summer, cycling from Taiyuan to Harbin. At every stop, they held exhibitions and gave verbal appeals to encourage people to protect forests and refuse disposable chopsticks. “There was encouragement along the way, as well as skepticism, but doing something is better than doing nothing.”
Jia Gang, deputy secretary-general of the China Bicycle Association and director of the China Cycling Culture Promotion Center, said that cycling is not only a moderate-intensity, enjoyable aerobic exercise, but also conveys positive values such as environmental protection and low carbon, gradually becoming a fashionable and healthy mode of transportation in China.
“For college students, besides fitness and environmental benefits, it can also foster team spirit, develop organizational and management skills, improve psychological resilience, and more. At the same time, combining public welfare with travel along the journey greatly enriches the youthful experiences of college students,” said Jia Gang.