Leading a team on a 17,000-kilometer bike ride to London -- Exclusive interview with Jiang Min

　　Jiang Min, a lean and capable young man. On the evening of the 16th, the "Ailehuo 727 Cycling Team," which he led as the team captain, exited the border in Yunnan Province, preparing to travel through Laos to Thailand. Without any car escort, they plan to cross 15 countries across Eurasia and finally arrive in London, UK, before the opening of the Olympic Games on July 27 this year. Due to issues such as European visas, Jiang Min and three team members will not participate in the Asian leg of the ride but will join the other seven members in Turkey in early June to complete the remaining European leg. Yesterday afternoon, Jiang Min, who was on a business trip in Changzhou, gave an exclusive interview to our reporter.

　　In the café, Jiang Min’s hands were lying flat on the back of the sofa, his head slightly raised. Having just driven from Nanjing to Changzhou, he looked a bit tired. This young man, born in Liyang, currently co-owns a computer software company in Nanjing with a friend, where he handles product sales. "As long as you persist, dreams are actually not that far away." This is Jiang Min’s motto, and it is precisely this belief that has kept him going for over two years to plan what many see as an almost impossible bike ride.

　　In June 2009, Jiang Min saw a post online titled "Ride to London in 2012" by a netizen named Ling Jiyuan. Already a cycling enthusiast, Jiang Min was very interested and quickly got in touch with Ling Jiyuan. A group of young people soon gathered around this shared dream. In March 2010, everyone began discussing feasibility and initially set up a preparatory framework, forming a planning team. In November 2010, they drafted the "Team Charter," selected 45 members, officially established the 727 Cycling Team, and formed six groups including planning, publicity, and equipment. In 2011, they completed two cycling training rides — Beijing to Nanjing and Nanjing to Kunming — and finalized 11 team members by the end of the year.

　　To be able to participate in this London cycling event, some members quit their previously good jobs. "As the team leader, the pressure is huge, but I must persevere," Jiang Min said. Although he is based in Jiangsu, his heart has long been connected with the seven members in Kunming. Even during the interview, he kept receiving calls from the team members up ahead, helping them solve problems.

　　A 15-country, 17,000-kilometer, 170-plus-day international cycling journey would be impossible without meticulous preparation. Jiang Min told reporters that the bicycles used for the ride are all well-known brand mountain bikes that have undergone professional modifications. "The handlebars and seats of the mountain bikes have been modified to those of touring bikes to increase comfort, the tires have all been changed to wear-resistant professional ones, and the brake pads have also been replaced." Before departure, all bicycles will be equipped with a rear wheel luggage rack to carry supplies, "mainly consumables like tires, chains, and brake pads." To travel across Eurasia on schedule, the team is also carrying outdoor gear such as tents and gasoline stoves. "When we reach capitals or big cities, we will also stay in hotels and eat at restaurants, but for much of the journey, we’ll still be living off the land."

　　Jiang Min introduced that the seven people who set off yesterday were TM, Nameless, Shenglai, Pula, Pony, Feng Buding, and Li Jianan. "Due to funding and other reasons, we don’t have a support team driving along this time, so each member is basically juggling multiple roles." TM is both a mechanic and a cook, Pony serves as medic, videographer, and translator, while Li Jianan has to keep accounts and manage the onboard equipment. Due to the high weather demands of outdoor cycling, considering this factor, the 727 team chose to exit from Kunming rather than Xinjiang. As for security along the way, Jiang Min is quite confident. "Our team has strict discipline and semi-military management. If the situation in Iran worsens, we will consider flying directly from Pakistan to Turkey." He said that if any team member falls ill during the ride, the team will leave one member behind to accompany and assist with treatment, and once the member recovers, the two will rent a vehicle to catch up with the group.

　　Jiang Min graduated from Liyang High School in Jiangsu Province. His first choice for college entrance exams was psychology at East China Normal University, but he ended up accepting a placement in Chinese language. He recalled that in the third grade of elementary school, he biked 12 kilometers with classmates to Tianmuhu to dig bamboo shoots — that was his first ever bike ride. In 2001, while studying in Shanghai, he received a gift from a relative who brought back a Panasonic mountain bike worth over $3,000 from Japan. That same year, he set out from Shanghai and cycled through every county in Zhejiang Province on his own, covering a distance of more than 2,000 kilometers. "Riding eventually stopped being just a tool, becoming an inseparable part of my lifestyle. Every day, I would ride to encounter different scenery and different people, and for the first time, I felt joy and inner peace."

　　It was also during that trip through Zhejiang that Jiang Min put his skills as a Chinese literature major to use, writing about the sights and experiences from the journey and publishing them on the travel channel of a national website, attracting many readers.

　　For international cycling, visas are the most critical. However, the 11 team members are currently having trouble getting European visas. Among the European countries, those in the Schengen Area only require a visa from one member country, and Jiang Min’s team applied for a German visa. "The first time, the visa officer doubted our motivation for cycling and questioned our financial support, so they denied the visa. We went back a second time with sponsorship agreements and other materials, but then the visa officer said our destination wasn’t clear enough and denied it again." This time, Jiang Min and the other four stayed behind specifically to resolve the visa issue. They’ve prepared for two scenarios, hoping to apply for a visa from another Schengen country where approval is more likely, striving to fulfill their dream. Actually, even if they can’t complete the ride and have to accept that regret, so what? Isn’t what Jiang Min and his team are doing — boldly acting on their dreams — exactly what we often think about but never dare to do?

　　At the end of the interview, Jiang Min revealed to the reporter that his next plan is to go on a round-the-island cycling trip in Taiwan, followed by biking to Brazil to watch the World Cup... Life is endless, and so is cycling. He hopes to reignite the vitality of the bicycle, showcase the energy of Chinese youth to the world through cycling, and share this new lifestyle concept that combines "sport, travel, and environmental protection." Before parting, Jiang Min specially wrote a message to the readers back home: "I hope everyone can stick to their dreams and start a wonderful life."