Chainwheel Diaries

Chainwheel Diaries Episode 25 - Mark Farrugia

Greetings! Bike travelers and bike packers, welcome toanother episode of Chainwheel Diaries. Stories about bike travel, told by the travelers themselves.I’m your host, Brian Berlin. Today’s guest survived an encounter with a wallaby during abike adventure, but both he and the wallaby were able to ride, and hop away from the incident. His name is Mark Farrugia, from Victoria, Australia, andhe’s ridden extensively throughout the continent. He offers great insights on his favorite bikepacking routes, and he’s sold me on wanting to ride some of these. Mark is also a photographer and takes great pride in thelighting and composition of his bike adventure photos. He’s captured stunning images of Australian landscapes armed only with his mobile phone. Mark’s love for bikepacking in Australia comes through loudand clear. I guarantee you’ll want to hop on a plane and join him on future rides, wallabies or no. And if you’re enjoying this video, please click thesubscribe button. Subscribers really help me grow the podcast and also let me know you find the content to be relevant. With that, let’s meet Mark Farrugia!

Chainwheel Diaries - Episode 24 - Henry Gold & TDA Global Cycling

Bike travelers and bike packers are very familiar with theacronym EFI. What does it stand for? You’ll soon find out. EFI originated with an epic bike ride from Cairo, Egypt, toCape Town, Africa. The whole continent, from one end to the other. This epic bike ride had never been attempted before and was entered into the Guinness Book. And the man who created that bike tour and founded TDA Global Cycling is today’s Guest – Henry Gold. Henry has led an extraordinary life. Here are just a few ofhis bona fides. * He led a successful NGO in Ethiopia called CPAR(Canadian Physicians for Aid and Relief) to promote foodsecurity, health, sanitation, agriculture, water, and reforestation * He’s a documentarian, having produced documentary films including 'Burden on the Land' (DEMO reel [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcUV2wKULNo]) and AIDS in Africa, which was the first in-depthdocumentary on the AIDS crisis in Africa. * He has crossed sixcontinents by bicycle Previous guests on this podcast have raved about TDA GlobalCycling tours. So I wanted to meet the man behind TDA and have him on the show so you can hear his stories as well. Now, let’s meet Henry Gold.

Episode 23 - Adventure Cycling & TDA Epic Tours with Stephen Growden

Greetings, bike travelers and bikepackers, welcome to another episode of Chainwheel Diaries, stories about bike travel, told by the travelers themselves. I’m your host, Brian Berlin. Today’s guest is Stephen Growden, a retired high schoolsocial studies teacher who has ridden dozens of organized bike tours. Stephen has chosen different tour types and tour providersto match the type of adventure he’s seeking. If you’re contemplating joining a bike tour and you’re wondering about the options, you’ll want to tune into this episode.   Quick reminder: Chainwheel Diaries is available on Spotifyand Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts. So, Thanks for tuning in, wherever you are, and if you’reenjoying this podcast, please be sure to Like and Subscribe. Now, let’s meet Stephen Growden. Links to the products & services mentioned in this episode: https://www.vbt.com/ https://www.backroads.com/ https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/adventure-cycling-route-network/southern-tier/ https://www.adventurecycling.org/guided-tours/van-supported-tours/transam-express-westward-van/ https://www.adventurecycling.org/routes-and-maps/adventure-cycling-route-network/pacific-coast/ https://tdaglobalcycling.com/orient-express https://bikepacking.com/bikes/lael-wilcox-around-the-world-bike/ https://cascade.org/rides-events/rsvp-2026 https://cascade.org/rides-events/seattle-portland-2026 https://www.adventurecycling.org/about-us/history/ https://www.vbt.com/destinations/europe/italy/lake-como-bike-tour-in-the-lake-district

Chainwheel Diaries - Episode 22 - Andre Batista

Like most people, I don’t like spiders. I’m not terrified ofthem, but I don’t like them. My guest today, Andre Batista, had a spiderexperience while riding his bike. Seems Andre’s spider wanted a ride, but Andre wasn’t having any of it. This story is just one of many as Andre recounts his manybikepacking adventures. His stories are humorous, educational, and inspiring. Quick reminder: Chainwheel Diaries is available on Spotifyand Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts. The podcast is also available in video. So, Thanks for tuning in, wherever you are, and please besure to Like and Subscribe. Now, let’s meet Andre Batista. Links to various products, articles, and videos mentioned during the episode. https://superiorbikes.com/us-en/ https://dotwatcher.cc/results/2025/tour-divide-2025 https://www.tuff.ventures/mtuff/info https://www.indianpacificwheelrace.com/ Warmshowers.org https://www.southaustraliantrails.com/trails/mawson-trail/ https://racearoundpoland.pl/ https://bikepacking.com/routes/tahoe-twirl/ https://www.italydivide.it/ https://northcape4000.com/ https://www.lostdot.cc/tcr https://tourdivide.org/about_the_route https://europeandividetrail.com/ https://bikepacking.com/routes/stagecoach-400-bikepacking-route/ https://www.komoot.com/collection/1070173/european-divide-trail-7-600-km-across-the-continent?utm_campaign=collection_embed&utm_medium=embed&utm_source=europeandividetrail.com https://bikepackingreviews.com/posts/bikepacking-vs-bike-touring https://bikepacking.com/plan/expedition-vs-racing/ https://www.instagram.com/andre___bat/ https://youtu.be/-3OFJxyADXQ?si=C6PCvMIHor53xPDR https://youtu.be/kBsTvFPTRiI?si=5tDiYQfWkLMutkQX https://youtu.be/0eDDES4xgCU?si=ZBnJ0nKCgTYfkq_1 https://youtu.be/kBsTvFPTRiI?si=0tuymuy2M91LVovS

Episode 21 - Chainwheel Diaries - Karen t'Kint

Karen t'Kint joins Brian, and she shares great stories about her bike adventures in California, the Pacific Northwest, and her epic rides across South Korea and Japan. Important links to products and services mentioned by Karen.TDA Global Cycling: https://tdaglobalcycling.com/Niner Bicycles: https://www.ninerbikes.com/Moots Bicycles: https://moots.com/Revolution Bicycles - Humboldt County, California: https://www.revolutionbicycle.com/Pros Closet: www.TheProsCloset.comROCKBROS Cycling Shoe Toe Covers: https://amzn.to/3ZR5FNlContinental GatorSkin Tires: https://amzn.to/4snqyflSHOKZ Open-Ear Bone Conduction Earphones: https://amzn.to/4tO7yIdAyahuasca: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AyahuascaWarmshowers: https://www.warmshowers.org/Download Excerpt from Bike | Mind here: https://chainwheeldiaries.com/2026/03/01/chainwheel-diaries-podcast/