Andy Cox caught our attention on Instagram with photos of remote gravel roads that lived up to his @doubletrackfanatic name tag. As we followed with interest, added to the double-tracks were the high mountain vistas from across the Vosges, the Jura mountains and eventually the Alps. Following his nose led Andy inevitably to Café du Cycliste where we wanted to interview him. But with all that thinking time whilst living and riding solo, he'd done our job already. These are the Doubletrack Diaries.
So, I thought I'd catch up with the intrepid traveller after yesterday's travails. Ask him (me) some burning questions I'm sure you're all dying to know.
(AC is you, I mean me, asking the questions. DTF: is Doubletrackfanatic, the rugged traveller and lover of the outdoors)
AC: GIVE US A SMALL BIOGRAPHY
DTF: Andy Cox, 39 and a half, born in Oxford, lived in south Wales for the last 8 years.
AC: SO, THIS IS A MIDLIFE CRISIS JOURNEY THEN?
DTF: Hardly... I've been having midweek, existential, crises for the last two decades, so no not midlife, more the need to do something other than the same thing every day. My life felt like it was getting stale, so I thought I'd go exploring the world for a while.
AC: SO, YOU'VE GOT NO FAMILY THEN? JOB, CAR, MORTGAGE?
DTF: No dependents, no. Parents and siblings sure, and I own my own house, so the rent I'm getting from it is paying for my trip. Jobs come and go, cars, well I can't drive so no.
AC: YOUR ROUTE ISN'T A NORMAL ONE IT SEEMS. LOOPING ABOUT AND RETURNING TO PLACES AGAIN. EXPAND A LITTLE ON THIS PLEASE.
DTF: I think the phrase 'Making it up as I go along' explains it well. I've tried a few of the mapped bikepacking routes, off road touring really, and they're not really for me. I can carry 3 days of food and I like the solitary existence in the hills and mountains, so I'm using the routes as a guide. I'm not a fan of cities, or campsites, so I try to stick to dirt roads and easy trails if I can, camping in the woods or on mountain tops.
AC: YOU MUST BE PRETTY SELF-CONFIDENT THEN?
DTF: Well there's self-confidence, which is something you show to others, and there's confidence in yourself, which is knowing your limits, your skill and your fears, and knowing how far you can push them. Two very different things. I'm not especially self-confident, but I'm very confident in myself. I know I can push my limits pretty far out of my comfort zone, and still keep my head while others around me are losing theirs. Years of solo riding and adventures have taught me a lot about myself and I now trust my instincts implicitly. Self-confidence is linked to self-esteem and self-image, of which I'm lacking a bit in.
AC: DON'T YOU GET LONELY?
DTF: Much less so than I did when I lived in the UK. Sure, I miss people and the ability to just strike up a conversation with someone, my French isn't very good, but I meet more interesting and interested people while day to day traveling then I ever would at home.
AC: BACK TO YOUR ROUTE FOR A MINUTE, HOW DO YOU FIND WHERE TO GO? JUST BY CHANCE? LUCK?
DTF: I follow my nose. I look at a map, find something that looks cool, a trail, a doubletrack, a view point or place, and find an interesting way to get there. Sometimes it goes wrong but often I find some unexpected gems and they're what makes my adventure an adventure rather than just a bike tour. The unexpected is often the most enjoyable as you have no preconceptions so are just open to experience the moment for what it is.
AC: SO WHERE NEXT THEN?
DTF: Mont Ventoux I think, off road of course, then back here to Nice to ride the Torino Nice Rally at the beginning of September. Then south towards Spain and follow the warmth into the autumn and winter. Maybe Morocco for Xmas, but I'm easy. How does not the UK sound?
AC: Sounds good to me
AC: GIVE US A FEW HIGHLIGHTS OF YOUR TRIP;
DTF: To list a few…
Riding away from my front door was great.
Seeing the Alps for the first time entirely self-propelled.
Crossing the petite saint Bernard pass while it was still covered in snow.
Via del Sale and the Atla Via high altitude double tracks.
AC: LOW POINTS?
DTF: They generally involved a big city, a long day of headwinds, or the Simplon pass with its traffic and tunnels. Not many considering where I've been and what I've lived through.
AC: THANKS FOR YOUR TIME.