River of youth

Saturday, November 12, 2011

HE was twice bitten by a cobra, was able to manage himself out of a kidnapping 38 times, and knows how to speak around 20 languages. And as if that’s not enough, internationally recognized cyclist Janusz River has accomplished something for himself that probably no one will ever accomplish in his own lifetime: The man has claimed to have pedaled a total of 148,000 km in 140 countries so far around the world, with his mountain bike.

That means that had he traveled all those kilometers around the world in a straight line along the equator, he roughly could have circled the planet three times already!

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The Philippines is his 141st country—and Cebu his first-ever stop.

“I could not find any map of the Philippines in Seoul,” Janusz shares about his stopover in South Korea, coming from Sakhalin Island in the North Pacific part of Russia. All he knew was that he was going to the Philippines, and so he booked himself a flight to Cebu.

“I consider Pope John Paul II a great man. And I heard things back at Poland about his visit to Cebu, so I thought this would be a good place to start,” the 75-year-old said, referring to the papal visit here in 1981.

So right shortly after arriving at the airport, he stopped by a city bookstore looking for a Philippine map. There he approached a stranger man reading business books by the bookstands, and asked for a little guidance.

“That was when I met Brian and he gladly helped me with whatever I needed. He also introduced me to his wife Sheila. Then I realized that these were the kind of people I meet once-per-country.”

Janusz was referring to couple Brian and Sheila Sacro who, after an incidental meeting at a local bookstore, is now gladly assisting the world cyclist around. Janusz also noted the generosity of Msgr. Dennis Villarojo and Fr. Cris Mostajo, CSsR, considering them to be a great help and instrumental in his stay here.

At present, the Italian cyclist has an itinerary that includes a trip through the following areas: Cebu, Leyte, Dinagat Island, Eastern Samar, Northern Samar, Masbate, Sorsogon, Albay, Camarines Sur, Catanduanes, Camarines Norte, Quezon Province, Batangas, Cavite, Bataan, Pampanga, Bulacan, and lastly Manila. If all goes well as planned, March 26 is the scheduled end of his Philippine tour.

By now, one might be asking about how all this started. Janusz’ life example will show you that not what everyone is destined to do in life is immediately revealed at birth. For him, it quite came later in life.

“It was Dec. 30, 1999,” Janusz shares how this fiery passion for riding was ignited a couple of days before the dawning of the new millennium.

“I was alone by my house along the seashore in Rome. Then I saw a newspaper with a headline about an Italian who was going around Europe on his bike. Then I thought to myself, ‘I will travel around the world on my bike.’”

Now Januzs around that time was 64 years old: An acclaimed personality known in the business circle to be a successful international sports and talents manager who has been at it for quite some time now.

But apparently, what the world would label as success wasn’t enough to whet his appetite for adventure.

“So then I bought an old bike, talked with my lawyers to arrange things, discussed with the bank about my budget plans—which I asked them to wire me only $3 a day where ever I was in the world—and then I went off.”

Of course, first on his list was Europe, as he blazed through the southern and northern parts of the continent. Not surprisingly, he disclosed that there were only two countries he did not go through. “Not in Italy, because they would think I’m crazy. And Poland? I’ve already seen enough of it.”

His father was a Polish general in the military, and his mother was a Russian who was with the Red Cross. Unfortunately, both of Janusz’ parents were killed during World War II when he was only three years old.

From then, although he holds two passports with him, he claims that he has been a citizen of the world. After his trip in the Philippines next year, he will have the following countries on his itinerary: Russia, Indonesia, New Zealand, Australia, Venezuela, and Brazil—all in the span of five years.

Interestingly, his last stop in Brazil will have him joining the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro where he was invited by the Olympic committee to join the opening ceremonies.

In perfect time, Janusz will be turning 80 that year and that momentous event will formally mark the conclusion of his personal world biking tour.

So nearing the end, people can see that biking has done lots of tremendous things for Janusz River. Alert, vibrant and as active as ever, the man seems to have more than just the fountain of youth welling up from deep within him. Maybe his active lifestyle, paired with his strict daily diet of only fish, rice, fruits and vegetables, also had something to do with it.

“When people ask me what’s my purpose, I tell them I do it for me. I don’t want to die in the hospital or at home. I want to die on the road.”

Although not known to many, after he accomplishes his mission, he has set apart bankbooks to be distributed to around 1,000 selected orphans around the world.

To end, the man shares on what he cites as his three personal records.

“One is that in 11 years of riding, I have never gotten a punctured tire. Next, is that in 11 years, I have never slept on a bed, but only my sleeping bag.”

“And lastly, in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, I don’t think anyone can beat me at what I have done. I am only one stupid man.”