E-Trekking the U.S.

The journey started about two months ago, more than a year before that with the planning.

It is a monumental goal with several objectives, and more that developed as he made his way down the road.

Gregory Maassen, a Dutch cyclist from Washington, D.C., decided to relive American history from a little less than a century ago, bring awareness and funding to a disease and along the way get a true education of America.

Maassen is a senior executive manager of large regional and complex USAID programs. He is also a Fulbright scholar and founder of Wandel Guides, LLC, a multimedia company. He is raising funds for the Foundation for Peripheral Neuropathy for research and education. He understands the impact of neuropathy, having been inflicted with “a post-infectious small fiber neuropathy in South Africa,” Maassen says on his website. Peripheral neuropathy is not a single disease, he said. It is a general term for a series of disorders that result from damage to the body's peripheral nervous system. It is believed causes include diabetes, chemo treatment, COVID-19, other viral infections, hereditary diseases and idiopathic causes.

In telling his story May 31, he said he was working in South Africa and walked through a nest of tic larvae. As various symptoms surfaced, he was flown to Johns Hopkins Hospital. Doctors said the best path of recovery is to exercise. He didn't consider himself a cyclist, and still doesn't. However, he tried e-bikes and they became a perfect match.

A “purist” might say the batteries on a bicycle are “cheating.” However, moving a unit at the weight of Maassen and his equipment, a little bit of help is justifiable. The average cross-country touring bike would weigh in at under 30 pounds. Maassen's e-bike, fully stocked with extra batteries and equipment for the road and to document his journey, comes in at more than 400 lbs including Maassen.

He is filming the ride in part because of the route chosen. His ride from Washington, D.C. Is solo; no “sag-wagon” or mechanical support. His support comes from the bike shops he stops at along the route. Without those shop keepers, he goes alone, covering the miles with what he has in his packs. The route is designed to follow the route completed by Dwight D. “Ike” Eisenhower in 1919.

The military convoy including Eisenhower left Washington, D.C., in July 1919 and took two months to reach California, following the Lincoln Highway at an average speed of six mph. In World War II, then Gen. Eisenhower oversaw the liberation of the Netherlands, an action the Dutch have never forgotten. Maassen says the longer unbroken peaceful relationship with a foreign country is with the Netherlands.

Maassen hopes his average speed will be a little more than double Eisenhower's 6 mph.

The route is 3,400 miles; a little more when journeys are taken from the route to restaurants and hotels or camp spots. Supporters are encouraged to donate an amount per mile.

The prep work started at least a year earlier with the route finalized in May 2021. He received his e-bike, a touring e-bike ordered from Germany, in November 2021 following a report in March of 2021 that the bike had been declared “lost” by the dealer.

As if the trek itself isn't monumental, he had to stall his pace in the sixth segment. About 10 days into his ride, he had to fly back to Washington, D.C. He had to return home to take his oath of citizenship.

In addition to riding across country, following an American icon's historic convoy and raising money for and awareness of Peripheral Neuropathy, he became an American citizen. He said he learned a lot in gaining his citizenship, but the better education came in the ride and meeting people along the way.

As of June 1, fundraising had reached $56,100, a little past the half-way mark.

He carries with him a pair of wood shoes — clogs or "klompen" in Dutch — characteristic of the Netherlands. A person might question why carry the extra weight. They are considered “surprisingly comfortable,” and he has biked in clogs.

He arrived in Sidney on Monday, Memorial Day, completing his ride from Ogallala. He spent part of Tuesday in Sidney before resuming his ride to Kimball. His progress can be seen on https://ebiketour.org/.