Adrien Completes Africa End-to-End
Adrien Liechti did it! Ninety-six days and 16 hours after he started at Cap Angela in Tunisia, he reached Cape Agulhas at the southernmost tip of Africa, where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet. He’s cycled from the northernmost point in Africa to the southernmost, setting a world record in the process (still subject to verification). In the course of his adventure, he cycles 17,280 km (10,737 miles) and climbed 116,000 m (380,600 ft). He traversed 17 countries.
What an adventure it’s been! It started with a detour to Spain, since the border between Algeria and Morocco is closed. Adrien rode to the border, then backtracked, took the ferry to Spain and then to Morocco, where he rode to the other side of the border to continue his route.
Traversing the Sahara Desert and Central Africa was relatively smooth, until he reached Cameroon. Most readers have heard how Adrien spent two weeks in a make-shift prison, before his friends were able to track him down, and the Swiss embassy secured his release. Undeterred, Adrien continued on his journey.
He had planned to ride all across Africa with just three tires: He swapped out his rear 700×48 Poteau Mountain semi-slick in Abidjan after 7,500 km (4,700 miles), but kept the old one, planning to use it on the front once that tire wore out. It probably would have worked, but when we saw the photos of his tires after 13,800 km (!!) (8,500 miles; above), we decided they had done their service. Continuing on the same tires was a risk not worth taking. We all know that when a tire reaches the end of its life, punctures can suddenly multiply exponentially, as the threads of the casing loosen and no longer resist punctures well.
We couriered a set of replacement tires to Windhoek in Namibia and put Adrien in touch with a friend of relatives, the Namibian ex-pro racer Dan Craven, who helped get the tires through customs in record time. On new rubber, Adrien rolled through the deserts of Namibia and South Africa before finishing in the lush Cape Province.
Apart from wear-and-tear on tires, chains and brake pads, Adrien’s bike worked without problems throughout the trip. He credits his shop, Velomario in Berne (Switzerland) with the careful assembly that avoided problems on the road. He’s got a few more tricks to share:
- Adrien ran his tires tubeless. He set up his new tires tubeless at a gas station, using sealant he’d carried from the start.
- He used two chains, swapping them out every 1,000 km (630 miles) to even out the wear. For lubrication, he used motor oil—easily available anywhere there are roads and cars.
- Rather than navigate with GPS, Adrien used road signs and maps, just like he did in years past. He said: “For this kind of journey, it’s more than enough.” (It also avoids dealing with temperamental bike computers).
- To save you zooming in on the photo above: Adrien ran a mechanical Shimano GRX drivetrain. No need to worry about charging batteries during the long adventure!
- He used the same (metal) brake pads throughout the journey.
After finishing, Adrien told us:
“I arrived at Cap Agulhas at 11 a.m. I had already been feeling relaxed since the day before, knowing I would finish, yet it all felt a bit unreal, like I wasn’t fully taking it in.
“I was very proud to have completed the riding part of this project. It lasted three months, but more than that, it was a true adventure. I felt both happy and relieved to reach the end, while also sensing a slight fear of leaving this way of life behind and stepping into something different from now on.”
Well, congratulations, Adrien—well done! We’re looking forward to what’s coming next for you!
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