a journey of more than 2,180 kilometers to connect Rouen to Morocco by bike

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He begins a crazy adventure. Kevin Henry39, intends to surpass himself to carry out his sporting and committed project of linking Rouen (Seine-Maritime) to Tangier, in Morocco, by bike. No less than 2,180 kilometers await him.

Cyclist since a young age

Cycling and Kevin are a great love story. Even when he was little, he traveled “by BMX to go to primary school”. And he never really stopped. For 12 years, he has been driving the Teor and Métros de Rouen, but as soon as he can, he gets back in the saddle. “I go to work by bike, I do what we call Vélotaf,” smiles Kevin.

This bike enthusiast also likes to repair them. “Last year, I took training at the CNPC in Paris, a business and sports school, and I learned to tinker with bikes, alongside work,” he explains. Wheel to change, broken chain, derailleur failure… So he is ready to face the hazards of the road.

An extraordinary journey

It's on his days off that Kevin will head south: “I'm on vacation on June 6 and I'm leaving on the 7th or 8th to just over 20 days “. What drives him is his taste for “cycling, traveling and discovering landscapes”. This is also what he regularly posts on these social networks which will serve as his logbook throughout the duration of his adventure.

Although his journey is carefully prepared, Kevin does not set daily stages, “it will be random”. He will sleep in bivouacs or in campsites, but is not closed to the idea of ​​meeting people and sleeping with locals: “Why not? We don't know what chance reserves for me.”

With a journey of 150 to 200 kilometers per day
and around twenty kilos of luggage, he is aware that “difficult times” await him, but he remains determined: “I think I am mentally strong enough”. To train, he runs 5 to 10 kilometers per day.

My wife tells me it's a mid-life crisis, but she supports me. Everyone supports me, even my mother who worries about me.

On the day of departure, he invites his family, his friends and all the people of Rouen to travel “a few kilometers to Africa” with him.

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Kevin is not looking for performance, for him, “it’s not a race, but an adventure”. And to add, “I'm not into calculations, stats, performance, but I see myself more as an adventurer. In itself, the distance is already a performance.”

Beyond the sporting aspect, what he seeks above all is to convey “a message of tolerance”, in particular against xenophobiaand to transmit strong human values, in particular respect for differences. “I want this trip to be useful to others, not just for me,” says Kevin.

It's through its sponsor, the clothing brand Yeah so what. That he plans to get there. “The brand will send me t-shirts and accessories.” Each of them contains sentences committed to the acceptance of differences and the fight against discrimination.

And he is determined to make it happen. “If my bike breaks, I will find another bike to finish the route. Only health could stop me.” Kevin is already thinking about the future and already sees “an episode 2 further down, towards Dakar, Senegal…”

Departure from Rouen scheduled for June 7 or 8, 2025. Follow Kévin's adventure on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

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