From one time zone to another, through the mountains, storms and aggressive dogs of Kentucky, Henri Do held on. After riding 6800 km from west to east in the United States, he finished the Trans Am Bike Race in third place on June 23.
The what?
The Trans Am Bike Race is a mythical American ultracycling race in complete autonomy – not to be confused with the Race Across America which allows athletes to be accompanied by a support team.
Henri Do, 36, is an elite ultracyclist specializing in short races, that is to say 24 or 48 hours. In particular, he rode the route between Montreal and Gaspésie in 24 hours, in 2021. Last year, he completed his first long-distance race – the inaugural edition of the TransCanada Bike Race.
The idea of registering for that of the United States, which this year was the 9e edition, came to him last winter. After going through a depression in the fall, the Montrealer decided to take action by agreeing to receive help from his friends, he tells us on the phone. Six months ago, he was sitting in his neighbor’s dining room when he decided to enter the Trans Am Bike Race.
Running was a way for me to show myself that I was capable of bouncing back strong. I had gained weight, I was out of shape, I was out of breath after two or three minutes on the bike. I was no longer myself.
Henry Do
Last Wednesday, two days after returning home to Quebec, he saw this same neighbor again. “I told him that six months ago, we were talking about that in his dining room. There, I succeeded. I came back strong. I ended up in the top 3 with the other two guys [Omar Di Felice et Pawel Pulawski]. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY HENRI DO
Henry Do
Bad luck and punctures
On June 4, at 6 a.m., Henri Do and 45 other participants took the start on the West Coast in Astoria, Oregon. If the Montrealer’s “primary” objective was to win, he was also aiming for a top 3 with his two main rivals, the Italian Omar Di Felice and the Polish Pawel Pulawski.
In previous years, the winner stood out very quickly in the race. He created a big lead in the first third and it was he who won the race. This year, until the last day, we did not know who would win.
Henry Do
The Trans Am Bike Race, like any ultracycling race, is strategic. In it, cyclists are not entitled to any private assistance, but they can use all public and paid services. Alone from start to finish, they are the sole masters of their adventure. They drag their luggage with them and have to decide when and where they sleep and eat.
Henri Do had a different strategy from that of his two adversaries; less methodical than them, he based his decisions more on his “feeling” and the weather conditions.
“Me, I often do good 24 to 48 hours very quickly, I go very far, I give myself a lot. After that, I’m going to have a little crash, so I’m going to sleep a little longer. The others, like Omar and Pavel, will be a little more structured. Omar slept four or five hours a night. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY HENRI DO
Henry Do
As the days went by, Do and Pulawski traded second place. On several occasions, the Quebecer fell behind due to his different strategy, before closing the gap. This is what happened in the first quarter of the race, when he covered the 200 km that separated him from the Italian and the Pole in 24 hours.
On three occasions he managed to catch the leader, Omar Di Felice, but punctures and other necessary stops prevented him from taking the lead and building the gap.
Henri Do suffered a dozen punctures in three weeks. The most defining – and frustrating – moment of his race came on the very last day, when he had 600 km to go and was in second place ahead of Pulawski. As he climbed a steep hill, his GPS beacon became detached from his bike. He didn’t realize it until two hours later.
“I had to turn around to get her and I lost two or three hours in the rain. I lost second place at that time. »
PHOTO PROVIDED BY HENRI DO
On June 23, after 19 days and almost 9 hours of cycling, he arrived on the East Coast in Yorktown, Virginia, in third place.
During these three weeks, Henri Do slept in different places: on picnic tables, in front of gas stations, in post offices or in hotels. And he ate burgers.
Lots of burgers.
The one who is recognized in Quebec for his love of ice cream – it gives him the necessary fuel during his short runs, he says – has become “Henri the Burger Man”. This is the nickname given to him by fans who followed the race online.
“Sometimes it was two, three burgers a day. I’ve been to all the McDo’s,” he laughs.
PHOTO PROVIDED BY HENRI DO
Henri Do was nicknamed “Henri the Burger Man” by fans who followed the race online.
“I am Rene”
The Trans Am Bike Race cost Henri Do $6,000 to $7,000, but the Quebecer has no remorse. The race hasn’t always been smooth sailing; he went through ups and downs. But he knew that “difficult times always pass,” he says.
A few years ago, the 36-year-old got a temporary tattoo of a dinosaur on his forearm. During a bike ride with a friend, they decided to baptize the dinosaur René, an “old school Quebec name”, which also happens to be the past participle of the verb reborn. Today, whenever Henri Do goes through a difficult period, he thinks: “I am René. »
“What I want to tell people is that no matter who you are, no matter if you’re a top athlete or someone ultra-resilient, you’re just as likely to fall and sink deep and fast. . That doesn’t mean it’s the end, that we stop there and that we can’t get out of it. On the contrary, there is always a way to bounce back. »
Henri Do is far from finished with long races. Count on him to redo the Trans Am Bike Race.
“I’m sure I’ll do it again in a year or two to win it. »