Kazan 2013 World Cycling Tour: Bicycle tourists conquer America!

Two bicycle tourists from Kazan, Alen Khairullin and Pavel Grachev, have finished the US leg of their world cycling tour. The cyclists who five months ago embarked on a world cycling tour commemorating the upcoming 2013 Summer Universiade and the 100th anniversary of Onisim Pankratov's journey around the world, have finally reached Los Angeles after crossing the United States from the East Coast to the West Coast.

It took them six days, from March 26 to 31, to get to Los Angeles, the largest city in California. On the way to the West Coast, Alen Khairullin celebrated his birthday. Within two months of their trip across the United States, the bicycle tourists passed through 40 major US cities, among them New York City, Newark, Washington DC, Atlanta, Jackson, Dallas, Columbus, Phoenix and finally, Los Angeles. The travellers were sticking to a strict schedule and made two-day stops only at major cities. Their journey across the United States was quite an adventure: over 13,000 kilometres of US roads, night stays at campgrounds, motels, under hospitable roofs of American families and at desert camps, a meeting with Native Americans and many other things. Having arrived in Los Angeles, the travellers had their picture taken with the Hollywood Sign in the background and also went to the Pacific shore to get themselves photographed against the ocean. The cyclists arrived in Los Angeles on March 31 and will stay here for four days only. On April 4, as scheduled, they will fly to China to continue their journey in the Celestial Empire. 

The world cycling tour dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the circumnavigational journey undertaken by Kazan-born Onisim Pankratov and the 27th Summer Universiade kicked off in Kazan on 4 November 2012. The cyclists Pavel Grachev and Alen Khairullin are expected to end their journey by July 6, the opening day of the World University Games.