Overview
European Challenge
for 9th-12th graders
Bicycle across Europe from the North Sea to the Mediterranean. Challenge yourself on a ride that stretches across a continent from The Netherlands to Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, France and Spain and finish with a celebratory swim in the shimmering blue Mediterranean. Discover Europe with a small, spirited group (no more than 12 students or fewer than 2 leaders) on a challenging ride of unsurpassed beauty.
We'll meet in Amsterdam and head south through The Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg--enjoying gentle terrain on bike paths and bike routes. Averaging 70 miles per day, we'll make our way to Alsace-Lorraine and ride along the Rhine. We'll roll into Switzerland and have spectacular views of the snow-capped Alps as we skirt the western shore of the beautiful Lake Thun. We'll dip into the mounatins at Gstaad and Chateau d'Oex--classic Swiss villages nestled in deep green valleys with charming chalets in town and cows grazing on every hillside. Riding out of Chateau d'Oex will be our first real test as we climb up and over the Col de Mosses (4,470 feet). We'll spill out of the Alps into Rhône River valley and head towards France at the far end of Lake Geneva.
We'll ride across France through sunflower fields and past ancient vineyards. During our last week on the bikes, we'll tackle the challenge of crossing the steep rugged Pyrenees and ride triumphantly into Spain. We'll make our way to the Mediterranean where we'll race down to the water for a celebratory swim. At trip's end in Barcelona, we'll look back on four weeks of beauty, challenge, friendship and fun on Overland's European Challenge, a life experience with value and resonance that extends far beyond the boundaries of a single summer.
“The best four weeks of my life!” Gibson Hoyt, Cincinnati, Ohio
HIGHLIGHTS
- Bicycle from the North Sea to the Mediterranean
- Explore the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, France & Spain.
- Cross the Alps and Pyrenees by bicycle
- Swim in the Mediterranean
GRADE
For students who will finish grades 9-12 in June 2008. We plan on 1 group with 9th & 10th graders and 1 group with 10th, 11th & 12th graders. Call us (800.458.0588) to check on current availability.
CHALLENGE LEVEL
9 (1-10, 1 is easiest)
START & END LOCATIONS
Starts in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Ends in Barcelona, Spain
2008 DATES & FEES
4 Weeks
Sunday, June 29 to Saturday, July 26
$5095 (airfare not included)
APPLY TODAY
Most groups fill in January & February. To download an application, click here.
"European Challenge was the single most incredible experience of my life...I've never been so proud of myself or my peers before." Lizzie Leonard, Westport, Connecticut
ITINERARY
Trip Start
European Challenge starts at the Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport in The Netherlands. Once everyone has arrived, we’ll travel to a small town just outside of Amsterdam to set up camp and build our bikes.
The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany
The Netherlands are known for exceptional bike paths and bike routes, a perfect location for the beginning of our journey. We'll spend the first few days getting used to our fully loaded bikes as we head south. By the third day, we'll start riding through the Ardennes of Benelux... small, but steep hills, a good test for what's to come. Biking through northeast France in Alsace also contributes a few medium climbs. We'll spend one night in Germany and swing back into France where we'll enjoy our first buffer day (see below) as we relax in the hills of Lorraine, enjoying fresh croissants and resting up for the challenges that will face us in the coming week as we ride through Switzerland.
Switzerland
As we ride into Switzerland, we'll head straight for Bern and the Bernese Oberland. We'll be faced with two 1,000 meter passes as we ride through green valleys and small Swiss towns complete with charming chalets and cows grazing on the hillsides. We'll ride through Gstaad and Chateau d'Oex before spilling out into the Rhone River valley to the shores of Lake Geneva on our way back to France.
France
We'll ride through the foothills of the Alps and into the heart of France, through vineyards and ancient cities. We'll head southwest through Provence, towards the Roman Amphitheater in Orange before skirting the Massif Central. We'll have a rest day in Carcasonne, one of Europe's best preserved Medieval walled cities, and have a chance to rest and explore the city before heading into the final week of our trip.
Spain
From Carcasonne, we'll head in the challenging, yet beautiful Pyrenees. After three weeks together on our bikes, we will be in shape and ready to face the challenges we'll encounter climbing through this spectacular mountain range. Our efforts will be rewarded as we cross into Spain (at over 6000 feet!) and make our way down to Barcelona for a well deserved celebratory swim in the Mediterranean.
Buffer Days
During each section of the trip, there are buffer days built into the itinerary to allow for delays en route. Most groups will find that they have some of these buffer days partially or completely off of the bikes for rest, relaxation and exploration on foot.
Trip End in Barcelona
After our triumphant ride into Barcelona, we'll pack up our bikes, prepare for our flights home and celebrate our accomplishments together. We'll spend an afternoon exploring Barcelona, reminiscing about our month together riding across Europe.
“An amazing experience…!” Katy Francis, Palo Alto, California
Supervision & Safety
Overland’s two leaders, a man and a woman, provide 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week supervision of the highest standard. Our students feel safe and secure in our talented and conscientious leaders’ hands.
On an
We set high expectations for each student’s behavior—we expect respect and consideration for others, a positive attitude, and an eagerness to help make the trip a success in every way possible.
In every decision we make, safety comes first. We plan our trips carefully choosing the best available roads. We ride with care, with a leader at the front and a leader at the rear. We only ride during the day; we always wear helmets, and we attach an orange safety flag to every bike. Since our first trips in 1985 our safety record has been superlative.
For nearly 25 years our caring and competent leaders, our 24/7 supervision, our high expectations, and our commonsense approach to safety have made Overland the number one choice for summer bicycle trips.
Overland Leaders
In a world where strong leadership skills make the difference between the average and the exceptional, Overland recruits and trains only the best to be our leaders. Not only do these remarkable people capably lead our groups, they also offer our students the kind of role modeling for which Overland has long been recognized. Bright, charismatic and accomplished, our leaders ensure the safety and well-being of every Overland student, and then they provide much, much more, inspiring our students to reach for their potential in every way.
You won’t find a more dynamic and talented group of people than Overland’s leaders. Most Overland leaders have played varsity sports and many have captained their teams; they have served as student government officers, volunteered as peer counselors and directed campus organizations. They are high achievers who come to Overland with a lifetime of leadership experience—but just as importantly, they are warm, wonderful people who are eager to work with Overland’s students.
Overland’s leaders prepare carefully for the summer. We know of no other program that requires certification in First Aid, CPR and lifesaving—every Overland leader has all of these plus our own 10-day training program that focuses on safety, supervision and leadership. All of our efforts prepare Overland’s caring and committed leaders to create safe, supportive and valuable programs where each of our students can flourish.
Meet some of our spectacular returning leaders.
How We Put Our Groups Together
We have a number of important criteria for every Overland group:
Size: Every
Gender:
Friends: We allow two pairs of friends in a group (we never allow three or more friends to travel together). With a maximum of two pairs of friends there will always be space available for at least eight students to come on their own without a friend. Furthermore, if we enroll two pairs of friends in a group and both pairs are of one gender, we generally try to: (1) enroll three or four more students of that gender in that group, or (2) close the group to additional students of that gender.
TRIP DETAILS
Getting To & From The Trip
Families are responsible for making travel arrangements to and from the trip start/end locations. Overland’s leaders will be on hand at the arrival and departure airports to provide supervision and assistance. The European Challenge starts in Amsterdam at the Amsterdam Schiphol International Airport and ends in Barcelona at the Barcelona International Airport.
Equipment
Please see the Packing List page for a complete equipment list. Note that the main pieces of equipment for this trip are: a superior-quality touring bicycle (we recommend the Trek 520 or Cannondale Touring 2 for our challenge trips—European Challenge and American Challenge; in 2009 we will require these bicycles for these two trips. Information to help guide the selection of an appropriate bicycle is available in the Choosing the Right Bicycle page of the Enrollment Forms.), helmet, panniers (saddlebags), a sleeping bag and a sleeping pad.
Additional Costs
Transportation to and from program start and end locations, spending money and personal gear are not included in the program fee. Overland provides group gear including tents and stoves; students provide all personal equipment (e.g., bicycles, panniers, sleeping bags).
"The trip was excellent; well planned with excellent leaders!" Chris Scharff, North Hampton, New Hampshire
WHAT IT'S LIKE
European Challenge starts early in the morning (generally as early as first light and rarely later than 6:00 a.m.). The goal is to get on the road early so breakfast, breaking down camp and loading our bikes become efficient routines. Morning rides will take you through the countryside, into villages, around lakes and along rivers. There are frequent breaks for snacks and water, and short stops to rest and regroup.
By lunchtime most groups will have finished 60% to 75% of the day’s riding and there’s usually a strong feeling of accomplishment as the group feasts on a daily picnic of fresh bread, cheese, sliced meats, fruit and cookies. Pulling into camp early in the afternoon means the riding went well with few delays and no major breakdowns.
Most nights are spent in privately-owned campgrounds—in Europe these are a far cry from the leafy expanses you’d likely find in an American state park: instead, they’re boisterous, multi-lingual outdoor communities where our group of Americans on touring bikes is often something of an object of curiosity. We'll set up camp, enjoy a big dinner to power us for the next day (typically pasta or rice, chicken and fruit) and spend the evening relaxing together before heading to bed early. The sun sets late in Europe so we’ll come together one last time to have dessert as a group and to talk about the day’s highs and lows. We’ll think about where we’ve come from and how far we have to go on our bicycling adventure from Amsterdam to Barcelona!
STUDENTS: IS THIS THE RIGHT TRIP FOR YOU?
Only you can answer this question. We suggest you start the decision making process by reading everything on our website about the trip. Then email us with any questions you have. Then talk to students who have done the trip (we can give you references).
To start your thinking about the European Challenge, consider the following:
1. There are many kinds of challenge on the European Challenge:
- Mileage: Long days on the bike-- typically 70+ miles a day.
- Weather: Widely varying weather... from rain in Holland to cold nights in the Alps to sunny, hot days in Spain.
- Minor Illness & Injury: over the course of four weeks there's a good chance that you'll catch a cold or that you'll fall off your bike and bruise an elbow or scrape up a thigh-- nothing too serious but still a challenge when you're far from home and working hard.
- Homesickness: even if you've never had it before, there will likely be times when you long for the comforts and ease of home.
- Camping Out: you'll get very comfortable sleeping out but you'll still miss the familiarity of your own bed, the ease and efficiency of screens and windows to keep bugs out, rain off and air-conditioned air in.
- Group Living: group meals, group snacks, group cooking, group cleaning, group chores, etc., etc., etc. The demands of group living will be some of the most important challenges you'll face.
2. Are you ready to commit yourself to the training that is required for this trip? Click on the link above to see what is required. Think about whether or not you can commit yourself to completing the pre-trip riding—we've made it possible for even the busiest student to complete the training, but having the time and actually doing the riding are two different things.
3. Are you ready to commit yourself wholeheartedly to a demanding group experience? The European Challenge is all about the group succeeding, about the group getting the miles done, about the group enjoying the highs together (biking over the Alps!)... and sticking together through the lows (tough headwinds). Are you the kind of person who can put his or her own needs and wants after those of a group?
PARENTS: WHAT YOU NEED TO UNDERSTAND
Every summer we get a handful of phone calls from parents who ask questions that reveal to us that they really don't understand what the European Challenge is all about.
These questions often put the European Challenge in the context of a bike tour for adults that stays in luxury accommodations (we camp out) and where fine dining is the norm (we shop for our food every day and make meals for 14 people using two small camp stoves). The parents who ask these questions simply haven't paid attention (and they are relatively easy to get back on track).
The more difficult questions to respond to are the ones from parents who wonder why their son or daughter can't do what he or she wants. "Why can't my daughter just buy her own snacks (or lunch... or dinner... or dessert)." "Why can't my son ride ahead of the group... he's so much faster than the others?" What these parents have failed to grasp is that the European Challenge is a chance for their son or daughter to see beyond his/her own needs and wants, to see the needs of the group before his/her own. In this way, the European Challenge is a chance to become a caring friend... a terrific group member... an exceptional leader.
The European Challenge is a chance for your son or daughter to be challenged in ways that school and sports might never have. Riding a bike is not technically difficult—but riding across Europe with 13 other people is one of the hardest sustained challenges we can imagine. For your son or daughter to succeed on and enjoy the European Challenge you have to be on board and committed to the goals of the trip so that you can help your son or daughter understand what it is they are to be a part of.
DAILY ROUTINE
We'll get up before sunrise every morning and be on the bikes by shortly after first light. We'll bike for a couple of hours before stopping for a morning snack. We'll bike until 10 or 11 before we stop again for another snack and then continue until 1 or 2 before we stop for lunch. The afternoon riding is broken up by a snack stop or two. Depending on the day's mileage and delays en route, the goal is to pull into our overnight accommodations (typically a campground) between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. There will be shorter days and longer days—if the day gets too long we'll change our plans and stop for the night before reaching our planned destination (and we'll make up the mileage in the coming days).
MEALS, SNACKS & COLD DRINKS
Breakfasts are generally made up of bread, croissants, cereal, fruit, juice, and milk. A typical morning snack is fruit and some sort of bread or croissant. Lunch is usually sandwiches, cheese, fruit, chips and cookies. Based on the availability of stores along our route one afternoon stop a day will include cold drinks (for example, cold water, juice or Gatorade purchased by Overland) and a salty snack (chips, pretzels or crackers). Popular dinners include pasta, chicken and stir-frys.
Overland's goal is to always provide more food than is needed so that everyone-- no matter how big their appetitie-- gets enough. Each group will plan and prepare their meals everyday. Over the course of the first week or so groups develop a comfortable routine around meals and their favorite meals become established.
Please note that every meal, snack and cold drink on the European Challenge is provided by Overland and is shared by the group. This asks a lot of everyone in the group: even though it would be easy to allow students to buy their own meals and snacks if they wanted, doing so would break down the cohesiveness of the group. Getting 14 people across Europe on bikes requires tremendous teamwork-- sharing meals, snacks and drinks is an important building block of that teamwork.
“Harris found all elements of the trip fun, rewarding and fulfilling.” Ellen & Scott Paseltiner, Wilmette, Illinois
