Bicycling Beyond Boundaries: an Interview with Global Cycling Duo, Pat & Cat Patterson

Pat & Cat at Angkor Wat

It was the common quest for a visa to travel into Suriname that brought Jeremy into the same room as Pat and Catherine “Cat” Patterson in Cayenne, French Guiana in the summer of 2005.  Jeremy was teaching English on the untamed edge of South America and Pat was on his second global cycling tour, Cat on her first.

The Patterson duo has been front of mind for Jeremy ever since learning of Luke’s global cycling plans in 2019 (see Jeremy’s article about Luke’s Oxford school year). When Jeremy recently visited southern California, he made his regular stop in Ventura to visit the couple at their home near the beach, with a walk-up surf bar on one side and a dedicated cycling lane on the other with easy access up and down the California Coast.  He came prepared with a list of questions that he had prepared with Luke.

Jeremy: Pat, I’ve thought a lot about how brave it is, at any age, to shrug off conventional comforts and set out on the road. Tell me about what inspired you to close your business, sell your house, and go see the world on two wheels in the 1980s.

Pat: Well, it goes back farther than that... You see, my mother pushed me to succeed, maybe even exceed. I had been working for so many years -- starting with a paper route at age eleven, a butcher’s meat cutter at 15 ½ (after starting as a clean-up boy), and by 19 I owned a meat company! At age thirty I owned two grocery markets when an opportunity arose that piqued my curiosity and I began taking real estate classes, which inspired me to sell the stores, move to Santa Barbara, California, work my way up in real estate sales, and open my own realty office by your age, Jeremy, at 39.

The doors of my new company had just opened when I got a call: my son Ron was dying. An aneurysm swept him away in 1979 at age eighteen. After the initial shock and grieving I began to ponder my own life... “How many years would I have left? How would I spend that precious time? Did I want more money or more things or something entirely different?

Jeremy: A traumatic experience can really ground you and rebalance priorities. How did your son’s tragic death influence what came next for you?

Pat: Well, the struggle of how to take my life in a new direction went on for seven years. All the while, our business flourished. My wife (at the time) and I began taking exotic vacations.

In 1983 I chose a bicycle trip to China -- maybe a bit like Luke’s! My wife was tentative but went along. During my days cycling in China I felt a wondrous freedom. While there, I happened upon a boy named Chen with whom I could hardly communicate but we struggled anyway. As he walked away, he looked back at me and said, “Goodbye, Mr. Pat America.”

That was my epiphany. I decided I wanted to cycle around the world to collect richer life experiences and to participate in more wonderful moments of connection like this. It would be another five years to prepare for the journey, but I made the move in 1988.

The global cycling adventure I dubbed “Voyagers Two” would roll on for almost 3 years, but it ended up untangling my marriage… and, fortuitously, opening the opportunity to meet Cat!

Pat’s first southern California real estate business in its heyday, circa 1985. Find Pat in the top-left.

Jeremy: And so, Catherine, this is where you come in! What was your inspiration to join forces with Pat as you both charted a new course in life?

Catherine: So much of life is about timing, isn’t it? In 1993 my ex-husband had left me for another and my life pretty much imploded. Out with a girlfriend one night, my friend goaded me into asking Pat for a dance, whom I’d been eyeing from across the room.

The music started and, without knowing what to say, I simply told him, “We’re going to dance!”

He said, “I’m with someone,” to which I replied, surprising myself, “I didn’t ask you to marry me, I just asked for a dance!”

And with that we were off! The rest of our lives began at that moment. Within just a few months we moved in together -- both in the midst of divorce, both suffering financially.

As we unpacked, I came across a box full of video tapes from his cycling tour. I, being the organizer, asked how they were cataloged and he just shrugged and laughed. That set off our many evenings of viewing every single one of those travel videos. As I watched them I fell in love with the interesting people and places and I guess I caught the bug and really wanted to experience the world that way!

We pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps, started a small Real Estate firm, worked hard for 10 years, then pedalled off into our dream in 2002, which we called “World Riders 2.” Our families were nervous. Our friends struggled to understand. But we were so thrilled to kick all those tropes of a “normal life” to the curb and set off on our own adventure.

Jeremy: OK, so it’s 2002, you’re in your 50s and 60s, and you’re setting off from Southern California on a global cycling tour. What did you observe about the people you met during your travels?

Pat + Cat: You know what? 98% of all people in the world are good people! This became our philosophy based on Pat’s earlier experience and our own incredible involvement with people we met everywhere. All we had to do was AVOID the remaining 2%!! And of course, Jeremy, we met you while we were cycling across French Guiana. We keep in touch with many of our friends we met during our expeditions.

Pat: I was the first American to be allowed entry into the USSR for tourism since that government was founded some 40 years before. During my time cycling there, I observed that virtually everyone I met was just another ordinary person like me, just going about their lives as best as they could -- much like folks back home in California, although with different means, culture, and opportunity. Of course, the Soviet model was quite different than the western model. My Sovietski Son and team leader of our expedition Dima, said, “The system was a grand experiment, it failed.” But that didn’t change the fact that people there were good, honest, and kind.

Cat: We also observed a lot about poverty and power.  While in Africa (did I mention we wrote a book about our trip?), we noticed that African natives were experiencing generally improving lives, but all too often they were still at the bottom rung compared to lighter skin people, often foreigners or descendents of Western immigrants. In contrast, we met many whites who were middle class, but none were poor. Our trip coincided with the early days of the new post-apartheid South African experiment, and we fell in love with Nelson Mandela.

Pat + Cat: We both agree, the people of Cuba were extraordinary (did we mention we wrote a book about that, too?). We witnessed HUGE changes between our trips in 2005 and 2018. They left behind the old two-money system and many new privately owned businesses began to flourish. Recent skirmishes between global powers have undermined this progress -- sadly, not for the first time.

A few years after our global tour we set out on the road again in 2009 and toured Southeast Asia, which we understand Luke might be visiting on his way to Beijing. This expedition reaffirmed that most people are good, that wealth is unevenly distributed but happiness is not material, and that the world is an amazing place worthy of exploration on two wheels!

Jeremy: The current pandemic and general international tension has made for some challenging border crossings during the Bristol2Beijing expedition, but maybe this is always challenging, just in different ways. What has been your experience?

Catherine: We have crossed a lot of borders… and we’ve learned that crossing borders is almost always difficult! Of course, as Americans, we have been fortunate that many countries have been open to US Citizens without need for a visa. For other countries, however, it can be complicated, as you well know.

Our first trip to Cuba would not have been possible if we hadn’t gotten creative and traveled under the radar! We flew in from Mexico. The Cuban immigration officers had a way of NOT stamping our passports but issuing a visa on separate paper, to leave no official paper trail in our passport books. When returning to the island in 2018, the relationship between the two countries had changed, and we were able to fly there directly from California on American Airlines. Further evidence of how much had changed since 2005, we were also able to book places through Airbnb and enjoyed great food in privately owned restaurants.

Pat: For me, the USSR and China were complicated countries to visit. I relied on travel companies for professional support. To facilitate my journey through 7 Soviet Republics at the end of the 80s, I paid $100 per day (in 1989 dollars) to a company I found via the Soviet Peace Committee.

Africa was often very tenuous, so we devised a plan: I would stay with the bikes to keep people (and the military) out of our panniers. Cat would go to the office, often a mud hut, and ply her charms while getting our passports stamped. It worked well.

At one checkpoint in Africa the police asked Cat if we were armed. When she replied, “no!” the soldier urged her: “You’d better arm yourselves. You’re going into a dangerous area.” I guess we did have “weapons.” We had a Swiss Army knife and a can of mace that we later discovered was useless. 

Really, our most effective “weapon” was always our smiles and good humor -- especially in areas where we didn’t speak the local language. Just smile and nod affirmatively!

Jeremy: While many people gawk at the Bristol2Beijing ride, Luke was already a triathlete and in excellent shape in his 20s. While not held back by cancer, you had life momentum and potentially weary bones and buttocks working against you in your 60s and 70s -- and now in your 80s, Pat! Tell me more about your philosophy.

Catherine: Invest in a good saddle and stay youthful! I also always have the benefit of being younger than Pat.

We still cycle 4 days a week, 20 miles each day, 80 miles weekly. Although Pat has issues that make standing or walking difficult, he is able to get on his bike and ride. This is so important to us -- just for the health of it!

Pat + Cat: We are convinced that cycling is extending our lives. Oh sure, a good diet and good doctors are helpful... but we agree with you, Luke. To stay healthy you’ve GOT TO KEEP MOVING!

Pat: I am fortunate to have made it past 80 years old and I now see a few distinct chapters of life:

In my 40s, I recall it seemed like the one who dies with the most toys wins!

In my 50s, I was certain it was the one who dies with the most adventures wins. 

In my 60s, I revised it further to the one who dies with the most experiences wins.

In my 70s, I understood that it was surely the one who dies with the most memories wins.

Now, at age 82, I’m pretty sure that the one who dies WITH A MEMORY wins!!

Jeremy: There’s so much wisdom in your story and perspective. Thank you for sharing some of it with us. What words of wisdom do you have for Luke and/our Bristol2Beijing followers who are interested in grabbing life by the handlebars?

Catherine: So many people who learn of a gutting health prognosis like the one Luke has had would all too often give up, lay down, and wait for what they believe to be the inevitable. Good for him to choose a different mindset. We understand well the Buddhist teachings of “The impermanence of life.” Luke’s CanLive mantra is exactly the right idea. Only you can make your dreams come true during the unknown amount of time we have to live our very best lives.

Pat: I always tell people that this kind of travel can be hazardous to prejudice and can rearrange your core beliefs and perspective. It’s important to live with our eyes, minds, and hearts open.

I have a portion of your fellow Brit Dylan Thomas’ famous poem fixed above my desk that inspires me to channel my energy towards what’s most important. “Rage, rage against the dying of the light!” So, Luke, RAGE ON! Live your journeys fully, share your positive stories, and continue to bring hope to others!

Catherine and Jeremy in 2005 on the banks of the Maroni River at the border between French Guiana and Suriname. Search for “Jeremy” on this page to see Pat & Cat’s accounts of meeting Jeremy in 2005 during their World Riders 2 expedition.

Jeremy visits the Pattersons in Ventura, California in 2015. Read more about Pat and Cat’s most recent adventures at: https://BicyclingBoomers.com/.