
At the end of 2022, cyclists Ryan Torres and Leo Tenenblat embarked on an expedition to bike over 500 miles across the Atacama desert, into the Andes mountains, and up the 22,615-foot Ojos del Salado volcano. Dubbed Project OdS, their goal was twofold: set a new world record for the highest altitude reached on a bicycle; and raise awareness for World Bicycle Relief - a nonprofit organization that empowers people and communities through life-changing bicycles.
Ryan, an adventurer and student at the University of Pennsylvania, and Leo, an avid cyclist, and Silicon Valley executive, took GoPro cameras along for the ride to help capture and share their journey and demonstrate the true power of bicycles.
Pedal Power
Were partnering with Project OdS as both organizations want to push further the definition of what a person on a bike is capable of, explains Alex Gee, Community Marketing Associate at World Bicycle Relief. In addition to biking across deserts and up the worlds highest volcano, a bike can allow a girl born in a rural town in Zambia to reach her closest school and receive an education, or a local farmer to pedal the distance to bring his produce to the town market.
World Bicycle Relief is committed to helping people conquer the challenge of distance, achieve independence, and thrive. According to World Bicycle Relief:
Nearly one billion people in rural regions of the world live in communities far from the nearest paved road, walking for miles each day just to survive. On foot, individuals race against the sun to complete everyday tasks.
Distance is a barrier to attending school, receiving healthcare, delivering goods to market, and other critical services needed to thrive.
To address this issue, World Bicycle Relief partners with communities to deliver specially designed, locally assembled, rugged bicycles for people in need. And theyve provided more than 700k bikes to people in Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, and South America. Since 2005, World Bicycle Relief has collaborated with thousands of communities to connect hard-working rural women, men, girls, and boys with the services and opportunities they need to thrive.
Women, in particular, face significant cultural barriers to accessing education, healthcare, and employment. Thats why World Bicycle Reliefs approach prioritizes bicycle donations to women and girls, explains Gee.
The Expedition
Ryan and Leo started biking in Copiap , Chile, on December 14. The expedition was a mostly self-supported combination of desert crossing and high-altitude mountaineering - pushing further the definition of whats possible on a bike.
With so many factors like altitude, terrain, and self-support combined, we knew this would be hard, but the physical and logistical challenges were part of what made this expedition exciting, says Leo Tenenblat. More importantly, though, was being able to share this experience, especially the perspectives of the amazing Chilean people and the incredible scenery of the Atacama. It was a dream come true to partner with World Bicycle Relief, which aims to help people in remote areas like this.
Biking up the mountain alone, with the challenging terrain, high altitude, and freezing winds that threw me off my bike and into volcanic ash, was the most physically and mentally demanding experience of my life. During the toughest moments, my thoughts turned to World Bicycle Relief and the incredible vision they are fulfilling, notes Ryan Torres. The idea that a child might be able to receive an education thanks to this feat gave me the determination to get back on the bike and keep going until reaching a height of 20,623 feet.
On December 21, Ryan and Leo set off toward the summit of the Ojos del Salado volcano, with Ryan ultimately reaching the 20,623-foot elevation mark - approximately 164 feet higher than the previous world record. They hope their mission inspires others to support World Bicycle Reliefs goal to deliver one million bikes and empower five million people by 2025.
Get Involved
You can join the movement to change the world through the power of bicycles and donate to World Bicycle Relief. A donation of:
$165 provides a new bicycle
$50 provides tools + training for a bicycle mechanic
$25 provides a new wheelset
You can also follow World Bicycle Reliefs social media channels: Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter.
You can learn more about getting involved with GoPro for a Cause here.
More from GoPro
25/09/2023
To celebrate Word Gorilla Day 2023, we're sharing the story of two very special gorillas-Angela, a western lowland gorilla born at the Los Angeles Zoo-and L...
06/09/2023
The week of July 15, 2023 marked the 10th anniversary of Latino Conservation Wee...
06/09/2023
Recently, a group of SoCal female surfers set out on an epic weekend road trip to score some of the local, iconic breaks in the area. They took GoPro along to c...
06/09/2023
We're pumped to have HERO12 Black out in the wild, and we can't wait to see what you create with the latest flagship! Our most recent Million Dollar Cha...
06/09/2023
Quik desktop brings the speed and convenience of the Quik mobile app to desktop users, but with an expanded list of features and capabilities that take advantag...
06/09/2023
The $399 Flagship Camera Features Up to 2x Longer Runtimes, 5.3K and 4K HDR Video, Wireless Audio Support for Apple AirPods Other Bluetooth Devices, Plus Pow...
05/09/2023
We're smack dab in the middle of summer, which means it's family vacatio...
31/08/2023
We are excited to announce that, as of today, GoPro is the official action camera of MotoGP .
The new multi-year contract sees GoPro returning as the official ...
25/08/2023
You might think swimming with a camera is complicated, but GoPro loves thinking outside the box and making things simple!
Whether youre a long-distance swimmer...
25/08/2023
With its high-resolution video, waterproof construction, built-in image stabilization, compact size and low cost compared to the majority of DSLR cameras, GoPro...
21/08/2023
Recently, a group of SoCal female surfers set out on an epic weekend road trip to score some of the local, iconic breaks in the area. They took GoPro along to c...
11/08/2023
The devastating wildfires that swept across Maui over the last 48-plus hours have left countless families, victims and first responders in desperate need of aid...
08/08/2023
We are stoked to announce that, as of today, GoPro is the official action camera partner of Formula DRIFT.
Currently, the latest GoPro cameras, including HERO1...
01/08/2023
Family Portraits is an employee spotlight series, highlighting the incredible people at GoPro around the globe. In this series, you'll meet employees workin...
01/08/2023
Unleash your inner HERO with your Garmin by participating in August's GoPro Badge Challenge. Throughout the month of August, your goal is to complete 11 act...
27/07/2023
Each year the world tunes into Shark Week-highly anticipated programming dedicated to the science and conservation of one of the ocean's most misunderstood ...
25/07/2023
Were excited to announce the next step in our Corporate Social Responsibility jo...
20/07/2023
GoPro surf athlete Lakey Peterson put on an incredible showing at the 2023 Corona Open J-Bay in South Africa this week, ultimately earning her a well-deserved f...
17/07/2023
Whether you board, bike, hike, drive, ride, ski, skydive, surf, skate, run-or all the above-you need a sports camera that can keep up. And even more importantly...
01/07/2023
Namibia is well-known in the surf community for its legendary barrels, but there is a dedicated group of locals bringing attention to the regions marine life. O...
01/07/2023
From wakeboarding and waterskiing to high-speed boating, you need an action camera to capture all the fun that happens on the water, and GoPro has you covered!
...
27/06/2023
Did you know that GoPro has always been a front-runner in the skate industry? We brought an affordable video camera to skaters everywhere in the early 2000s, an...
15/06/2023
When Alistair Klinkenburg set out on his mission to explore the different ways people deal with their head noise-after suffering years of chronic mental health ...
08/06/2023
June is here and summer is in the air in Vail, Colo., and that can only mean one thing-the 2023 GoPro Mountain Games are upon us! We're back and taking over...
02/06/2023
Cool off this summer by fanning yourself with dollar bills from GoPro Awards! Beginning June 1, we're celebrating the season with a new GoPro Awards Challen...
20/05/2023
What is the Best GoPro Tripod?
When youre traveling around the world and having new experiences, you need a tripod that can hold up wherever the journey takes ...
20/05/2023
What's the size of a soccer ball, swims quite fast and is more elusive than Big Foot? The Chirodectes macalatus Box jellyfish of course! Captured on GoPro...
16/05/2023
Last month, we joined forces with Travel Alaska to create the ultimate Alaskan bucket list adventure, bringing travel aficionados and creators from across North...
16/05/2023
What is the Best Travel Camera?
Whether youre a backpacker looking for adventure or a suitcase-toting city traveler, your camera is a must-pack travel essentia...
16/05/2023
How to Use Your GoPro as a Helmet Camera
Whether you're mountain biking, cycling cross country, cruising on your motorcycle, skiing down a mountain, flying...
10/05/2023
Just in time for your summer adventures, were restoring our camera lineup to lower, pre-pandemic prices. Effective worldwide today at GoPro retailers and on GoP...
26/04/2023
We at GoPro are thrilled and honored to have HERO11 Black be awarded a 2023 Edison Award. The latest flagship camera took home the Bronze in the Personal Techno...
25/04/2023
On Earth Day, we're honoring our home planet in the best way GoPro knows how-a video.
We invite you to sit back, crank your sound up and take a few moments...
25/04/2023
The following words and images are by Imaging Solutions Technical Program Manage...
19/04/2023
In recognition of Earth Month, were catching up with Sustainable Surf-a nonprofi...
13/04/2023
When youre on the road, you need a backpack that keeps your belongings organized, secure and protected from the elements without holding you back. The best trav...
13/04/2023
The whole point of hiking is to enjoy the outdoors. That means unplugging from the noise of your smartphone, it means living in the present moment, and most of ...
13/04/2023
Waterfall drops with your kayak camera arent just thrilling, they are life-changing and, with a waterproof camera along for the ride, your friends get a look at...
13/04/2023
Whether its wheelie races, shredding the local track or sunset cruising that revs you up, adding a GoPro motorcycle camera will ensure that you can relive the m...
13/04/2023
From road biking to track cycling, mountain biking to BMX, theres never a dull moment when youre riding your trusty two-wheeler. Its capturing the excitement-in...
13/04/2023
What Is The Best GoPro Camera for Surfing?
Surfing is a solo art form. The ritual of getting up at dawn, throwing on a wetsuit and bracing the crisp ocean wate...
13/04/2023
Whether you're fly fishing, spinning or trolling or-when you reel in the Big One, it comes with a story to tell and an even better one to show. That's w...
13/04/2023
Whether you're a surfer, swimmer, snorkeler, Sea-Doo-er or just plain love water, getting awesome underwater video is the ultimate way to share your submers...
13/04/2023
Boating, beach days, pool parties, lake life, you name the fun-filled location and we've got a wonderful new hat for you to sport. We've teamed up with ...
11/04/2023
GoPro is teaming up with the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) to bring a group of creators to Thailand to experience one of the worlds largest water festival...
10/04/2023
When Francis Zuber left his house in Bellingham, Wash., March 3 to ski his local mountain, Mt. Baker, it started out like any normal day trip. It was an easy ho...
04/04/2023
Happy Earth Month!
We're constantly in awe of the beauty that Mother Earth offers us every day and want to see this beauty through your lens, so we are ki...
04/04/2023
Legend has it that the GoPro media team created a disappearing pole mount at one point and coined it the narwal mount (inspired by a narwhale). For years Go...
30/03/2023
In celebration of Women's History Month, we're shining the spotlight on ...
30/03/2023
We're thrilled to announce that GoPro has landed on Newsweek's list of the Most Trustworthy Companies in America-for the second year in a row!
The awar...