Category Archives: Hospitality

Every Trek Travel vacation offers something distinctive and our voyage from Prague to Vienna is no exception.

Of course you’ll be swept away by the Baroque architecture, the medieval villages like Cesky Krumlov, the colorful farmlands, the lazy Danube River, the rich Austrian wines, the ostentatious castles that dot the landscape and the sincere hospitality of the locals. But what makes this vacation truly unique is experiencing the overwhelming difference in culture and aesthetics as you cross the border from one country to the next. Everything is imminently different: the roads, the food, the language, the architecture, the focus on beverages from beer to wine, the history, even the flower boxes illustrate a change in prosperity and lifestyle.

Hopefully you make it across…
 

Meet Brie Willey, Guide Manager at Trek Travel. An Indiana Hoosier living in Madison, Wisconsin, Brie has a degree in fashion, wanderlust stronger than earth’s gravitational pull, and a passion for people.

Tell us your story:

I enjoyed climbing trees, traipsing through creeks and woods, and jumping man-made ramps on my bike as a kid with neighborhood friends in rural Indiana. A tomboy if you will. I was the good kid with a constant sense of adventure. I showed horses and played sports through grade school with a more sports-focused high school experience. In addition, and still, I loved babysitting for friends and family. There is something about children and their innocent and naturally happy outlook on life that is eternally energizing. Perhaps I am just a big kid myself. My passion for people, though, extends beyond children. I enjoy stories and interactions from all ages, all walks of life, all over the world.

With professionally creative parents, I followed my creative genes by studying Costume and Fashion Design at Indiana University. From long nights in sewing labs (that often turned into early mornings), intramural sports, community volunteer work with my sorority, nannying, and of course many memories with friends over cold brews, I would say my college experience was anything but lackluster. Post-college I segued into working for my uncle’s business, selling flat screen TVs to hotels. No joke. Nothing to do with my degree, everything to do with working with amazing people. I appreciated the experience and learned a lot. Moving on from sales, I stayed with the family theme and worked beside my talented mother in her jewelry design business. Yes! I am headed toward a career in fashion, I thought. From branding to creation, jewelry design proved to be a lovely experience that I cherish and am still involved in. However, the moment I was introduced to the opportunity to be a bike tour guide, my eyes lit up with excitement as this peaked my interests more than ever before. Travel. People. Bikes. I thought, “Yeehaw, now we are talkin’! Is this job for REAL though?” Just kidding on the ‘yeehaw’. I don’t use that word really, except when I’m in Indiana.

How did you end up at Trek Travel?

My father visited a local bike shop to learn more about a Trek Travel trip to Tuscany. He was enthralled with the vacation of a lifetime, but seemingly more interested in this unbelievable career the Trek Travel representative had. A bike guide who travelled the world. He thought, “How does my daughter get this job?” He couldn’t wait to contact me, so of course I get a call from Mr. Willey as he sat in his car from the bike shop parking lot. “Where are you?” I was driving. He instructed me to pull over, write down a website and apply immediately. I have always trusted my dad, and this was no exception. As I learned about the opportunity of a lifetime to be a guide for Trek Travel, I could not wait to apply.

Following my application four years ago, I had no idea what was in store for me. It was the most challenging, thorough and exciting hiring and training process I could have ever dreamt up. At times seemingly like it was scripted right out of a reality TV show, the challenge was something I would never forget. The day I got the phone call to join the team, I remember exactly where I was: in my car. I could hardly believe it so I made sure to double check with my soon-to-be manager. “Are you SURE you have the right person,” I asked. It was true, the opportunity of a lifetime had just begun. My next call, as you guessed, was to my dad. He couldn’t have been prouder. I think to this day, he dreams of being a bike guide, too. Until then, he will live through his only daughter. I have since moved into the Guide Manager role. A role that still allows me to guide, thankfully, as I cannot get that love for guiding out of my blood! It is extremely important I am enjoying my job and enjoying life, and I have been fortunate enough to find that early with the Trek Travel family. I couldn’t ask for a better company to work for or a better team on the field.

What is your favorite part about working for Trek Travel?

I am asked this question often during new guide interviews. The answer is simple: people. I love our team. Diverse, unique and genuine in every sense of the word. We all have the same lofty goals, crazy-awesome passions and adventurous mindsets! Take “people” a step further. The people I am able to interact with outside of our team. New guide candidates, subcontractors, guests, locals, etc. They are energizing in every sense of the word. Learning their stories and backgrounds always puts a smile on my face.

Favorite place you’ve ever traveled and why?

Italy always feels like a home away from home. Northern, central or southern Italy, it doesn’t matter, I love it. The kind and genuine people, delicious fair and breathtaking scenery is nothing short of exceptional. I can’t wait to explore the country even more!

Which Trek Travel trip is top on your bucket list?

Stateside I would have to go with Bryce and Zion. I’ve never been to Utah and there is something about it’s landscape and colors that has been luring me in for years. I love the southwest. Outside of the U.S.? Bali. It is at the top of my list in general, so why not explore it Trek Travel style!?

Tell us about the craziest adventure you’ve ever had.

There have been multiple but one highlight was wedding crashing in Austria. It wasn’t a “crashing” by definition, as my friend (and colleague) and I had a verbal invite from the bride’s father. That’s a story to be shared over beers and laughter, but every good adventure always circles around to my love of people. People always contribute to the creation of amazing experiences, stories, adventures, laughing fits, cycling excursions etc.

Tell us about your best day on a bicycle.

There are many. Most recently, I was in France working logistics support for our Tour de France trips last summer. Tania and I were to make our way from Lourdes to the top of Tourmalet for a Trek Travel viewing the following morning. By car, it made sense to leave late afternoon, however by bike would prove to be a better adventure. I’m always up for anything, and this was no exception, despite knowing how much I would suffer climbing the mighty Tourmalet. It was unforgettable climbing into the clouds, laughing at myself every turn. Tania’s patience and picture taking of my suffer-fest was appreciated. We reached the Col, all smiles (I was dying) and descended 5km to the viewing location. Thankfully we made it before night. Sort of. But just in time for a cold beer! The viewing was a hit the next day. How were we getting home you ask? Simple, via bike. “Return the way you came” would be what a TT Route Guide would say. The first 5km Tania pulled me back up to the Col du Tourmalet. Then she drafted off me the rest of the way back to Lourdes. Just kidding. She kicked my butt, as always.

Favorite sport other than cycling?

Volleyball has always been a favorite. Although I stand six-feet tall, I attended a small high school and learned to play all around, front and back row. Can you dig it? I can dig it! Another sport that has been a lifelong passion is horseback riding. I showed huntseat and saddleseat up until high school when my parents forced me to decide between horses and sports. I chose sports, but never quit riding. My showing transformed into more casual trail riding with friends. Furthermore, I have carried forward my passion while in the field as a guide. During off-time my goal has been to ride in every region where I have guided. So far, it has been such a blast. Experiencing breathtaking countryside from the saddle, bike or horse, has proven equally rewarding for me personally.

What does a perfect day look like to you?

To me, a perfect day starts with a smile, continues with adventure beyond imagination and ends with the exhausted satisfaction knowing you could not have possibly fit any thing else into such an action-packed, amazing day.

Cycling fans have dreamt of riding the routes of their pro cycling heroes. Each year a lucky few get the chance to experience those dreams by riding the Etape du Tour, as race organizers select one of the event’s most challenging stages and offer amateurs the opportunity to tackle the entire route.

The weather can be intense and unpredictable. Food is often scarce and rest stops sometimes lack water. But with Trek Travel, your support is always there. Our separately designated rest stops will always have plenty of food, ice cold beverages, and full mechanical support. By the time you roll into the finishing town, you’ll have done battle in the Alps in spectacular fashion like the heroes of cycling.

Photo Credit: Zack Jones, Etape du Tour 2014

“Unique, dynamic, quirky, and fun, these are all qualities I seek in how I shoot. Over the past 11 years I have blended photography and guiding cycling tours around the world, helping me cultivate a commitment to stellar service. I believe a connection with my clients and subjects is at the apex of having a great experience, creating great images on location. It also makes my job one of the greatest in the world.”

Zack Jones is a guide, photographer, and creative spirit.

Julie Farrell does not consider herself a cycling enthusiast, but she has learned to embrace her ‘uncool’ cycling tendencies. By comparing bikes to designer shoes and cycling clothes to Audrey Hepburn’s fashion, Julie offers ten reasons why women should ride bikes…and we can’t help but to agree with her wholeheartedly.

Words by Julie Farrell

 
 
I recently came across some disappointing statistics on women and bicycling.  It seems that the number of women considered non-enthusiasts declined by 13% from 2000 to 2010. That said, female enthusiasts, those who ride 110 days/year or more, are on the rise, increasing 8% during the same timeframe…while the same statistic for men showed an increase of 15%.

I suppose I fall in the non-enthusiast category – I ride about twice a week, sometimes more, sometimes less – but approaching enthusiast status.  Those stats made me wonder though; why don’t more women ride bikes?  So like a good egocentric woman, I thought about myself; why do I ride bikes?

Like millions of other American girls, I started riding bikes in my neighborhood.  It was the standard mode of transportation for all the kids on our block.  I had a sweet purple-flowered-banana-seat Schwinn, and Rich and Darren down the street rode green Stingrays.  We clipped playing cards in the spokes with wooden clothespins to make us sound like motorcycles (or at least annoy the other neighbors), and tried to pop wheelies – I never managed one. I would pump desperately to get my speedometer up to 20 mph, particularly past the Blogg’s house, whose nasty little dog Boots had taken a bite out of my leg on one of my expeditions down our street.  I remember furiously riding to the Circle K to restock our corner lemonade stand with candy that we were selling at a hefty mark-up.

Growing out of the one-speed era, we graduated to ten-speeds.  Sarah and Rich scored the coveted Schwinn Varsity bikes.  For some reason, my dad decided that a green ‘Tiger Cycle’ was a superior ride to the bright yellow Schwinn Varsity that I wanted so badly…I’m pretty sure the superiority lay in its price.  It was not unlike the polo shirts my sisters and I received one Christmas that sported a pony sans polo rider (ala JC Penney).  Stifling my pride, I slung my tennis racket in my backpack, and road summer after summer to tennis clinics on that green machine.

We dragged the green machine from my home state of Oregon down to UC Santa Barbara for college.  Here I learned that not only was my ‘Tiger Cycle’ uncool, the whole genus of ten-speeds was uncool.  As my mom and sister and I explored the campus, we gawked at all the bronzed surfer guys and gals coasting along on their groovy beach cruisers.  Here, the more retro the bike, the hipper it was.  Although the green machine got me safely home from many a late night at the library or a fraternity party, I was relieved when it was mercifully stolen from the sorority bike rack during freshman summer. I really did lock it up. My friends and I hit the garage sales that next fall, and I managed to find a vintage purple Schwinn one-speed with a basket in front…the very essence of California cool…I had arrived.

My experience with bikes thus far was similar to most girls I knew growing up.  We all had bikes.  So what changed?  Why aren’t we all still riding bikes? I suppose those early bursts of two-wheeled freedom were overtaken by cars and life in general.  We became old enough and finally had the means to own cars.  They got us where we needed to go.  There was no time to get there on a bike.  You can’t commute 30 miles in LA traffic on a bike, nor arrive at work wet with perspiration.

Some of us became moms, some of us embarked on careers, and some of us did both.  In my early 20’s, my boyfriend (now husband) and I bought mountain bikes and occasionally rode them on weekends.  But for the most part, bikes were not a big part of my life, nor any of my friends’ lives.  I squeezed in tennis, found squash, tried my hand at step classes (I wasn’t quite coordinated enough for Jazzercise, and besides, I loathed leg-warmers), and spent time on boring treadmills.

And then it happened.  Shortly before I turned 40, we moved from Santa Barbara to the glorious Santa Ynez Valley.  My new BFFs were tennis players, but they quickly introduced me to their other passion: cycling.  Going downhill fast initially frightened me, particularly clipped-in to my pedals.  My first real road bike had sticky gears (or possibly a crummy pilot), and I fell once or twice whilst performing an untimely and unsuccessful gear shift.  The good news is I was only going about 5 mph, the bad news is it scared me and it hurt.

Two years ago my husband and sons bought me my dream road bike for Christmas.  It’s a Trek Project One Domane.  And guess what?  It’s bright yellow.  It has Ultegra Di2 electronic shifters, which means that even if you’re a knuckle-dragging buffoon, you can’t screw-up your shifting – it’s smooth as silk.  To my sons’ horror, I’ve decided to ride it with paddle pedals…as in, I don’t clip in.  Once again, I have positioned myself squarely in the uncool category, but this decision has thoroughly liberated me from any anxiety around being able to clip-out in time for a stop or other unexpected condition.  Heaven.  Riding my new Domane is like walking into a party decked out in Chanel with an Hermes handbag on my shoulder…it feels really, really good.
 
 

 
 
So why don’t more women ride? Perhaps it’s fear from not riding for so many years, or perhaps they’ve stigmatized it as some kind of hard-core super jock sport for the über coordinated.  Whatever the inhibitions, I’d like to offer the reasons that women should ride bikes:
1. It’s Low Impact: At 49 I’ve had the joy of four knee surgeries all due to other sports.  Cycling is actually good for my knees.
2. You Get To Be Outside: Many of my friends are into the Bar/Barre method or Bikram yoga.  Good for them.  Personally, as a card-carrying germaphobe with a strong sense of smell, I can’t imagine anything more unappealing than exercising in a hot room with people dripping with sweat reeking of acrid onion body odor.
3. It’s Social:  Cycling allows for a variety of skill sets. You can ride, chat, and laugh with both family and friends.  Ever get the giggles in a yoga class? Tsk, tsk.
4. You Can Solve Problems:  Take off for an hour or two on your bike and you’ll find it to be some of the best contemplative time in your day…and it smells good too.
5. It’s High Fashion: One day you can sport the Audrey Hepburn look on a city bike replete with basket, and the next day you can harness your inner Catwoman in a sleek, all black road suit.
6. Great Shopping: Bikes are like Jack Rogers sandals; you want one in every color. From colorful retro bikes to sexy racing bikes to sporty mountain bikes, you’ll soon find yourself filling your garage the same way you do your closet.
7. Awesome Trips: What could be more romantic than a cycling trip from ancient winery to renaissance castle via the picturesque French countryside?  The big bonus? No guilt devouring the baguettes, frommage, and red wine because you’ve already worked-out.  Companies like Trek Travel are developing more and more cycling trips that cater to all levels of riders and budgets: from beginners to experts, and from luxury seekers to adventure mongers.
8. You Can Be A Role Model:  I want my boys to see me as a contender, a participant, someone who is actively engaged in life.  I want them to see that they can marry a partner, someone with whom they can have fun throughout their lives.
9. You Get Fit:  After all, it is exercise.
10. It Makes You Feel Young Again:  The other day I threw my tennis rackets in my backpack and rode my bike the two miles to the court.  Bam!  I was 13 years old again, only with a cool bike and no ugly perimeter perm.  It felt great.  There is something uniquely liberating about riding a bike.  Feeling the wind in your face, the sun on your back, and the pavement speeding by below. There’s nothing quite like it.  I’m convinced that feeling youthful inside is half the battle in this process we call aging…

So go get your ride on, and happy cycling!