By Ted Olinger
Once you become the first person to circumnavigate the globe alone under your own power — 41,196 miles of rowing solo across the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic oceans, then pedaling a bicycle across and scaling mountains over the continents in between — what do you do for an encore?
Maybe you do it again, taking a different route to summit the highest peaks you missed the first time, while visiting or building classrooms along the way, sharing what you’ve seen and learned about the world, the environment, and yourself.
The 62-year-old Gig Harbor resident Erden Eruç (AIR-den AIR-rooch), already the holder of 16 Guinness world records, was on his way to doing just that when he launched his rowboat from Crescent City, California, on June 22, 2021. After 239 days and over 7,800 miles alone across the Pacific for the second time, he became the first person to row from North America to Asia when he landed in the Philippines on March 24, 2022, securing two more world records. From there he planned to row across the South China Sea, then pedal his way from Vietnam to Portugal, where he would rejoin his rowboat and continue west.
There was just one problem. Actually, there were many, he said, but the biggest one was China, which refused to issue him a visa because of the pandemic.
Eruç appealed to the Chinese embassy in Manila, saying he could apply again if necessary in person at the Hanoi embassy after making the crossing and meeting whatever quarantine requirements were required. “No exceptions!” was the answer.
“Myanmar (also) turned down our visa request on account of security concerns,” Eruç said. He had tried, thinking he could reroute across India and Asia Minor. (continued)