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Just to be With You: A Dad, a Daughter, and the Divide (Video)
As a follow-up to the story we published last year, Flint Zeigler’s latest video captures his 2022 Great Divide Mountain Bike Route ride with his 13-year-old daughter Scarlet. Relive their inspiring journey in the 11-minute video here…
Words, photos, and video by Flint Zeigler
In August of 2022, my 13-year-old Scarlet and I set out to ride the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route. She had set this as her personal goal nine months prior after riding the Erie Canal from Buffalo to Albany in under three days and then immediately riding across Florida on the CFITT route just days later. Inspired by Lael Wilcox, Scarlet felt the GDMBR was the perfect progression in her own riding journey.
We flew into Calgary, Canada, on August 4th and pedaled off together. Scarlet and I have always been close, a relationship that I cherish, and the Divide pushed us to lean on each other and deepened that bond in new ways. Throughout the 42 days we spent in that trip, I was writing a poem to help me remember our journey.
Scarlet’s story of our ride has inspired countless folks, and articles were published in the months that followed here on BIKEPACKING.com and a variety of other platforms. Scarlet wrote an article that was published on Christmas Day 2022 in our local newspaper, and she was asked to tell her story on several podcasts and shows. I knew I wanted to share the poem, but couldn’t quite find the right outlet.
Finally, the inspiration hit when I began sifting through the footage I took with my iPhone from the ride. In the months following our coming home from the Great Divide, I began listening to meditations on an app called Insight Timer. One of the contributors I kept going back to was a gentleman from Dublin, Ireland, named Tony Brady. I found an email for Tony and explained our story. Within days, Tony had sent back an audio recording of the poem to use as the voiceover for the video. It was the missing piece I was waiting for, and the video found its voice.
Scarlet and I are so grateful to Tony for his kindness, Restrap for their support, and everyone who has messaged and commented about the impact our journey has had on their own. We hope you enjoy the video.
Further Reading
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