World-record-setting athlete uses surprising transportation to complete 7,000-mile journey across the U.S.

Sushil Reddy, the former Guinness World Record holder for the longest electric bike ride, pushed the limits of bicycle travel with his latest trip — a 7,000-plus-mile loop around the U.S. on a solar-powered bike.

As Electrek reports, Reddy started out in North Carolina before riding across the northernmost U.S. He then headed down to California before traveling east through Houston. 

This trip was the latest edition of Reddy's SunPedal Rides, a long-distance challenge using a vehicle that produces no toxic fumes or heat-trapping gases. Past vehicles have included electric bikes and an electric "tuk-tuk," a three-wheeled vehicle. Reddy has also toured India, France, and Iceland, all with the goal of drawing attention to clean, non-polluting vehicles.

"The idea is to have conversations about clean energy and sustainable mobility," Reddy writes on the SunPedal Ride website. 

Reddy's trips shine a spotlight on the issue of automobile pollution. Passenger cars worldwide produced more than 3.3 billion tons of heat-trapping gases in 2020, Statista reports, contributing to rising temperatures around the globe. A switch to electric cars and bikes, or even to more public transportation like trains and buses, would mean cleaner air and a cooler earth.

Rising temperatures cause several problems, including more extreme weather events like storms and floods and even medicine-resistant "superbugs." For these reasons, cutting back on heat-trapping gases from cars and stopping the temperature from rising further would improve millions of lives. 

At the same time, electric vehicles are cheaper to drive, and e-bikes in particular are a healthy choice because they combine electric and pedal power, giving riders a chance to exercise.

"There is an urgent need to combat climate change by shifting towards a sustainable means of living." Reddy writes on his site. "The SunPedal Ride project is an attempt to inspire people to change their individual lifestyle to adopt a more sustainable one."

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