Photo: magicalworld

Eileen Smith left Santiago, Chile before the quake to set off on her New Zealand cycling trip.

Lots of Matadorians love cycling.

If you keep up with news of what Matador staffers are doing, then you’ll know that Matador Trips co-editor Carlo Alcos just returned from a multi-week cycling tour of Cuba. Photographic evidence substantiating he survived Cuba’s potholed infrastructure can be found in the Cycling Cuba photo essay over on Trips.

The other Matador staffer currently taking the road on two wheels is intern Eileen Smith, who helps manage the Matador Travel community.

Eileen set off from Santiago, Chile, where she lives, for a multi-week cycling tour of New Zealand on February 9. Along her route, she’s meeting up with MatadorU student Marie Szamborski. Follow Eileen’s trip on her blog.

Community Connection:

Planning on taking a cycling trip? Check out our Road Bike/Cycling Focus Page for dozens of resources.

About The Author

Julie Schwietert

Julie Schwietert Collazo is a writer, editor, researcher, and translator currently in New York, formerly of Mexico City and San Juan. She is Matador's managing editor and is the lead faculty member of MatadorU's travel writing program.

  • http://carlo-alcos.com Carlo

    Awesome Eileen…can’t wait to hear about it!

  • joshua johnson

    Go Eileen!! We are rooting for you girl!

  • http://meganahill.wordpress.com Megan Hill

    Eileen is my hero :)

  • http://matadortrips.com/ Hal Amen

    Yay! Matador team cycle tour, anyone?

  • http://www.bearshapedsphere.blogspot.com eileen

    And now she’s in Buenos Aires eating cheap food and recovering from jetlag. There’s word that her apartment is well-shaken, but still habitable, about which she is endlessly grateful. She will also stop writing in the third person now!

    Thanks for the support, all, there will be more details and photos once I get my feet back on the ground in Chile!

  • http://shantiwallah.blogspot.com Marie

    Eileen rocked NZ! I thought she was going to do a bit from Christchurch and a bit from Dunedin, but no, she pretty much covered all the hilly bits the South Island has to offer. I’m awarding her the polka dot jersey for being Queen of the Southern Alps.

  • http://homeinspect.com.au/ Kate Brisbane

    I hope it is appreciated that NZealand is very hilly -so good on you, Eileen, and I hope you met many friendly, interested people who proved to be supportive of your country’s tragedy. Writing this post Christchurch’s earthquake, I feel so much for your countrymen who lost so much..

  • http://twitter.com/bicicletaverde La Bicicleta Verde

     I just found this Eileen! This is awesome! Peter

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