Now in her late 70s, Northern Virginia resident Lynn Salvo has set six world records for her bicycling prowess—all of them set after her 65th birthday.
On March 26, BikeArlington will partner with Central Library to screen a documentary about her most recent accomplishment: bicycling 4,330 miles in 95 days to become—at age 75—the oldest woman to cycle across Europe.
In the 59-minute film, Pearls of Peace, the audience accompanies Salvo and her bicycling companions on her historic ride. This is a beautiful, inspiring film that is about bicycling, but also about courage, resilience, friendship, and peace.
Riding for Peace
Salvo, who did not begin bicycling seriously until she was in her 50s, embarked on all of her record-setting rides to promote peace and to honor her brother, John Thomas West, an Air Force pilot who died in the Vietnam War when she was 20 years old.
“His death left a gaping hole in our family,” she says.
Salvo hopes that by reminding people of the devastation caused by war, she might prevent other families from suffering the same loss hers did.
In her ride across Europe, she passes through sites related to peace. She provides background and context on each one— a historical narrative that runs parallel to the bicycling storyline.
The Journey Begins
When the film begins, Salvo is about to start her journey with her touring partner, Callyn, who accompanies her for the first part of ride. They are at Nordkapp, the northernmost point of mainland Europe, which is 450 miles north of the Arctic Circle. It is cold and windy, and Salvo is bundled up in her warmest cycling gear.
They set out in fog so dense they can barely see the road ahead, relying on their hearing to detect oncoming cars as they pedal down a steep hill buffeted by a 30 mph crosswind. Next, they pedal through the 4.3-mile Nordkapp Tunnel, which travels under the sea to connect a fishing village to the Norwegian mainland. Salvo says in the five years she spent preparing for the ride, she dreaded descending this long, steep, dark tunnel the most—but she and Callyn make it, unscathed.
Much of the ride presents similar challenges—both physical and mental. There are countless steep inclines; steady downpours; rocky, rough, off-road routes that aren’t rideable and require walking; and routing challenges and extreme heat toward the end of the trip that make the final 100 miles often feel more stressful than celebratory. But there are also joyful chance meetings along the way that brighten the trek. She and Callyn have dinner with two young Latvian women and their mother, who gives them a firsthand account of pivotal historical events in the dissolution of the Soviet Union. In Poland, they cross paths with walkers on a 12-day pilgrimage to a religious site. They modify their mileage goal one day to enjoy a spontaneous lunch at the home of a young family they meet in a small town.
A Triumphant Arrival
As the journey ends, we see a tanned Salvo in bike shorts pedaling in bright sunlight to her endpoint, Tarifa, at the Strait of Gibraltar. She has arrived—cycling from the Solstice to the Equinox. The Mediterranean Sea on her left and the Atlantic Ocean on her right, she wades into the surf with her bike, Europa, lifting the bike over her head in triumph. After twelve countries, 4,330 miles, 95 days, and one Guinness World Record, she wisely declares: “It was time to rest.”
To see this powerful film about Lynn Salvo’s journey, register for a free screening of Pearls of Peace at Central Library on March 26. The film will be followed by a Q&A with Salvo.
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