Cup Of Tea Anyone?

Hi there, my name is Arian.

In my life, there have been a handful of attempts to fit in the mould of society: Bought a few houses, had a couple of jobs, ran a business. Some were love at first sight, none of them everlasting love. 

I never had a ‘nine-to-five’ life or mentality, and I never settled anywhere really. I moved houses more than I changed underwear. That said, perhaps I should consider my hygienic standards. 

In The Netherlands, in ‘my time’, you were supposed to go to a secondary school that matched the results of an exam. The love of my life (she didn’t know me really), ended up going to another school, and I immediately wanted to change schools. I did, after the first year. In less than twenty four hours I knew, down to my DNA, that she wasn’t even going to get a kiss and realised there and then, that being better at climbing a rope at primary school, isn’t a good enough base for fifty years of marriage. So I returned to my first secondary school.

At eighteen, I chose an education for my professional life, because one’s expected to. My surroundings thought it would be a great fit for me to become a physical education teacher. I was a very active lad, so that made sense to me. I loved the physical classes and some of the theoretical subjects were interesting enough to absorb the content, but for a few I had to sit down for hours of study after hours of classes. That wasn’t going to happen. I just wanted to play basketball, impress the girls and hang out with my friends. It was pretty cool, but I couldn’t do the sitting part, so I quit.

After that, my mind was set on one of the most exhilarating, fast-paced jobs in The Netherlands. In the home run to become a fully trained army special forces operator, I decided to work and travel on the other side of the world for a year. I did so, but returned after ten months in the hope I was allowed back in the unit to my previous, hard-earned position. Luckily I was and went on to have various functions for well over a decade, an impressive accomplishment in view of my history.

In 2012 I left, what I always call the express train, for a cycle trip that took my then wife and I through twenty seven countries on our bikes, pedalling just short of forty thousand kilometres. Coming home in November, I left again the following January, cycling solo for another three and a half months. I wasn’t done with the unwashed, long hair slapping my neck, while I pushed my steel horse up mountains and through valleys. Leaving alone was, I guess, the first serious sign of a crack in our marriage, following the first signs of mental health problems in the two years on the road.

Subsequently, I lived in South-Korea, Morocco, Spain and The Netherlands, till I met Laura and moved to the UK (without me asking about her rope climbing skills).

Country moves took turns with extreme ultra events. The drive to challenge myself to my boundaries and beyond was strong, and the toll high. Until recently, I completely identified myself with my work; always raising the bar and never settling with ‘good enough’. I was never totally satisfied or happy with the result, no matter how outstanding. The mentality I developed at work made a killer combination with my innate traits: Relentless, especially towards myself. Outcomes were never good enough, whilst they exceeded all averages by far. 

It’s not quite a beast from the past. It’s an older beast now, but it still roars occasionally. Friends and family rarely understand my decisions. Some would describe me as ‘vagabond-esque’, and say it’s an escape, and that I need to grow up, get a life, whatever that may be. Others show appreciation, but will never fully understand what’s going on inside my gut. Because that’s where many of the choices come from; my gut. Not from my head. Not based on fully understood, ‘informed’ decisions.

The Van Heldens Hike comes with fear, mainly of the unknown. It comes with responsibility; in some cases towards my beautiful wife, but more often towards our children. 

Fear of the unknown and fear related to these responsibilities are often what stops people from exploring out of the ordinary. I want to look behind the fear, bearing in mind that fear only exists in our thoughts about the future. I believe this journey will give us many opportunities and Max and Sofia the wings of independence, resilience and fortitude. 

The Van Heldens Hike is our journey. We love the physicality of it and we want to challenge ourselves mentally. It’s an audacious plan, an experiment, to stretch what we believe is possible. It’s not everyone’s cup of tea. It doesn’t have to be. We only like to inspire you to be aware. Time is luxury. Once it’s gone it’s gone. Therefore the question; how are you spending your time?

I am sure we are creating a community that is both inspired and critically challenging and questioning our beliefs. That’s the way we want it, because all we know is that we know nothing. 

Gear up, and spend some time with us!