About

Chris and Alex Wolz are a father and son team from Virginia, who, with their family, do a lot of bicycling!

Alex and Chris rode the Great Divide Mountain Bike route from the Mexican border to the Canadian border in the summer of 2015, about 2750 miles of gravel and dirt through the Rockies. They did this ride as a fundraiser for earthquake relief efforts in Nepal, following the April 2015 earthquake. They raised funds for organizations using the Global Giving platform, and you can still donate!

In 2013 they rode from San Francisco home to Alexandria, Virginia, about 3,700 miles. and they rode from San Francisco home to this summer — riding dirt trails through the Rocky mountains

About their Great Divide Ride

Chris and Alex,  from Alexandria, Virginia, have deep ties with Nepal, and when the earthquake hit on April 25, 2015, they quickly decided to dedicate their upcoming bicycle trip to fundraising for the reconstruction.

Chris had worked for four years in Nepal in the 1980s, with the Peace Corps, UNICEF, and CARE, primarily building drinking water and sanitation systems in remote villages. His then-future wife, Eugenie Ballering, also worked in Nepal at that time, and they met there and eventually married and settled in Alexandria. Their whole family has maintained strong ties with friends in Nepal — Alex and his sisters growing up familiar with the foods and culture of Nepal. They visited Nepal as a family in 2009 — making a strong impression on Alex, “The Nepalese people we met are very loving people who really focused on what was before them — whether a boy intently playing the flute, or being hospitable with family and visitors.”

 

Chris says the situation in Nepal, while off the front pages of newspapers here, is dire and will be for a long time. “The Nepalese people are some of the most friendly and hospitable people I have met around the world. Many of them are also, unfortunately, very poor, living as subsistence farmers in villages that are many hours to several days walk from the nearest drivable road – in good conditions. The earthquake killed some 8,000-9,000 people, and knocked down the stone and mud walled homes of hundreds of thousands through the areas most affected in the center of the country. The people in these areas now need to care for the injured, rebuild their homes, and try to get their summer crops planted, all as the summer monsoons increase. They’re going to need years to rebuild their homes, schools, roads, water systems, and really recover. The challenge is that most families have few reserves to draw on, and the government and social service organizations in Nepal are overwhelmed at the scale of the disaster.”

They are riding to raise funds for rebuilding in Nepal through “Global Giving”, a charity fundraising web site that gives social entrepreneurs and non-profits from anywhere in the world a chance to raise the money that they need to improve their communities. Global Giving is funding the work of more than two dozens small and large organizations that have long been working in Nepal — ranging from The Binaytara Foundation who is providing water, blankets, tents, and food to survivors in and Sindhupalchok and Dhading districts, to Care Nepal working to reach 100,000 people with emergency shelter, clean water, family kits, and hygiene items. Chris has been on the board of Global Giving for four years.

They rode  50-80 miles a day, mostly on dirt and gravel, from El Paso, Texas, to Banff, Canada.

Alex is a student at the University of Virginia, majoring in business with a minor in environmental science, and a passion for renewable energy. Chris is CEO of the Alexandria, DC-based digital agency Forum One, and has blogged previously about the situation in Nepal.

To donate to their Nepal fundraiser – visit this page on Global Giving.