In the face of that, George and Josh Kohler are exactly the same as the other father-son duo. Only these two men have an extraordinary mission.
The pair, which started out from their homes in eastern England in March this year, is about to circulate around the world. On a journey across four continents, Kohler fights physical, mental and emotional fatigue, navigates the complex world of visas, and hopes to break three world records in the process.
The pair have already crossed Europe and have been successful through China, and are now already in Thailand.
Talking to CNN on a “non-cycling day” in China, George and Josh were both practical about what they were trying to do.
“We set out on this trip with three purposes,” Josh said, sitting next to his dad on a video call from his hotel room.
“The first was to challenge ourselves. This certainly happens in all respects. The second was to raise funds and awareness for UNICEF and the local bike shop.
“And the third aim was to inspire others, encourage everyone to do small adventures, big adventures, get out of their comfort zone and really push themselves in ways they didn’t know before.”
The challenge is huge. The pair travels over 18,000 miles on two wheels, travels through 25 countries and spends more than a year apart.
And while the progress has been impressive so far, neither of them will go ahead of them and admit that they are learning a lot along the way.
It’s not the first time a pair has worked on riding a long-distance bike together. In 2022, they cycled around the US and were hungry for more adventures.
Initially, considering flying to Singapore and cycling back to England for their next big trip, the pair decided they might do a “extra bit” and circulate around the globe.
They were soon able to keep an unprecedented record of distance by father and son. The world’s fastest circumference by father and son on bicycle, and most countries were biked by father and son on bicycle.
To verify a record-breaking attempt by the Guinness World Records, the pair must move in one direction beyond two antipodal points.
Two points of this journey are in New Zealand and Spain, with the rest of the route left to their interpretations.
“I’m not receiving any credit for this,” George said.
“We are beginner cyclists and someone decided they wanted to ride their bikes.”
As his father agrees, Josh is the driving force behind the adventure. His eyes were full of enthusiasm and he has not been a stranger to travelling the world since leaving his family home two years ago.
He says it was interesting by Northern Ireland explorer and author Leon McCarron.
The 22-year-old later founded a YouTube channel that features travel storytelling and demonstrates his talent for video shooting. He is currently using the platform to chart his latest adventures with his father, with the video attracting hundreds of thousands of viewers.
The pair is also active on other social media sites, regularly posting short videos explaining where they are in the world. It comes naturally to half of the duo, more dynamic than the other.
“I’m a passive partner,” says George. “I had no tendency to get into this whole Instagram, Tiktok Malarkey at all, but Josh twisted my arm and said he’d give it a try.
“All of a sudden, I think I have nearly 30,000 followers. That’s odd. I don’t know why people see what I’m doing, but there’s nothing compared to what Josh is doing.
“Since then, we’ve seen that China’s Tiktok has a growing follower, but to this day I haven’t noticed it.”
The world of content creation and growth social media following is safe to say that before this adventure it’s far from George’s life.
Coming from a military background, George recently began his job as a chimney sweep. But Josh may be the instigator, but without George this isn’t far away. He can praise and agree to participate in raising his son with confidence and ambition to tackle the challenge.
The chance to chase his son around the world with two wheels was probably too special to refuse, but George is totally aware that special dynamics can help some tough situations.
His time in the military put him in a compromising and challenging environment, but he says he could not have prepared him for the emotional sacrifice of this Odyssey.
“So I don’t think father and son have done this before,” he said.
“I think it’s like hitting the boil,” George added. “Because pressure has accumulated and there have been several explosions over the course of several months.
“But you say your work, we have a big embrace and we know that we have to build this and do it together. It’s about the overall relationship, the long term, the friendships we continue to build and develop over that period.
“The ultimate goal is to complete this as a father and son.”
The goal is to end the trip early next year, but the team is taking things step by step.
They try to cycle around 62 miles (100 kilometers) every day, but that depends heavily on where they are, how they feel, and what the conditions around them are.
The route changes and continues to change as you travel eastward throughout the world. The pair are dedicated to enjoying the parts of the world they cycle.
However, with these long distances travelling every day, nutrition is a major factor in their success.
On average, they estimate that the pair burns around 5,000 calories each day, so they aim to “absolutely” eat to fill the deficit.
“It’s great to be in a place where you have a lot of food but there aren’t many foods. It’s a bit of a challenge. Sometimes you just have to eat what you can get,” says George.
George and Josh have struggled to identify the exact moments that stand out for them on their trips so far.
Instead, it was a patchwork of memorable experiences and interactions with locals. The kindness of strangers, they say, is the most satisfying aspect, from those who provide water through the windows of cars passing by to Turkish shepherds who share his food on the side of the road.
However, there was an inevitable low. Both have days when they miss their family and their loved ones returning home, and there are moments when they lack enthusiasm for cycling.
But at those moments, the pair remembers how lucky they are to take this challenge together.
“I’m incredibly grateful,” Josh says.
“The most proudest thing you can have as a father is your son, who is better than you,” replies George.
