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A British adventurer has completed an 86-day,
2,850-mile ride through the Australian Outback - the latest
stage of a muscle-powered round the world odyssey which began
seven years ago.
Jason Lewis and his international team of six
fellow cyclists, pedalled into Darwin, in Australia's Northern
Territory, and celebrated with cold beer and champagne.
Mr Lewis' amazing circumnavigation began at
the Greenwich Meridian Line in London 1994 - and he is already
planning the next stage.
The 34-year-old, from Bridport, Dorset, said:
"It is a great achievement, incredibly rewarding."
"I thought the middle of Australia was
nothing but desert - but there is so much out there. It is one
of the wildest places I have been."
He said it seemed "like another lifetime"
since the beginning of the expedition, which took them across
the Australian "red centre" on little used roads and
tracks.
He has now travelled nearly 30,000 miles - more
than half way around the planet - powered only by the strength
of his legs.
With partner Steve Smith, from Wolverhampton,
he first pedalled their 26ft wooden pedal boat Moksha across
the Channel. Then they made the first pedal-boat east-west crossing
of the Atlantic ocean.
In August last year Mr Lewis became the first
to pedal-boat across the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco in
the US to Port Douglas, Australia - 178 days and 8,000 miles.
Before tackling the Pacific, Mr Lewis also made
the first unsupported crossing of the USA by roller blades -
breaking his legs in a collision with a car.
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