Interview with priest and ultra-cyclist, Pawel Nowak
TOUR: You've just been on holiday after the exhausting Race Around Austria. Have you recovered?
NOWAK: I've been cycling a lot, but that doesn't make me tired. I did a bike ride with Aneta Lamik, the first Polish woman to ride the Race Across America, and I rode with a friend in my home town. He has just won the Race Around Poland unsupported.
You wouldn't expect a priest to ride a road bike so much - how did it come about?
It only started in 2010, when I was ordained a priest. My priest in Poland always had Mondays off and told me at breakfast on Tuesdays where he was cycling to. I had a few hours of lessons that day and then cycled the same route. And on my days off, I rode my racing bike to my parents - that was 80 kilometres there and 80 kilometres back.
Did you cover your first longer distances on a road bike pilgrimage through Poland?
Yes, that was during Corona 2021, when I travelled through Poland for ten days and visited the Marian pilgrimage sites. Somehow that wasn't enough for me and I was looking for a new challenge. Then I heard about Everesting and knew: that's what I want to do. In 2023, I cycled an Everesting in Poland as a charity campaign for a sick child.
Obviously it was so much fun that you always wanted more?
When I was Everesting, a cycling colleague accompanied me for a few hours and asked: When are you going to ride your first thousand metres? That gave me the idea. I then cycled 1000 kilometres for a sick child in Poland. The child had a heart condition, so I cycled the distance in the shape of a heart. My bishop in Hildesheim heard about it and asked if I would do something similar in Germany. This gave rise to the next idea: to cycle 1200 kilometres around the diocese without sleeping and collect donations for the Bremer Engel children's nurses. I passed by Hildesheim in 2024 and had a second racing bike with me - the bishop even rode a short stretch with me. The next idea was to cycle around Poland. But I can't take part in the Race Around Poland because I never get holiday at that time. So I circumnavigated Poland alone in 2024: 3652 kilometres and 22,936 metres in altitude in ten days.
What do you like about extreme cycling?
Ultracycling allows you to experience how little a person needs to live or how you can be happy with few things. When I cycled around Poland with my father, I slept in the car for ten nights and showered in front of the car.
Who looks after you on your journeys?
My father looked after me on many trips, and my brother often travelled with me too. I have to take this opportunity to thank my father because he supports me in all the crazy activities. There were also two church members with a campervan on the Race Around Austria, but that didn't work out so well. I don't want to talk badly about them, but I don't think they understood what ultracycling means and what their job is until the end. They had brought things for the barbecue, couldn't read Google Maps and didn't understand the live tracking.
When you do something for children, it moves the hearts of other people. And it's not just about donations, but also about motivation. - Pawel Nowak
Why do your charity trips always centre around children?
I started doing this for a sick child of a friend. As a priest, I don't have any children, so the other children are my children too. Children are small and innocent, and when you do something for sick children, it moves the hearts of other people. And it's not just about donations, but also about motivation. On the Rome trip, I had to fight, and I think if the carers talk to the sick children or the family and tell them about it, it could have a psychological effect. With cancer in particular, attitude also plays a role - how do I fight the disease?
How do you manage to keep going for such long hours on the bike?
When I cycle, I always set myself small goals and only think about the next stage. For example, if I have an appointment with the support vehicle in 100 kilometres, then I think about these 100 kilometres and not about what comes after that. At night, I always look ahead to the morning, and then the new day arrives. I have to admit that I was really tired after four days on the journey to Rome, partly because of the weather. It was very cold and wet in Germany and Austria and then it suddenly got very warm, 37 degrees and more.
During your non-stop charity trip to Rome for a children's hospice, the photo with Leo XIV was taken after the general audience with the Pope. Were you also able to speak to him?
The Pope is waiting at the altar and it takes a long time for everyone to get there - St Peter's Square is already empty by then. I told the Pope who I am, what I do and handed him a letter from the children. You have to imagine: Suddenly this person comes and tells you that he has travelled to Rome by bike for three days and three nights without sleeping. He hears so many stories ... He blessed me and I asked if I could take a selfie with him.
Your toughest ultracycling ride was this year's Race Around Austria over 2152 kilometres - how much did you sleep during the race?
The first night not at all, the second night maybe an hour on a mat in the car park. I had my hand in the spokes so that my bike wouldn't be stolen. The support car was so full that we would have had to clear it out first, which would have taken too long. I didn't sleep at all on the third and fourth nights. Only microsleep during the day in the car park. The fifth night was the one with a thunderstorm, and my father, my brother and I slept in the car for an hour.
Do the people in your parish understand what you are doing?
Many people probably don't understand that. They don't know how it works and it's difficult to explain. I keep repeating that the legs and fitness are important, but the most important thing is the head. You can't practise that beforehand. Every ultra distance is different, every night that I haven't slept is different and you feel different. Nobody who hasn't ridden for more than 24 hours will probably understand that.
How do you manage to keep going?
I just have a goal in mind and I like a challenge for myself, I want to show myself something, go beyond my limits and test myself. Maybe get to know myself better too, to know what I'm capable of.
What is the connection to your faith?
When it comes to cycling, I think it helps when it's about the spiritual side. So what the Pope said this year to the riders of the Giro d'Italia (Pope Leo XIV greeted the peloton of the Giro before the start of the last stage with start and finish in Rome, editor's note): 'When they take care of the body, when they try to achieve something in sport, they are also trying to achieve something in the spiritual life. Ultracycling helps in my job when it comes to patience. When I look at it spiritually, it also helps me fight against various temptations. When I'm tired, I no longer have the strength to think about stupid things, to sin. Another very important aspect of ultracycling is that you have to be well organised. Every step has to be planned and that helps in normal life. It's also important in the priesthood.
What do people who don't come from a cycling background ask you?
Is it dangerous and healthy? Many outsiders also ask themselves: does he work at all or does he just cycle? And that brings us back to scheduling. I train a lot on the home trainer and have been cycling a lot at night this year. For example, after early evening mass, when I get home at 8pm. Only then do I train: 100 kilometres or more. Last year, I was also out on my bike very early, at four in the morning.
How often do you train?
I don't know if I'm allowed to say this out loud now: every day, actually. I must feel really bad not to ride or really not have the time. I cycle around 30,000 kilometres a year - in the last two years I've cycled over 40,000 kilometres. I wanted to cycle arithmetically around the equator.
I've now qualified for the Race Across America for two years. If I get a holiday, I'll use all my strength to realise this dream. - Pawel Nowak
Are people from the ultracycling scene surprised when they find out that you are a priest?
I'm sure they're surprised. If we were to ask people on the street what they think of priests - they are usually very different to a real sportsman. I don't know what it's like in Germany, but in Poland most people probably have fat old men in mind who don't have much to do with exercise. Ultimately, what I've done so far also gives a good picture of the Catholic Church. When you read or hear about the Catholic Church, it's mostly negative reports, and unfortunately only about abuse or that the money has been misused somewhere.
What upcoming projects do you have in mind?
The Race Across America (RAAM for short, editor's note) is a dream come true. Thanks to the Race Around Austria, I have qualified for the RAAM for two years. If I get a holiday, then I'll use all my strength to realise this dream. I've been dreaming about it for years and I was always very sad that you have to qualify. It always seemed unattainable for me and now that I have the qualification, I hope that it will work out next year, or otherwise in 2027.
How does a priest come to dream of the RAAM?
My dream has always been to visit America, and it has something to do with this American Dream. Not everything is wonderful in America, but when it comes to ultracycling, everyone says that this race is something special.
Taking part in the RAAM is extremely time-consuming and very expensive. Have you already thought about this?
Yes, I met with Aneta Lamik, the first Polish woman to ride the RAAM. Her story is very impressive and very crazy. She is a single mum of two and she just took out a loan to start in America. I would probably do the same thing to race the RAAM if I could get a holiday. That's the only thing I can't decide for myself. I need permission from the bishop. If I can't find sponsors and supporters, I'll go to the bank and ask for a loan. When I start in America, I'll be the first priest to have ridden the route.
About Pawel Nowak
Pawel Nowak was born in 1985 in Dębica, Poland, where he was trained and ordained as a Catholic priest. He has lived in Germany since 2014 and currently works as a pastor in the Bremen-Nord deanery. He has been travelling by road bike since his priestly training and has undertaken various ultra-cycling rides in recent years, often in conjunction with charity campaigns. In 2023 he completed an Everesting, in 2024 a ride around Poland and a non-stop ride around his diocese. This year, he rode non-stop to just outside Rome for a children's hospice and then took part in a general audience with Pope Leo XIV. Just a few days later, he took part in the Race Around Austria (RAA). In four days, 19 hours and 41 minutes, he completed the 2152 kilometres and 30,000 metres in altitude, finishing in seventh place. This qualified him for the Race Across America. In 2024, he covered around 40,000 kilometres on his racing bike.
pastoronbike: @pastoronbike
Kristian Bauer
Editor
