Zhao Wei quite beautifully highlights the generation gap between the youth in China that want to see the world and the old that didn't get the chance, but don't want their kids to suffer or go without the luxuries they now have. This is a small glimpse at the view of the ''lost generation' (those that grew up during the great leap forward) and the struggle that young people have when their dreams deviate from making money and children.
In China they see their children as investments that pays back when the children graduate, work and get succesful, its a kind of a retirement insurance plan. In the West children are seen as a part of the parents personal life achievement, and thats why kids in the west have more freedom to do what they want, because there is less to none expectations from the parents. Both ways have advantages and disadvantages. The chinese method produces excellent talent and strong family bonds, while western kids produces more free minded people but also non achievers and less connection with family. However, while the chinese middle class get wealthier, you see a trend that chinese parents dont rely much on their children succes anymore and more chinese do what they want to do, instead of what their parents expect them to do.
Also highlights the one child police's great problem, there is a huge imbalance between males and females, a lot of single males in China have zero chance of finding a wife.
I know I love it. I have shown snow before to some Filipinos and a Colombian before. They were soon fairly annoyed with it as they were expected to so manual labour in -20c haha.
Zhao wei's story could be made into a great movie. How he was fed up with work and his parentes expectations and left for his adventure in america without telling them^^
Living in Arizona all my life I tend to forget just how amazing the canyon is. I''ve been there so many times, I wish I could experience it for the first time all over again. Thanks for this one Ed!
Now that I've watched everything up to The U.S. it's very eye opening to see that the most dangerous place Ed unicycled through was in my home country.
I find myself watching the American series probably for the third time (once every year since its publication). It's so well made and easily as much fun as watching a major travel production like the Long Way Round series or any other high production value alternative. Thanks Ed! Your documentary skills are amazing. And secretly I hope that you will do another unicycle adventure in the future :). Greetings from the Netherlands!
I was an avid unicyclist beginning in 1969 as a youngster. Now 63 yrs old, I still have my vintage 24 inch Schwinn and my 6-foot giraffe unicycles stored in the garage, wasting away. I was quite the stunt man back in the day but.... Ed I am utterly flabbergasted that you could attempt such a stunt as riding across the USA. It just blows my mind. My achievements as a unicycle performer amount to nothing compared to THIS.....!
Zhao Wei - your parents cannot judge your heart. You have done something that MOST Americans will never get to do. If you are proud of yourself, nothing else can take that away.
Since 2014 I have travelleled 20,000 miles across Europe exploring areas of natural beauty and watching your videos brings back the feelings of joy that I experienced on my journey. Thanks for your videos Ed, they are an inspiration to anyone who wants to leave home and hit the road to explore. God Bless.
Ed Pratt, your parents are completely different and from a completely different culture... and not parents ruled by money. You cannot possibly understand this guy. consider yourself blessed to have your kind of parents. be blessed that you can never understand. honestly, your playful reaction to this guy and when u said his parents would understand... made me want to cry... you are truly blessed.
That's crazy that you were in William's. Last year I left my home state of Texas for the first time and stayed in William's for a few nights. Also crazy is that I first saw snow when I was in William's aswell. Great little town
Glad you made it to the Grand Canyon. A truly breath taking site. A few years ago, I visited the Winslow Meteor crater nearby, and thought that was huge. A few days after, I visited the GC and it totally changed my idea of what huge was. Sorry you had some issues while on reservation land, but it really is a different world there. Lots of poverty....which leads to the attitude. Strangers are looked upon with suspicion because...there are no strangers that deep in the country.
It's too bad route 66 is pretty much gone, would be cool to go to the US and see the area, as a kid I was a huge Disney Pixar Cars fan. I'm getting back into your videos after not watching for a year or so, I came across your Twitter and was reminded.
I sad that you missed the chance to see flagstaff, my hometown, as it is a wonderful place to see if you ever get the chance, and the peaks are a sight to see, but I'm glad that you got the chance to see a lot of my state.
i once met a cyclist from south korea who biked from south of europe, through all the countries and then up eastern europe to norway. then north in norway. he was 60 years old aswell
So excited to see you come through New Mexico. Hopefully you didn’t get stuck in snow here and i also hope you were able to see some of our sunsets, absolutely beautiful colors of pink and orange In the sky.
Hate to tell you, but you haven't done the U.S. until you've done Colorado.. Awesome, two wheels, high altitude challenge. Scenery! 90 miles uphill, 90 miles downhill. Famous mountain bike people. Super challenge. Did it all. Bring the family.....11,000 ft. + stuff.
Hey there Ed. Just wanted to say how much I enjoy your videos... Your cheerfulness is uplifting as are your adventures. What do you these days... Are you planning another adventure?
Another awesome episode. Honestly this channel needs more recognition. Such high quality and always very entertaining. Would love to see it blow up. Lad deserves his own tv show. Keep inspiring buddy.
That Grand Canyon does indeed look Grand. I visited it once the tourist way: in an airplane from Vegas, then on a bus to the Skywalk. It still was grand, but I hope to revisit it your way one day :-)
I'm not affiliated with Ed in anyway, I'm just a fan like everyone else who is watching but... I would recommend the Vimeo series because it just gets better and better, it's so worth £10
I encourage everyone here to see the Grand Canyon. For years I thought this is just a hole in the ground. My girl at the time said it was a bucket list item, so we went. Once I got there, I just felt like shit. Cameras don't do any justice to this fucking gigantic hole in the ground that was once filled with water!
Zhao Wei meant in the place where he comes from there is less to none snow 2:24 Zhao Wei said in an earlier episode he is from Guangdong, that is the southern part of china and basically has a tropical climate, so no wonder he never seen snow.
What a dream, mate. I hope one day I'm able to travel across the US, but maybe in a caravan lol! Only people with huge balls can do what you do. I rate that. Best wishes from Portugal and best of luck for 2020!
Many thanks for sharing your experience. What brand and model of GPS and odometer do you use? I like your helmet , the addition you've made is cool. You should make one with a durable plastic surrounding the helmet instead of what you have now. I think it will sell well. Very unique. Thanks again and keep safe.
Maybe your technique isn't right. I've been patching inner tubes for 60 years and only very rarely, may be a couple of times in my life, had an unstuck patch. Tip is carry a spare tube and change to the spare on the road (but carefully check the outer cover for what caused the puncture) and fix the punctured tube at your leisure later when you have water to check the leak and can let the glue dry properly. The fixed tube then becomes your spare -- easy peazy! After it's got a few patches probably time to chuck it and get a new inner.
The reactions of the people on the Indian reservation does not surprise me. When I retired, I rode my bicycle across America. I went across the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. On the west side of the reservation there were big, beautiful, ranch style homes. On the east side was a tiny town which I would like to have entered but I had been forewarned it would not be a good idea for a white man to enter. It was a town of maybe four hundred and there were two different tribes that live there and those two tribes were at odds. I heeded the advise and rode on. I could not believe how littered the ground was with liquor and beer bottles in the ditch. There was such a difference in the east end of the reservation to the west end. The west end was pristine but the east end was just sad.
We are called Native Americans. Indian is antiquated misnomer. If you know the tribe call us by our tribe first! You call it sad. We call it the reality of places so under funded and cut off from anything. Remember the first purpose of rezs is to be concentration camps. There's such you don't know of understand. You see trash and all but don't ask why. Probably come to some stereotypical wrong minded conclusions.
@@melanieortiz712 You might prefer Native American, but a lot of Indians prefer Indian because they find the term Native American to be over inclusive. It can include anyone from inuits in northern Canada to bush tribes in the Amazon, so it's hard to identify with. Although it has a complicated history, at least the term Indian narrows it down to the first people living in USA.
@@Cruuzie wrong, it is antiquated. Native American isn't perfect but better and yes because it includes all indigenous of the Americas. We are after all one blood but many nations.
Can’t answer for Ed, but when I’m bicycle traveling I only carry one pair of cycling pants, one pair of trekking zip-off trousers and one pair of underwear (boxershorts to sleep in). Socks are usually two pairs. When you are camping in the wild you can’t wash often, but at the same time nobody is there to care, so it’s not an issue. Washing is difficult because you need time and good weather for the clothes to dry. Perfect conditions you’d rather use to ride (unlike night time or rainy days …). Even if you only wash yourself it’s still nice to wipe down with a travel towel which then has to dry.
![How Much Does it Cost to Travel The World? [3 YEARS]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Lw51zoXtk6E/mqdefault.jpg)
Zhao Wei followed his heart..... Ed also followed his heart. Both are amazing.
I was sad to hear again about Chinese parents not understanding their own children.
It is no wonder these people only excel when being outside China.
Wait, Ed followed Zhao's heart??
@@ShamWerks each following their own heart...
@@laopang91362 Captain Obvious to the rescue!! 😂😂😂
@@ShamWerks Don't be a jerk, you knew what he meant. It's good to repeat what drives these two gentlemen, no need to be a sourgrape.
Zhao Wei quite beautifully highlights the generation gap between the youth in China that want to see the world and the old that didn't get the chance, but don't want their kids to suffer or go without the luxuries they now have. This is a small glimpse at the view of the ''lost generation' (those that grew up during the great leap forward) and the struggle that young people have when their dreams deviate from making money and children.
In China they see their children as investments that pays back when the children graduate, work and get succesful, its a kind of a retirement insurance plan. In the West children are seen as a part of the parents personal life achievement, and thats why kids in the west have more freedom to do what they want, because there is less to none expectations from the parents. Both ways have advantages and disadvantages. The chinese method produces excellent talent and strong family bonds, while western kids produces more free minded people but also non achievers and less connection with family. However, while the chinese middle class get wealthier, you see a trend that chinese parents dont rely much on their children succes anymore and more chinese do what they want to do, instead of what their parents expect them to do.
That's a great summary and I totally agree. Now when Zhao Wei ever has kids. They will be totally rock and roll. Not live to work.
Also highlights the one child police's great problem, there is a huge imbalance between males and females, a lot of single males in China have zero chance of finding a wife.
I dont why TH-cam recommended me this 2 months ago but I'm glad it did
SAME
TH-cam possibly knows more about you than you know yourself. Creepy, but sometimes useful. :-)
@@DaveKahn Very true. I would never type the keywords: "Unicycle around the world", but I'm so glad it was recommended!
Same
Good for Zhao Wei for following his heart. One must always follow one's own desire cuz a desire never dies.
It’s always cool to see someone seeing snow for the first time since it’s so normal here in finland
i've never seen snow.
@@mr.2minutes161 Same as me
@@teddy_jai2344 if you ever play with snow on ur freezer, then we're brother
I know I love it. I have shown snow before to some Filipinos and a Colombian before. They were soon fairly annoyed with it as they were expected to so manual labour in -20c haha.
i agree here in canada, makes me appreciate it more in a way
Genuinely one of the most amazing series I have ever had the pleasure of watching
Zhao wei's story could be made into a great movie. How he was fed up with work and his parentes expectations and left for his adventure in america without telling them^^
Awesome stuff! Many Navajos still have to drive into town to haul water back to their offgrid homesteads. Glad they were able to share with you guys.
Living in Arizona all my life I tend to forget just how amazing the canyon is. I''ve been there so many times, I wish I could experience it for the first time all over again. Thanks for this one Ed!
This is one of the coolest TH-cam series I have ever followed. Could see it being on Netflix. I love it!
qsrxo
G
Netflix should give Ed a contract to feature on it...so damn good!
6:25 So surreal to think that I stood in that exact spot in may of this year, and how many more people stood there
Now that I've watched everything up to The U.S. it's very eye opening to see that the most dangerous place Ed unicycled through was in my home country.
I find myself watching the American series probably for the third time (once every year since its publication). It's so well made and easily as much fun as watching a major travel production like the Long Way Round series or any other high production value alternative. Thanks Ed! Your documentary skills are amazing. And secretly I hope that you will do another unicycle adventure in the future :). Greetings from the Netherlands!
I was an avid unicyclist beginning in 1969 as a youngster. Now 63 yrs old, I still have my vintage 24 inch Schwinn and my 6-foot giraffe unicycles stored in the garage, wasting away. I was quite the stunt man back in the day but.... Ed I am utterly flabbergasted that you could attempt such a stunt as riding across the USA. It just blows my mind. My achievements as a unicycle performer amount to nothing compared to THIS.....!
the series: * is already filmed and edited *
me: i wonder if they got shot. guess we'll find out in the next episode
why would he get shot?
@@bigpotpoker1 hey look, it's "i didnt watch the video" man! There's one in every comment section.
Hahaha 😆
Towards the end of the video it was really unsettling and I was worried for the both of them.
@@Horible4 tough guy here
It’s so good to see you have someone to ride with
Zhaowei is my favourite person you met through the whole jurney
Zhao Wei - your parents cannot judge your heart. You have done something that MOST Americans will never get to do. If you are proud of yourself, nothing else can take that away.
Since 2014 I have travelleled 20,000 miles across Europe exploring areas of natural beauty and watching your videos brings back the feelings of joy that I experienced on my journey. Thanks for your videos Ed, they are an inspiration to anyone who wants to leave home and hit the road to explore. God Bless.
Ed Pratt, your parents are completely different and from a completely different culture... and not parents ruled by money. You cannot possibly understand this guy. consider yourself blessed to have your kind of parents. be blessed that you can never understand. honestly, your playful reaction to this guy and when u said his parents would understand... made me want to cry... you are truly blessed.
When Zhao said "Hi, I'm so tired" at 11:40, it really made me laugh
Well, he has a bicycle, that's why he's two-tired. *bah-dum-tss*
Hi, I'm so Thai
@@ShamWerks nice
I discovered this series less than a week ago and I'm already 112 episodes in, thanks for entertaining me during the lockdown Ed :)
That's crazy that you were in William's. Last year I left my home state of Texas for the first time and stayed in William's for a few nights. Also crazy is that I first saw snow when I was in William's aswell. Great little town
Wow, fantastic footage of the Grand Canyon. What an experience (amongst all the others...!) :)
🎶I was standing on the corner in Winslow, Arizona...🎶
Seeing you at the Grand Canyon reminded me of my first glimpse. It’s the only vista that literally left me short of breath. Good stuff bro.
Glad you made it to the Grand Canyon. A truly breath taking site. A few years ago, I visited the Winslow Meteor crater nearby, and thought that was huge. A few days after, I visited the GC and it totally changed my idea of what huge was.
Sorry you had some issues while on reservation land, but it really is a different world there. Lots of poverty....which leads to the attitude. Strangers are looked upon with suspicion because...there are no strangers that deep in the country.
Really enjoyed you passing earlier through the Hoover Dam and now passing through the Southern Rim of the Grand Canyon. Happy riding to both of you!
Great truths to be found here.. The magic of cycle touring: You're quick enough to make distance, but slow enough to see everything along the way :)
It's too bad route 66 is pretty much gone, would be cool to go to the US and see the area, as a kid I was a huge Disney Pixar Cars fan. I'm getting back into your videos after not watching for a year or so, I came across your Twitter and was reminded.
How does this guy not have 1 millions subscribers?!
I sad that you missed the chance to see flagstaff, my hometown, as it is a wonderful place to see if you ever get the chance, and the peaks are a sight to see, but I'm glad that you got the chance to see a lot of my state.
@12.10 that's some crazy riding... These are the kind of dramatization that make me watch you Ed.
You're one hell of a funny human being.
Your cinematography and editing is getting better and better. The quality of these videos are better than many stuff you see on TV.
i once met a cyclist from south korea who biked from south of europe, through all the countries and then up eastern europe to norway. then north in norway. he was 60 years old aswell
So excited to see you come through New Mexico. Hopefully you didn’t get stuck in snow here and i also hope you were able to see some of our sunsets, absolutely beautiful colors of pink and orange In the sky.
Imagine this guy’s parents seeing this
Teukka not possible. they banned youtube in china. unless you illegally view it through a vpn.
@JT Yang What village you're from my friend?
Will you ever do a Q&A? I have so many questions for you!
Binge watching the entire thing, so well done and inspiring!
I could be wrong but I think his parents would be proud of him. Not everyone has the determination to cycle across a country. Anyone can study.
Hate to tell you, but you haven't done the U.S. until you've done Colorado.. Awesome, two wheels, high altitude challenge. Scenery! 90 miles uphill, 90 miles downhill.
Famous mountain bike people. Super challenge. Did it all. Bring the family.....11,000 ft. + stuff.
Hey there Ed. Just wanted to say how much I enjoy your videos... Your cheerfulness is uplifting as are your adventures. What do you these days... Are you planning another adventure?
Another awesome episode. Honestly this channel needs more recognition. Such high quality and always very entertaining. Would love to see it blow up. Lad deserves his own tv show. Keep inspiring buddy.
And I thought my dad cycling from east Shropshire to Snowdon and back was impressive
How far into Snowdon though
Round the mountain
It is impressive, he'd probably not mental :D
Ed is quiet ahead of his time. First unicycle youtube vlogger.
That Grand Canyon does indeed look Grand. I visited it once the tourist way: in an airplane from Vegas, then on a bus to the Skywalk. It still was grand, but I hope to revisit it your way one day :-)
I'm not affiliated with Ed in anyway, I'm just a fan like everyone else who is watching but... I would recommend the Vimeo series because it just gets better and better, it's so worth £10
Yeah it will also support his work, Ed deserved it
@@Imran-tn1mw As far as I can tell it's exactly the same as the YT version. The advantage is that you can watch at your own pace.
dude youre killin it with the editing! please never stop riding haha its the best thing to relax and watch :)
Shoulda gone scenic and went to Flagstaff. It's really nice over there.
_-this message was brought to you by the Arizona gang_
This series is so incredibly well done. Keep up the good work Ed!
I encourage everyone here to see the Grand Canyon. For years I thought this is just a hole in the ground. My girl at the time said it was a bucket list item, so we went. Once I got there, I just felt like shit. Cameras don't do any justice to this fucking gigantic hole in the ground that was once filled with water!
你好埃德！很喜欢你独轮车骑行世界拍的视频！拍摄技术很棒！也很惊讶你的耐力，而且每次都是开心面对旅途中的困难！从你骑行中国开始关注你的！很棒的小伙子、聪明、善良、愿上帝保佑你！完成你的心愿！
Zhao Wei meant in the place where he comes from there is less to none snow 2:24 Zhao Wei said in an earlier episode he is from Guangdong, that is the southern part of china and basically has a tropical climate, so no wonder he never seen snow.
Brilliant work Ed. Insta clicked after you uploaded! Many happy returns
Ed , use tire sealant. This will keep you going even if you have a flat, inner tube or tubeless.
i got a bunch of your merch for Christmas! so happy!
I respect this guy!!
Jeezzz I hope there is a next episode to this. Hearing the story about the road your camping by must have been scary
The suspense! It's like watching the latest released episode of the Mandalorian and waiting for the next one to come out.
What a dream, mate. I hope one day I'm able to travel across the US, but maybe in a caravan lol! Only people with huge balls can do what you do. I rate that.
Best wishes from Portugal and best of luck for 2020!
Love these! have fun with any more adventures you have Ed
Another great friend to keep in contact.
Congrats on 100k
Well deserved ^^
Really great vids man! Congrats. From one adventurer to another
Magical movie! Made my day, thanks Ed. Stay safe.
Jiahui is awesome! ( sorry if I spelled his name wrong )
THIS DUDE NEEDS MORE FOLLOWERS!
I would like to see Ed Unicycles to Hawaii. Good luck with that.
Incredible as always 🙌
Love the series
Grand Canyon wunderschön. nice View
Yay I have been here! Oh I loved it!
Many thanks for sharing your experience. What brand and model of GPS and odometer do you use? I like your helmet , the addition you've made is cool. You should make one with a durable plastic surrounding the helmet instead of what you have now. I think it will sell well. Very unique. Thanks again and keep safe.
Heavily underrated channel
Give a like if you were eating popcorn at 1:25 with Ed and Zhao :D
Yes! Because I was eating popcorn while watching this series^^
I love your series... Awesome Idea
It's my birthday! Love the videos
When is Hawai’i?!
Great vid sir, hopefully that stays truly wild
did you use puncture patches or replace the whole tube ? i never have much luck with patches and glue.
Maybe your technique isn't right. I've been patching inner tubes for 60 years and only very rarely, may be a couple of times in my life, had an unstuck patch. Tip is carry a spare tube and change to the spare on the road (but carefully check the outer cover for what caused the puncture) and fix the punctured tube at your leisure later when you have water to check the leak and can let the glue dry properly. The fixed tube then becomes your spare -- easy peazy! After it's got a few patches probably time to chuck it and get a new inner.
The reactions of the people on the Indian reservation does not surprise me. When I retired, I rode my bicycle across America. I went across the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming. On the west side of the reservation there were big, beautiful, ranch style homes. On the east side was a tiny town which I would like to have entered but I had been forewarned it would not be a good idea for a white man to enter. It was a town of maybe four hundred and there were two different tribes that live there and those two tribes were at odds. I heeded the advise and rode on. I could not believe how littered the ground was with liquor and beer bottles in the ditch. There was such a difference in the east end of the reservation to the west end. The west end was pristine but the east end was just sad.
We are called Native Americans. Indian is antiquated misnomer. If you know the tribe call us by our tribe first! You call it sad. We call it the reality of places so under funded and cut off from anything. Remember the first purpose of rezs is to be concentration camps. There's such you don't know of understand. You see trash and all but don't ask why. Probably come to some stereotypical wrong minded conclusions.
@@melanieortiz712 You might prefer Native American, but a lot of Indians prefer Indian because they find the term Native American to be over inclusive. It can include anyone from inuits in northern Canada to bush tribes in the Amazon, so it's hard to identify with. Although it has a complicated history, at least the term Indian narrows it down to the first people living in USA.
@@Cruuzie wrong, it is antiquated. Native American isn't perfect but better and yes because it includes all indigenous of the Americas. We are after all one blood but many nations.
Yes new video
You see, there is snow in the Grand Canyon.
I'm known to sleepwalk alot, theres no way youd catch me sleeping there lol
7:56 jow wayne making pasta in his front pannier
Another great video Ed thx.
Parabéns meu brother do cicloturismo! Muito top!!!!
here before the email notification :)
Have a nice 2020! The fundraising intro would be much more fun if done also on a monocycle, imho! Thanks for the video, btw!
this is great
Greetings from Finland!
you've dobbed him in to his parents now.....although not sure youtube is available there ?
TH-cam is blocked in China, so im sure as long as nobody says anything, his journey across U.S. in secret will be well kept.
Risedawn really?
this is brilliant! solid effort mate
Pre School,School, Uni, Work, Die, What fun - Yay China.
It's really sad if you think about it.
same as US
congrats on reaching 100k subs!
'Hope I'm not get shot tonight', this is what Americans say before they go to sleep :-)) ...
Well done bro, keep it up.
Hey Ed how many pairs of pants and socks you got? And how often do u wash yourself and ur clothes?
Can’t answer for Ed, but when I’m bicycle traveling I only carry one pair of cycling pants, one pair of trekking zip-off trousers and one pair of underwear (boxershorts to sleep in). Socks are usually two pairs. When you are camping in the wild you can’t wash often, but at the same time nobody is there to care, so it’s not an issue. Washing is difficult because you need time and good weather for the clothes to dry. Perfect conditions you’d rather use to ride (unlike night time or rainy days …). Even if you only wash yourself it’s still nice to wipe down with a travel towel which then has to dry.
Lucky guys
Not a smart move to venture into a Navajo reservation, seriously. That couple wasn't exaggerating.