Challenging distances and uphill climbs. Endless mountain roads. Strangers opening their doors. Over 6,000 kilometers of pedaling, all for a cause close to his heart. Tom Wilson’s cross-country ride was more than an adventure; it was a mission to give children with hearing loss the opportunity to thrive.
Tom Wilson, 23, grew up in England’s Lake District and has lived in the United States for the past four years. He originally moved to South Carolina on a soccer scholarship while earning a bachelor’s degree in economics. Now, at the very start of his professional career, he has just begun working as a business analyst, but not before completing an extraordinary athletic feat: cycling from the East Coast to the West Coast of the U.S., while raising funds for the Hear the World Foundation.
His connection to the cause is personal. At 17, while listening to music, Tom noticed he could barely hear in his left ear. The diagnosis, otosclerosis, an inherited abnormal bone growth in the ear. Today he wears hearing aids to compensate for an approximately 80 percent hearing loss. “I was lucky to have already developed my speech and social skills. Children without access to hearing care start life at a clear disadvantage,” says Tom. A significant reason for why he chose to support an organization that helps children with hearing loss in regions where access to hearing care is limited.
The idea for the bike trip came during his studies. Initially, he planned a shorter ride in California, until a guest lecturer changed his mind. The speaker, an adventurer, had rowed across the Atlantic and cycled across the U.S. “That instantly clicked for me,” Tom recalls. Through contacts, he met his eventual riding partner, Zach, the two had only met a handful of times before setting off together.
Two months and more than 6,000 kilometers lay ahead. They camped, stayed in churches, with host families, and used the “Warm Showers” platform to find places to clean up along the way. They shared their stories with the people they met along the way. Tom raised funds for the Hear the World Foundation and his friend Zach for another nonprofit. Some encounters led directly to donations, while others offered practical help, like a hot meal or drinking water.
For Tom one day in Utah stood out to him the most, over 125 miles covered with no cycling services, 39°C heat, and no water to drink at the end of a long day. Passing drivers offered ice, and when he reached the campground, geologists working nearby offered food and water. “That day had everything – breathtaking scenery, physical exhaustion, and help from strangers. It was a good summed of what we experienced during the entire trip,” Tom says.
In the end, he raised 2,500 Swiss francs, donated by family, friends, and people he met along the way. The full donated amount will directly benefit children with hearing loss.
For Tom, it was more than just an endurance or sports challenge: “Knowing that my effort was giving children a better future motivated me to keep going.”