1,800 km by bike in the footsteps of Carlo Acutis

How was this slightly crazy project born?

Paul: A little by chance, if chance exists! But I rather believe that it was Providence that built this project. I had indeed proposed to my brother Bastien to make a bicycle pilgrimage at the end of this summer, before our return. Even if he did not like this sport much, he accepted.

It remained to define the goal. The city of Assisi naturally invited itself to our conversations. A few weeks later, we realized that Carlo Acutis’ body was exposed to it … and that the date of his canonization, on September 7, 2025, fell the day after the day we had planned to arrive!

How did you draw your route?

Bastien: The starting point seemed obvious to us. In the Sainte-Julienne church, our parish, in Salzinnes, there is a chapel dedicated to Carlo Acutis, where one of his relics is located. It was there that on August 22, Father Fabien Lambert, parish priest, pronounced the blessing of the pilgrim, and blessed our bikes.

Then we planned to keep ourselves away from the main axes, and to stay in the European Union (which excluded Switzerland). So we went through France to reach Italy. With the Komoot app, we then traced our itinerary day by day, seeking to have a balance between elevation gain and distances: when the elevations were low (less than 400 m), we could perform 150 km. But when they exceeded this figure, we were riding for 100 to 120 km to reach the stage at a reasonable hour, that is to say at the maximum at 8 p.m.

Have you ever done pilgrimages?

P.: For my part, in 2022, I had walked in the footsteps of Saint Paul in Greece; And in the summer of 2024, I connected by bike, with a friend, the south of Belgium in Saint-Jacques-de-Compostela. As for Bastien, he had carried out 300 kilometers this summer on the paths of Saint-Jacques and the Via Francigena. In addition, we are both heads scouts, and are therefore used to homelessness, with bivouacs and meals prepared for wood fire.

Did you distribute the logistics tasks for this long trip?

P.: Not really: we are both versatile! That said, I know myself a little in mechanics, so I ensured the maintenance of bikes and repair of punctures. No less than seven on these 1800 km! In the evening, when we slept in tent, I also took care of clearing the ground so that our mattresses were not damaged, while Bastien prepared the meal.

Where did you sleep?

B.: We had brought a tent, and we slept half the time. For the other nights, we were greeted either by friends who were on our journey, or by strangers who opened their door to us.

There too, Providence has put its grain of salt! I particularly remember the day we had struggled to arrive at the top of a pass. Up there, we picked up our tent, but the wind was blowing very hard.

No matter how much we hit all the gates of the village that was just below, nobody wanted to host us. While he was raining, a boy in his thirties, named Martin, arose from nowhere, invited us to come to his house. We had a wonderful evening!

Indeed, Providence seems to have accompanied you …

P.: From start to finish … and it is for this reason that our mom, stressed at the start, quickly found peace! “These are not supermen, but Providence is watching,” she told a journalist.

Among the dozens of examples that we could give, I would remember one. In Italy, in the province of Pisa, Bastien had a bad fall in a descent. Result: large scratches and a bruised elbow. So you had to take a break. It was then that our father told us about the contact of a couple in the sixties in Pisa. This couple received us like kings and allowed my brother to heal and leave.

Has prayer punctuated your pilgrimage?

B.: Of course! For my part, I liked singing the “prayer of truckers”, well suited to the pilgrimage. THE Ave Maria also punctuated the kilometers. But as it would have been too dangerous to drive one next to each other, we recovered our rosary each on our side to entrust our difficulties, our tests, and to thank all the graces received.

A dozen people had also given us prayer intentions, and each time we were received, we asked our hosts if they wanted us to take a special intention.

Have you also asked Carlo Acutis?

P.: Yes, it is a saint who touches us a lot, especially because of his youth: he died at 15 in 2006 in lightning leukemia. We would never have imagined that a youngster of our generation could be canonized in our lifetime!

He is close to us because he had the same hobbies as us: he even loved Pokémon! This “geek of God”, or “cyber-learned”, as one nicknamed, is also passionate about computer science, and was declared the patron saint of internet users. For me, who studies engineering in mathematics, it’s wonderful!

We therefore prayed especially during our pilgrimage, and we asked him to help us go beyond difficulties. We have also meditated on her sentences, for example this: “All are born as originals, but many die like photocopies. I don’t want to be a photocopy.»»

How was your arrival in Assisi?

B.: With a lot of emotion! We had already made a seat with our parents, but by car. This time, we deserved it to the strength of our calves … We were able to bow to the body of Carlo Acutis in the Sainte-Marie-Majeure church on the day of his canonization, September 7, and attend a very beautiful mass at the San Pietro church that day. We have deposited all the intentions that we had transported.

The canonization was broadcast live in front of the Saint-François basilica, in front of a large crowd.

Has this pilgrimage changed something in you?

P.: Yes, undoubtedly. He taught me to let go, to abandon myself to the will of God. After pedaling for 1800 km, I said to him: “Lord, you are advancing my wheel!” I am also at an age when, after adolescence which can be a little stormy, you have to accept yourself, and assume your future. This pilgrimage also helps me.

B.: For my part, I was very touched by the beauty of what we have seen: landscapes, monuments … This beauty remains inscribed in me, and helps me to endure the urban context in which I live. And I would add one last thing: as we had bikes of the Gravel type (that is to say between the race bike and the mountain bike), we have traveled in good conditions. This pilgrimage therefore taught me to love this sport … at least as a means of locomotion and discovery!