This week, The Dartmouth caught up with Janine Leger ’15, who finished a month-long trip biking trip across Spain this week. Leger rode in memory of her friend and former roommate Blaine Steinberg ’15, who died of a heart attack March 7. After visa problems derailed her summer plans, Leger found a bike and flew to Spain, planning her trip along the way. Riding roughly 2,000 kilometers over the past month, Leger biked along the Camino de Santiago, Camino Francés and Camino del Norte, beginning and ending in Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
Leger requested donations to the Athletic Director’s Fund for Excellence. While she said she does not know the exact amount yet, she has raised at least a few thousand dollars in Steinberg’s memory. She and Steinberg’s family chose the fund for donations because Steinberg worked for the athletic department at the College, contacting people to donate.
Can you tell me about what you are doing this summer?
JL: I heard that my visa was not going to come through to work in the States. I had an internship in consulting. They said, “Well your visa will not come through for another five or six weeks.” I thought, this is one time in my life I have six weeks to do something meaningful. And I kind of wanted to do something that is really being meaningful to show how much of an impact Blaine had on me in my life. I thought what better to do than to do something athletic-oriented and adventures because that was kind of who Blaine was. I have really felt through this trip that I was able to contribute to her family and let her know what a special girl she was and help inspire others to do similar things that are adventurous.
How did you know Blaine?
JL: Blaine was my roommate for my sophomore spring. We kind of knew each other before hand, but I had been off for the winter, and her roommates were all going off in the spring. So she had an open room, and we were just randomly paired together and we loved living together. It worked really well.
What inspired you to start this project?
JL: Having the time. Having six weeks, well, four weeks, on my hands to do something adventurous was kind of the aim. I wanted to travel because that is something you can do so rarely while in a job. And I did not want to just travel saying “oh yay,” bussing from place to place and spending a lot of money and just seeing sights and being a tourist. I wanted to do something that was for someone else but at the same time was a really tough trip. I had never — apart from doing the Prouty last year, which I did not train for — I had never biked pretty long distances. So it was something completely new to me. I am on the field hockey team, so I thought, “Well I have a little bit of athleticism. I am sure I could whip out a bike and start biking 100 kilometers a day.” It was really tough to start, and that is what I really wanted to get out of it. Spending this month growing as an individual and going out of my comfort zone, by doing an adventure, where I did not know where I was going to be the next day. Because I would literally bike until I found a place to stay and see if they had a place to stay in the albergue (hostel) for the night, and if they didn’t I would bike to the next town.
Since there was no training process, was it a hard transition?
JL: I would say so. By the end I was averaging between 90 to 120 kilometers a day. The first day I managed 40 kilometers on the bike, which is probably about 25 miles, and I was finished. I arrived at the town, and I almost kissed the ground because I was so exhausted. And I was like ‘Oh my gosh, I have done this, this is incredible,’ and then I kind of started building from there. I think what was most exciting about the trip was the fact there was no training process, so it did make the beginning even more tough. There was no one else around me to help push me to make sure I actually did the right amount each day. I could have just sat around and hitchhiked my way through or taken a bus, but it was really a mental and physical determination to get me to the next stage. That sort of mental training through the trip was something that I gained the most from. That is something I would say, if anyone does want to do something in memory of Blaine, it’s to push yourself mentally and physically so that you grow from the experience.
Have you had a lot of support from friends, family or the school?
JL: I’ve been blown away by the amount of support and sense of community by people that are not involved in the trip. I’ve gotten messages from a bunch of people, a bunch of friends and even people I do not know that well. I have had some of Blaine’s family reach out. Blaine’s parents, Jill and Sid, are incredible, like beyond incredible. They’ve reached out and been really supportive of the trip and very thankful for it, very appreciative. Jill and Sid are constantly liking my photos. I kept quite a regular Instagram, so I upload between three and four photos a day and just keep people filled in on the journey. And the amount of likes I got on a daily basis, and people saying how great my photos were and how incredible the trip was, is something that was really supportive and helpful along the way.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
