Russian biker to tour America

Famous Vladivostok traveler Igor Sokolov from the Far East has set out on a biking tour about America. "Sinus", his nickname among bikers, has arrived in the US northernmost state of Alaska by the Vladivostok-Seoul-Anchorage air flight to race across the continent to the south of Panama by Japan's Honda-Magna. Dedicating his marathon to the victims of the terrorist acts on September 11, 2001, he plans to visit the scene of the tragedy in New York and to pass over to the mayor's office a message of friendship from Vladivostok townspeople.

Alaska bikers, writes Igor Sokolov in his electronic mail reports, have warned me that the most dangerous encounters ahead are those with bears and elks.

This marathon is Igor Sokolov's third long-distance journey after a race from Vladivostok to Gibraltar in 2000 when he visited 135 cities of different countries and then a very painstaking travel across the Northern parts of Russia. His first run ended up with a very successful exhibition, "Motor Photo Marathon".