Today's post is an interview with Nancy from the Vogel family. Who is the Vogel family you ask? They are a family of four on the trip-of-their-lives, cycling from the Arctic to Patagonia... but I will let her tell you a little more about this crazy (and inspirational) adventure they are on:

For our readers who may not have heard about you, can you explain your current adventure, where you are going, and why you are doing it?

We are currently in Honduras after having pedaled 8000 miles from Alaska. We figure we still have about 12,000 miles to pedal before we reach our goal of Ushuaia, Argentina - where the road ends at the southern end of the world. Our twin sons, 11-year-old Davy and Daryl, are trying to break the world record as the youngest people to cycle the Pan American Highway.

Is there an underlying philosophy or purpose that motivates your to family to seek a life of adventure?

Craziness? Insanity? Seriously, we just enjoy life on the road. We enjoy waking up in the morning and wondering, "What kind of challenges will we face today?"

You are inspiration for a lot of people, including ourselves. Who inspires you, and why?

I find tremendous inspiration in those people who overcome handicaps to do ordinary and extraordinary things. I think my family is pretty lucky - all four of us are healthy and able to do something like this quite easily. But then I think about all those people out there who have to fight like crazy to just live life and I am humbled.

How old are your kids?

They are 11 now.

At what age did you start adventuring with them?

Six weeks old. Huh?? John and I were living and teaching in Ethhiopia when the boys were born. I flew to Boise for the birth, then took them back "home" six weeks after they were born. By the time the boys were two years old, they had already been in six countries - USA, Ethiopia, Egypt, Tanzania, Thailand, and Vietnam. In other words, our boys have grown up with the idea that the world was their backyard.

At what point did you realize that your kids were capable of doing such a trek? How did you build up to that?

I don't think we ever "realized" they were capable of it - we never doubted it in the first place. When we first took off for our first major cycling journey around the USA and Mexico in 2006 the thought never occurred to us that they couldn't do it. We were scared they wouldn't like it and all the time and money we had invested in the preparation would be lost - but we never doubted they could do it.

How does your family afford to adventure for extended periods of time? Are there financial principals/techniques that other familys can follow to achieve similar results?

Live below your means and make it a priority. It's really that simple. I wrote an article for Examiner.com on that very issue.

What are the biggest sacrifices have you had to make in order to achieve your goals?

I don't really look at it like a 'sacrifice' - it's all just part of the adventure. I suppose I could say I had to give up my comfortable bed, but I don't mind sleeping in our tent. I could complain about not having the modern conveniences of a high tech kitchen, but I do just fine with a camp stove, one pot, and a wooden spoon. It really just depends on how you look at things whether they are sacrifices or not. I look at the pillow I carry in my pannier and consider it a luxury item!

What makes it all worthwhile for you?

• When Davy snuggles up next to me in the tent, puts his arm around me, gazes into my eyes, and murmurs, "I love you, Mom"
• When Daryl suddenly makes the connection between the Colorado Plateau, the long downhill run we had that day, and the temperature warming up
• The jaw-dropping views I get when I come around a bend in the road
• The incredibly kind and generous people we meet along the way
• Having the opportunity to see - before my very eyes - my boys developing into responsible young men

Need I say more?

Does everyone in the family have the same motivation to do the long treks? If not, how do you reconcile those diferences?

We are all on the same page. It seems like we are all in tune with one another and know when we need a break or when we're ready to push hard. There have been a few times when John is antsy and I've had to ask him to take a few days off, but generally we don't even talk about it - we just know.

What do you do when one of your kids loses steam or motivation for pushing ahead?

I don't know. It's never happened before. If and when that day arrives when the boys don't want to continue, we'll pack up and go home.

Or are you talking about on a daily basis? On those tough days when we are exhausted and don't think we can make it into town? On those days we all pitch in and help each other so we can all make it together. It really is a team effort.

We had that situation not long ago - on our first day of cycling in Guatemala. We had 23 km of dirt road and it was awful! The road was covered with a thick layer of loose dust and each truck that passed sent massive clouds of soupy dust into the air. It was hot, and all that dust mingled with the sweat on our bodies to cover us with mud. And then we reached a massive 2-km climb. All four of us had to walk up. I wrote about that day here.

But the best part of it all is the fact that we all work together. We are no longer parents and children, adults and kids, teachers and students - we are equal members of a team trying to get through a tough stretch of the road.

What is the most difficult situation you have encountered while on one of your adventures? How did you deal with it?

Honestly, there haven't been all that many difficult situations. There are plenty of interesting situations, but not necessarily difficult. One of the worst was the day we cycled from Pennsylvania to New Jersey in order to get a ferry to Manhattan where we planned to stay with friends. It started raining about halfway there, but we were determined to make the ferry so we pedaled in the rain.

At some point, my tire blew out and we couldn't fix it properly so I was wobbling along through the pouring rain. Then we discovered the last ferry of the day was leaving in thirty minutes from a pier 5 miles away. We took off like a herd of elephants to try to make it.

I was almost there when a car pulled up and the woman told me there was no way - the ferry was leaving in two miinutes and we wouldn't be on it. I looked around at the rain falling from the sky and the massive puddles lining the road. All four of us were soaked to the core and cold. We were smack dab in the middle of the Manhattan urban sprawl and the nearest hotel was ten miles away and would cost us $250. There was no place for a tent. It just doesn't get any lower than that - what in the hell was I doing out there with two little kids?

But then an angel appeared. Why did I doubt it anyway? Some wonderful people invited us to their house for the night. We dried our clothes in their dryer and slept in warm soft beds.

I wrote about that day here.

What is the most amazing encounter or story you have experienced while on one of your adventures?

You aren't serious, are you? You don't really expect me to pick out one amazing encounter? We have amazing encounters each and every day!!

• A family pulls up beside us in a pickup loaded with oranges and starts tossing us more oranges than we could dream of eating.
• An ER doctor stops his car beside us and asks, "Would you like to sleep at my house tonight?"
• Two men flag us down in Baja and offer to hide caches of Gatorade along the road for us - for the next 200 kilometers!
• We share the road with bison in Northern British Columbia
• Big horn sheep lick salt off the road and we stop and gawk
• A bear chases us down the road
• Cycling through the Arctic tundra under the midnight sun
• Motorcycle clubs in Mexico 'adopt' us and provide an escort through every single city we pass through in the entire nation
• A cattle rancher insists that we can't camp and pays for a hotel room for us

Do you have any other thoughts, convictions, motivating words, or otherwise that you would like to share?

Do it. Just do it. Life is too short to not take advantage of it. Mark Twain said, "Years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you did NOT do… than by the ones you DID do. So - throw off the bow lines! Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the tradewinds in your sails. Explore! Dream! Discover!"

The following is some questions that my kids wanted to ask your kids:

Do you miss your bedrooms?

No. I like the tent.

What do you miss most?

Davy - my friends

Daryl - nothing

How much wildlife do you see?

It depends on where we are. Sometimes we see a lot. Other times we don't see any.

Where do you stay?

Everywhere. Sometimes in our tent, other times in hotels, and other times we stay with families we meet.

Is it fun riding on your bikes?

You bet! (mostly) Sometimes it can be hard, but mostly it's OK.

What do you eat?

Food. Lots of it.

Is it tiring?

Sometimes it is. Usually it's not hard.

How good are the views?

That depends on where we are. Sometimes we have great views, but sometimes it's ugly.

To learn more about the Vogel family and their adventures, check out their website familyonbikes.org, or follow them on twitter: @familyonbikes. Thank you very much Nancy for the interview, and we wish your family all the very best on the rest of your trip!