28     |    DestinMagazine.com

T

hey say that life is a journey 
and for Destin resident Tom 
Catanese, that journey is best 
taken on two wheels. Literally. 

Over the past eight years, Tom has made 
biking his way of life; exploring countries 
and experiencing cultures that stray far 
from the narrow scope of the world that 
so many of us see. His focus is anywhere 
and everywhere, eyes trained on the roads 
and paths that stretch endlessly ahead 
of him even as his spirit ventures with 
wanderlust, his appetite for learning 
and seeing and doing as insatiable as the 
physical hunger aroused by so many miles 
logged on a bike. 

As the 58 year-old father of four grown 

children would likely tell you, spending 
most of his day sitting in the saddle of a 
bicycle wasn’t always in his game plan. 
But when all signs pointed toward Go 
Tom took life by the handlebars and did 
something that very few of us would have 
the courage to do: packing up his once 
predictable life to ride free of convention, 
never fully expecting the many blessings 
and lessons he would find all along the 
way. “After sending my children off on 
their life’s paths, my own quest emerged 
and it became one for seeing this God-
given world,” Tom sagely explains. 
“Traveling and cycling has given me 

a renewed energy for life and seeking 
knowledge about different cultures 
brought out a hidden potential inside 
of me. It’s been a time of amazing self-
discovery.” 

And while that time of self-discovery 

has certainly required him to face his 
fair share of fears and take on many 
challenges, Tom has taken them all head 
on, pedaling through them and past them 
to find an inner strength he never knew 
he had. “This has brought such a process 
of growth and learning to me and I truly 
believe that I’ve become a better person,” 
Tom reflects. “There’s something about 
removing all of my boundaries and 
expectations that has taught me to remove 
stereotypes from people, as well. I have 

such a true sense of unity, I’ve found 
that I can make a friend anywhere in this 
world.”

The word anywhere could be considered 

somewhat vague, but for Catanese it 
allows him the freedom not to limit 
himself. He has an entire globe at his 
feet—or rather, under his tires—and 
he has no plans of hitting the brakes. 
Already, he’s explored thirty countries, 
logging nearly 12,000 miles as he traverses 
the world that seems so ready for his 
exploration. 

Admittedly, Catanese is hardly what one 

would consider the typical candidate for 
starting this type of journey. He started 
somewhat late in the game, strapping on 
his helmet and setting off at a point when 

story by

 Liesel Schmidt

photos by

 

Tom Catanese

Soul

Cycling

XX-XX AdventureOut.indd   1

11/29/16   9:25 AM