The Present

Overview

At 34, French traveler Dimitri Poffé tested positive for Huntington's disease, a rare, hereditary, incurable disorder that slowly erodes body and mind. His father died of it; his sister has fought its symptoms for over a decade. Genetic studies predicted Dimitri's own symptoms would begin between 35 and 40 — a countdown he could not stop. Rather than wait, he got on a bicycle. Alone, he rode 18,000 kilometers from Mexico City to Ushuaia, crossing deserts, jungles, mountains and endless plains, a route as unpredictable as the disease itself. What began as defiance became something larger: a story of resilience, solidarity and the strength to reclaim life on your own terms. More than a test of physical limits, The Present is a reminder that when the future is uncertain, the present is still ours to live — one pedal stroke at a time.

Timothy Dhalleine