POULSBO — As American Lance Armstrong was racing into the history books with a record-breaking sixth Tour de France title, an Englishman was making some personal history of his own on two wheels, here in the United States.

Simon Plummer, 29, of Poole, England, decided to come and visit his aunt and uncle, Poulsbo residents Steve and Ruth Urand. After a flight over the Atlantic to Yorktown, Va., he assembled his Scott-USA model bike, strapped on a helmet and began to pedal his way to Poulsbo.

“I needed some time to have a break,” Plummer said of the journey. “I thought it would be good for my health.”

Plummer’s 48-day trek took place on the TransAmerica Trail, a 4,247.5-mile coast-to-coast journey that utilizes back roads and smaller ancillaries across the country. He also tacked on about 250 miles extra to get to Little Norway from Astoria, Ore., the end of the trail on the West Coast.

His first mission to prepare didn’t involve biking at all, but rather his employment. Plummer would need three months off in order to attempt the U.S. crossing by bike. Fortunately for Plummer, his company granted the request.

He had biked for 1,200 miles to prepare for the trek, but admitted that nothing truly prepared him for 4,500 miles of continuous open-road biking.

Plummer had added motivation along the route, as he raised money during the journey for cancer research. He accepted donations for his efforts, something he said made the trek even more significant.

“It gave the trip a bit more of a meaning,” he said. “I knew I had to complete it.”

On May 2, Plummer set off from Yorktown and began the trek with two friends. His first 300 miles into the journey were a mental battle, he recalled.

“It seemed like an awfully long time,” Plummer said. “Yet it wasn’t even one-tenth of the distance. I couldn’t even conceive of how long it was going to take.”

He and his friends either camped or stayed in motels along the way, depending upon weather and availability, he said.

Plummer also pulled a small trailer behind his bike for supplies and the added weight took some getting used to — especially when facing the steep Appalachian Mountain inclines in hot temperatures, he added.

“You have to take it day by day,” he said. “Chip off the block bit by bit.”

Descending from the Appalachians gave way to the next phenomenon he said he experienced on his bike voyage: space. And loads of it.

“You can see for miles and miles,” Plummer said of his crossing of Kansas. “The only difference you can see is the sun.”

After awhile, Plummer mentioned that time begins to pass in a different way.

“Everything becomes miles,” he said. “There’s no such thing as time. You measure everything in miles.”

Entering Colorado, Plummer and his friends, which grew in number as he met others along the trail’s route, began the gradual climb to the highest point in elevation of the journey — the Rocky Mountains. There the bikers reached their highest point at the 11,500-foot Hoosier’s Pass.

The altitude did not bode well with Plummer , who was sick for much of the trek through the higher elevations.

“You’re told to ease up on exercise,” Plummer said. “That’s a little hard to do when you’re biking across the country.”

Plummer was also fascinated by a sociological trend he encountered along the way: the varying amounts of biking use among Americans.

“On the eastern side (of the Rockies) you’re kind of a celebrity if you ride a bike, because no one rides bikes,” Plummer said. “But in the Rockies, everyone’s riding.”

Finally crossing Idaho and Oregon, Plummer reached Astoria, and rode all the way to the Pacific Ocean, in what he said was “the happiest moment” of the trip. But his journey was not over.

Plummer extended the trek to include a ride up through south Washington, heading northwest at Olympia, and pedaling his way onto the Kitsap Peninsula and into Poulsbo.

But his love for cycling made difficult for Plummer to stop once he arrived in Little Norway.

“I really didn’t want to stop once I got to Poulsbo,” he said.

His final miles took him along Clear Creek Road, before heading east toward Poulsbo. Plummer finally arrived in Little Norway at about 1:30 p.m. July 20, and was surprised to discover a gathering in his honor at the Portside Pub, organized by the owner, Steve Urand.

“It was a nice welcoming party,” Plummer said.

Plummer acknowledged that life will never be the same after such a journey. He said he feels rejuvenated, even noting that his views about the world were significantly altered by the trek, evidenced by a small journal that he’d often write in to track his thoughts along the way.

“I had such a fantastic experience. The people have been so friendly,” he said. “I’m a bit of a cynic but (the trek) has restored my faith in society.”