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Many students seek out rest and relaxation after completing their degrees. This was not the case for Luke Talman and Olivier Haley, two friends and ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥ School of Business graduates. Instead, the two bachelor of commerce grads decided to celebrate the completion of their degrees by biking clear across New Zealand.

Both Haley and Talman are avid cyclists who enjoy pushing themselves and going on adventures. They chose New Zealand because of its natural beauty, extensive cycling routes and great weather in January.

“It was an awesome challenge and served as a nice bridge from school to full-time work,” Talman says.

Haley grew up in Edmonton and always envisioned studying at the ¾ÅÐãÖ±²¥, taking advantage of studying at a world-class school while also staying close to his family and the Rocky Mountains, he says. He first pursued a degree in math at the U of A and, while he enjoyed it, in the end he transferred to the ASB and began studying honours finance the following year.

Talman joined the U of A in 2020 and began by studying economics in a pre-professional year. Toward the end of his second year he, too, pursued an honours finance degree. He knew finance and accounting was what he enjoyed most, after having taken most of the core business courses by then. He adds that applying to the ASB was an easy choice thanks to the school’s excellent reputation, and the fact that he frequented Golden Bears hockey games in his youth.

Talman says that the professors he met — many of whom made time out of class for advice and conversation — and the friendships he made stick out in his mind from his time at the school.

“The finance department was tremendously supportive through my degree,” he says.

Haley says that the U of A was instrumental in providing them with the foundational and technical skills to succeed in the workplace. Being surrounded by like-minded individuals with a passion and the school’s support for applied projects and independent research were also critical.

The two met at the start of their third year through honours finance events and classes. They found that they had a lot in common, including an interest in cycling and backpacking. They both completed their course requirements at the ASB in December, and are set to convocate in June.

“We worked together, studied together, so it was time we travelled together,” Haley says.

The journey

To start their journey, the two departed from Auckland in late January with the goal of biking down to the south of New Zealand. The route they took is called the Tour Aotearoa, a well-established and scenic route with a hearty mix of different trail types. Talman and Haley hauled their camping gear, clothing, food and other essentials on their bikes.

In all, the trek spanned 24 days, and saw them travel across 1,850 kilometres of often challenging and hilly terrain. The two note that their voyage saw a total elevation gain of 19,000 metres. The two recall other challenges as well, like Haley leaving his passport on a bus, and Talman’s bag falling off his bike on the highway — though all the items were eventually recovered.

“It was quite an international experience as well, frequently meeting and riding with cyclists from all over the world following the same route,” Talman says.

Some highlights the two experienced include biking 84 kilometres in one day on a narrow, single track — a route that is only the width of a single bike — a ferry ride through the Cook Strait from the north Island to the south, swimming in the Tasman Sea and seeing the Franz and Fox glaciers.

“One of the best parts of traveling the length of New Zealand was all the support and interest we received from the Kiwis along the way,” Talman says.

Throughout their voyage, both Talman and Haley were “blown away,” by the support they received from their friends and professors at the U of A, Haley says. They received multiple messages expressing support and encouragement through sports-focused app Strava. “It just goes to show the types of relationships you can build at the university,” Haley says.

Beyond a celebration of a major milestone, the voyage represented another way to learn and grow for Haley and Talman. According to Talman, bikepacking — like many other physical activities — imparts problem-solving skills and helps foster self-discipline. These qualities can be great assets in the workplace or as a student, he says.

Further, as the two travelled, they met many new people, many bikepackers themselves, from different backgrounds and countries. These interactions taught them a lot about life, travel and even work, they say.

After returning, both Talman and Haley started permanent jobs at Trust Science, an Edmonton-based credit bureau. Talman first began there as an intern in January, 2023, and Haley joined the firm in September of that year. They’ve both worked there in various capacities since then and are now full-time employees with the data and analytics department.

But Haley and Talman look back at the long trek they took, and think about everything they got out of it.

“It never hurts to have an interesting story,” Talman says.

“I think we learned to accept the bumps in the road — pun intended — and came to appreciate the wonderful journey.” Haley says.