
About the Author
Ryan Crain was born and raised in Mustang, Oklahoma. He attended college at the University of Oklahoma, where he earned his degree in Exercise Science. After graduating, he held several positions in corporate wellness and started his own business on the side, training high school and college athletes.
At thirty years old, he took his first trip overseas and hasn't stopped traveling since. Becoming fascinated by different cultures, languages, and how other people live, Ryan's curiosity would take him around the globe, across six continents, and through fifty-two countries.

His travels have been featured on CNN, The Boston Globe, NPR, and many more. Gravel Roads is his debut book, a memoir highlighting his adventures around the world and the deeply personal decisions that led to them.
Currently, Ryan is settled in a small Mexican beach town along the Pacific Coast. When not writing, he can be found attempting to master the challenging sport of surfing or the Spanish language.
GRAVEL ROADS


READ THE BACK COVER
By thirty years old, Ryan Crain had everything he thought he wanted—a steady career, a budding relationship, and a high-rise apartment in downtown Oklahoma City. Then, an unexpected phone call he received while backpacking through Europe uprooted it all—everything that had defined him. In a desperate attempt to save his life, Ryan made a bold promise—he would use adventure to climb out of the dark trenches of his grief.
In the most mysterious of ways, this one decision would lead him to set foot on every inhabited continent during a round-the-world journey of epic proportions. From windswept beaches in Portugal and mosques in the Middle East, to street markets in Morocco and the Great Barrier Reef, through slums in Mumbai and barrios in South America, what transpired out of the chaos was a new life breathed into his heart. Ryan discovered a deep resilience, both in himself and others, on the road less traveled. In the end, this challenging and confronting journey transformed his fear of the unknown into an unending curiosity for humanity and ushered in the life he was always meant to live—one without regret.

