Not a kill-joy. That was how adventure was done in those days. Many of the polar explorers did similar things to get backing. Actually, I suspect that much of modern "adventure" is the same; Jacques Costeau wasn't shy about plugging his commercial products. There were purely amateur cyclists in that time period, but many of the major trips were put up jobs, often funded by the newspapers that reported the trip.

I just get a kick hearing about the equipment they used. It would have been equivalent to riding long distances on a Wal-mart bike. Many of the bikes were 40+ pounds. Almost none of them had more than 1 gear. Taking a 40 pound bike with 1 gear and luggage over any mountain range just blows my mind. I can forgive a little cheating along the way. I know I would have to.