It’s been an interesting week as I transitioned from a self-published to a published author on Thursday. Is all the hard work over or has it yet to start? Time will tell. I haven’t quite transitioned away from being a secondary school teacher of French however and continue […]
This isn’t quite my style – too fast by far… – but it is quite an adventure and may be of interest to some. Over to the organisers: “Wolf Pack is a dare. To ride from Geneva to San Remo, over Telegraphé, Galibier, Vars and Cime de la […]
Now available from all good bookshops (links below)… Enjoy the read! Join us tonight for the launch party in Waterstones, Albion Street, Leeds. Full details here. Waterstone’s Amazon – Kindle or paperback Apple – iBook Foyles Stanfords WH Smith Blackwells
Things are beginning to get busy in the run-up to the publication of ‘Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie‘ on Thursday – if you are in or near the Leeds branch of Waterstone’s at 6.30pm on Thursday, come along to the launch! – and I have spent […]
With only a few days until the publication of all 35 degrees of ‘Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie‘ on May 11th (pre-order at Amazon or Waterstone’s), exactly two years ago today, I was cycling from Rochefort to La Rochelle, enjoying the great cycling facilities of […]
The weekend after the wonderful Cycle Touring Festival in Clitheroe – tickets are still available – where I will be speaking about cycling from Spain to Norway… comes The Adventure Cycle Festival. ‘Adventure cycling’ seems to be ‘cycle touring’ with less luggage. Here’s how the organisers describe the […]
No mention, alas, of a certain soon-to-be-published book (perhaps next year?), but these tomes could help you fill your time between now and the launch of Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie next week. Indeed if you are anywhere near Waterstone’s in Leeds at 6:30pm on […]
I did think it would be difficult to replicate the atmosphere experienced in Yorkshire when the Tour de France arrived in the county back in 2014 but yesterday on the cobbles of the ‘Côte de Shibden Wall’ it came pretty close… Wonderful afternoon!
I had the opportunity of watching this film on the moderately-big screen of The Reliance in Leeds where local cycling entrepreneur Ian Street hosts his monthly ‘Leeds Bicycle Film Club‘. I challenge anyone to watch it and not want to jump onto the next plane to a far […]
I was interviewed earlier this week by Keri Jones for the Great Destinations Radio Show (the interview will be broadcast sometime in June and also available as a podcast). One of Keri’s questions was along the line of “which section of your [Spain to Norway] route would make for […]
As I begin typing this, I note that the Tour de Yorkshire is exactly 7 days away, to the minute! Everything kicks off at 12.35pm on Friday 28th April in Bridlington… The images below were taken from the spectator guide that you can find here.
Exactly two years ago, I cycled into a very wet Salamanca in Spain. Below is an extract from ‘Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie‘ recounting my day in the city. Aside from providing me with some beautiful buildings, frogs and reminiscences of teenage reading, it was […]
Last week I posted a letter that I had written in response to a letter that appeared in the Halifax Courier regarding cyclists. Before you continue reading, I suggest that you read this. Done that? Good. Tomorrow the weekly newspaper is published and it will be interesting to […]
One for HikingEurope.org; climbing Red Scree in Cumbria… …the view from the top… …and here are a few shots taken in and around Ambleside and Rydal (where you’ll find a great campsite). Not forgetting a famous bridge en route home:
Last week I had the opportunity of speaking about the 2015 cycle from Spain to Norway (on a bike called Reggie…) in Halifax. Next up on my world tour (well, Britain and Ireland) is the Cycle Touring Festival in Clitheroe, Lancashire. Why not come along? Full details from the […]
My local newspaper is the weekly Halifax Courier (it long since lost its prefix ‘Evening’) and the letters page is always a good read. It’s a (mercifully) watered down version of the comments that appear on the paper’s Facebook page (a scary, dark place, frequented by ill-informed people who probably […]
No pressure then… It’s probably fair to say that most of you are not avid readers of the Halifax Courier so for those not fortunate enough to be within the newspaper’s catchment area of the Calder Valley of West Yorkshire, here is a cutting from the ‘WOW 24/7 Entertainment’ section: […]
Is it possible? I cycled eight countries in nearly four months back in 2015 but five in one day? According to Karsten Koehler, yes it was and in April 2016 he set about proving his suspicion by heading to Belgium with his bike… Here he explains his motivation: I […]
Today, I read, is International Day of Happiness. (Isn’t every day? Mmm… Perhaps not…) Anyway, upon discovering that March 20th is a day of all-round joy (apologies if you’re just not feeling it), I was reminded of cycling through Lower Saxony en route from Tarifa to Nordkapp for […]
I spent the afternoon in Sheffield watching some short cycle touring films at SHAFF, the Sheffield Adventure Film Festival. Below are the films that I was able to see. The text is from the SCHAFF website. COMES WITH BAGGAGE – 18MINS (trailer) “Comes With Baggage” is a lighthearted history […]
…well, the one in Calderdale. Route 66 of Britain’s National Cycle Network. “National Cycle Route 66 runs from central Manchester to Spurn Head via Bradford, Leeds, York, Beverley, and Kingston upon Hull.” according to those in charge. More details here. This afternoon part of route 66 was the final leg of a 46 km […]
Between Trondheim and the sixty-fifth line of latitude, Norway had been comparatively flat. Although my cycling route had taken me along valleys, and beside lakes and fjords, the mountains I was passing were modest in size. There was little to excite your average Munro bagger along the coast […]
It’s been a sunny day in West Yorkshire, the perfect day to film my circular commute to work. More details of the route on Strava. Over to you Bizet…
More details here…
There hasn’t been one of these for a while but that doesn’t mean that things are not progressing. I can assure you that they have and the great news is that the final, final, final manuscript has now been signed off and is ready for printing. According to […]
I don’t suppose that the people who invented Strava ever had my relatively short commute from Stainland to Elland and back in mind when they invented their system but this week I’ve been putting it to good use doing just that. I even have a ‘heatmap’! It’s a […]
It’s Saturday afternoon (or it was when I wrote this) and my half-term break from social media (see previous post) encouraged me to get back out on Dale, the Cannondale… He’s been shamelessly inactive in recent months but this final week in February has finally seen some action! […]
It’s been half-term here in Calderdale. Wonderful. Plenty of time to relax, catch up with people and things, get in a bit of exercise (especially on the bike), read, clean the house, tinker with an upcoming presentation, watch TV, proof read the new book, chat to the publishers about […]
I’ve been asked to pass on this message from the charity Bipolar UK. Can you help them? Who we are: Bipolar UK is the national charity dedicated to supporting individuals and families affected by bipolar. Over a million people in the UK today have bipolar. We estimate that a […]
Some of you may remember that back in 2013 as I cycled from southern Greece to southern Portugal and shortly after arriving in France, I deviated slightly to the north north to meet a friend on a campsite in a small town called Villes-sur-Auzon. The reason? This is what […]
…and go for a ride.
…and more from ‘EwanRuns’ (one of the pupils at my school)
More beautiful watercolours from Maxine Dodd…
Great poster, let alone event… More details here. From the organisers; “Eroica Britannia, one of the most talked about events in the cycling and festival calendars has been hailed as one of this year’s most anticipated UK Family Festivals following an announcement that two iconic Headliners will be […]
Now available to book via School Speakers:
Welcome to 2017… and what an exciting year it should be. The new book – Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie – is out on May 11th and during April, May, June and beyond I’ll be up and down the country talking about the journey from […]
Mmm… A year that will go down in history for the wrong reasons although a year that, compared to 1350 (Black Death in Europe), 1914 and 1939, one that may soon be forgotten. Sense will prevail in European politics (although it may have us wondering why we went out of […]
Summersdale, the publishers of ‘Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie‘, have been in touch and, much to my delight, they would like to include some pictures in the new book. The absence of images from the first two books has been a complaint of many who have read […]
If my tentative plan to cycle from the top to the bottom of Japan in the summer of 2018 ever comes to fruition, it would be nice to do it on a new touring bike (sorry Reggie…). It would be equally nice to pay a return visit to […]
Well, it was the week before the week before Christmas but that makes less of a catchy title. I’ve just returned home after a week on the road; a mixture of business and pleasure. This was the main event of the week: That’s the Britannia Royal Navy College […]
An email from Welcome to Yorkshire, organisers of the Tour de Yorkshire: STAGE 1 on Friday 28th April will start in Bridlington and finish in Scarborough – 173km STAGE 2 on Saturday 29th April will start in Tadcaster and finish in Harrogate – 122.5km STAGE 3 on Sunday […]
News of the Eroica Britannia 2017 from the organisers…. “New Location, Record Ticket Sales, Harder Ride Routes! Eroica Britannia, the award winning 3-day family Festival and the gruelling World famous Bike Ride has today announced record breaking ticket sales, since going on sale less than a week ago […]
The first review of the translation of ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie‘ – ‘Attraverso l’Europe su una Bici di Nomme Reggie‘ – is in! “Ironico e sensibile, ma anche preciso e coraggioso senza apparire presuntuoso. Utilissima, per il lettore italiano, la visione del nostro Paese tramite gli […]
By Susan Reid World-record holding cyclist Ben Wood of Cross Hills has completed another gruelling cycling challenge – riding just over the equivalent height of Mount Everest in 24 hours and succeeding in raising over £6,000 for Candlelighters as a tribute to his best friend’s son who is […]
The Italian translation of ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie’ is now available to download as an eBook from Amazon, Apple iBooks and Kobo. «L’anno accademico doveva essere stato … Source: Attraverso L’Europa Su Una Bici Di Nome Reggie (2016)
Here’s news about a local cycling business that is helping build Yorkshire’s reputation as a world-class cycling destination: “Proud Yorkshireman and cyclist with 25 years’ experience, Charles Oxtoby set up Yorkshire Velo Tours in 2015, largely on the back of the visit of the Tour de France to […]
By Max Wegner Wearables or wearable technology devices are electronic gadgets that are designed to be easily and conveniently worn on the body. This technology typically offers scanning and sensory capability such as tracking of physiological function or biofeedback. A range of such devices can be seen on the […]
Did any of you see that my new book was published earlier this week? What? No? After all that hard toil along Europe’s cycle paths and effort invested at my computer in putting the story of a trans-continental cycle ride down on paper and you didn’t even notice? My marketing skills must […]
If you can get past Ben Fogle’s mis-pronunciation of ‘Sowerby’ (in fairness, only locals like me will spot that he is sounding the silent ‘w’), here’s an interesting watch on the ITV Hub which is available until the end of November (2016 that is if you happen to have […]
If you are near Reading on Monday 12th December or Portreath on Tuesday 13th December and would like to hear me speak about travelling from Tarifa to Nordkapp, this might be for you: Both events are FREE(!) and open to the public and both have Facebook ‘event pages’: […]
Under a rather gloomy sky, I took the new bike out for a proper spin yesterday – 55km – across all kinds of terrain. The observant of you will note the saddle has been changed – I bought a standard black Brooks earlier in the week – and […]
There has been a drip, drip… of information about the new book in recent weeks but I’m finally in a position to confirm the details in full. As you are probably aware, the book will be published by Summersdale next year. The date for publication has been set […]
I’ve triple checked and my diary is empty… Apart from the publication of STNOABCR (that’s ‘Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie‘…) by Summersdale! Available in all good bookshops (as well as a few rubbish ones). One day it might even be added to this list. Perhaps. […]
New edition of Bicycle Traveler Magazine available online now. Even if you don’t read the words, the photographs are wonderful! (And it’s free.)
A date for your diary if you happen to be near Reading on December 12th… “MEET ANDREW: FRENCH TEACHER, WRITER AND LONG-DISTANCE CYCLIST. NOW, MEET REGGIE, HIS BIKE. With two European cycling adventures already under his belt, Andrew was ready for a new challenge. Exchanging his job as […]
Sir Gary Verity, Chief Executive of Welcome to Yorkshire: “We are delighted and honoured to announce that Yorkshire has been chosen to host the 2019 UCI Road World Championships. The sensational news was announced last night by UCI President Brian Cookson OBE live from Doha, Qatar which is […]
I’m still using the excuse that Reggie the Ridgeback Panorama is too heavy to use on a regular basis on the hills of Calderdale and West Yorkshire in general. It’s pathetic, I know, but there you go. When I lived in relatively flat Reading, Reggie was my ‘do-anything’ […]
Nice little video from Rapha… But do these guys ever chat? “For the launch of the new collection, three riders took a trip to northern Italy to explore the area surrounding the Messner Mountain Museums – Italian climber Reinhold Messner’s dedication to man’s encounter with mountains – in […]
An updated version of what you may have seen before. Can you spot the differences? But here’s something that you probably won’t have seen before; the map for the new book. Available in spring 2017 from all good bookshops…
An interesting angle on the new book; the most frequent 100 words (pre-publisher edit…).
There’s no getting away from the fact that it is now autumn. If you are a weather forecaster, it started weeks ago on September 1st. If you stick to the ‘old rules’, the autumn equinox was this week and in the next month or so the leaves will […]
The 218th review for Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie was posted on Amazon.co.uk yesterday. That’s exactly twice as many for Along The Med on a Bike Called Reggie which now has 109 reviews. When it comes to the ratings, however, Along The Med is still in front […]
It’s been a quiet few days here on CyclingEurope.org as I have been busy editing down the draft manuscript of ‘Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie’ ready for submission to the publishers on October 3rd. I’m already on my second read through and I suspect there […]
I have mentioned Ian Street a few times on these pages in the past. He is the man behind the successful Leeds Bicycle Film Club (as heard on BBC Radio 4!) and his next project is… Pedalling Ideas. The clue is in the title of the event but here are […]
By Amy Shaw Winter is coming. But that doesn’t have to mean cycling hibernation for the next 6 months – the crisp morning air and crunch of leaves beneath tyres make it worth bracing the elements. Cycling in the upcoming winter months can mean riding at extreme intensities […]
From the sister site, apsykes.com…
I’m in the final throes of writing the new book and have arrived at the island of Andøya. This picture sums up cycling along the coast of northern Norway perfectly… I felt obliged to share it once again. (It originally appeared here.)
It was August 28th 2013 when I completed my cycle from southern Greece to southern Portugal. The full story here or the even fuller story here… And here are a few photographic memories. Full marks to anyone who can identify where they were taken; Greece, Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, […]
From the sister site…
I came across this article that I wrote for a bike insurance website last year when writing the new book, Spain to Norway on a Bike Called Reggie, yesterday. It never appeared on CyclingEurope.org but here it is now… If you’re planning a long distance cycling trip, it’s important that […]
Here’s a post from 2014 about my visit to the Brompton factory in London. It was interesting to watch the documentary about building a Brompton bicycle this week on BBC1. Worth a look. Here’s the link.
By Mark Shaw The Vélodyssée isn’t just long…it’s so long it stretches all the way to Devon! In fact, this incredible Atlantic coats cycling route extends for a full 1,245km, taking in glorious regions like Brittany, Pays de la Loire, Poitiou-Charentes and Aquitaine along the way. What’s more, with […]
Reviews of the books are always welcome and here’s one that has taken the reviewer a considerable amount of time to write. I appreciate particularly the fair comments about the first two books being self-published and the downsides that come with that. It’s a timely opportunity to remind […]
From one of the stars of The 35 Degrees…
Exactly one year ago today I arrived at Nordkapp, the northernmost point of Norway and continental Europe after a cycle of 7,776km. Here, for the first time in one post, the story of that final day – cycling day 96 – from Honningsvåg to Nordkapp:
Cycling day 95; the penultimate day on the road to Nordkapp, 365 days ago today…
Last year on July 26th I was almost there…
This film was shown on BBC2 this evening. Goodness knows why they hid it away at 10pm on a Sunday evening. It would have been better to show it at 8pm on Saturday night on BBC1. The trailer is below; the film itself available on the BBC iPlayer […]
Here’s a nice place for a cycle; Calderdale. Anyone know it? And here’s a wonderful short film about the area that’s just been made by Shibden Digital: If you don’t know the area yet, you will soon, especially when The Piece Hall and Square Chapel Centre for the Arts […]
When I think back to last year’s cycle from Tarifa to Nordkapp, these are two of the photographs I think about most. they were taken near Tromsø in Norway on this day in 2015… Here they are again, unfiltered and filtered:
The sun has set over another academic year… For the second half of the 2015/16 school year I have been working at The Brooksbank School in Elland as a maths / French / cover teacher. It also happens to be the school that I attended myself, far too […]
6 years ago today, I pushed the bike out of my flat in Reading and set off on a cycle to southern Italy. Here’s how day 1 was blogged at the time: La Via Romeo Francigena / Eurovelo 5 The Send Off Party! Iconic Location No. 1: Windsor Castle […]
I was fortunate to cycle through Nice in August 2013 after having spent six weeks in the city during early 2000. A real tragedy in a beautiful city. When you watch the news today, don’t forget what it normally looks like. And make sure you visit one day.
Coming soon, the Italian translation of ‘Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie‘. Here’s the prologue, translated by Enrico Antonio Mion: Prologo Vendono una maglietta con scritto che esistono tre ragioni per diventare insegnante: Natale, Pasqua e l’estate. Sebbene non concordi con questo sentimento cinico, vi è un […]
NOTE: THIS IS REBLOGGED FROM A THIRD PARTY WEBSITE. IT IS NOT THE INTENTION OF ANDREW SYKES TO CYCLE THIS ROUTE IN 2017. Eurovelo 12, The North Sea Cycle Route…
A review of things cycling in and around Leeds in the coming weeks and months…
This Thursday, 14th July 2016, the Tour de France once again points its riders in the direction of the summit of Mont Ventoux in the south of France. As I was cycling from Cape Sounio in southern Greece to Cape St. Vincent in southern Portugal in the hot […]
I’m loving these posts from Maxine Dodd. Very good indeed.
Back on this day in 2013, I was cycling through northern Greece heading for the border with Albania. Andy Murray had just won his first Wimbledon title…
(Updated July 2016) I have (obviously) not included the bike itself – a 2010 Ridgeback Panorama, the four Ortlieb Roller Plus Panniers or any clothing. Exped dry bags Waterproof Ortlieb map holder Robens Osprey 2 tent Mountain Equipment sleeping bag Decathlon sleeping bag line PowerMonkey Extreme rechargeable battery and […]
I’ve recently republished some of the posts I wrote during some of the cycles of the past few years. I was wondering if there had been a few days when I had been cycling in each of my five ‘cycling years’. Alas the answer is ‘no’… …but I find […]
