The Henley Standard writes:

A teacher has had a book of his tales of cycling across Europe published.

Mr Sykes, who teaches French at Gillotts School in Henley, rode 2,000 miles from his home town of Reading to Brindisi in the south of Italy last summer.

Now he has written Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie about his experiences.

Mr Sykes set up a website to update his followers during his six-week journey via London, Boulogne, Lille, Luxembourg, Strasbourg, Basel, Milan, Pisa and Rome.

He said: “The feedback I was getting was very positive and several people told me I should write a book but I wasn’t in the mood for doing so at the end of such a long journey. However, in April someone said it again and I gave it a try.”

The ride was split up into 30 days of cycling up to 106 miles a day and six rest days.

Mr Sykes said: “Every day was a small adventure in its own right. I rarely knew where I would be at the end of the day and when I did, I often had to change plans when ‘circumstances’ intervened.”

Mr Sykes plans to cycle from Athens to Cadiz in the summer of 2013. For more information, visit www.eurovelo5.com .