European Matters
I mentioned a couple of weeks ago about how the European Cyclists’ Federation (ECF) had revamped its websites – http://www.ecf.com, the Eurovelo ‘planning’ website http://www.eurovelo.org & http://www.eurovelo.com, aimed at punters like you and me. Now this latter website has yet to get off the ground (I remain hopeful), […]
Freewheeling France
A couple of months ago, the editor of the Freewheeling France website approached me with a view to me contributing an article about the Eurovelo network specifically in France. I did, and the article has now appeared! In fact, it has been split into two articles; one about the […]
French / Spanish Lessons In Venezuela
Great video. Makes me feel very jealous as I sit here in dreary Reading in the south of England. What an adventure! Here’s their website. It’s a good work out for your French (and Spanish). Might show the kids at school next week… Interestingly, their route does what […]
“A Truly Inspirational Read”
Just noticed that there is another great review on Amazon for Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie, this time from a cycle shop in Launceton, Cornwall; “A truly inspirational read. I spend all day, everyday working on bikes similar to Reggie, and yearn to go […]
New Bike Shop Opens
Beijing, China: A bicycle repair man awaits customers inside a storage box on his tricycle. Courtesy of The Guardian Online.
A Happy Customer
“I bought Good Vibrations for myself for Xmas but alas have started to read it already and it is now responsible for too many late nights reading when I should be going to sleep. It’s hilarious and a great read.” Sue
New Online Bookshop Opens!
CyclingEurope.org now has its own bookshop! You can visit it via the link at the top of this page or by clicking on the picture here. It has a limited number of titles on sale consisting of some books that I would consider to be my favourites. If you […]
Vive La France!
Most of the Kindle sales of Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie have so far been within the UK – 90% of them. The remaining 10% is made up mainly from sales via the Amazon.com site. These could be in North America or, quite frankly, […]
Being Followed By The Police
A few weeks ago, I noticed that a certain @Chris_Boarland had started following me on Twitter. It’s often intriguing looking at who follows who on Twitter. As I type I have 417 followers (that’s probably enough for a decent sect!)… but a fair number of those are just ‘people’ trying […]
Plugging In Reading / Reading In Puglia
Another busy day on the shameless marketing treadmill of life. Waterstones in Broad Street Reading now have a copy of Good Vibrations in the shop. Great! Well, perhaps. It’s there because I delivered it this afternoon for them to look at. If you remember, I’ve already submitted a copy […]
Gasting My Flabber
This little picture makes me so happy… Good Vibrations is in stock at Amazon! No longer a message that says that any prospective reader needs to wait ‘4 – 6 weeks’. There is only one thing that would make me happier and that is if Good Vibrations: Crossing […]
The ECF: A Eurovelo Forum
The forums on CTC, BikeRadar etc… may have many thousands of followers, subjects & posts but none of them have a specific category for the Eurovelo routes. The new European Cyclists’ Federation’s website now does! Click here to register and start posting (so far, I’m the only one […]
The ECF: A New Website!
Great things are happening in Europe… The Greeks are on the verge of bankruptcy, Silvio Berlusconi has decided to call it a day, the Eurozone is in turmoil… And the European Cyclists’ Federation has a new look website! Not before time. It moves the ECF from being stuck […]
Sky Movies Christmas Advert 2011
John Lewis Christmas Advert 2011
Ahh…
Good Vibrations: No Longer Spineless
This is the second attempt at writing this post today. The first time, on hitting the ‘publish’ button, it disappeared into the ether of cyberspace never to be seen again. Fingers crossed. Good Vibrations has an exciting new spine! When I originally ‘built’ the cover of the book […]
Good Vibrations: Shelving Plans
Fear not; my marketing campaign for Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie continues a pace. It is my current mission to get the book onto the shelves of a bookshop. So far I have proof that Good Vibrations has made it as far as Iain Harper’s […]
Good Vibrations: The First Arrival
Iain Harper wins the prize for being the first person to send me a picture of their new copy of Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie. Here it is in good company alongside Iain’s collection of cycling-related literature. Do you think he has placed Mountain High […]
London 2012 Olympic Torch Relay Route
This flight over Britain reminds me of the Tour de France animations that get released every year to showcase the route of the big French cycle race. I think I’d like to live in animated Britain; there is no litter, the sun is shining and most importantly, the tacky tourist […]
Breaking News!
Things happen quickly in the publishing world! Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie is now available to buy in paperback from Waterstones and from Amazon (nearly!). Breaking Breaking News: And WHSmith!!
Good Vibrations: Updated Poster
A Pile Of Good Vibrations
If you get a mention in the acknowledgements section of Good Vibrations (Chris, Sally, Claus, Simone, Paul, Iain, Jim, Marcello, Basil & Liz, Alain and Mark), your complimentary copy of the book is about to start its journey to your letter box. Please let me know when it arrives. […]
Man Finds Poster In His Olive Grove In Puglia
It is, of course my old colleague Basil. How you must have chuckled at the thought of a random Italian finding the poster for Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie… He’ll soon be receiving his complimentary paperback copy of the book as it is now […]
Cycling Superhighway 3
Just outside Westferry DLR. After my Olympic interview earlier this evening at the Excel Centre (impressive!), I went to meet my friend Paul and spent a good amount of time hanging around watching the many cyclists of London zooming up and down the road outside the train station. […]
Colourful But Grim
Lots Of Good Vibrations!
Imagine how good they would look on the black shelves of Waterstones…
Ready To Roll!
David Gander who runs Prêt à Rouler, a bike hire shop in South-West France today gets a free advert on CyclingEurope.org. He pointed out earlier today that all the links on the Eurovelo 5 page – the posts I made when I was cycling south – were not […]
Tandem For The EV8?
‘bikes4two’ has written some nice comments about the book on the CTC forum called ‘Eurovelo 5 information‘; Hi Andrew, Just bought the e-book as I’m in the early stages of planning a trip for me and Mrs bikes4two on our tandem. I’m in trouble already in that I […]
The Bookshelf
How does it look next to Bill, William, Peter and the rest? My typeface is slightly smaller than most of the others and the pages thinner… UPDATE: I have modified the text size which makes it easier on the eye and also a slightly fatter book on the […]
The First Copy Of Good Vibrations!
Lucas Brunelle: Must See Videos
Lucas Brunelle has just followed me on Twitter. I checked out his website; you should do the same. Here it is. I just watched his video filmed in London. My God! The guy is obviously on some kind of suicide mission on a bike but it doesn’t half […]
Bicycle Dreams
The Wisdom Of Leeds
A few days I posted a video about the wisdom of the Dutch in planning & building their cycle network. Now it’s the turn of my fellow Yorkshire folk to bask in the glory I am about to heap upon them. As I type I am sitting on […]
Your Starter For Ten
Were you wondering what the UK’s top selling cycling eBook published in the last three months is? Click here to find out…
Good Vibrations: Now Available In Paperback!
It’s the news you have been waiting for; Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie is now available as a ‘traditional’ paperback book! Follow this link to order a copy online and enjoy the 5*-rated book that scores of people have been reading as an eBook […]
Good Vibrations: Now With Pictures!
Following on from yesterday’s post regarding Yvette’s comment on the Amazon.com site that she would have liked some pictures to look at in the book, they are now there! Talk about responding to the wishes of your readers 🙂 For those of you who have already purchased the book, fear […]
“A Great Read” But…
I may have ten very positive reviews on Amazon.co.uk, but my Amazon.com readers have so far been silent. Until now. My first .com review has come courtesy of Yvette Lian who lives in Brisbane, Australia. She’s given the book a 4* rating and starts off as follows; Last […]
The Wisdom Of The Dutch: Build It & They Will Come
Could it ever happen in the UK?
Good Vibrations: “A Riveting Tale”
Another 5-star rating on Amazon; “A riveting tale for an armchair traveller: I’m not the cyclist of the family but nevertheless I could appreciate the ‘ups’ and ‘downs’ of Andrew’s journey from Reading to Brindisi. It was written in such a way that I couldn’t wait to read the […]
Good Vibrations: Not Just For Cyclists!
So says the latest five-star review on Amazon; “For someone who has never, I repeat never, ridden a bicycle, I thought this book was brilliant, it almost made me wish I had learnt to ride.”
Top Of The Other Eurovelo Pops
The ‘other Eurovelo’ section of the site has now been up and running for about a month. Here is the top 13 (not including Eurovelos 5 & 8 which have separate sections on the site and draw much more traffic) with the Atlantic coast route being the clear leader. […]
Bicycle Traveler
Worth a glance… It’s free and has some interesting stories: Bicycle Traveler, International Magazine on Bicycle Touring.
Antelope Hits Mountain Biker
I’m terrified of this happening to me with a deer en route to Henley in the morning. There are lots of them about on the Berkshire-Oxfordshire borders!
Phenomenal Cycling
Bonnes Vibrations!
Maintenant disponible sur Amazon.fr ! Soyez la premième personne à écrire un commentaire 🙂
Münster 2001
Another 5* Review
…One can positively taste, smell, hear and touch [Andrew’s] journey in his book ‘Good Vibrations’… Well done Andrew. If this book doesn’t inspire the reader to jump on their bike and go….nothing will. It did me… ! (Mary Ann Coupland) Read the full review, and others at Amazon.co.uk.
In Good Company (Again)!
Good Vibrations’ highest ranking so far. Buy now while stocks last… Click here 🙂
Last Night I Couldn’t Sleep
I am in good company. Click here to find out why.
Poring Over Straightforward Errors
This is perhaps a post I should not write. When my father had finished reading Good Vibrations, his first comment was that there were quite a few typos. I was a slightly put out by his comment. I had re-read the manuscript of my comical tale very carefully to […]
Amazon’s Andrew Sykes Page!
It exists! Here is a screen shot. The picture is very brooding sepia 1930s movie idol, no? What do you mean ‘no’!? Click it to explore…
London 2012 Needs Me, Perhaps
A couple of weeks ago when I revamped the website and gave it a new name, I removed the page about ‘London 2012’ that stated that I had applied to be a volunteer at the Olympics next year. As I had heard nothing for many months, I was […]
Talking With Europe
Well, to the Spanish Costas where the listeners of Talk Radio Europe are to be found. The interview was quite short but I was able to give a short summary of my journey along the Eurovelo 5 and then plug the book at the end (I’m learning!). The video […]
The Sun Is Shining…
…the population is on its bikes, cycling into town, looking for somewhere to park… But Reading Council haven’t got the wherewithal to remove the rusting wrecks that are permanent residents of the cycle racks. Shame on you Reading Borough Council. Nul points 🙁 The turquoise-coloured bike you can […]
Fibularities
Do you remember the episode of Blackadder The Third when Samuel Johnson turns up at the palace with his new dictionary? (If you can’t, watch it here.) Edmund tries to catch him out by offering the wise doctor his “most enthusiastic contrafibularities“. Well, someone in Italy has offered […]
Eurovelos
Here’s a fascinating little picture… Well, perhaps not but I lead a sad little life. As avid followers of this blog will be aware, I have expanded into the pan-European world (is that possible?) of all the Eurovelo routes rather than just the Eurovelos 5 & 8. And people […]
Czech Out The Latest Review
Lee from the Czech Republic has read and reviewed Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie on Amazon. Here is what he has to say; All I can say this is a wonderful book to read and you really sense you are sharing the journey from Reading […]
The Other Eurovelos
I’d like to put together a list of independent websites that do what http://www.eurovelo5.com does at the moment and what http://www.eurovelo8.com will hopefully increasingly do in the future, i.e. to be a source of information about the route offering advice, links, perhaps a personal blog of someone having […]
A Quality List Of Travel Literature
An interesting list of recommended travel writing from the Guardian. Perhaps Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie will make an appearance next year…?
The Henley Standard
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 […]
In At Number 4!
And number 23 in the ‘Travelogue’ list! Could I make number the number 1 spot? It’s up to you! Click here (or here in North America).
A Night Of Small Adventures?
On August 6th, 2009, I was cycling through the Yorkshire Dales on my pre-Eurovelo 5 shakedown trying to work out if I was suited to long-distance cycling. I wrote the following comments on the blog; “On passing through a pristine village called Airton, I stopped to enquire if […]
Pompey 2 Pompeii
After having been contacted by one of the cyclists involved, I’ve had a link to these guys’ website on the front page of this website for sometime. They set off today! Their Twitter feed (@pompey2pompeii) describes their quest as follows; “…a gruelling 1500 mile bike ride, starting on […]
The Grim Reality Of Commuting
It seems too soon in the academic year – it’s only the second day back – to be battling wind and rain but it looks as though that’s what I’m in for when I leave the flat this morning. Doesn’t look as though we are going to have […]
Theft Of Copper: A Solution
Sorry cyclists. This entry fits 100% into the category of ‘Nothing to do with cycling’ but I think the idea merits some greater exposure. Impress me with a link! I was just watching the regional news from South Today. They reported that in the Oxfordshire Village of Chalford […]
Strasbourg to Rome
Hi Andrew, I’m the artist that wrote to you about taking our 4 yr old on the EV5 next summer. First of all…I want to read your book, but Amazon says it’s not available to yankees! Good news: it is! You need to go to the Amazon site […]
Eurovelo 8; Remember That?
Owen’s email below is well-timed. It being the 1st September today, the summer is over if you consider the season to be the three months from June to August. It’s also more or less over if you are a teacher as most of us go back to work […]
Number One…
…in Germany, with a few caveats. My German isn’t great (as you will know if you have read the account of my cycle across German-speaking Switzerland), but it looks as though Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie is the top-selling English language cycling e-book in […]
White Rabbits, Blue Sky
Great way to start September!
Good Vibrations: The Story So Far
Listen to my BBC interview about the cycle and the book via Audio Boo. Read the article that appeared in the Reading Chronicle. Watch a 25 minute film that combines the BBC interview with pictures and videos from the cycle. Read about my forray into the media world. […]
Good Vibrations: The Interview Movie
Now go on and download the book itself by clicking here! Remember that you don’t have to have a Kindle to read a Kindle book downloaded from Amazon; you can read it on your PC, Mac, iPhone, iPad, Android or Windows 7 phone. More information on how to […]
Good Vibrations: Boo!
My interview with BBC Radio Berkshire which will, unfortunately, disappear from the BBC iPlayer at the end of August, can still be listened to via Audio Boo. I have split the interview into seven parts and here are the links; Good Vibrations – Part 1 Good Vibrations – […]
Near Highclere Castle
It’s never like this on Downton Abbey. Mind you, there were ‘storm clouds over Europe’ at the end of the last series…
Impressive Cycle Lanes In Newbury
The Midday News From Aldermaston
I have spent too much time this summer sitting at my computer either writing the book or marketing it. It was time to get back on Reggie and explore so we have cycled the well-trodden path along the canal in the direction of Newbury. Very tempted to keep […]
It Gets Better!
Click here, now!
Good Vibrations: The Author
The man behind the book.
There Are 750,000 Books Available On Kindle…
Buy now while stocks last… Click here now!
Good Vibrations: The Reading Chronicle
Here it is. Not quite the double page splash I might have dreamt about but hey! it’s better than nothing 🙂 Clicking on the picture should make it much bigger and you will be able to read what has been written. You probably won’t need to do that […]
60 Minutes Of Fame…And Local Travel News
The strangest thing about being interviewed live on BBC Radio Berkshire yesterday was not actually the interview itself; it was sitting in my living room about three hours before the interview listening to me being named and discussed by the presenter of the programme, Suzanne Courtney (Pop Idol […]
Gavin Esler: Cycling In Berlin
Gavin Esler, has just blogged about how it is to be a cyclist in Berlin and has a fe suggestions as to how we could make life better for all road users here in the UK. I agree with him completely! Read what he has to say here.
“The British Cycling Economy” (LSE)
Once you’ve finished reading my book (what do you mean you still haven’t downloaded it?! – click here immediately!), here is some more brain fodder for you to plunge into. It’s a report written by the LSE (London School of Economics) and commissioned by Sky & British Cycling […]
Good Vibrations: Another Positive Review!
Alf Grant has posted the following on Amazon; I often wandered what on earth those Beach Boys were on about with those cheerful lyrics, but with this new book Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie by Andrew P. Sykes, I finally understand! Packed full of […]
Reggie’s Handlebars
If the effort put into this post doesn’t earn me an extra sale of my book, I don’t know what will! I have received an email from John. His words in blue, my replies in red; Hi Andrew, Hi Just been reading your website. Thank you for all […]
Good Vibrations: New Entry At Number 15!
I love this! Mark Beaumont, cycling hero & inspiration to all is next to me in the Kindle ‘Cycling’ list; he is just one place above Good Vibrations: Crossing Europe on a Bike Called Reggie with his book The Man Who Cycled The World. He has a few […]
Good Vibrations: The First Book Tour
Well, kind of. More of a poster tour really which consisted of me cycling around the bicycle shops of Reading asking them if they could possibly put up the poster in the window. But they all did, so a big thank-you to A.W. Cycles (Reggie’s spiritual home of […]
An Interesting Week
It started with me having a good moan about the estate agents signs outside the flats where I live and has ended with me booked onto a radio show to talk about the book I have written! And the very same book is now available for others to […]
Good Vibrations: The Poster!
Berkshire to Southern Europe On A Ridgeback Panorama!
That sounds familiar doesn’t it? I have received this very nice email from Alf in Newbury. He sounds as though he may be one of the first customers for my new book (big news about that within the next 24 hours, hopefully) although if I knew how to […]
Good Vibrations!
New title for the book; what do you think? The ‘vibrations’ makes reference to cycling, obviously but more specifically the numerous cobbles that Reggie and I encountered en route to Brindisi. It’s catchy, implies something not too serious which again matches what is between the covers. And better […]
Sold! Let!
I have a category on this website that is called ‘Nothing to do with cycling’. I use it for all those bits and pieces that I put on here that are just that. The riots for example. Here is another one; property ‘to let’ or ‘for sale’ signs. […]
Eurovelo 5, The Book; Update!
I know you are all out there checking the blog avidly every day to see if a publication date has yet been set for my book recounting my little adventure of summer 2010 along the Eurovelo 5 from Berkshire to Brindisi… No? Well, I can’t quite give you […]
1, 2, 3,… 99,999
Rioting is clearly not a good thing. Neither is the Iranian government (although I would imagine that the vast majority of the population are very nice people indeed – when did they last riot for no good reason?). Forbury Gardens in Reading are nice, but not that well-known […]
Forbury Gardens, Reading; All Life Is Here
En route home from my morning coffee and newspaper in town, it struck me how harmonious and diverse were the people sitting, playing, reading, chatting, sunbathing, relaxing, smoking, eating, drinking, kissing, thinking… in Forbury Gardens, Reading. There are probably around 200 of them. None, as far as I […]
Light Relief…From Iran
You’ve got to admire the comedian at the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs who took the initiative and sent this message to the British government. Pure genius which reveals as much about his country, if not more than it does of the problems in the UK. I’m still […]
The Positive Side Of The London Riots
Ottosentieri: An Italian Idyll Just For You
Not my description, but my friend Basil’s description of his new website. Basil is the friend I stayed with in August 2010 at the end of my Eurovelo 5 cycle. He has just started his own WordPress blog and you can visit it by clicking here. His description […]
Matters On My Mind
As mentioned yesterday I have started reading Mark Beaumont’s new book about how he cycled from Alaska to the southern tip of Argentina in 2009/10 while at the same time scaling the highest mountains in North & South America. Well, not quite at the same time but I’m […]
The I Love You Bridge
Great little documentary on Radio 4…
