Bicycle book review: Cyclist and adventurer Simon Parker’s latest ‘Riding Out’

Before the pandemic, Simon Parker was living large: Each year, he would visit 30 to 40 countries around the world. He hosted his own TV series, Earth Cycle, about biking the length of Scandinavia. He cycled along the U.S.-Mexico border and wrote about it for The Daily Telegraph. He sailed over two oceans and pedaled across the United States, then produced a spellbinding segment about his journey for the BBC. For this English freelancer, the assignments were fast and furious.

Then came March 2020, when Parker’s globe-trotting career ground to a halt.

“When the pandemic came along, and I was forced to sit still for the first time in my whole life, a lot of big issues in my life really came and smashed me in the face,” says Parker, now 34 years old. “I really started to struggle with my mental health and my physical health, and how those two things are intertwined with each other.”

So what was a seasoned cyclist and travel writer to do with himself? Well, bike and travel — but this time, within the borders of his own country.

“I grabbed my bike,” he says, “and I decided to cycle three-and-a-half thousand miles around Britain.”

Parker chronicles this journey in his first book, Riding Out, which will be released by UK publisher Summersdale in April. No longer able to reach faraway lands, Parker headed to the northern tip of Scotland, then pedaled his way southward. His journey cut a colorful cross-section of British culture and geography, from the rain-drenched Hebrides to the rolling hills of Wight.

The book reads like a travelogue, with vivid descriptions and recreated dialogue. But Parker also reports on the enduring effects of COVID, from the awkwardness of socially distanced road trips to the economic damage wrought by fluctuating tourism. Like so many people he meets, Parker faces a professional dead-end and empty bank account. Unlike his breezier TV personality, Parker describes himself as anxious, depressive, and wounded by loss. Several friends had passed away over the years, and yet another was rapidly declining.

In the midst of lockdown, physical movement was a panacea.

“A bicycle is like medicine,” he says. “Spending hours on a bicycle, turning the wheels, concentrating on the road, trying to remain as mindful as possible, I really came to see my bike as a therapist. There’s something very soothing about moving at the pace of a bicycle.”

Parker has tried many outdoor pastimes, such as sailing and paragliding, and he has covered sports like cricket and tennis — but the bicycle is his forte. He became serious about cycling in 2012; like many Britons, Parker found inspiration in Bradley Wiggins, who won both the Tour de France and an Olympic gold medal the same year. In the saddle, Parker found a unique way to explore the world and tell innovative stories. He also uses his bicycle functionally, running errands around his neighborhood.

“I’m not really into the middle-aged-man-in-Lycra-style cycling vibe,” he says. “I like to use my bike as a way of having adventure, essentially. I like the idea of going on big, epic journeys. I think there’s just something so exciting about being able to leave your front door and keep going, and going, and going. A bike ride can be five miles, or it can be five thousand.”

Despite his long-distance itineraries, Parker has never submitted himself to hard-core conditioning. “I think you’re never really at full fitness for extreme, long-distance cycling,” he says. “People say to me, ‘How do you train for it?’ But I don’t really train for it if I’m honest. The first two or three weeks are the training. You have to gradually break yourself into the miles.”

Since he began his UK tour, Parker’s life has improved dramatically. The book will soon hit stores, and Parker has kicked off an ambitious lecture tour. He awaits feedback from this freshman effort, but Parker hopes to write additional books going forward. And as countries slowly open up to travelers, he wants to be more selective about the expeditions he takes on.

“I definitely came to the realization that I don’t have to travel to the other side of the planet to get my kick of adventure,” says Parker. “And that has taken till my mid-30s to work out. It has helped me come to terms with how I want the next thirty, forty, fifty years of my life to play out. But there’s something so joyful and so honest about going off on a bike ride and just feeling the wind and the rain and the sunshine. I just don’t think there’s anything I’ve found in my life that makes me feel so present.”

To learn more about Riding Out, visit the Summersdale website.

Interested in getting started bike camping, check out this article.