Hi Iām Jimmy! Iām an 18 year old Ā guy from Adelaide, Australia. And on April 21st, 2018, I intend to attempt to cycle around the world on my push bike! To cycle around the world it requires cycling 29,000km and if I manage to achieve this I will become the youngest person to ever complete the journey!
I believe this journey will take me 9 ā 12 months to complete.
I graduated from Westminster school in 2016 and have worked as a freelance outdoor instructor over the past year. Though this job I have worked as a; kayaking, rock climbing, bushwalking, MTB and cross country skiing instructor ā this work has also allowed me to pursue a range of personal cycle trips, listed below.
In January 2018 I completed a 2000km ātraining rideā from Melbourne ā Sydney, crossing over Falls Creek and Jindabyne ā returning to Melbourne via the Hunt 1000 gravel route. This allowed me test all of my gear and have it dialled before April. If you want to see the stats then check out my STRAVA āĀ https://www.strava.com/athletes/1919020
My bike touring Ā history āĀ
2014 ā 500km self supported loop around Kangaroo Island (with Dad)
2016 ā 900km solo self supported trip down the East Coast of Tasmania
2017 ā 1300km solo self supported trip to New Zealandās South Island
2017 ā 1000km solo self supported trip from Adelaide ā Melbourne
2017 ā 800km solo self supported time trial from Adelaide ā Geelong
2018 ā 2000km training ride from Melbourne ā Canberra and back to Melbourne via HUNT 1000
Along with the riding I am going to be raising money for Motor Neurone Disease. This is an awful disease that slowly causes people to lose control of their muscles and body, eventually taking their lives. There is no known cure for this disease and I personally lost my beloved Gran to it, making it a cause close to my heart.
A link to donate can be found here āĀ
https://give.everydayhero.com/ā¦/jimmy-ashby-around-the-worlā¦Ā .
I have set myself the challenge of raising a minimum of 1 dollar for every kilometre I ride ā aiming for at least $29,000 raised by the time I complete my journey.
The āRecordā
As I mentioned before, If I am successful in completing this, I will become the youngest (or equal youngest) person to achieve riding around the planet.
Iām not doing this record for āThe Recordā, Iām doing it for the adventure! ā itās just an added bonus if I was to come home with it!
The Guinness World Record organisation no longer deal with or accept āyoungest peopleā records as they classify it as unsafeā¦ But they do have certain rules if you are attempting to become the fastest person to cycle the world ā which is currently 78 days, held by Mark Beaumontā¦ Very quick!
The guidelines/rules-
- The Journey needs to be continuous and in the same direction (West ā East)
- The minimum distance ridden needs to exceed 18,000 miles (29,000km)
- Needs to begin and finish in the same location
- Needs to pass through two antipodal points (these are two points that are directly opposite each other on the globe) ā for me it will be Wellington, NZ & Madrid, Spain
- You must do it under your own power i.e. no E-Bikes or motors
I personally am going to try and abide to these rules so I feel that Iāve cycled around the world the ātrue wayā.
What Can youĀ do?
Donating to MND Australia would already be a massive step in helping me along my way! Anyone or any company that would like to sponsor this ride would be absolutely amazing! Get in contact with me via ashbyjimmy@gmail.com to act further!
Also have a look at the route Iām planning, if you see that Iām passing through an area where you might know some peopleā¦ a warm bed could make me the happiest man on the road!
If you do know an area Iām passing through well, giving me some tips on the best way through or and alternate route would be a huge help to me!
And finally, sharing my story/plan around to help publicise these charities would be incredible ā tell the people at your office, sharing me around on social media or even just following my adventure could make a huge difference!
Thank you in advance!
The Route
The route is something that has been constantly chopping and changing and is likely to all the way up to departureā¦ But what I have here is the intended 29,000km journey!
This ride will take me through 18 countries and 4 continents! Below is the route through each country that I intend to cycle in!
Leg 1 ā Australia
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/26543049
Leg 2 ā New Zealand
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25207965
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25208463
Leg 3 ā USA
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/7894982
Leg 4 ā Europe
England ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25208492
Spain ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25372848
France ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/26471638
Italy ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25459848
Slovenia & Croatia ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25459909
Serbia ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25459921
Bulgaria ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25459959
Turkey ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25460287
Iran ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/26471648
Leg 5 ā Asia
Central Asia ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25646801/edit
China ā https://ridewithgps.com/routes/26530781
Leg 6 ā Australia
https://ridewithgps.com/routes/25649073
Following Me
Besides this website, there will be another few ways you will be able to follow my journey.
Each day I will be posting my daily rides on my Strava account (Ā https://www.strava.com/athletes/1919020 ) ā All you need to do is create an account and you will be able to see my daily distances!
This Facebook page will be my main means of communication whilst on the ride āĀ https://www.facebook.com/JimmyAshbyAroundtheWorldbyBike/ ā I will be posting photos and updates from the road and the lead up to departure!
ā Live Tracker āĀ https://z6z.co/aroundtheworldbybikeĀ ā
