Cycle Around the World (solo) at 23 yrs old! Meet David Haywood – Podcast

David Haywood is an adventurer, and he prefers adventuring, so far, on two wheels. At (now) 24 years old he just completed a circumnavigation of the world by bike. Previously he has owned a Guinness world record for most countries by bike in 7 days (13), and competed in many triathlons, as well as a pshycology degree, to which he will add medical degree to over the next 5 years.

But to travel solo around the world and do it in an amusing fashion via amazing daily updates every single day (almost) for 349 days onto instagram  (and some facebook, and some blog posts), he truly went above and beyond for making the most out of his travels around Earth.

Travelling solo, and on budget, with tent, lots of spare batteries, laptop etc. he had 30kg standard (bike plus gear) then up to 40kg as he crossed deserts with limited water availability. David asks to stay at our place as he came towards Noosa, as a fellow triathlete I was happy to oblige and we had a great few nights/days getting to know one another and I became fascinated with his journey and followed daily from then on via instagram.

His outlook on life for such a young age is mind-blowing, wise well beyond his years, and also very amusing, David shares some statistics of his journey, his key takeaways from so many cultures interacted with, and lessons from the trip he can try to put into day to day life.

We have a great chat about many topics, somewhat philosophical and psychological at times, and technical, and it's great insight into a journey that most of us (understatement) will never undertake, and can't even begin to imagine what we might go through if we spent the entire year solo meeting new people, being alone, being unsure of where to sleep every single night as you ride into a town tired and on a budget,.. I can't even imagine how he got his brain to get him through everyday and night.

Unbelievable strength of mind and character, and did I mention he's only 24 (23 when he started)!

Hope you enjoy this insight, and please get in contact with David if you'd like to congratulate him or let him know you enjoyed the chat, or his instagram photos and writings.

Instagram @david_haywood