What this founder learned riding a bicycle from London to Sydney

Back in 2010, I felt the need to ride a bicycle a ludicrously long way — London to Sydney, in fact. Saying it out loud to my friends was met with looks of concern for my mental state. They clearly didn’t understand.

Around this time an email fortuitously plopped into my inbox. 

It mentioned an ‘Expedition Planning Weekend’ held at the Royal Geographical Society. Without giving it a second thought I paid the money and walked through the gates of South Kensington a few weeks later.

In the opening address, the speaker asked if anyone wanted to share what they’d come here to plan, and without hesitation, a young fella stood up and declared that he was planning to swim across the Atlantic. He said it as casually as if he’d ordered a flat white.

The weekend was filled with chats about dreams edging closer towards reality. Ordinary folk with bonkers ideas. The excitement in the room was palpable. Friendships and plans blossoming.

I’d found my people. 

Six months later I pointed my wheels East to begin — and eventually complete — a two-year and 38,000km adventure across the planet. Following this I launched a media company We Are Explorers with a mission to get everyone outside more.

How can switching off from the digital world help?

It’s personal and profound how real-life events like this can be transformative. 

Stepping out from the digital world into a physical setting with like-minded people can spark conversations that serve as a gateway to change. 

Events centred around a shared passion, irrespective of the topic, naturally inspire and empower, due largely to the interactions we have while there.

The most potent ingredient is often those breakout conversations. When engaged and open minds come together, magic happens. This is where business ideas are tested and shaped, where co-founders meet, and partnerships are born. People are eager to help and offer assistance, and the sparks of possibility fly high. These small conversations open up avenues for exploration, leading to outcomes far, far greater than those in a colder, digital setting.

How to foster deeper connections?

The deeper connection we crave as humans simply cannot be replicated through video calls. As emotionally intelligent beings, our communication relies heavily on subtle cues, eye contact, and body language. These are the building blocks of meaningful relationships.

Many of us feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of content and distractions too. While digital moments have their place, they lack the lasting impact of face-to-face interactions. It’s much harder to forget a face and a meaningful chinwag.

We draw strength from each other too. My favourite email ever sums up this power of connection, being vulnerable and simply putting yourself out there. It came from someone who joined a two-day hiking event we organised in the Blue Mountains:

“There I was, overweight and lacking fitness. I was stretched and I kept thinking it better not be me that sprains my ankle as I’m the heaviest one in the group! I bet the guides were thinking that too, I bet they were (I would have been). But it was just what I needed.

I broke my knee playing soccer last March, some life things had got to me in between and I had let myself go and was in a bit of a slump.  Spontaneously I signed up for this experience and there I was on a two-day adventure that required my full attention. I had to let go of things that were bothering me and push myself out of my stuck place and get moving! It really was the very thing I needed to jump start me again. If I had been more organised and read the tour thoroughly I would not have been as challenged as I was, nor felt the exultation of reaching the top of that vertical ascent. I wouldn’t want to have missed out on that, now that’s it done. It made me think if I can do that unfit and overweight, what’s around the corner? What’s the next challenge that I set myself? It really was inspirational and I wouldn’t want another person, feeling like I was, to miss out on that. We all need those sparks of adventure to re-awaken us and get us back into the game of life.”

That right there is the power of adventure.

How can community benefit us?

We are pack animals, wired for community, yet we feel more disconnected than ever before. Online communities have become an integral part of our lives, making it easier to find your tribe no matter how niche. However, the power of real-life experiences is irreplaceable.

Since founding We Are Explorers in 2014, I’ve aimed to dismantle the barriers to living an outdoor lifestyle (finding your people is one of the biggest hurdles — in our latest audience survey 40% said it was what stopped them spending more time outside).

So being a digital publisher we launched an event calendar that makes it easy to find and attend life-changing nature-centric events. My goal is to harness the immense power of tech and media to build a gateway towards meaningful relationships in the real world. This is where the magic lies and it’s how we can empower one another to create a landscape where community truly thrives.

Henry Brydon is the founder of We Are Explorers.

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