Bikepacker, Ultra Cyclist, Cancer Survivor.

Ash Eagles woke up the day after an operation to remove bone cancer, and set himself a goal of riding 100kms on his bicycle within a year. Prior to this he’d been told by his doctors that he may actually never be able to ride a bike again. Five years on from that he’s proved them very wrong and continues to take things to new levels on the bike.

After an arduous recovery period Ash finally got back to cycling again. Then he rode the TransAmerica Trail, 4,300miles across the USA from Oregon to Virginia with his partner Becky. Ash said when he’s on the bike he feels normal again, it’s own way of normalising how he feels post cancer and shows that he can still live a fulfilling life.

After crossing the USA, Ash continued to want to push his own boundaries. He’d always dreamt of riding from Lands End to John O’Groats – albeit he’d initially thought he would hike the route. Why not try it on the bike? He used the route as a marker, riding it fast to see if he could be up for the challenge of racing an ultra. He completed that ride and knew he was ready.

Fast forward to Cork and being at the start line for the TransAtlantic Way. Ash had signed up for his first ultra, a 1700km testing route on the West Coast of Ireland with a finish line at Derry’s Peace Bridge. Getting to the startline a challenge in itself, and he also had the Irish weather to deal. Then the mechanical that saw him have to hike off road for what felt like forever to a bike store to get his wheel fixed.

A principle that Ash keeps is that if people wish to stop to chat he always welcomes the conversations. He kept to that even during this ultra and never walks away from the possibilities that come from that opportunity to speak with a stranger, learn a little about them and share more of his story. Indeed, it was while he and Becky were cycle touring in Ireland that he cheered on a rider racing the TransAtlantic Way race the year prior. So it was a full circle moment to cycle past that very same rider in the race when Ash was turning pedals in the event himself.

You could say Ash is suited to Ultras, he ended up finishing in first place. Since then he has also raced a 24 hour time trial event and has plans for more ultra races in the future. A far cry from what the doctors had told him after his operation.

Keep up with Ash’s future adventures via his instagram account – @AshEagles

The Seek Travel Ride podcast