Bournemouth Echo: Two mums cycling 1,000+ km across Turkey with their toddlers
As seen in the Bournemouth Echo: Two mums, two toddlers and 25 days exploring Turkey by e-bike — our adventure is making headlines before we’ve even left the garden!
I studied for my master’s in Public Relations at Bournemouth University, so it’s lovely to share this next chapter with an area that’s part of my own story. Thank you to reporter Fraser Simpson and the Bournemouth Echo for covering our adventure.
My friend Tori Williams and I fly to Turkey on 22 October 2026 with my daughter Skyla and her son Leo. We’re aiming to cycle more than 1,000 km with over 21,000 metres of climbing, towing trailers and carrying camping equipment.
We haven’t booked somewhere to sleep every night, and there’s no guaranteed daily distance. The adventure will unfold around our bodies, the roads, the weather and two toddlers! Our friend Gary will be there with a support motorhome as a safety net.
After being hit by a car while cycling in 2014, seven surgeries and years of rehabilitation, getting ready for an adventure like this on a bicycle feels particularly meaningful. I still live with chronic pain and a reconstructed hip, and I’m continuing to find ways to do the things I love.
“Motherhood doesn’t mean adventure has to stop. It just means adventure looks different.”
We’re raising money for Leukaemia UK in memory of Tori’s mum Wendy, who died when Tori was ten. Alongside making memories with our children, we hope the journey helps support the charity and inspires other parents to keep making room for adventure.
Read the full Bournemouth Echo article here.
If you’re new here, I’m Vanessa Ruck, The Girl On A Bike — a motorcycle racer, adventurer, motivational speaker and mum living with chronic pain. You can read about the cycling accident that started this journey and how adventure helped me rebuild my life.
Follow the adventure on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and YouTube. Comments and shares help bring more people along for the ride and spread our fundraising message.
The Girl On A Bike thegirlonabike
I'm a bike loving, free spirited adventurer born and raised in England. Life took a turn in 2014. In a single moment life as I knew it was taken away by the momentary lapse in judgement of a red-light-jumping car while I was cycling. My recovery to fitness took a little over 7 years with 7 major surgeries and since that day I've made it my goal to make the most out of life. My biggest goal is to help encourage others to get up and get out there. It doesn’t matter what it is, but we all start somewhere and if I can do it, so can you! Let’s make the most of life, what we do have around us and have fun doing it.
