For 35 years, I made my living on two wheels in London.

I started as a motorcycle courier before spending 25 years as one of Virgin's LimoBike riders, trusted to move high-profile clients and celebrities through the city's relentless traffic. Alongside my professional career, I raced motorcycles, progressing from club racing to the British Championship and eventually competing at world level in the Endurance World Championship, including iconic events such as the Le Mans 24 Hour and Suzuka 8 Hour.

Between the road and the racetrack, I've ridden more than a million miles. The cost was paid in crashes, broken bones, a debilitating back injury, and the gradual build-up of stress and burnout. Eventually, it all caught up with me.

By the age of 50, I knew I was finished—not just with the job, but with the version of myself that had spent decades trying to hold everything together at any cost. I walked away from secure work, ended a long-term relationship, sold most of what I owned, and stripped my life back to the essentials. With no safety net left, I loaded my KTM 690 and set off alone to ride around the world.

This talk isn't about adventure for adventure's sake. It's about what happens when the noise stops. When you're left alone with your thoughts, fears, regrets, and questions. Days, weeks, and months on the road gave me something I had avoided for years: time to face myself honestly.

I speak openly about the mental toll of professional riding, the pressures of modern life, the reality of burnout, and the fear that comes with starting again later in life. More importantly, I share the lessons learned when comfort disappears, certainty fades, and you're forced to discover what truly matters.

I didn't leave to escape my life.

I left to understand who I had become, what was still important, and how to move forward with purpose. This is a story about resilience, reinvention, and finding a way to live fully again.