Jupiter Travels

The man is Ted Simon. The bike is a 1973 Triumph Tiger 100. The place is somewhere in a world he was the first one to ride

One cannot say that a book make you burst into tears very often. Jupiter Travels had that effect on me. As soon as I was reading the final paragraphs I wept, and when I close the final page, I found myself crying like a baby.

SPOILER!!!!!!
If you haven’t read the book yet, you might not want to know about the end of the story, but it really touched my heart how Ted explains the feeling of being lost and not knowing what to do after he parked the bike and his entire venture was over.

I guess I feel pretty much like that when I’m not riding . A lost boy in a crystal jungle where I cannot fit. On the bike I am a traveller, and adventurer; I am myself.

This gets me to wonder about the changes in the market recently. Do we really need a GS 1200 with Touratech panniers? Do we really need super advanced leather jackets to perform a trip like this? There is no need for sure, but they are highly appreciated.

Many riders get the idea wrong, that they first need the perfect bike and then hit the road. I think you first need the attitude, and then adapt your riding to whatever ride you own and hit the road no matter what.

What makes Ted Simon’s adventure so interesting is the fact that he made a great achievement everyone else can actually do. This is not like watching professional riders videos performing stunts only a few can do… However; having the determination of doing it is the attitude of only a few.

Because let’s be honest, many of us dream of doing something like this. But it is a vast majority who would give any excuse to avoid doing it claiming that the mortgage, a job, family or your pet dog is preventing you from doing it.

So in order to dream of riding the vast world on a motorcycle while sitting at the office or just to learn about the philosophy inside a helmet, this is a highly recommended book. It is very well written, as there is a real journalist behind it, and in addition, an extraordinary human being.

It seems that solo riding has a dramatic effect in our minds, we get very reflexive and we have time for ourselves, to be alone with our thoughts or to simply be who we are. As Ted Simon proves, there’s no better mindfulness practice than riding a bike.

If you want to know more about Ted Simon first hand, you’d better have a look at his website: https://jupitalia.com/