Travel, Adventure
Sophie Roberts
10 Winter Adventures in the Amazing Austrian ...

Imagine hiking up a mountain under a full moon with fresh snow under your feet, breaking through the tree line and feeling that warm glow of sunrise hitting your face. Riding a sleigh pulled by huskies in a winter wonderland, cross- country skiing through villages nestled in the Austrian Alps, tobogganing down a mountain at sunset, swimming in a frozen lake or ski-touring up a mountain and descending through the trees. Imagine ending your day in a rejuvenating thermal spa before dinner and a well-earned sleep, to wake up and do it all over again. Welcome to winter holidays in Austria!

10 Winter Adventures in the Amazing Austrian Alps
Challenges, Cycling, Adventure
Sophie Roberts
Cycling Scotland's Epic North Coast 500

Not many thoughts enter my mind apart from what I am doing. I wish everyone could do something like this once a year, or even once in your lifetime. We need it! I switch off from everything. A challenge like this is so all encompassing that I don’t have space for much else. All my energy goes into the challenge, and the micro world I create with the adventure I am on, the world directly around me and the people I am with. My world becomes small but this gives me freedom to become bigger than I’ve ever felt. My mind is not filled with events going on all over the world, with emails, news, social media, and the need to reply to messages, my mind is filled with fresh air and miles, hills, sweat, tears and food stops. My mind is filled with views so dramatic and mind-blowing, I am speechless. My heart flips a bit with each corner I turn and the awe that the NC500 route delivers again and again.

Cycling Scotland's Epic North Coast 500
Inspiration, Adventure
Sophie Roberts
Building my Dream Custom Campervan - The One ...

It’s been a year since I started the project of creating my dream van ↠ @theonelifevan ↞ and as I get a lot of questions about it, I wanted to share the process and some resources with you! If you are thinking of building or buying a van i can say it’s ONE HUNDRED PERCENT as awesome as you might think it is! And my journey with van life is only just beginning... However, it can be a bit of a minefield and hard to know where to start. I hope this helps :)

Building my Dream Custom Campervan - The One Life Van!
TrailBlazers, Empowering Girls
Sophie Roberts
Just because my path is different, does not ...

There are preciously rare occasions in life when you are handed an opportunity to go somewhere or meet someone that truly inspires you. Somewhere that shifts your centre of gravity, allowing you to refresh, refocus and restart. Or someone that has the capacity to capture your imagination and transport it to places you aspire to go but don’t quite know how to access. When your mind has gone there, the chances are your body will follow…

Just because my path is different, does not mean I am lost
Sophie Roberts
TrailBlazers: Empowering Girls Sailing ...

In October 2019, I took 10 girls sailing for five days on a Tall Ships Youth Trust sailing adventure proudly sponsored by KEEN footwear. It was magical and lives were changed!

We stepped off the boat with a different perspective. With love in our hearts, faith in ourselves and confidence to go forth and grow into the women we know we can be. I asked the girls to capture their experiences and what it meant to them…

TrailBlazers: Empowering Girls Sailing Adventure

Challenges

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Cycling Scotland's Epic North Coast 500

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Cycling Scotland's Epic North Coast 500

Not many thoughts enter my mind apart from what I am doing. I wish everyone could do something like this once a year, or even once in your lifetime. We need it! I switch off from everything. A challenge like this is so all encompassing that I don’t have space for much else. All my energy goes into the challenge, and the micro world I create with the adventure I am on, the world directly around me and the people I am with. My world becomes small but this gives me freedom to become bigger than I’ve ever felt. My mind is not filled with events going on all over the world, with emails, news, social media, and the need to reply to messages, my mind is filled with fresh air and miles, hills, sweat, tears and food stops. My mind is filled with views so dramatic and mind-blowing, I am speechless. My heart flips a bit with each corner I turn and the awe that the NC500 route delivers again and again.

Great Manchester Run - Special K X Sophie

Great Manchester Run - Special K X Sophie

This blog is sponsored by Special K.

It’s race day! We’re lined up at the start of the Great Manchester Run, fired up and raring to test ourselves on the half marathon course, the atmosphere feels electric. Last minute checks; eat half a banana, drink water, go to the toilet, get playlist ready: all set. In the final few minutes before the gun goes off, we give each other hugs, high fives, take a deep breath and then its show time.

The KONA 10 Challenge

The KONA 10 Challenge

I receive a lot of emails asking me to all sorts of crazy challenges, often with very little notice. I had three week’s notice to do World’s Toughest Mudder, a 24 hour non-stop Tough Mudder obstacle race in Las Vegas where I ran 50 miles and did 200 obstacles! This is why I train hard, despite not always having a specific challenge I’m training for; I want to be ready when these opportunities come up and jump on them.

When I received an email asking if I thought I could reach 10 volcanic locations, climbing or cycling to their summits in 72 hours whilst also driving between them in British winter, my first reaction was “We have volcanoes in the UK?” Apparently we do, dating back 450 million years!

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What Cycling London to Paris Did For Me

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What Cycling London to Paris Did For Me

If I had to choose one mission to dedicate the rest of my life to, it would be this. To inspire and empower ordinary people, like you and me, to achieve extraordinary things, develop a robust self-belief, and overcome the fears, doubts and obstacles that hold us back.  

Every year I run my annual London to Paris Sportive where 120 people join me from all over the world to take on the epic challenge of cycling 200 miles in 24 hours between two of the world’s most iconic cities.

A week before the event this year, Caroline contacted me saying she would be unable to come because her Stepfather was dying and she had just split with her boyfriend. After a few emails back and forth, she said she was committed to giving L2P24 her best shot. Here is her story of heartbreak, bravery, resilience and ultimately, pride...

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10 Cycling Challenges That Could Change Your Life

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10 Cycling Challenges That Could Change Your Life

I have always felt like life tries to make you fit into boxes. Social norms, expectations and boundaries placed on our lives. We can often find ourselves adhering to other people’s rules about how we should live and who we should be. 

Through adventure I realised there are no limits to who you can be or what you can achieve. In fact, it’s the opposite. Today I’m sharing with you my favourite cycling challenges that could raise your life to the next level, should you choose to accept the mission.

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My Annual London to Paris Sportive | L2P24

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My Annual London to Paris Sportive | L2P24

It’s 3pm on Saturday 29th April and a group of 120 cyclists are preparing to embark on the epic challenge of cycling 200 miles from London to Paris in 24 hours.

These are ordinary people with the desire to achieve something extraordinary.

Completing this challenge is an extraordinary achievement requiring physical, mental and emotional strength. I believe there is nothing more powerful and valuable than proving to yourself how strong and incredible you really are. That’s why I organise this event each year.

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How to Train for an Endurance Challenge

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How to Train for an Endurance Challenge

Endurance challenges had me hooked many years ago. Being deep in the pain cave, feeling completely broken and like you have nothing left to give. Finding a way to keep going, keep pushing and come out the other side to complete your wild and ambitious challenge. That feeling, is something I would love everyone in the world to experience. It’s magical because of the way it changes you.

Having completed some of the world’s toughest endurance events like Ironman, World’s Toughest Mudder, running 100km ultra marathons and cycling London to Paris in 24 hours, here is what I’ve learnt along the road.

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What Confidence Means to Me

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What Confidence Means to Me

I believe we have to nurture and develop our confidence just like anything else that’s important to us. We don’t just wake up one day feeling confident, we have to invest energy and effort in building self-belief. How do we do this? Especially tough to navigate, when coupled with the desire to challenge ourselves and live courageously, we have to face fear and failure which can have an adverse affect on confidence.