Hudson started her French challenge with a \u00a310,000 fundraising goal and had double that in mind as an ambitious target. Six months after arriving in the French capital, she describes the public response as \u201cunbelievable\u201d. \u201cYou can\u2019t really compute that amount of money,\u201d Hudson says. \u201cHopefully, it\u2019ll help a lot of people. That\u2019s why I did it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Turning point
\n![\"Amy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/DA2A0543-1.jpg\")
Amy Hudson rode every stage of the 2025 men\u2019s Tour de France route \u2013 transfers included \u2013 to raise more than \u00a375,000 for mental health charity Shout. Ottr Works<\/p>\n
Shout, a 24\/7 text-based mental health service, is a charity close to Hudson\u2019s heart. \u201cYou can text in, if you\u2019re struggling,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s really easy to access. It can be hard to pick up the phone and call someone, but it\u2019s really easy to send a text.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hudson is extremely open about her own mental health journey. She experienced a \u201ccomplete breakdown\u201d in 2021, while working as a nurse for the NHS through the Covid pandemic, supporting people with eating disorders. She started cycling after her husband bought her a Carrera bike.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe thought it would help,\u201d she says. \u201cI used to run a lot, but I struggled with an eating disorder myself, so I used to run to burn calories and burn food, which wasn\u2019t a healthy relationship.\u201d <\/p>\n
Having left her job, cycling became a hugely positive force. \u201cIt really helped me clear my mind,\u201d she says. \u201cYou can\u2019t really worry about stuff when you\u2019re going up a hill in the Peak District.<\/p>\n
\u201cAway from cycling, I still felt really low \u2013 I didn\u2019t want to be here, really \u2013 but I had the bike to keep me going. <\/p>\n
“It\u2019s helped me so much because I knew I had to eat more, to get stronger. I can eat out without worrying anymore, which is something I couldn\u2019t do before. Now I\u2019m a healthy weight, I\u2019ve got my periods back, and I\u2019ve got myself back.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amy Hudson in numbers<\/p>\n
2021 \u2013 year she got her first road bike<\/p>\n
6,554km\u00a0\u2013 length of her 2025 Tour de France ride<\/p>\n
74,863m \u2013 amount of elevation in the ride<\/p>\n
\u00a376,767 \u2013 money raised for Shout<\/p>\n
98,700 \u2013 Instagram followers<\/p>\n
43,800 \u2013 YouTube subscribers<\/p>\n
205 days \u2013 current world record for riding round the world as a couple<\/p>\n
150 days \u2013 Hudson and her husband\u2019s aim when they set off in May 2026<\/p>\n
The power of cycling<\/p>\n
Cycling has transformed Hudson\u2019s life. The Instagram account (@amy.cycling.adventures<\/a>) she set up after she left her job now has nearly 100,000 followers; the YouTube channel she started in 2023<\/a> has more than 43,000 subscribers. <\/p>\n \u201cI get messages all day, every day,\u201d she says. \u201cPeople tell me that I\u2019ve helped them, or that they\u2019ve started riding because of me, which doesn\u2019t feel real, that I can have that effect on someone\u2019s life. That\u2019s why I do it, but it\u2019s hard to comprehend.\u201d<\/p>\n It’s a long way from Hudson\u2019s first big adventure on the bike \u2013 riding the North Coast 500, a 516-mile route around the north coast of Scotland, with her dad in September 2021. \u201cThat\u2019s where I really fell in love with it properly,\u201d she says. \u201cI still wasn\u2019t very well \u2013 I\u2019d left my job at this point \u2013 but we just went and did it.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t have Lycra or cleats, just my trainers and massive panniers, with way too much stuff. I didn\u2019t have social media then \u2013 it was just me and him, with no responsibility, just nature. We got absolutely drenched, had to walk in 50mph winds, and I got blown off my bike twice.\u201d<\/p>\n Land\u2019s End to John o\u2019 Groats with her husband followed, complete with a gym bag strapped to a pannier rack. \u201cYou make it work,\u201d Hudson says, \u201cbut I\u2019m glad I\u2019ve now got all the gear. It\u2019s a lot nicer having dry kit.\u201d<\/p>\n 2025 Cycling Plus and BikeRadar Rider of the Year shortlist<\/p>\n Alex McCormack Vive la France These UK-based adventures provided the first stepping stones towards Hudson\u2019s Tour de France challenge. She was inspired by watching a documentary about Lachlan Morton\u2019s \u2018Alt Tour\u2019, in which the boundary-pushing pro rider took on the route of the 2021 men\u2019s Tour de France, self-supported and including transfers.<\/p>\n \u201cI watched it and thought, \u2018I\u2019d love to do that\u2019,\u201d Hudson says, even if she didn\u2019t believe at the time that she could complete the challenge. Riding the 1,200km Paris-Brest-Paris audax gave her the confidence to leap into her biggest ride yet.<\/p>\n Two years later, she set off from Lille. Clearly, Hudson was no stranger to long-distance cycling by this point, but a ride on this scale comes with its own unique set of challenges. <\/p>\n One morning, for example, she woke at 4.30am after barely sleeping in a sweltering apartment. Outside, torrential rain hammered down. She was exhausted and had more than 300km to ride with heat rash.<\/p>\n Another dark moment came on the Col du Tourmalet. \u201cI was really struggling,\u201d she says. \u201cI had three more mountains to go after that and doubted whether I could do it. But halfway up, I told myself, \u2018Come on, Amy. You\u2019ve chosen to do this, so you can\u2019t moan’.”<\/p>\n There were magical moments in the mountains, too. She climbed the Col d\u2019Aspin three times, even though it only featured on the Tour de France route once. \u201cThe first time I went up, it was really early in the morning on my own,\u201d Hudson says. \u201cIt was just me and the sound of cowbells.\u201d<\/p>\n Mont Ventoux and the Alps followed before Paris arrived, and the finish line came into view after 29 days in the saddle. \u201cI came over the brow of a hill and saw the Eiffel Tower for the first time. It all started to feel real. Before that, I was just thinking about eating, sleeping and riding every day,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n The final 46 miles in Paris were \u201chorrid\u201d, though, she says, because she had to contend with heavy traffic while riding four laps of the Tour\u2019s traditional finish on the Champs-\u00c9lys\u00e9es, followed by three laps of an extended circuit that included the new city-centre climb of C\u00f4te de la Butte Montmartre. \u201cBut I had to do it properly,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Next steps What\u2019s next? Attempting to break the record for riding around the world as a married couple, she says. The current record stands at 205 days; Amy and her husband are planning to do it in 150 days. \u201cI\u2019m excited, nervous\u2026 but mostly excited,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n She\u2019ll be raising money for Shout once again. Despite ever-bigger adventures, Hudson doesn\u2019t lose sight of the importance of cycling in her recovery and the work Shout does to help others.<\/p>\n Her advice for anyone struggling with their mental health? \u201cTalk to people, don\u2019t keep it in,\u201d she says. \u201cI left it way too long to tell anyone I was struggling; I managed to hide it quite well. Don\u2019t give up hope, because although it might feel really bad now, it will get better, and it doesn\u2019t last forever. The happy days do come back.<\/p>\n \u201cJust keep going and try to find something that brings you joy. I\u2019ve never regretted a bike ride and always feel better for it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\nAmy Hudson
\nImogen Cotter
\nMolly Weaver
\nSarah Ruggins
\nTadej Poga\u010dar
\nWill Pomeroy<\/p>\n
\n![\"Amy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/DA2A9985.jpg\")
Hudson started cycling in 2021, as part of her recovery from a breakdown. Ottr Works<\/p>\n![\"Amy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Amy-Hudson.jpg\")
She covered a remarkable 6,554km, with 74,863m of elevation. @amy.cycling.adventures<\/p>\n
\n![\"Amy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/DA2A0057.jpg\")
Next stop: a round-the-world record attempt with her husband. Ottr Works<\/p>\n