Kooth Digital Health recently launched Soluna, a safe, confidential behavioral health and wellness app available to millions of Californians ages 13-25 for free. To kick off the launch and promote mental health awareness, Kooth has launched a bike tour led by adventure cyclist Ed Hack.
Ed is embarking on a remarkable journey, pedaling across the entire state of California, covering over 1,000 miles from the northern border with Oregon to the southernmost point of Mexico. Along the way, he’ll be joined by athletes and many Californians to discuss their mental health journeys.
The 1,000+ mile journey will feature a multitude of difficult terrains - mountains, valleys, plateaus, and cities including Redding, Sacramento, San Francisco, Fresno, Los Angeles, and San Diego.
Ed has a deep passion for connecting with people from all walks of life, and his ability to push his limits and explore new cultures while maintaining a positive attitude and uplifting others is incredibly inspirational. Ed’s most prominent adventure so far was a 10,000-mile, yearlong cycling trip from the U.K. to Australia, where he fully ejected from his comfort zone and embraced the chaos of the world – making countless new friends along the way. We recently caught up with Ed to talk about the cycle tour and life in general.
What is your goal with the Soluna Cycle Tour?
EH: I hope to encourage people to embrace challenges – to see them as opportunities to improve themselves and seek them out when they’re getting too comfortable. We live in a relatively comfortable world, where it’s easy to resist challenges or be complacent within your comfort zone. But we thrive when we face challenges and push ourselves into unknown territory. That’s how we grow into better people and prove to ourselves that we are capable of more than we realize, in turn gaining more resilience and confidence.
We’re not going to be able to complete all of our challenges or conquer all of our limitations, and that is completely fine. But we can try – and that effort alone makes us into better people.
We all have limitations. Like most people, I have anxiety, and I got anxious filming the promotional video for this tour. I felt like I couldn’t talk and struggled to hit the points I wanted to hit. This is just one of those limitations you have to accept with being human. I pushed through and finished the video. It’s not perfect but I tried my best and now it’s out there, perfect or not. Most importantly though, I was able to gather constructive criticism and grow from the experience.
In today’s world, it’s also easy to lose sight of our own goals and purpose and get caught in the wind. One example that comes to mind is mindlessly scrolling Instagram: We’ll be stimulated, but we won’t have a goal. We must continually challenge ourselves mentally and physically and keep ourselves accountable for pursuing our goals.
What are you most looking forward to about the route?
I’m most excited about connecting and talking with people as I bike through the route, which will take me from the top of California through Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and San Diego. One thing I find with these trips is they leave an essence with you. It’s similar to how when you read a book, you don’t take in every page, but you do understand the book's essence. I like to think I’m going to feel very connected to California as a whole afterward - the people, the places, and the towns.
Are there any segments that are particularly daunting to you?
The first week through Northern California and Redding will be cold and isolated. I’ll be cycling across an elevated plateau where the temperature is expected to fluctuate between 14 degrees and 41 degrees Fahrenheit. It’s going to be really, really cold.
The coldest I’ve camped in before was 12 degrees Fahrenheit while cycling on the Pamir highway across the Himalayan plateaus [on my 10,000-mile ride from the U.K. to Australia].
Anything else you hope people take away from this tour?
Just like with my cycling journey, mental health is a journey, and we can’t expect it to be easy every day. We have to accept that there will be good days and there will be difficult days. So many factors are out of our control, so we just have to be as prepared as possible to give our best effort every step of the way.
We also shouldn’t get too preoccupied with the destination. Thoughts about where we’re going next are just speculation -- it’s better to focus on how we can be our best selves right now. After all, this is an ongoing journey.
I’d also like people to keep in mind that investments don’t have to be traditional investments like stocks or a house. You can invest in yourself and in things that unlock more in your life. For example, a cheap $20 used bike can expand your horizons and make life more accessible. Plus, that $20 covers itself quickly when you’re avoiding things like bus or train tickets.
As mentioned earlier, I also hope to encourage people to find challenges in life - whatever their challenges may be. And don’t be afraid to fail. Just go out there and push yourself!
Lastly, don’t forget we’re all human beings. No matter how many differences we have, we all have much more in common simply by being humans. That mindset helps me connect with people on a more personal level.
Follow Ed’s journey on Instagram as he cycles across California, and visit here for more information about the tour and where Ed will be during the Soluna Bike Tour.
