Ian Hibell (6 January 1934England & Wales Birth Register Index, Ian H Hibell; Jan/Feb/Mar 1934; Mothers Maiden Name: Reddington Samuels; Registration district: Epsom; Volume: 2a; Page: 37 – 23 August 2008) was a

cyclist Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

who spent nearly 40 years bicycling in various parts of the world, accomplishing many firsts in cycling. Hibell, who was born in the

Epsom Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...

district in Surrey, lived in Brixham,

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and attended Torquay Boys' Grammar School. From 1971 through 1973 he became the first to cycle from

Cape Horn Cape Horn ( es, Cabo de Hornos, ) is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island. Although not the most southerly point of South America (which are the Diego Ramí ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

. Hibell co-authored a book entitled ''Into the Remote Places'' (with Clinton Trowbridge) documenting his travels. He lectured on his travels in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

and the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

, including at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

. He also designed some of his own gear, including front and rear luggage racks. Ian Hibell began cycle-touring when not all his family could afford to travel to a seaside holiday by train. He and his father cycled there, sleeping on park benches and anywhere else they could find.Wheels of Fortune, BBC Radio 4, 1988 He worked at

Standard Telephones and Cables Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd (later STC plc) was a British manufacturer of telephone, telegraph, radio, telecommunications, and related equipment. During its history, STC invented and developed several groundbreaking new technologies incl ...

and took leave to go cycling, eventually riding more than he was working. He went on to ride the equivalent of ten times round the equator, covering 6,000 miles a year. He is recognised as first to cycle the

Darién Gap The Darién Gap (, , es, Tapón del Darién , ) is a geographic region between the North and South American continents within Central America, consisting of a large watershed, forest, and mountains in Panama's Darién Province and the norther ...

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

and from south to north of the Americas. He also rode from

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

to the Cape of Good Hope and from

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...

Vladivostok Vladivostok ( rus, Владивосто́к, a=Владивосток.ogg, p=vɫədʲɪvɐˈstok) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai, Russia. The city is located around the Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, c ...

. A van drove over his arm and hand in China in 2006. He came close to losing his life after losing his bicycle while riding across the Sahara. He recounted how he was saved by wandering Arabs, who could see his bicycle even though he couldn't, and that all he had with which to reward them was a tube of sun cream, "which I didn't think they would particularly need." His favourite bike had a

Freddie Grubb Frederick Henry Grubb (27 May 1887 – 6 March 1949) was a British road racing cyclist who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics. He won silver medals in the individual road race and the team road race. In 1914, after he retired from racing, he ...

frame of

Reynolds 531 Reynolds 531 (pronounced 'five-three-one') is a brand name, registered to Reynolds Technology of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, for a manganese–molybdenum, medium-carbon steel tubing that was used in many quality applications, including r ...

tubing, reinforced for extra weight. In his book, "Into the Remote Places" (1984), he called his bike a companion, crutch and friend. "The quiet hum of the wheels, the creak of strap against load, the clink of something in the pannier", was "delicious". Hibell was killed on 23 August 2008 in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

by a

hit and run In traffic laws, a hit and run or a hit-and-run is the act of causing a traffic collision and not stopping afterwards. It is considered a supplemental crime in most jurisdictions. Additional obligation In many jurisdictions, there may be a ...

driver on the

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...

highway near Nea Erithrea./

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hibell, Ian 1934 births 2008 deaths English male cyclists Male touring cyclists Cycling road incident deaths Ultra-distance cyclists Cycling writers Road incident deaths in Greece People from Brixham People from Epsom People educated at Torquay Boys' Grammar School