
(Just As Well) It's Not About The Bike
A Journey Across Southern Spain
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $19.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Chris Atkin
-
By:
-
Chris Atkin
About this listen
Discover the untold stories of one of the world’s most popular coastlines.
Part sporting travelogue, part political history, (Just as Well) It's Not About the Bike follows journalist Chris Atkin's 1,300 km cycle from Valencia to Gibraltar. En route, he travels through Spain’s most picturesque towns. And Benidorm.
Along the way, he learns about the region’s history, from the time four hydrogen bombs fell over Spain to the politician who shot General Franco’s daughter in the bottom yet rose to become one of the country’s most powerful men. While riding across Spain, Chris also meets an array of eccentric characters, such as the man who lives in a cave and the Airbnb host who admitted to strangling her previous guest.
People told him he was crazy to leave his job and his girlfriend behind to jump on the cheapest bike he could find. After a series of mishaps including one that almost sparked a mountain rescue mission, it would appear they were right.
©2021 Chris Atkin (P)2022 Chris AtkinListeners also enjoyed...
-
In a Sunburned Country
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: Bill Bryson
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Every time Bill Bryson walks out the door, memorable travel literature threatens to break out. His previous excursion on the Appalachian Trail resulted in the best seller A Walk in the Woods. Now, we follow him "Down Under" to Australia with this delectably funny, fact-filled, and adventurous performance that combines humor, wonder, and unflagging curiosity. More from Bill Bryson.
-
-
Laugh out loud funny
- By Larry on 06-09-03
By: Bill Bryson
-
Turn Right at Machu Picchu
- Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time
- By: Mark Adams
- Narrated by: Andrew Garman
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Writer for the New York Times and GQ, Mark Adams is also the acclaimed author of Mr. America. In this fascinating travelogue, Adams follows in the controversial footsteps of Hiram Bingham III, who’s been both lionized and vilified for his discovery of the famed Lost City in 1911—but which reputation is justified?
-
-
Spellbounding, exceptional vocals
- By KLewis on 09-19-15
By: Mark Adams
-
Ghost Rider
- Travels on the Healing Road
- By: Neil Peart
- Narrated by: Brian Sutherland
- Length: 15 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In less than a year, Neil Peart lost both his 19-year-old daughter, Selena, and his wife, Jackie. Faced with overwhelming sadness and isolated from the world in his home on the lake, Peart was left without direction. That lack of direction lead him on a 55,000 mile journey by motorcycle across much of North America, down through Mexico to Belize, and back again.
-
-
Not happy, but fascinating
- By Jim In Texas! on 09-25-14
By: Neil Peart
-
Travels with Rachel: In Search of South America
- By: George Mahood
- Narrated by: Nathaniel Priestley
- Length: 5 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Knee-deep in a swamp in the depths of the Bolivian jungle, hunting for anacondas in a pair of sandals, it occurred to George that perhaps he should have booked that all-inclusive honeymoon to the Maldives after all. Join George and Rachel on their hilarious journey through the wilds of Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, as they climb volcanoes, fish for piranhas, trek through the Amazon rainforest, take death-defying bus rides, sample some of the continent’s strangest delicacies, and try to get to Machu Picchu.
-
-
Good armchair travel!
- By Beth H. on 03-22-25
By: George Mahood
-
First Train out of Denver
- By: Leo Jenkins
- Narrated by: Corey M. Snow
- Length: 6 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a tenebrous winter morning in Denver, Colorado, Leo Jenkins felt the weight of the world crushing him. Leo has a decision to make - maintain a comfortable position in a career he's no longer passionate about - or take a massive leap of faith. Giving up everything he's ever known, Jenkins sells his business, purges every possession that won't fit into a single backpack, and sets off into the world in pursuit of answers.
-
-
Leo does great work!
- By Anonymous User on 12-16-20
By: Leo Jenkins
-
Eureka: Finding the Line Between Desire and Contentment, Then Riding It
- By: Graham Field
- Narrated by: Graham Field
- Length: 15 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After the success of his first book In Search of Greener Grass, Graham Field hits the road again with his bargain-basement KLR650, recording his experiences in his inimitable and revealingly honest diary style. The Caucasus region is often overlooked by travelers, but Graham may inadvertently be about to change all that.
-
-
Loved It!!
- By Amazon Customer on 08-28-22
By: Graham Field
-
In a Sunburned Country
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: Bill Bryson
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Every time Bill Bryson walks out the door, memorable travel literature threatens to break out. His previous excursion on the Appalachian Trail resulted in the best seller A Walk in the Woods. Now, we follow him "Down Under" to Australia with this delectably funny, fact-filled, and adventurous performance that combines humor, wonder, and unflagging curiosity. More from Bill Bryson.
-
-
Laugh out loud funny
- By Larry on 06-09-03
By: Bill Bryson
-
Turn Right at Machu Picchu
- Rediscovering the Lost City One Step at a Time
- By: Mark Adams
- Narrated by: Andrew Garman
- Length: 10 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Writer for the New York Times and GQ, Mark Adams is also the acclaimed author of Mr. America. In this fascinating travelogue, Adams follows in the controversial footsteps of Hiram Bingham III, who’s been both lionized and vilified for his discovery of the famed Lost City in 1911—but which reputation is justified?
-
-
Spellbounding, exceptional vocals
- By KLewis on 09-19-15
By: Mark Adams
-
Ghost Rider
- Travels on the Healing Road
- By: Neil Peart
- Narrated by: Brian Sutherland
- Length: 15 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In less than a year, Neil Peart lost both his 19-year-old daughter, Selena, and his wife, Jackie. Faced with overwhelming sadness and isolated from the world in his home on the lake, Peart was left without direction. That lack of direction lead him on a 55,000 mile journey by motorcycle across much of North America, down through Mexico to Belize, and back again.
-
-
Not happy, but fascinating
- By Jim In Texas! on 09-25-14
By: Neil Peart
-
Travels with Rachel: In Search of South America
- By: George Mahood
- Narrated by: Nathaniel Priestley
- Length: 5 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Knee-deep in a swamp in the depths of the Bolivian jungle, hunting for anacondas in a pair of sandals, it occurred to George that perhaps he should have booked that all-inclusive honeymoon to the Maldives after all. Join George and Rachel on their hilarious journey through the wilds of Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia, as they climb volcanoes, fish for piranhas, trek through the Amazon rainforest, take death-defying bus rides, sample some of the continent’s strangest delicacies, and try to get to Machu Picchu.
-
-
Good armchair travel!
- By Beth H. on 03-22-25
By: George Mahood
-
First Train out of Denver
- By: Leo Jenkins
- Narrated by: Corey M. Snow
- Length: 6 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On a tenebrous winter morning in Denver, Colorado, Leo Jenkins felt the weight of the world crushing him. Leo has a decision to make - maintain a comfortable position in a career he's no longer passionate about - or take a massive leap of faith. Giving up everything he's ever known, Jenkins sells his business, purges every possession that won't fit into a single backpack, and sets off into the world in pursuit of answers.
-
-
Leo does great work!
- By Anonymous User on 12-16-20
By: Leo Jenkins
-
Eureka: Finding the Line Between Desire and Contentment, Then Riding It
- By: Graham Field
- Narrated by: Graham Field
- Length: 15 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After the success of his first book In Search of Greener Grass, Graham Field hits the road again with his bargain-basement KLR650, recording his experiences in his inimitable and revealingly honest diary style. The Caucasus region is often overlooked by travelers, but Graham may inadvertently be about to change all that.
-
-
Loved It!!
- By Amazon Customer on 08-28-22
By: Graham Field
-
Different Natures
- And the Spaces In-Between
- By: Graham Field
- Narrated by: Graham Field
- Length: 13 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Different Natures takes you on three journeys. Each gives an honest and passionate insight into the evolution of a compulsive traveler. Looking for direction with the wrong eyes spawned Graham’s lust for wandering. The miles cleared his vision, and the hunger for longer distance grows with an insatiable appetite for new experiences.
-
-
happy pills required
- By rick on 10-18-23
By: Graham Field
-
Through Sand & Snow
- A Man, a Bicycle, and a 43,000-Mile Journey to Adulthood via the Ends of the Earth
- By: Charlie Walker
- Narrated by: Charlie Walker
- Length: 6 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At age 22, Charlie Walker left home in search of adventure. Fleeing the boredom that comes with comfort, he set off on a secondhand bicycle. The aim was simple: to pedal to the furthest point in each of Europe, Asia, and Africa. He didn’t train or plan. He just started. The journey was an escape from an unremarkable existence, a pursuit of hardship, and a chance to shed the complacency of middle England. From the brutality of winter on the Tibetan plateau, to the claustrophobia of the Southeast Asian jungle, the quest provided Charlie with ample opportunity to test his mettle.
-
-
Loved this tale of adventure!
- By Harry Santa-Olalla on 04-09-19
By: Charlie Walker
-
The Penguin Lessons
- What I Learned from a Remarkable Bird
- By: Tom Michell
- Narrated by: Bill Nighy
- Length: 6 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1975, 23-year-old Englishman Tom Michell follows his wanderlust to Argentina, where he becomes assistant master at a prestigious boarding school. But Michell's adventures really begin when, on a weekend in Uruguay, he rescues a penguin covered in oil from an ocean spill, cleans the bird up, and attempts to return him to the sea. But the penguin refuses to leave his rescuer's side.
-
-
Enjoyable!
- By Skipper on 08-01-16
By: Tom Michell
-
Neither Here Nor There
- Travels in Europe
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: Bill Bryson
- Length: 5 hrs and 38 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
You'll stop at Europe's most diverting and historic locales and view the Old World through Bryson's tourist eye view in this affectionate, blisteringly insightful, and riotously funny pilgrimage from the frozen wastes of Scandinavia to the chaotic tumult of Istanbul.
-
-
reader beware
- By Marina on 11-19-03
By: Bill Bryson
-
Distant Suns
- Every Day an Adventure, Book 3
- By: Sam Manicom
- Narrated by: Sam Manicom
- Length: 13 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Sam Manicom's dynamic third book transports you to Southern Africa, South and Central America. Sam has a gift for describing the vibrancy of people and places, and you are led effortlessly through three very different parts of the world by his enthusiasm and his acute observations. Human behavior, drama, passion, disaster, humor, and the pure adrenaline buzz of overlanding such far-flung, wild and exotic places are all here.
-
-
Love this book. Eagerly awaiting the next
- By Seattle_BassMan on 05-24-16
By: Sam Manicom
-
Notes from a Small Island
- By: Bill Bryson
- Narrated by: Bill Bryson
- Length: 5 hrs and 39 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bill Bryson is an unabashed Anglophile who, through a mistake of history, happened to be born and bred in Iowa. Righting that error, he spent 20 years in England before deciding to repatriate. This was partly to let his wife and children experience life in Bryson's homeland - and partly because he had read that 3.7 million Americans believed that they had been abducted by aliens at one time or another. It was thus clear to him that his people needed him. But before leaving his much-loved home in North Yorkshire, Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around Britain.
-
-
Crackin' yarn, lad!
- By Dave on 03-28-05
By: Bill Bryson
-
Woke, Inc.
- Inside Corporate America's Social Justice Scam
- By: Vivek Ramaswamy
- Narrated by: Vivek Ramaswamy
- Length: 10 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
There’s a new invisible force at work in our economic and cultural lives. It affects every advertisement we see and every product we buy, from our morning coffee to a new pair of shoes. “Stakeholder capitalism” makes rosy promises of a better, more diverse, environmentally friendly world, but in reality, this ideology, championed by America’s business and political leaders, robs us of our money, our voice, and our identity.
-
-
Must read of 2021
- By chris boutte on 08-22-21
By: Vivek Ramaswamy
-
Dreaming of Jupiter
- By: Ted Simon
- Narrated by: Rupert Degas
- Length: 16 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Ted Simon rode 64,000 miles round the world on his 500c Triumph Tiger, he inspired thousands of motorcyclists to begin their own adventures, including Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman, who chronicled their travels in Long Way Round. Nearly 30 years later, Ted Simon took to the road again to retrace the epic journey he made in his 40s. He meets up with old friends and acquaintances, revisits old landmarks and locations, and rediscovers himself, as well as the world, along the way.
-
-
Amazing book, Amazing Man
- By Roxanna on 08-16-18
By: Ted Simon
-
The Catch Me If You Can
- One Woman's Journey to Every Country in the World
- By: Jessica Nabongo
- Narrated by: Jessica Nabongo
- Length: 12 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this inspiring travelogue, celebrated traveler and photographer Jessica Nabongo—the first Black woman on record to visit all 195 countries in the world—shares her journey around the globe with fascinating stories of adventure, culture, travel musts, and human connections.
-
-
Mixed Bag of Vapid and Deep Reflection
- By John Leonard on 01-02-23
By: Jessica Nabongo
-
Iranian Rappers and Persian Porn
- A Hitchhiker's Adventures in the New Iran
- By: Jamie Maslin
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye
- Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Jamie Maslin decides to hitchhike the entire length of the Silk Road, he decides to travel first and plan later. Then, unexpectedly stranded in Iran - a country he's only read about in newspapers - he wonders whether he'll make it out alive. After crossing the border on foot from Turkey, Maslin finds himself suddenly plunged into the subversive, contradictory world of Iranian subculture, where he is embraced by locals who are happy to show him the true Iran as they see it....
-
-
Entertaining & Informative
- By Bella Bates on 04-18-14
By: Jamie Maslin
-
One Year Off
- Leaving It All Behind for a Round-the-World Journey with Our Children
- By: David Cohen
- Narrated by: Kevin Stillwell
- Length: 8 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In One Year Off, you can join the family on a trek up a Costa Rican volcano, cruise the canals of Burgundy by houseboat, and ride ferries through the Greek Islands. Later, as the Cohens wander further off the tourist trail, you can drive through the villages of Rajasthan, traverse the vast Australian Nullarbor, and discover the charms of Cambodia's Angkor Wat and the hidden shangri-las of northern Laos.
-
-
fun filled travellog
- By tarun on 07-22-19
By: David Cohen
-
Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days
- By: Michael Palin
- Narrated by: Michael Palin
- Length: 7 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the autumn of 1988, Michael Palin set out from the Reform Club with an ambitious plan: to circumnavigate the world, following the route taken by Jules Verne's fictional hero Phileas Fogg 115 years earlier. The rules were simple. He had to make the journey in 80 days using only forms of transport that would have been available to Fogg.
-
-
music incredibly distracting and annoying
- By LJ on 05-18-19
By: Michael Palin
What listeners say about (Just As Well) It's Not About The Bike
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Alex
- 01-31-22
Loved it! 10/10
I’m a big fan of travel books narrated by the authors themselves and this is one of the best! I loved joining Chris on his hilarious adventure across Spain. He painted a vivid picture of the surrounding terrain and I was surprised to learn interesting insights about an area I thought I knew well. I would definitely recommend this audiobook to anyone - whether they are a cyclist or not!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Rayc
- 04-14-22
Interesting journey
If you like travelogues then this is a great book .
It's not a polished book but is a raw tale of life on a touring bicycle.
Funny and entertaining.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Placeholder
- 04-29-22
What an adventure!
I loved listening to this audiobook, very highly recommended! It felt like I was alongside Chris for every step of his journey and his British humor kept me chuckling on the way. Never have I learned more about the psychology of Airbnb hosts or the curious history of the south of Spain. I'm now very keen to make a trip out there!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Norma Miles
- 03-28-22
"Bananas for lunch."
Chris Atkin decided to ride across Spain on a bicycle : one reliant on pedal power, not an engine. One made for regular street trips, not overland, uphill journeys. And, he says, he wasn't even much of a cyclist. He must have been mad.
But he went, filling two paniers with essentials for the journey, and biked his way along tarmac roads, through farm land and wilderness, and up and down mountains, for about a thousand miles. He'd booked his airb&b accommodation in advance so had to make his destinations on time and took very little money too pay for those extra frivolities like food. Plus, he barely spoke Spanish. What could possibly go wrong?
Well, one thing was choosing to read his own book. His voice is clear, quite well modulated but he is just reading, not involving himself, and consequently the reader, in what he has written. A professional narrator could have done a much better job, carrying the listener with him through the (literal) ups and downs of the journey. There are some interesting snippets of history mixed in with the personal incidents of the journey, the aching thighs, the exhaustion of her another uphill stretch and, my personal favourite, completely losing the road on a mountainside and getting trapped there, with almost no food or water and definitely no one likely to come by to pull him out of the frightening situation. He gets lost a lot. And, although some places are described, they don't quite excite as much as the joy of finding a supermarket.
There are some interesting, quirky people encountered and Chris is rightly proud of the improvement in his mastery of Spanish - but why did he have to inflict so much of his stumbling conversations in that language, repeated after in English, on the reader?
This is a book which is I interesting but could have been so much better. To me, it seemed that Chris Atkin was as glad to reach the end of his journey as was I to come to the epilogue in his book. I'd enjoyed the journey but the struggle had been rather exhausting. Perhaps it would be better to travel on the printed version, rather than the Audible, just as a gentler vehicle than a bicycle might have allowed for a less bruising heads down, journey.
My thanks to the rights holder of, It's Not About the Bike, who, at my.request, freely gifted me with a complimentary copy, via Audible Unleashed.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- mr j c newman
- 01-29-22
Definitely a very enjoyable and educational read.
Your host Chris Atkin takes you on an adventure where he cycles from Valencia to Gibraltar, covering 1,300km. This is quite an adventure as Atkin fights the heat, or the strong winds as he goes on his journey through lemon trees, orange trees and olive groves.
Atkin is clearly a history fan as the book is saturated in fascinating history of all the places that he visits like Cartagena and Almeria. This wouldn't be a proper cycling expedition without his share of trouble, needing to repair his bike, his fitness being tested to the limit with all the uphill rides and the breathtaking, literally, landscape of the Sierra Nevada and the difficulty in finding a shop open on Sundays. He also meets some amazing people, as you should on a voyage, including friendly Troglodytes living in caves.
This book has certainly given me food for thought in my next trip but I don't think I would make it that far by the time I had to return to work and although I speak a little Spanish, I would have to improve as Atkin's knowledge of Spanish got him out of a pickle or two. I also love how Atkin narrates it himself, it makes it more personal.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- John S.
- 02-27-22
Being honest here
The story was very well told, where I felt I could see much of the action. However... author narration a definite drawback for me - he should've either hired a professional, or skipped the audio format. Much of the time it was obvious he was reading from a text more than sharing the details as though to a friend.
(Review copy provided by author)
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!