Ride before it is too late: the lesson of King Liu, Giant's founder

In February this year the cycling world said goodbye to King Liu, the founder of Giant. Beyond the numbers of one of the largest bicycle factories on the planet, his story leaves behind something anyone who has been out for a ride understands straight away: a bike changes the way you live.

Liu founded Giant in 1972 in Taichung, Taiwan, building bicycles for other brands. It was not until 1981 that he launched the company under his own name, at a time when "made in Taiwan" was almost a byword for cheap, and when riding a bike — even in his own country — was seen as transport for people with no other option. He bet on quality and on a long view, and time proved him right.

The best part of his story is that he did not start out a cyclist. In Giant’s early years he rode to work to understand the product better, but as the company grew he dropped the habit. He only took cycling seriously at 73: in 2007, inspired by a film Giant sponsored whose message was "do it now or never", he rode the whole way around Taiwan over 15 days. His reasoning was simple — at that age, if he did not do it then, he probably never would.

From then on he described himself as a "missionary" for the bicycle. He pushed what he called a new cycling culture, built on health, on personal challenges, and on the connections that form when you ride with other people. Years later he said that riding had lifted his confidence, his health and his appetite for learning new things and taking on new challenges.

Giant put it this way when they said goodbye: for him the bicycle was not just a business, it was a way of life. And you can feel that on any ride — the early Sunday one, the midweek one after work, or that first outing you have been putting off for months.

That is why his story resonates so much. There is no perfect age and no ideal moment to start. So the next time you cannot be bothered, or you think it is too late to get back on the bike, remember that someone rode around an entire island at 73. Ride Life.