Steve Abraham to decide on Year record attempt in coming days after yesterday's crash

Tragic situation but sadly not unexpected, although we all hoped it would not happen, especially as he had coped so well with the winter and better days lay ahead. Surveys I carried out of in 1974 of Greater Manchester CTC members found that skill and experience offered no protection against being hit by a motor vehicle and that the more miles one did the more likely one was to be hit. I suspect the situation has not changed since then.

Best wishes to Steve and hope he has a swift and full recovery. He is a committed and resilient cyclist and we have not seen the last of him. Bon chance Steve.

PS To my knowledge Steve has been wearing a helmet on the ride. The picture at the top showing him not wearing one was, I think, taken in the Mersey Roads 24 Hour Time Trial, where motorists are warned of the presence of cyclists by marshals and signs. I know from experience wearing a helmet, however light, gets to be painful towards the end of a 24.

Surely if Kurt is counting recumbent miles, and that is within the rules, then Steve could do the same, and be back sooner based on the lower weight-bearing?

As for helmets. If you would all just put them on and stop being such bitches about it then we wouldn't have to keep bringing it up! And we could then move the conversation onto other ideas that you would rather talk about. In the meantime, take all your seatbelts off and drive around for a while, see how safe you feel and then remember everyone did that in 1980!

I've broken both my ankles at seperate times. Each one was 6 weeks with cast on. Then physio for a coupla weeks before it would even move, let alone cycle. And certainly not 200 miles a day! Albeit NHS finest...

If he starts again in say, 6 weeks, can he choose that as either a 'restart' or a 'continue' as he gets closer to 31 Dec, I wonder?

I see a great marketing opportunity for a private healthcare provided to sponsor the best possible treatment to get him fit to ride ASAP - would be a good avert for the benefits of their services.

I doubt TAC would stop to allow Steve to catch up, he already had a lead even though he started later. Steve's only chance of getting the record is finishing on time and beating Tommy's distance, which means carrying on. Unless Kurt abandons his recumbent mileage as a sporting gesture.
At least being crashed into is in the spirit of Tommy Godwin's ride, painful though it may be.
Interesting that the moped driver is now described as drunk.

do you mean restart or continue?

he could do either, possibly both, but obviously restarting would mean a new 365 day period.

I would say he won't be riding for a good period, in the region of 4-6 weeks.

He's got a 10 day buffer on Tommy after 3 months, so in theory, and with lots of luck and no setbacks he could potentially claw it back again.

Just out of curiosity, if the challenge is to do as many miles as possible in a 12month period, could Steve restart the challenge once his ankle has healed?

Absolutely gutted for Steve. Have followed his rides on Strava with great interest since day 1. Aside from the undoubted vitriol coming the way of the moped rider, I hope that we use this thread to encourage Steve to make the speediest recovery. I know that Moto GP riders make miraculous recoveries, but they are not in the saddle pushing the crank for 15hrs a day.

Whatever decision is made, godspeed and keep your chin up!

Here's to a speedy recovery

This sucks because this kind of record is usually a one-time attempt. Get well, Steve!

Get well soon Steve. Hope the moped rider came off worse. Drunk - what a twat.

Go Steve

just out of curiosity, and given the debate on other threads, does he normally ride without a helmet (as per the photo accompanying the article)?

Cast with a build in cleat should do the trick!