Support road.cc

Like this site? Help us to make it better.

Back to news
news
Racing
Riding
Video: "It isn't working" - Steve Abraham abandons Year record attemptSteve Abraham with the master route planning tool

Video: "It isn't working" - Steve Abraham abandons Year record attempt

Milton Keynes rider had been falling further behind schedule
by Simon_MacMichael
Fri, Jan 22, 2016 10:26
7

Steve Abraham has abandoned his second attempt to break the record for the greatest distance cycled in a year.

In a video filmed last night and which includes a lengthy Q&A, the 42-year-old from Milton Keynes acknowledged that he was falling further and further behind the distance he needed to ride each day and that while he didn't want to give up, "it isn't working."

Abraham's attempt on the record started afresh on 8 August last year, four months after his original attempt received what proved to be a terminal setback when he was knocked off his bike by a moped rider.

Originally.  Abraham, whose Highest Annual Mileage Record attempt was being undertaken under Ultramarathon Cycling Association (UMCA) rules, had been aiming to surpass the 75,065 miles ridden by Tommy Godwin in 1939.

But earlier this month, the American Kurt Searvogel set a new record of 76,076 miles and one can only imagine the effect on Abraham, who had begun his original attempt a few days before his rival, but still faced the prospect of eight more months in the saddle.

According to the spreadsheet on the UMCA website, since Monday 11 January Abraham has only recorded mileage for four days.

As a result his average daily mileage has dropped to 179.17 miles, meaning he would have to ride an average of 228 miles every day for the next eight months just to match Godwin's record.

News of the abandonment was confirmed by Abraham's team this morning. They said:

With great sadness, Steve Abraham has made the decision to end his second attempt on the Highest Annual Mileage World Record.

Steve's aim has always been to break the record (he didn’t want to come second, or third). After careful consideration of his current performance - and after lengthy discussions with the support team - Steve decided on Thursday 21 January 2016 that he will officially withdraw from his ongoing attempt on the Highest Annual Mileage Record.

As you can imagine, the decision to end this attempt has not been an easy one. Steve would like to thank you all for your incredible support. For now he will undertake a well earned period of rest and recovery, before deciding on any plans for the future. 

Away from the UMCA rules, London-based Bruce Berkeley is also attempting the Year record, setting out on 1 January, with his attempt being certified by Guinness World Records, which has Godwin as the current holder.

Steve Abraham
HAM'R
UMCA
Kurt Searvogel
Bruce Berkeley
Simon MacMichael

Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.

Add new comment

7 comments

Avatar
dassie | 8 years ago
0 likes

You're a hero anyway Steve, well done!  From your Strava, I make it over 108000km cycled since 1 Jan 2015... 

Avatar
craigr | 8 years ago
1 like

Kudos for the great attempt. As others said the miles done on some dreadful days were really impressive. 

Avatar
arckuk | 8 years ago
1 like

I've been following his progress on Strava for the last year, and had been wondering if this was going to be the outcome. An amazing effort, but trying to keep it going for another 8 months having been at it for a year just seemed a much bigger mountain. Well done Steve, but for the accident I'm sure you'd have made it in 2015!

 

Slightly off topic, but Kurt beat neither Tommy Godwin's calendar year (the reported 75,065 miles in 1939; Kurt did 74,429 in 2015) or 365 days (Tommy 76,800 miles from May 1939 - May 1940) records. Don't wish to downplay what was an incredible year's achievement from Kurt, but it's amazing that both records still stand to Tommy.

Avatar
crazy-legs replied to arckuk | 8 years ago
1 like

arckuk wrote:

Slightly off topic, but Kurt beat neither Tommy Godwin's calendar year (the reported 75,065 miles in 1939; Kurt did 74,429 in 2015) or 365 days (Tommy 76,800 miles from May 1939 - May 1940) records. Don't wish to downplay what was an incredible year's achievement from Kurt, but it's amazing that both records still stand to Tommy.

Agreed and the other thing that got me was the way that Kurt did it, sometimes being taken 200 miles up the road so he could turn round and ride 200 miles with a tailwind. Sort of went against the spirit of it. I think to really take on the reocrd that Tommy Godwin set, you have to do 1st Jan - 31st Dec and there certainly shouldn't be any flying round the world to take advantage of permanent summer as BB is doing.

Avatar
backflipbedlem | 8 years ago
3 likes

Hats off to the guy! What an inspiration he has been ove the past year!!!

Totally feel for him!

Avatar
james-o | 8 years ago
4 likes

I remember the conditions this time last year when Steve was doing ~200 a day, saw him out in the rain locally one afternoon, really hit home how determined he is. A record must mean a lot to him but he has huge amounts of respect from a lot of people just for doing what he did. It's not always what you do but how you do it, he didn't use the weather or injury as any excuse or something to avoid. 

Avatar
bikeandy61 | 8 years ago
5 likes

Sad news but TBH I was always worried about his success after the accident. 

Chapeau Steve - you gave it a REALLY BIG go. No one can ever take that away from you though I'm sure at the moment you're pretty bummed.

Onwards and upwards fella!

On a related note - this Bruce Berkeley's attempt is looking increasingly dodgey. Have a look at Bikeradar for an update. Increasingly coming across as a chancer.

One of his excuses is a classic. He doesn't want to use the live tracker as it would compromise his living space. E.G. people would be able to tell when he isn't at home. Now call me stupid but I suggest that if you are riding approx 200 miles every day for a year there is a very good chance he probably is going to be away from home for at least 15 hours every day?

Another reason is he can't afford the $200 for the tracker. But he can obviously afford to not work for 12 months and fly from the southern to northern hemisphere to take advantage of changing seasons and weather conditions.

His arguments just don't hold a lot of water in my book.

Cynical? Moi?

Latest Comments