The British cyclist attempting to cycle more than 75,065 miles in a year – a record last set in 1939 – has spoken of his struggle to keep on with the ride, despite having his leg broken in a moped crash in March.
With his leg broken above the ankle, even then he was unwilling to stop.
He told the Guardian: “It was me that fled the scene. It was either lose five hours in an ambulance in hospital when I was all right, or keep going when I wasn’t all right.”
Ten minutes later it was obvious something wasn’t right – so with a frustrating two weeks off the bike, Steve could only pedal with one leg in a recumbent.
This might not have been a problem, had Kurt “Tarzan” Searvogel, another cyclist, been making the same record breaking plans in the USA. The battle was on.
“I was just going to go one-legged, until the ankle got better, in Milton Keynes Bowl. But I just couldn’t do enough miles doing that,” said Steve.
“Hundred miles in a day was a good day. But I needed 200, so I was losing 100 a day, and I’d already lost thousands because I’d had 17 days not riding. I just couldn’t get quick enough.”
He took to the bike too early, and crashed and burned.
“I went pretty well in June but I was trying too hard,” he said.
With the record slipping out of sight (Kurt has now done 72,766 miles to Steve’s 62,753), Steve reset the clock, and re-started his record attempt in August.
With seven months to go, he is 27,020 miles down.
Steve’s eye is still on this year’s prize, “Because I still think I can beat him. He ain’t going to beat it by a lot. The most he’s going to beat it by is 1,000 miles.”
Having taken a year off work to perform the first feat, he has now jacked in his job altogether, and hopes to live on sponsorship and donations.
In an ideal world, he would like to be cycling 90 to 95 hours a week. That meant cycling over Christmas, as losing 200 miles to a bank holiday was unthinkable.
And when it all ends? “There are other rides I want to do as well. Race across America, race round Ireland. The first thing I want to do after this is just go touring, not have to do 200 miles a day, stop in some of these cafes I keep passing. I haven’t ridden in the Welsh mountains for nearly a year. I’m not here to look at the scenery, I just have to do miles.”
In 1939, Tommy Godwin cycled 75,065 miles – an average of 205 miles per day. With only one day off, and a heavy steel framed bike, he managed to go on to be the fastest to 100,000 miles.
According to a newspaper report made in April, 1939, Tommy wanting some company, “started out at Land’s End with another cyclist who was attempting to break the record to John O’Groats and followed him all the way!”
9 thoughts on “One Year Time Trialist has eye on prize despite broken leg”
Huge respect to Abrahams and
Huge respect to Abraham and Searvogel but even if the record is exceeded, for me the Tommy Goodwin record is even more phenomenal when you consider the technology of the time. 3/4 speed Sturmer Archer Hub gears!!! To truly break the record they should use similar equipment.
http://www.tommygodwin.com/
Waldner, think about it, that
Waldner, think about it, that’s a pretty poorly thought through comment. What was UK car ownership in 1939? Population was around 40M. The railways all had night trains and the network was way more extensive. Cycling was massive then and Goodwin was a professional, supported by a professional team. Suffice to say, I think, unless you invent a time machine, you cannot take Godwin on with equal terms. Finally, this is a distance record, nothing else. Feet climbed, time into wind, average speed etc etc don’t matter a jot. All that does is distance
flashpeddler wrote:
I don’t know, in some respects he’s right. Equipment, nutrition, road surfaces are all far superior to what they were in Tommy’s time. However on the flipside, there’s far more traffic, the roads are much busier and more dangerous than they were back in 1939.
If it was me doing that, I’d pick a country that has far quieter roads and much better weather!
flashpeddler wrote:
Then by your own logic if it’s only about distance why mention car ownership and train networks? Busier roads now, sure, but maybe more roads to cycle on as well.
Its simply my opinion that the record set then was harder to achieve and more impressive given all the conditions/variables in place at that time
Certainly puts my 6000 miles
Certainly puts my 6000 miles into perspective.
Phenomenal willpower required to keep going day after day.
In 1940, 8,609 people died on
In 1940, 8,609 people died on Britain’s roads, so the claim that the roads are now more dangerous is debatable.
Peowpeowpeowlasers wrote:
I’d hazard that the vast majority of those deaths could have been prevented via measures that we have now but did not have in 1940: in-car tech (airbags, crumple zones, anti lock brakes etc), far better medical care and tech, mobile phones for swift calling of the emergency services, air ambulance service, safer road design etc etc.
It’s a very difficult record to accurately compare now to then.
crazy-legs wrote:
fixed that for you…
Peowpeowpeowlasers wrote:
In 1940 there was a war on with blackouts and no lights allowed at night. Also bombs were falling creating even bigger holes in the roads than we have. All that may have contributed to the death tole. You have also got to factor in the medical facilities at the time.