Nine years on from his first record-breaking ride, time trial specialist and double Paralympic tandem champion Adam Duggleby made 100 mile TT history once again on Sunday, smashing John Archibald’s marker for the distance by over two minutes – despite racing for 80 miles with a loose cleat.
The 41-year-old Yorkshireman, who piloted Stephen Bate to two Paralympic gold medals in Rio in 2016, averaged a staggering 31.5mph in what he described as “near perfect” conditions at the Eastern Counties CA 100-Mile Championship in Cambridgeshire to reclaim the record he last held in 2019.
Duggleby first broke the 100 mile CTT competition record, widely regarded as one of the toughest and most prestigious time trialling records, in 2017, before Marcin Bialoblocki eclipsed it by three minutes two years later. In 2024, the record was lowered once again by Archibald, who covered the distance in 3:12.58.
But Duggleby now appears to have kicked the record into touch, for a while at least, with a storming time of three hours, 10 minutes, and 48 seconds, over two minutes faster than Archibald.
He was also almost nine minutes faster than the second-placed rider on the day, Twickenham CC’s Liam Maybank, who covered the distance in 3:19.40, while FTP’s Chris Gibbard finished third in 3:21.04.
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“I once held the 100 mile CTT National record in 2017. Today I finally got it back in near perfect conditions near Cambridge today,” Duggleby posted on Instagram after his record-smashing ride.
“I really wasn’t sure in my current form and whether I had it in me to get that record at aged 41. I thought, well the conditions are great and hopefully if I don’t manage the all-out record, I can maybe get the VTTA (over 40) record.”
Speaking to road.cc on Monday, Duggleby said: “I had the record in 2017 with 3.16 and I always said sub-3.14 was possible for me even after I finished that because I paced it wrong and really died off in the final hour. Then Marcin took it with 3.13, and then last year Archibald took it down under 3.13 on the Lakes course.
“I know John quite well as he now rides on the tandem for the Paracycling team and he said he hated the 100 and doesn’t want to do one again! I knew the E2 100 is very good with calm conditions, so entered it just so I had the option to do it.”
The 41-year-old, who mostly takes charge of his own training while running his Addform coaching company, continued: “I’ve been away quite a lot so far the year with the Paracycling team and I was going really well beginning of May but since I’ve had mixed and inconsistent training due to the Paracycling races and illness.
“I fully had the record in mind when entering the ECCA 100. I just know it has to be good to go really quick. Last year it was pretty windy and I was going to be a long way off the record before I had a puncture and DNF.
“This year the weather was as good as it gets. No wind and 20 degrees at 6am. It was also pretty overcast and at times misty and humid which meant the sun didn’t cause overheating. So I knew the record was possible before I started really.”
Duggleby explained that he rode the first 30 miles “quite hard”, averaging 31.6mph during the first two legs of the Cambridgeshire circuit after riding to the power he was aiming for following a steady start. That blistering first lap wasn’t without its problems and “near misses”, however.
“I had a few issues, the main one being that my cleat came loose about 20 miles in,” he told road.cc. “As many people know, I’ve struggled to get my shoes right and always messed with my cleats, it’s a bit of an ongoing joke and issue!
“I even messed with my right cleat five minutes before the start, but it was my left cleat that start coming loose about 20 miles in.
“By the end only one bolt was holding it on so, so I was making sure I just kept the weight against the front of the shoe to keep the cleat in the same place and luckily it stayed on! It didn’t really affect the ride but I was obviously slightly worried that it fully came off!
“I’ve been messing with my shoes and cleats, so serves me right! But apart from the cleat coming loose, everything felt good.”
Nevertheless, with his cleat gamely hanging on, Duggleby began to struggle by the end of the second lap, prompting him to take his only caffeine gel of the ride which, he later noted, “was like rocket fuel”, powering him to the finish.
“At the end of the first lap, I was three minutes up on 30mph, so about 3.10 pace. So, all I had to do was repeat that. But after the second lap I thought I was struggling a bit. Usually I have a big drop in the final hour, but I actually had a bit of a lull earlier in the second lap. I then made a real conscious effort to drink and have a caffeine gel, and it really made me feel a lot better.
“That seemed to make a big difference and the last hour was the best I’ve ever felt at the end of a 100. Usually I get a big drop off in the final hour, but I think it was probably my best hour of the race.”
Reflecting on whether he thought the record was a possibility at the beginning of the day, the ADDFORM VLV-Gardenshed UK rider, a former national 12-hour time trial champion, continued: “I entered this event it in the hope that conditions would be good enough to get the record back, and conditions were perfect.
“I wasn’t sure if my form was good enough, but I rode well and I knew from the weather forecast the record was possible.
“It wasn’t really a target as such. I just entered it in the hope conditions would give me a chance to get the record.
“I’m really glad it all worked out and I actually had better form than I thought I might! It all worked out and felt good surprisingly, even after my mixed consistency recently!”
