World record attempt, almost there...

Check out this guy's route. Respect! Also, if the video of his training ride in France is any indication he's a fun loving guy who is cycling for all the right reasons... because he loves it. Hope he does get the record. His route is CRAZY though! Politically very very difficult, and difficult terrain. He'll have a hell of an adventure.

Just to add to the list came across this article some months ago: http://www.thisisbristol.co.uk/news/Round-world-cycle-attempt/article-1140157-detail/article.html

He plans to do it in 100 days, with the aid of a support vehicle. It would be a good effort. 100 days without a support vehicle would be all but impossible.[/URL]

Just clarify - he does NOT have the record yet. He has not (as of today) submitted his evidence to GWR. His transit days and several high speed / high mileage days will be subject to much scrutinising.

His rants don’t make him too many friends but that shouldn’t take away from the physical achievement even if he comes in second place. Hopefully his ride won’t discredit the record in anyway.

Other readers may be interested in Vin Cox's www.greatbikeride.com principally because this is the first time a cyclist with a pro / racing pedigree has taken on the challenge. I’m sure Mr Sayarer will be mortified to hear that Vin is doing it for charity and is accepting as much corporate sponsorship as possible

I've been following Julian Sayarer's blog from the beginning and have just read what can only be described as his latest idiotic rant - for example:

"For the final month I must have been averaging close to 150 miles a day, it wasn't as leisurely as I would have liked it to have been, it still wasn't going to 'hell and back', as one guy said Mark Beaumont had done... If Mark Beaumont did go to hell and back, then he was doing it all wrong."

Now let me see......of course Julian you missed out a 3000 mile stretch through Australia into a headwind didn't you, you @rse!!

Yeh, I'm sure it was downhill all the way with a tailwind for Julian

Wasn't Beaumont slipstreaming his film crew all the way through Oz

Anyway, if there's no fixed route then well done to the guy who picked the easier route and to the guy that picked the more difficult route.... numpty.

I saw him "being filmed" as I left Norseman. Holding a video camera at arm's length....

Just read his blog. What a loser.

He was alone and it was tougher than he expected as the winds didn't do what they were supposed to.

The fact that the route is so variable diminishes the record for me rather like the marathon WRs used to be set on courses that finished at a lower point than the start.

It was a joke, hence the smilies....

I've no interest in the details of his trip.

Part of the challenge is to set the route and the compromises therein. You could probably ride most of it on flat dual carriageways and be bored into submission, or chose the road less travelled, climb a few hills and keep your spirits up. I see the variation as very much part of it

And there's also no distinction between supported and unsupported. So there's nothing stopping you riding flat dual carriageways drafting a van doing 20mph the entire time, with the people in the van handling all of your food for you and booking you in to the best accommodation there is (or even a quality motorhome).

That'd be frighteningly expensive, but that side of things doesn't matter as long as the rider has still cycled the entire way.

It's not much different from some of the LEJOG records that get set. People have waited weeks for the right weather (verging on gale-force South-Westerley winds) to give them an easy tailwind the entire way.

I understand drafting of any kind is against the rules. It would be unfeasibly difficult to take a motor vehicle around the world and offers no huge benefit. My own experience with long distance tours is that its better to be as self sufficient as possible as occasionally the support vehicle causes more problems than its worth e.g. the support vehicle gets lost / held up at customs / breaks down etc and has all / some of your baggage

I have two friends who have recently circumnavigated Australia, both anti-clockwise. One was supported by his wife in a camper, one did it entirely on his own. David you wil remember from this forum.
They both did an amazing thing, but there are fundamental differences, both plus and minus, between the two. For me, it would be rather like pulling on a runner when climbing: could I have done it without? The chance of getting a second RTW chance are very slim...without sponsorship.

I take that back

I do hope Julian Emre Sayarer's record attempt is made null and void.

His blog comments are the rantings of a mad man, I think he's spent too long in the saddle!

http://thisisnotforcharity.blogspot.com/2009/12/yes-i-do-have-record-and-now-for.html

I feel sorry for Mark Beaumont, I'm sure it's the last thing he wants to read whilst on his Americas trip.

Julian, your a twat!

His blog rantings may make him look like a frothing loon, but he has still cycled around the world in record or near record time.

His latest tweets show that he has taken the stops into account, and that GWR have acknowledged that fact. However, both Beaumont's and Bowthorpe's published times were elapsed times (without removing time for stops) so we don't have anything to compare it with yet.

It's "you're a twat!" not "your a twat!".

Thanks Greenbank speeling and punktewaytion waz nevor my strong pooint!

I've got total respect for anyone who can cycle round the world.

But regardless of the stops and starts argument his record should be voided purely on the grounds of his vitriolic outburst on Mark Beaumont.

Calling Mark a **** just because he chose the bank sponsored TV documentary route for his record attempt is just not on.

Everyone has the right to an opinion, but to deride a fellow cyclist on the grounds that he doesn't follow Julian's way of thinking is just shocking.

We as cyclists are under enough pressure from the press and the likes of TV chef James Martin, lets stick together folks.

Feel the love!

If he submits 'sans stop times', what is to stop Beaumont and Bowthorpe re-submitting theirs?

Maybe they did but it was just easier to quote their elapsed times to the media as it is more obvious.

Maybe Julian has taken this into account and has got the new record. That's my point, we don't have all of the facts so we'll just have to wait.

Then of course there were those remarkable high speed days in Spain to consider...

(see data in earlier post)