235 miles a day for a year (Amanda Coker Challenge)

[Aravis]

Thanks for the update @Dogtrousers - I was holding my breath yesterday!

@jay clock - I think there's been a general assumption from quite early on that the Kurt Searvogel target (76076 miles) is the realistic objective. But I'm not aware this has ever been stated by Steve. If you think about it, there was never going to be a single moment when the 86000+ target became impossible, and by the time it was obviously out of reach, did it really need saying?

I've updated my moving average graph - see below:

The Godwin target is demonstrably under control, although it remains a herculean task. The Searvogel target is, however, slipping away rapidly. Roughly speaking, he needs the equivalent of an extra lap (about 10 miles) of his standard A505 circuit on most of the remaining days. However unlikely, at this stage I don't think you can say it's impossible. I'm quite sure that given reasonable luck he'll find something on the run-in.

 

[jay clock]

Thanks for the update @Dogtrousers - I was holding my breath yesterday!

@jay clock - I think there's been a general assumption from quite early on that the Kurt Searvogel target (76076 miles) is the realistic objective. But I'm not aware this has ever been stated by Steve. If you think about it, there was never going to be a single moment when the 86000+ target became impossible, and by the time it was obviously out of reach, did it really need saying?
.

I was not trying to be arsy, I was genuinely trying to understand what he was trying to achieve having lost track of his various attempts

 

[Dogtrousers]

View: https://twitter.com/steve_abraham74/status/940149359680860160

 

[Aravis]

I was not trying to be arsy, I was genuinely trying to understand what he was trying to achieve having lost track of his various attempts

Yes, I'm sorry. I knew I hadn't got the tone quite right, but I had to dash out. FWIW I'm trying to understand as well. Some of his statements do seem purposely enigmatic.

 

[jay clock]

View: https://twitter.com/steve_abraham74/status/940149359680860160

I had already had a look through his Twitter before posting and was not much the wiser. Fairly infrequent and comments like "very tough week last week" with no reference to how far and whether on target. Sounds like he needs a mate he can simply call once a day, do a 60 sec dump of data and impressions and they add that to Twitter etc. Can't be easy I am sure. I have done a few Ironmans but could not conceive of doing even one day of 200 miles!

 

[Dogtrousers]

I had already had a look through his Twitter before posting and was not much the wiser. Fairly infrequent and comments like "very tough week last week" with no reference to how far and whether on target. Sounds like he needs a mate he can simply call once a day, do a 60 sec dump of data and impressions and they add that to Twitter etc. Can't be easy I am sure. I have done a few Ironmans but could not conceive of doing even one day of 200 miles!

Knowing what Steve is thinking is never easy. Early on in this attempt he seemed to make an attempt at doing things like video logs, but he kept breaking the cameras and I don't think it's really his thing. At one point we thought that Kajsa was going to be a bit more involved with communications, which would have been good, but that never happened. I don't suppose he has many spare minutes between sleeping and cycling.

As it is, I think all we can know is he's trying his utmost, and at the end of the year we'll see how much he's done. The way I see it, it won't make any difference whether or not we known the gory details of whatever it is that's been setting him back.

That's why I said earlier that "he's trying to ride as far as he can in a year". Which was a pretty smart-alecy response, I confess, but that's pretty much all we know, and pretty much all we need to know, I think. Aside from that, the figures speak for themselves.

 

[DCLane]

Essentially he's riding in all weathers and across a range of territory. Amanda and Kurt swapped territory and moved to the Florida flatlands.

Steve could head for the French coast along the Bay of Biscay and ride flat all day long, but he hasn't. For me that's more sensible but not necessarily in the spirit of the ride.

 

[tallliman]

Yep, whilst I admire Amanda's record, I prefer the way Steve has gone about it. However, he seems to have increasingly done circuit rides along A roads to keep the miles up. It almost seems a concession that the long loop rides weren't good for his attempt (unless it's more down to his health/weather)

 

[Dogtrousers]

Steve managed 229km in and around Milton Keynes yesterday Strava
Started finding it difficult to keep my line and started veering further into the road. Melted snow was freezing up, so I headed for M. Keynes to ride under street lights thinking that being in a town would be warmer to help prevent icy roads as well.

 

[ianrauk]

142 miles in this freezing weather to us mere mortals would be an amazing effort. For Steve I think even he may be disappointed at that. Of course he's not helped by the conditions. Where Kurt and Amanda had warmer climes, Steve is battling with the winter UK elements so unfortunately unless he can pull out a good few stunning huge efforts in the remaining amount of days he has left, even's Kurt's mileage will be beyond Steve.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Required rates for various records

Days remaining: 83 Current rate 207.8 miles/day
35.5 miles/day required for René Menzies (1937) 61,561 miles
48.8 miles/day Ossie Nicholson (1937) 62,657 miles
60.2 miles/day Steve Abraham (2015) 63,609 miles
78.5 miles/day Bernard Bennett (1939) 65,127 miles
198.2 miles/day Tommy Godwin (1939) 75,065 miles
210.4 miles/day Kurt Searvogel (2015) 76,076 miles
336.9 miles/day Amanda Coker (2016) 86,573 miles

Edit: Note that's not including yesterday's ride, so it's as at end of Sunday.

 

[Aravis]

Steve has posted yesteday's activity. He was hit by a car, but is OK.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1314105590

 

[ianrauk]

Flippin' heck.

Steve is just not destined to get this record is he.

 

[Dogtrousers]

Sheesh. I noticed the tracker was quiet today, but didn't see Strava.

 

[HLaB]

Steve has posted yesteday's activity. He was hit by a car, but is OK.

https://www.strava.com/activities/1314105590

On Faceboke he says the doctor has told him to rest for 72hours :-/

I was hit from behind by a car. Just a glancing blow, rather than a direct hit. Took the wing mirror clean off.
Worst of my injuries are in the photos taken about 20 hours later. Right hand side of my drop handlebars is now more like an extra tri-bar. Probably lucky I was on the tri-bars at the time. Not much more than superficial wounds really. Walking is uncomfortable, not in any pain if I am resting and I should be OK in 72 hours, according to the doctor. Been checked out and X-rayed and nothing broken. Swelling seems to be going down very quickly. I've just been eating and sleeping today.
So, I was hit and found myself lying at the roadside with my right leg tangled in bent up handlebars and in shock. I untangled myself and a passer by stopped and phoned the police. The person who hit me did stop.
Ended up waiting at the roadside for about an hour in freezing temperatures (having now checked my ride on Strava, it was 32F or 0C, so literally was freezing), covered in blankets and going into hypothermia. It got tough when my temperature went down to 34 degrees and it went as low as 33.
As I've had people ask what my resting pulse is, it went down to 37bpm when I was in hospital and warmed up again. It gave the medic a fright until I told him I cycle about 200 miles a day. I even got a free sandwich

At least he's smiling about it :-/