RACE NEWS
Lael Wilcox Closing in on Around the World by Bike Record
Lael Wilcox Closing in on Around the World by Bike Record
World-renowned endurance cyclist Lael Wilcox is fast approaching her goal of setting the official Women’s World Record for the Fastest Circumnavigation of the World by Bicycle. Lael started from Millennium Park in Chicago at 7:00 am on May 26, 2024, and has since traversed the globe on her bicycle.
Lael’s goal is to ride the 18,000+ miles in 110 days. Jenny Graham holds the current women’s record at 124 days, 10 hours and 50 minutes.
As of September 7, Lael has less than 1,000 miles remaining until she arrives in Chicago. She plans to arrive on the evening of Thursday, September 12, averaging 170 miles a day in this final stretch and arriving at Buckingham Fountain in Grant Park.
Lael holds numerous records, including the fastest known time on the 2,745-mile Tour Divide route, a victory in the Trans Am Bike Race, and a women’s record in the 4,200-mile Transcontinental Race. Her feats have captivated the cycling world and earned her a reputation as one of her generation’s most accomplished endurance cyclists.
Continue to follow Lael's journey on social channels:
· Lael’s Instagram: @laelwilcox
· SRAM Road Instagram: @sramroad
· Lael’s podcast: Lael Rides Around The World
Lael will be available for any interviews and photo and video ops on Friday, September 13 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm at “The Dome” in Fulton Market.
Fun facts
How many cups of coffee: 200, but I really drink a lot more Coca Cola than coffee! I bet I’m somewhere between 300-600 cokes.
Favorite day of riding: my first day back in Alaska, where I grew up. It felt incredible to be on my home terrain with daylight until 11pm after a winter crossing of Australia and New Zealand.
Most challenging day of riding: on day 4, I was throwing up all day, it never stopped raining and I was getting multiple punctures. I still rode 139 miles, but it was a tough one.
Number of countries: 22.
Total miles: on day 105, I’m at 17,284. The total should be 18,140 after 110 days.
Average daily miles: 163 miles per day.
Average speed: 14.5 mph.
Average daily calories: I’m probably eating between 6,000 and 8,000. I’ve lost a little weight, but not too much.
Estimated number of people that joined me on the ride: at least 3,000.
Nights in hotels: most – I’ve stayed with a few friends along the way too.
Nights camping: 3 weeks.
Height - 6'/183cm (mostly legs)
Weight - 155lbs/77kg
Inseam - 34"/86cm
Ape Index - The Original Slinky™
Age - 22
Bar Width - 780mm
Preferred Reach - 485-500mm
Comments
Adrian Bostock
4 weeks ago
Not to take anything away from her, I am a Lael fan, but she does not have the FKT on the Tour Divide. She held the women’s record for many years but has been broken. She is a bad ass non the less.
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Cooper Quinn
3 weeks, 6 days ago
I believe she still holds the women's FKT, though?
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Adrian Bostock
3 weeks, 3 days ago
https://bikepacking.com/news/austin-killips-tour-divide-fastest/
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Cooper Quinn
4 weeks ago
I got to join her for 40-ish kms through Vancouver - she's absolutely the nicest person on the planet. It put a lot of perspective on this challenge for me. In the back of my mind, it was a bit of a "ride bikes all day, its nice!". But then up the first hill, it was like... oh, right. You're riding 170 miles a day, which means you have to actually have a bit of pace here. And then keep this pace tomorrow. And the day after. And the next day. And the next 100 days. Quite wild to think about.
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Todd Hellinga
4 weeks ago
joined a big group with her through Squamish, such a rad person and so welcoming and thankful for the support!
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Edward Wagenaar
3 weeks, 6 days ago
Rode a short distance with Lael Wilcox as she came through St Louis 9/10/24 and she was flat out moving. My quick glance at the computer read 28+ mph. Needless to say at nearly 73 years of age I hung on for 5 miles and away she went. All I can say is what an experience. She’ll set a new world read today 9/11/24 when she finishes in Chicago. What an amazing lady.
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Allan Maxwell
4 weeks ago
Wow
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Kos
4 weeks ago
Also, Wow!
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Cr4w
4 weeks ago
In case you were wondering what "around the world" means in this context.
https://www.cyclingabout.com/exact-route-lael-wilcox-will-cycle-around-the-world-record/
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Lynx .
4 weeks ago
This woman is just an absolute animal, 160> miles a day at an avg speed of 14mph for 110 days, that just insane. She didn't mention how much she's climbed, but I'd wager that even trying to stick to the flattest route, she must be well over 100k ft.
My biggest thing is consuming all those calories she needs, for/to me that's the hardest part, keeping the calories going in without barfing.
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Cooper Quinn
3 weeks, 5 days ago
"she must be well over 100k ft"
192,000...... meters. So 630,000 feet.
Insane.
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Lynx .
3 weeks, 5 days ago
Yeah, just saw the report on her finish over on Velo and was blown away. I thought my estimate might be maybe off by some, but not less than 1/6 what she did, absolutely insane.
Right now Lackland Morton is riding the coast of Austrailia avg 300 miles a day at 20mph :-O Speculation is he'll be going for the mens record soon.
One thing I don't understand is how open/flexible the rules are for this, like you can pick your own route once it includes two points and doesn't waver more than 5 degrees off, self supported or not.
I'm waiting for when they do the one where they have to hop on a ship to make the ocean journeys and have to pedal at least 6 hours a day, while on the ship, you know, real Phileas Fogg type stuff :-D
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BC_Nuggets
3 weeks, 6 days ago
I love her. I've loved her since I first saw her interviewed years ago. She's just amazing.
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Bikes
3 weeks, 5 days ago
Not sure why but I like that she has a “plain” Specialized and not an S-Works when she probably could’ve maybe gotten an upgrade for free (maybe…I don’t know how these things work).
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