Yes, he can ride with others and be paced. I think the logistics or organising it are harder than one would imagine. He needs you on the road 5am to 10pm in the area where he has decided to ride. You really need to head to where the weather is kindest.

Surely thats part of the Social Media Managers job? We don’t need to be on the road with him at a certain time (after all, the hosts may not want their addresses published) all we need is an hourly updated route with the next waypoint on it??? Smartphones should make logistics a doddle 😉

Am I missing something here or would this whole thing be a million times easier if he just did the same 200 mile loop every day and went back to his own house where his missus could make him a cup of tea and 30 sandwiches

That’s what I always assumed Tommy Godwin did? Or at least rode from home (I imagine the same 200 mile loop would get very dull). And then returned home for supper, sleep, and maybe even some revitalising sexytime.

Keep things simple, I say.

Am I missing something here or would this whole thing be a million times easier if he just did the same 200 mile loop every day and went back to his own house where his missus could make him a cup of tea and 30 sandwiches?

Logistically easier yes, but have the battle in this going to be the mental challenge.

He’s going to need to mix things up to keep his brain working and motivation up.

For 24 hours i imagine its easier to switch off for a while and just get on with the task in hand of doing the same loop over and over. It not going to be possible to switch off for a whole year.

I imagine hes not going to be out at a host every night, but when the weather may want to better in certain areas, or he wants to come up north for a proper pie 😀

Steve’s stated that he would like to include some events to keep his motivation up, so a host night will be twinned with that. I imagine that less than 50% of nights will be with a host.

You could have a few bikes setup, ready to go. Maybe summer and winter bikes. Spares dropped off at various points around the route. Bag of tubes in a 24 hour petrol station here, an emergency pork pie behind a telephone box there…

I think the people slagging off him, his website or questioning the validity of his attempt are doing it because they cannot comprehend what an undertaking this is. I am disappointed that people can’t see past the lack of good PR and see what an amazing challenge, and how much mental toughness this guy will have

I think the opposite is true. I think people can’t believe such a worthy challenge has got such poor media presence- this is and should be huge!!!

I’ve been quite vocal in here not because I’m some kind of expert but precisely because I’m not- I’m a chuffing Gamekeeper for god sake 😀
I think when a man who plucks pheasants for a living picks holes in your website- you know its bad 😉

For 24 hours i imagine its easier to switch off for a while and just get on with the task in hand of doing the same loop over and over. It not going to be possible to switch off for a whole year.

I reckon I’d prefer to deal with that rather than encounter a few flaky/idiotic/murderous hosts along the way, not to mention the complete lack of navigational issues.

In fact, I’ve convinced myself to have a go at this in 2016. Who’s up for paying my mortgage?

In fact, I’ve convinced myself to have a go at this in 2016. Who’s up for paying my mortgage?

I’ll put a tenner in, twenty if you can get Guy Martin to go head to head with you

Some observations.

I think the host requirements have a really dry humour running through them. I wish I could help, but I don’t have a spare room.

I have a (post-war) Record Ace. I’d rather ride it over 200 miles than a carbon bike. caveat – I’ve never ridden 200 in a day, although I have done 140.

Personally I’d do as terrahawk suggests, but work out half a dozen routes. I did 100 a day for 2 weeks once, point to point. I was weeping for my own bed by the end.

The very best of luck to him.

I’ll put a tenner in, twenty if you can get Guy Martin to go head to head with you

We’re off and running…

I reckon of give this a go for a year..
But it’s raining and I’m busy..
So I won’t..

DrP

We can talk about technology all we like, but it has made very little difference to the rolling resistance of a bike over the last 80 years.

My 1934 Sunbeam RR rolls just as nicely as any of my other singlespeed road bikes.

The rider still has to do the work, and there’s no human technology fix* for that. Gearing makes it feel easier but to travel at a given speed for a given time takes the same amount of work.

(*Lance may differ)

Am I missing something here or would this whole thing be a million times easier if he just did the same 200 mile loop every day and went back to his own house where his missus could make him a cup of tea and 30 sandwiches

i did this earlier in the year, did 302km (187 miles) – was never more than 25 miles from home, left at 5:13am, popped home twice, for breakfast at 8:30ish and lunch, 12:30ish, looped to my mums for a late evening coffee, home by 7pm to put the kids to bed,

average watts, 198

not sure i could do it everyday though 🙂 moving to Lincolnshire would maybe help though

would this whole thing be a million times easier if he just did the same 200 mile loop every day

Mentally off-the-scale-harder. Or would be for me anyway, based on imagining doing it for 2-3 weeks maybe since a year is too much to really understand here.
If the scenery changes and you’re enjoying yourself (or stay motivated, at least) you can overcome a lot of discomfort to be up at 4-5am for yet another 18 hour ride, day after day. There’s a sense of moving forwards and change. But to do that locally on the same loop for a year? Groundhog day. Not a chance, I could guarantee I’d be a ex-cyclist golfer or fish-tank enthusiast by day 366 : ) but wouldn’t get that far to worry about it..

I read about Tommy Godwin in Boneshaker Magazine a couple of months ago and then did a bit of research into him. I have immense respect for his achievement, but of course know next to nothing about the man himself. Much of Tommy Godwin’s route seems to be from Stoke on Trent to Hemel Hempstead, back and forth between two places to stay.

It’d be a staggering feat if Steve manages to pull this off. Where is he planning on cycling? Let us know when the website’s back up.

i did this earlier in the year, did 302km (187 miles)

Same here at an overnight event in Sweden. Took just under 10hrs, a guy I work with finished the 300km about 10 mins quicker than me then after a quick breakfast went out for another 20 miles to ‘do a Godwin day’. I took his word for it, I was asleep.

Let us know when the website’s back up.

It fell over after too many views and is apparently being “beefed up”

No.

I have to disagree with MTG and those others taking issue with the “Host requirements” OK they are written in a rather straight forward, blunt fashion which some readers seem to interpret as being demanding, but I read them as giving quite an honest run down of what is needed, with nothing left out and no pretences.

The fella is having a serious crack at a Year long record attempt, So he’s not going to want you to volunteer under the impression that you get an interesting house guest for the evening who’s up for some late night chatter over wine and nibbles… you are putting yourself forward for one night of minor effort to contribute to a year long campaign.

A knackered fella who rode 1400 miles last week and will ride the same next week is making a pit stop at your home (because you said you could accommodate him), he needs a shower, a place to sleep, his kit cleaning, his light batteries charging, and quite likely his bike giving the once over, as a volunteer you get to say you contributed to the support of a pretty tough record attempt, and I’m sure you’ll get a thank you when it’s over…

Honestly if you write the guy off as a nob because you don’t like the tone of his website, I doubt you are what is required in a “host”.

I’ll not be volunteering because I couldn’t guarantee the spare bed in our house, we’re at capacity already, all the rest of it I’d be happy enough with, and if he wasn’t feeling very chatty, I think I’d understand TBH…

Cookeaa and ianfitz I agree entirely! Strikes me as a very sensible (if blunt) set of requirements.

I’d love to help, but have 2 small kids who like waking at odd times…. And live at 300m up on a steep hill…

Good luck to him!

Holy thread resurrection!

I’ve done a quick rewrite for Steve. If you can help me with feedback in the next 12-24 hours please email me dave@phased.co.uk and I will give you access to the google document

Rules:-
-you’d be doing the work 😉
-please edit the document direct, don’t suggested edits, like “why not rewrite it like this…”

Thanks for anyone that can help, MTG maybe?
Dave

I met Steve at a wedding in the New Forest .He rode to it from Milton Keynes and rode home afterwards.Also when training to do Paris Brest Paris Audax on a tandem triplet he rode to Somerset to train on it and back to Mk. after .I rode the triplet a couple of times to get the other two guys used to it .He is single minded and hard as nails on a bike and I reckon he will do it.

Just in case anyone is interested.

Two americans are going head to head with Steve next year. It’s going to be a proper race! One of them is a top ten RAAM solo finisher.

Crikey! I just seen him in the local newspaper. He must live about a mile from me! I really hope I bump into him (early) one summer sunday to wish him well.

Is anyone else following Steve’s progress?

bloody impressive