Mathew lee wins 2010 Td with new record

finished 1 hour ago

pretty impressive considering the muddy conditions early on!

ok thats pretty quick

Tis pretty impressive but more importantly Aidan is still third on the SS … go on son! 😀

Wonder if certain 'celebrities' will now reconsider taking on the record??

Great riding by Aidan, just so strong and getting stronger… amazing effort!!

Aidans 4th as far as i can work out …

we have erik lobeck and blaine nester riding together.

Aidan was only 6hrs off chris pleskos SS record at last check point – not bad for fellas first time and who lost half a day due to ripped tire/detour to fernie for a new one.

GO AIDAN SMASH IT !

as far as certain celebritys go …. i dont foresee finishing . i dont wish them to fail – i never would but i really dont see them finishing esp if they go out and try to smash mathew lees record from the start…

I'm thinking that those celebs might have no real idea what they're asking their bodies and minds to go through. I'd also like to see them "compete" rather than doing it when it suits … but hey good luck to 'em.

i will be doing it but there is no way im going out there with any misconceptions of "smashing" records … certainly not the first time. I think that would be a huge mistake

http://tourdivide.org/blog2010/and_winner

A new record despite having his bike nicked. Chapeau!

I'd also like to see them "compete" rather than doing it when it suits

Doing it as a ITT is valid: http://tourdivide.org/ittdivide

If ever I did it (a huge if) it'd be as an ITT.

Massive effort from Matthew Lee – last year's time was pretty incredible, but to take 7 hours off it?

Aidan is definitely getting along nicely. I think he's actually in 4th at the moment according to the split chart at the last point they have all been through – Cuba NM. Erik Lobeck and Blaine Nester are still riding pretty much together in 2nd and 3rd it seems.

Great pic of Aidan from Eddie Clark[/url]

Emily, Aidan's partner, has been posting some updates to his blog[/url].

Matthew was eating a burger, watching his bike out the window, when an unsavoury character strolled up, stared Matthew in the eye and cycled off. Of course, Matthew and others gave chase, but it was to no avail. Fortunately, however, Matthew had his SPOT attached to his bike. With admirable lucidity of thought he phoned home, where his wife was able to use Trackleaders to locate his SPOT – now literally on the wrong side of the tracks, at the back of some sort of warehouse – and guide Matthew to it. The felon was nowhere to be seen, and the bike was restored to its rightful owner. Phew.

Nice..

you dont mess with the lee !

Is Aidan riding a singular there, supreme effort indeed.

As to the wobbly boys attempting it.
Not sure an ex Olympian and another guy who has all day to ride his bike should be dismissed, both of whom have proved themselves over long distances.
Finish – surely. Record – unlikely I agree..

No disrespect meant to the guys jerome but where im coming from is if they go out to beat matt lees record they wont finish is my bet….if they screw the head on and take a sensible approach – which i suspect they will then of course they will finish.

Think i'm gonna watch Ride the Divide again now 🙂

I agree with trail_rat that if you go all out from the start hell bent on record setting then you could be doomed to fail…

..I reckon i'm gonna have a crack at this Olympic rowing lark.. can't be that hard:)

As the course was re-routed due to forest fires Matt Lee has already said that this year wont count towards the record. I believe the re-route reduced the time by 9 hours.

That must be very frustrating as he was neck and neck with the record most of the way through. I guess with a life being lost during the race this year (David Blumenthal) then to have enjoyed and got to the end safely must be the reward enough.

No record for Lee due to reroute, but what a race. Aidan is smashing it and after all his tire problems in the first few days. Massive effort and gets all my respect

I guess with a life being lost during the race this year (David Blumenthal)

i think thats the important thing to take from this years tour divide. Be careful out there – there are times when we may not be thinking straight , we may become complacent and this serves as a reminder that although its relitively back country that we should always expect the unexpected , a tragic loss of life but we should all take heed and ensure it doesnt happen again – not just on the tour divide but on any trail/road/forest track – we are all guilty of it im sure – i know i am !

we cant change events – only learn from them

RIP.

I'd always thought 'official' reroutes were allowed. Though the rules are basically whatever matt says, so he'll know best.

Whilst the re-route due to fire was enforced it would be unfair to ratify this time as a record as subsequent years will, hopefully, be run over the original (slower) course.

i agree – matt has taken moral highground .

quite rightly so if its 9hrs shorter as reported. how can you compete with that – on a longer course !

very honest chap if you ask me !

i'f it stands, the celebrities job just got a little harder 😈

but from one of matthews call ins he stated it wouldn't count.

obi twa made a good point …

by not accepting it to be a record their job got harder anyway. just showed how strict the rules actually are ….

their little bendings they suggest to be taking wont be taken lightly 😉

erik and blaine are home now , aidan looks set to finish in the next 24hrs also !

aidans nearly there! Epic ride for a rookie ! – i will get lost !

Chapeau Aidan!

Chapeau indeed, having ridden with Aidan a couple of times his outwardly relaxed attitude to the whole thing is admirable, particularly considering how determined he clearly is.

Well done that man.

Video interview with Aidan in Salida: http://vimeo.com/12875148

Well done to all the finishers.

I think our celebrity friends will find it tough. For a start ML knows the way. If you spend an hour or so a day checking maps etc over 17-18 days that is the equivalent of a day (after sleeping). The two would have to be a day faster than Matt in riding terms.

Don't wish them ill luck but it will be a tough challenge. Planning to ride it next year, perhaps I will aim to beat JC/BF's time. I'll see what they do first.

Its unlikely you would spend an hour the entire race looking at maps.It all cues and they are pretty easy to follow.Im a complete retard when it comes to maps and i found my way.
Good luck for next year.
Give Aidan some gears and some training time and he could do something special.

Personally I'd be surprised if Aidan does the event again – although I don't know him that well I get the impression he looks for new challenges rather than repeating ones he's already completed.

And gears – possibly not 😀

Cool video
Seems to be cruising..

Thanks for the kind words, chaps. It was a good ride, followed by another good ride, followed by another good ride etc. Until that stupid lonely highway to Antelope Wells!

Headwind, straight road, darkness, sleep deprivation: hypnotic and weird. But I got there in the end.

My body kept at it pretty well and the bike was flawless. Some tyre issues, but aside from tightening the chain once, that was it! Thank you Sam for designing the Singular Swift, it's great!

I think the celebs will have a few potential problems to overcome. For the first 5 days or so, you are basically training your body to the trail. Matthew knows this and was so laid back on day one that he took the front group on a walk a couple of minutes off-trail to see a waterfall. He was still hanging around the shop at 50 miles when I got there and was happy to chat away. If those guys try to hammer it from the start, they will have serious problems.

The main advantage of knowing "the route" is not with following the cues (although I lost at least an hour in some badly routed places and others lost much more) because you could always use GPS and most of the route is easy to follow. The knowledge Matthew has is where water is available (hugely important), which restaurants will actually be open, what motel to go to etc. All those things save time and hassle. The water thing particularly, allows him to travel with kilos less than other people might. Matthew normally carries 3 bottles with extras for some extreme sections. Just think about that for a minute and figure out how you'd ride 160 miles of desert.

well done Aidan and thanks for taking the time to post on here.

I think most of us would consider the South Downs Way an epic ride so chapeau for your achievement.

Massive effort Aidan – huge congratulations from here. So glad you made it there safe and sound. Look forward to hearing more about the trip. Enjoy the rest of your time there and catch up when you're back.

From someone who dreams of doing great things on a bike, who pours over the Divide leaderboard every year and who listens to all the call-ins (and who spent last night watching "Ride the Divide") – can I just say thank-you to Aidan (and Carl) for letting us live vicariously through your achievements. I can only imagine what must be going through Aidans mind upon being back in civilisation, but to take the time to post on here is much appreciated.