A keen cyclist from Wilmslow has succeeded in setting a World Record for the number of miles cycled in a month.
Between July 24th and August 22nd Janet Davison from Pownall Park completed her challenge by cycling an average of 134 miles a day, beating the distance which Guinness World Records stated she must achieve to set a record for the number of miles cycled in a month.
Guinness World Records informed Janet that she must cycle over 5000km (3107 miles) in 30 days and she managed 6455km, 4010 miles, reaching the 5000km target on day 24.
Setting off at 7.30am Janet spent about 10 hours a day cycling. During the 30-day challenge lots of rain and strong winds slowed her down, and her bike suffered 4 punctures and a frayed cable on her rear gear changer. However, on her longest day Janet completed 152 miles, whilst her shortest day was Friday 14th August when the roads were flooded, and she managed 77 miles.
Janet enjoyed the challenge a lot, saying "The only tough thing was cycling against strong winds. There was also a lot more rain than I expected in July and August. I was very lucky that my body didn't complain much. I had some problems with my left Achilles tendon, and a tendon in my forearm, but there was nothing to worry me or stop me from cycling."
Speaking about why she took on this challenge Janet told wilmslow.co.uk "In December last year I learnt of Steve Abraham's attempt at breaking the record for the most miles cycled in a year. Of course I had to see what the women's record is. In 1938 Billie Fleming rode 29,603.7 miles, an average of 81 miles per day. After some real ale and wine I thought 'I could do that!'. However, after sober thoughts, I decided that committing to a whole year of cycling wasn't fair on my family, and it would require a huge amount of organisation. But what record could I attempt?
"That's when I found out that there is currently not a record for one month's duration. I spent the next few weeks pondering the challenge and finally in February I decided to send the email to Guinness World Records, telling them of my attempt."
Whilst Janet has not attempted any records before, she is a keen cyclists and spends her main holiday each year touring on bicycles in countries such as France, Spain and Italy.
Janet explained "We carry all of our luggage on our bikes. So, I'm used to cycling day after day. I also train to participate in one day events, such as L'Etape du Tour, which is where amateurs can cycle one stage of Le Tour de France. This year I completed La Marmotte, which is a one day event in the Alps, where the final climb is L'Alpe d'Huez."
Having satisfied the criteria set, using GPS tracking, video evidence and log book signing, Janet must now submit a lot of evidence to Guinness World Records, which they must verify before the record is official.
