100 Mile world record attempt on March 10th

[rob.northcott]

Well done Phil. Bummer it was so cold in the end, but it’s good that you went for it anyway rather than just giving up. Are you going to have another go when it’s warmer (or at least less cold!)?

Rob

[magnustudios]

Thanks for the kind words Rubix.

Rob, we’ll see how it goes. I’ve been getting this question a lot since Saturday and every time I feel a little more like saying “yes”. Haha. This summer is looking pretty busy so no eta on that.

[redwelly]

Gutted that it didn’t work out for you Phil. I would be happy to put it down to sub-zero temperatures… that’s never going to be easy! I was watching a feature about the new Olympic velodrome and how warm they heat it to reduce air resistance; so I guess cool is harder, and super-cold is very hard!

I really hope you can schedule a re-run later in the year. In better conditions you should have a good shot at it.

Anyway, welcome to the small, brave, defiant group of failed attemptees of the current 100 mile record (as far as I know this is: Ken Looi, Zach Warren, me and now you)! (Has anyone else made a formally measured attempt that I missed? I’m sure there must have been some between 1987 and 2005?)

Sam

[vookash]

I’m amazed by the attempt itself anyway. And in that temperature it is even more amazing.
Good luck on future attemtps

[GizmoDuck]

yeah, I’m gutted for you too. It was always going to be tough in such conditions…I hope you organise another attempt when the weather warms up.

As Sam said- it’s been attempted by a few of us already, it just goes to show how tough it is. All the more satisfying if your next attempt is successful though.

[GizmoDuck]

@scott ttocs

What are the rules for this type of world record attempt? Do you have to go around a track?

Phil was riding around a 900 M track. Unlike riding in a straight line, you need to accelerate on every turn. Riding on a small track will take a lot more effort than riding on a long course at the same pace. I believe the old world record track was set up differently, with an out-and-back circuit on a road, but I cannot find the post that described it.
Scott

Yes, according to the new IUF rules, you need to be visible to witnesses at all times. But assuming you can get several witnesses on the course, I don’t see why you can’t use a bigger track.

900m is not a bad size for a 100mile record…you’re not going at the same speeds as, say, the 1hr record. Patrick Schmid did his 1hr record on a 400m athletics track (27.18km). In 2009, I used a 406m track for my hour record attempt- it was very gently banked, but I definitely had to accelerate hard into and out of the turns.

As you say, if you can ride in a straight line, do a short turn and then power up again in a straight line, you’ll get more speed. The difficulty is in finding a suitable track/course. Maybe a race car track or an airport runway might be suitable.

[tholub]

@magnustudios

My track was 837m. That’s from someone who measured it with one of those wheel things three times and took an average. I don’t have an official surveyor’s report at this moment. Turns are tough, but I’ll save a track description for the write-up.

I think it would be hard to find five miles of straight flat road that would meet the guideline criteria. Ken, is the final draft public yet? The rider must be visible at all times to the witnesses, and I think five miles would be pushing it on that front. Being able to just push out 5 miles at a time on a straight flat stretch would be really really nice though.

This brought to mind the abandoned Alameda Naval Air Station:

Naval Air Station Alameda

There’s an 8000’ (1.52 mile) runway there that I’ve thought about running uni drag races on. You’d be able to run for 5-6 minutes between turns. You might not want to come to the Bay Area, but you might be able to find an abandoned runway somewhere.

[aracer]

@GizmoDuck

Yes, according to the new IUF rules, you need to be visible to witnesses at all times. But assuming you can get several witnesses on the course, I don’t see why you can’t use a bigger track.

Any reason why witnesses can’t be in a chase vehicle (or on - a relay of bicyclists would seem ideal)?

[GizmoDuck]

@aracer

Any reason why witnesses can’t be in a chase vehicle (or on - a relay of bicyclists would seem ideal)?

Sure, don’t see why not. They can’t be in front (drafting effect), and they have to be sufficiently far back as well (I think the riders still gets some effect if a chase vehicle sits in their slipstream).

[scott_ttocs]

There is an old airport (marine base) in Irvine CA. You can find it in google maps by searching “Irvine Great Park.” I am not sure how smooth the pavement is at this point, but there are some very nice long stretches that could be used as part of a unicycle course. It is now a park, and the city of Irvine might agree to this use of it.

Scott

PS: The temperature is about 60 °F right now–much better than -10 °C.