The hour record is the record for the longest distance cycled in one hour on a bicycle from a stationary start. Cyclists attempt this record alone on the track without other competitors present. It is considered one of the most prestigious records in cycling. Since it was first set, cyclists ranging from unknown amateurs to well-known professionals have held the record, adding to its prestige, romance and allure. There is now one unified record for upright bicycles meeting the requirements of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI). Hour-record attempts for UCI bikes are made in a velodrome.
Land's End to John o' Groats is the traversal of the length of the island of Great Britain between two extremities, in the southwest and northeast. The traditional distance by road is 874 miles (1,407 km) and takes most cyclists 10 to 14 days; the record for running the route is nine days. Off-road walkers typically walk about 1,200 miles (1,900 km) and take two or three months for the expedition. Signposts indicate the traditional distance at each end.
Nicholas Mark Sanders is a British bicyclist, motorcyclist and author noted for his long-distance riding and has ridden around the world seven times.
Constance Eileen Sheridan was an English cyclist who specialized in time trialing and road record-breaking. She broke all the records of the Women's Road Records Association during the late 1940s and 1950s. They included Land's End to John o' Groats, set by Lilian Dredge.
Thomas Edward Godwin (1912–1975) was an English cyclist who held the world cycling record for most miles covered in a year and the fastest completion of 100,000 mi (160,000 km).
Malin to Mizen is the traversal of the whole length of the island of Ireland between two extremities in the southwest and north from Mizen Head to Malin Head in County Donegal.
Mark Ian Macleod Beaumont is a British long-distance cyclist, broadcaster and author. He holds the record for cycling round the world, completing his 18,000-mile (29,000 km) route on 18 September 2017, having taken less than 79 days. On 18 February 2010 Beaumont completed a quest to cycle the Americas, cycling from Anchorage, Alaska, US to Ushuaia in Southern Argentina, for a BBC Television series.
René Menzies was a French long-distance cyclist who at 48 held a record for the greatest distance ridden on a bicycle in a year. He rode 99,073 kilometres (61,561 mi) in 1937. He was decorated with the Croix de Guerre in the First World War and was chauffeur to the French leader, Charles de Gaulle in the second world war. After the war he tried to ride 63,000 miles (101,000 km) in a year to celebrate his 63rd birthday but finished with 62,785 miles (101,043 km).
Ken Webb is an English cyclist who at 42 claimed the world record for distance cycled in a year. He calculated that on 7 August 1972 he passed the 75,065 miles (120,805 km) set by another Briton, Tommy Godwin, and that he finished the year with 80,647 miles (129,789 km). He rode on to claim the record for 100,000 miles (160,000 km) in 448 days. Both records appeared in the Guinness Book of Records but were later removed.
The Guinness World Record (GWR) for fastest circumnavigation of the globe by bicycle is awarded for completing a continuous journey around the globe by bicycle and other means, consisting of a minimum 29,000 km in total distance cycled.
Christoph Strasser is an Austrian ultra cyclist who is a six-time winner and record holder for the fastest time in the Race Across America. From 16 to 17 July 2021, he became the first person to ride more than 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) in 24 hours, on a course at Hinterstoisser Air Base in Zeltweg, Austria.
Lilian Irene Bartram known as Billie Fleming and Billie Dovey, was a long-distance cyclist who set the woman's record for greatest distance cycled in a year in 1938 at 29,603.7 miles (47,642.5 km). At the time of her death in 2014 she continued to receive letters from people saying how much she inspired them to cycle; her record still stood until 2015.
Jacquelyn Camille Herron is an American ultramarathon runner, scientist, coach, and a four-time International Ultrarunner of the Year.
Oserick Bernard "Ossie" Nicholson was an Australian cyclist who twice held the World Endurance record for distance in a calendar year.
Michael Richard Hall was a British cyclist and race organiser who specialised in self-supported ultra-distance cycling races. In 2012, he won the inaugural World Cycle Race. In 2013 and 2016, he won the Tour Divide ultra-endurance mountain bike race across the Rocky Mountains in Canada and the United States. In 2014, he won the inaugural Trans Am Bike Race, a road-based event from the Pacific coast to the Atlantic coast in the United States. From 2013, he was the principal organiser of the Transcontinental Race, an event similar to the TransAm Bicycle Race, but that traverses Europe. Michael Hall was also featured in the cycling film Inspired to Ride a film directed by Mike Dion.
The definition of ultra-distance cycling is far more vague than in ultra running or in ultra-triathlon. Any bike race or ride longer than a century ride, which is 100 miles (160 km), is sometimes considered to be ultra-distance cycling. However, such events are relatively common, so using a longer distance to define the category is more useful, such as any race or ride that is longer than 200 kilometres (120 mi), 300 kilometres (190 mi) or even a double century, 200 miles (320 km).
Jenny Graham is a Scottish endurance cyclist. In 2018 she became the fastest woman to cycle around the world unsupported.
Denise Mueller-Korenek is an American cyclist. As of September 2018, she holds the world record for paced bicycle land speed and is considered "the fastest cyclist on earth". She set the record on September 16, 2018, at the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, by traveling an average of 183.932 mph (296.009 km/h) on a custom-built carbon KHS bicycle behind a custom-built vehicle to minimize air resistance. The previous record, 167 miles per hour (269 km/h), was set in 1995 by Dutchman Fred Rompelberg. Two years earlier she set the women's bicycle land speed record, pedaling 147.7 mph (237.7 km/h). She is the first and only woman in history to hold the world record, which was first established in 1899.
