Our 50K World Record

OK, it’s our own made up cycling ultra-marathon world record for old foggies in the retirement community where we live, Leisure World.

Over a week ago Candice started an attempt to make a running ultra-marathon Guinness World Record.  She is running a 50k (32 miles) every day. There are strict rules, including that you can’t rest for more than five minutes. The current women’s record is 22 consecutive days.  

So we decided to support her attempt at the record by cycling 32 miles a day and by making our own 50K World Record.

Five days ago we were off and riding!

People often forget that nights in the desert can be bitterly cold—especially when we cycle up to 18 mph.

The top temperature is our refrigerator and the bottom is the outside temperature.  It’s barely warmer outside than it is inside our refrigerator!

It doesn’t start to warm much up until about an hour after sunrise.  So at 4:30 am, we dress in all our layers (including down coats and windbreakers).  You’d think we were in Alaska, not Mesa, Arizona!

We start our ride in the dark, zig zagging all around the Leisure World roads and on the multitude of golf cart paths.  

Often we see the coyotes running through the streets and out hunting before dawn on the golf courses.

Most days we switch to Daisy, our tandem, and ride her for the last seven miles.  We love to ride while we are close enough to touch each other.  We talk together the entire time we’re on Daisy.

Every morning while cycling we get to watch the world come alive.

View of the back of our home cycling on the golf path, as we complete our 50K for this day…

Here is the GPS track of our ride this morning:

It’s quite inspiring to have this goal and it’s a commitment, but we’re having a blast!

Today we completed our fifth 50K. That’s 160 miles in five days. Since Candice plans to run a 50K every day for anywhere from 23 to 100 days, we may have an awful lot more miles to cycle.

Yesterday was 11-1/2 years since we fell in love, so after cylcing for almost three hours, we held each other close and danced.