– 3,000 MILES DISTANCE
– 175,000 FEET OF CLIMBING
– 12 STATES
– 2 COASTS
– 1 CONTINENT
– A KIWI AND HIS BIKE
– 1 GRUELLING RACE…
… NON-STOP ACROSS AMERICA
New Zealand builder, dad and amateur cyclist Craig Harper is preparing to take on an endurance solo bike race that’s billed as the toughest in the world.
The Sustainable Trails Conference is only two months before Marlborough-based Craig begins the Race Across America – a gruelling non-stop race that pits the world’s top solo endurance cyclists against each other, crossing 12 states along a 3,000 mile (4,828km) route from America’s west to east coasts and with a total climb of 175,000 feet (53km) – equivalent to reaching the edge of space. All within 12 days.
Craig is no stranger to extreme challenges. In 2017 he broke the world record by seven hours for cycling the 2,170km length of New Zealand solo.
He completed the challenge in under four-and-a-half days, despite an added challenge of mountain biking across a high-country station due to the earthquake-affected closure of State Highway 1.
The training, logistical planning and motivation required for a feat of this scale is enormous, not to mention physical and mental exhaustion, extreme weather conditions, and a field comprising the best endurance cyclists in the world. Hear what motivates Craig and how he is preparing for the biggest race of his life.
