Charity LEJoG Record Attempt set for May 2014

530 mile “training ride” is all in a weekend’s work for tandem record hopefuls

There is one month to go until endurance cyclists Dominic Irvine and Glenn Longland make their attempt to break the long-standing record for non-stop cycling on a tandem from Land’s End to John O’Groats. The challenge will involve 840 miles of non-stop cycling over a period of just over two days to break a record that has stood for nearly half a century.

Both Dominic and Glenn have been training hard and clocking up the miles to prepare for the challenge, with a recent 530-mile “weekend training ride” from Hampshire to Geneva giving an example of the lengths they are going to get themselves in the best shape to beat the record.

The duo will embark on their attempt on 3 May 2014, raising funds for Heart Research UK in the process to help youngsters live a healthy, happier, longer life. The ‘Helping Little Hearts’ campaign is raising funds to provide rehabilitation facilities for children that have undergone heart operations or living with a life-long condition, ensuring they have specific care for their needs.

According to the Road Records Association, the men’s tandem bicycle from Land’s End to John O’Groats record is held by the now legendary riders Pete Swinden and John Withers and has been an unbeaten record since 1966 standing at two days, two hours, 14 minutes and 25 seconds (50 hours, 14 minutes and 25 seconds).

Dominic commented: “Glenn and I have been training harder than ever before to give ourselves a real shot at breaking this record and we’re very excited for things to get going. A huge amount of teamwork has gone into making this attempt possible, and with only a month to go we’re now getting very close to seeing all that hard work coming together.

“We’re so pleased to be raising money for Heart Research UK’s ‘Helping Little Hearts’ campaign – having spent a number of years helping young people make the most of their potential through sport, and with several members of my own family benefitting from the improvements in heart surgery, supporting ‘helping little hearts’ as part of HRUK seems a particularly appropriate focus.”

The route has been devised, nutrition monitored, and a bike developed especially. With the wealth of information accrued since Dominic’s first attempt at the challenge in 2012, and the incredible team involved in this attempt, the Land’s End to John O’Groats tandem record could well be broken.

To make a donation, please visit https://mydonate.bt.com/fundraisers/tandemchallenge

See some video footage of Dom and Glenn training and talking about the challenge

Read the blog about ‘why?’ and some of the training experiences.