Biking 444.4 km in 25 hours for Charity
- Greg Luesink
- Jul 16, 2023
- 9 min read
Updated: Mar 26
25 hours of biking: 4 loops of 111 km around Chilliwack.
Preamble
In 2022, I did a charity ride from Chilliwack to Vancouver, cycling 200+ miles (333km) in 20 hours to raise money for Ally Global, a charity working to combat human trafficking. At the end of it, I still felt that I had some gas in the tank. So, for 2023, I wanted to "up the ante" by riding further.
Enter the grand scheme: ride 444 km in 24 hours.
To do so, I would need to dial in my route, fitness, and bike set-up. First, I decided to simplify the route by doing 4 loops of Chilliwack, 111km each. Second, I would spend the months prior getting my butt in shape. Pun intended.
Seriously, the most important requirement for biking for 24 hours isn't muscular endurance, it's ischial tuberosity endurance. Sitting on a bike seat for basically 24 hours is really difficult! After my first 200km ride in 2021, I realized I had to upgrade my bike seat so that I wouldn't have any... ahem... numbness. Ahead of my 200-mile ride for charity in 2022, I got aerobars and a new seat. In addition to wearing bike shorts with a chamois, my secret weapon was P3 pain cream and chammy butter to reduce pain and chafing. Between all these I could sit on a bike seat almost indefinitely!
The next aspect of riding for a whole day is nutrition. I would need to maintain regular eating and drinking for the whole day so that I didn't fizzle out! My go-to drink-mix was Tailwind, and I ate everything from wraps to burgers to candy (sponsored by red-dye 40...). I also drank a can of Yerba Mate every single lap... and I never have caffeine normally.
Training
I didn't ride a ton of long rides in the spring: less than 10 rides exceeding 40km from March until the big day on July 15. I did one ride to recon the 111km route at the end of June. Then, about a week after, I biked 200km to Squamish, climbed the Chief with my friend Max, then biked 200km home. This was an excellent tune-up ride for my sit-bones and my fitness. I was ready as I'd ever be!
The Big Day - July 15, 2023 - 12:04 am.
Loop 1 - Clockwise // The Midnight Oil
After a fitful few hours of tossing and turning from 9 pm until about 11:30 am, I got up and dressed for the first loop. I'd been hoping to wrangle a friend to join me for riding into the night, but unsurprisingly no one wanted to skip sleep and bike in the dark. My mom, a night owl, was still up by the time I was leaving, so she snapped some photos of my high-vis get-up before I took off. The first loop was to be clockwise around Chilliwack. I listened to music, podcasts, and for the most part enjoyed the cool night air. The only scary parts were near Chilliwack Mountain. First, a train was stopped at the railroad crossing, and wasn't budging. So, I decided to walk to a gap in the train and hop over to the other side! A little sketchy, but in the end nothing happened, and I saved a lot of time rather than waiting for the train to move. Next, I made my way up Chilliwack Mountain. As I was coming up a hill, I saw some glowing eyes.
"HEEYYYY!!" I yelled, thinking it was a cougar about to eat me as a midnight snack.
Thankfully, it was just a deer, and I continued on my way through the pitch black. My friend Kalyn was a champ, and met me at like 4 am with some replacement bike lights, as I forgot to bring extra batteries for mine! As I rolled onto the flats of Rosedale, the night sky started to change to hues of blue and orange. There is hardly ever a feeling like watching the dawn slowly start to light up the sky. It filled me with new energy. I somehow felt as if I hadn't been riding for several hours already. My goal was to finish each loop in 5.5 hours, and start the next loop on the 6th hour. I finished right on pace, back at home base, ready to take a short break and refill with water and food.
Loop 2 - Counter-Clockwise // The Rising Sun
Reinvigorated by the rising sun, I quickly topped up my supplies before heading out with Stewart, Michaela, and Travis. We set out just before 6 am, with the sun casting long shadows as we rode the farm roads to heading East. The time passed quickly, catching up on the latest in life, and recounting the solo midnight lap.
I was enjoying the conversation so much that we took two wrong turns!
About halfway through the loop, Stewart and Michaela had to split off to get ready for a wedding.
Travis and I bid them adieu and carried on towards Chilliwack Mountain. After jamming to Relient K up the punchy climb, we were revelled in the long descent back to the flats. It was around this time that I started to feel some major stomach pain. I tried to drink some more water, but it was helping while riding the bike. With no choice, I gritted my teeth, popped the headphones back in, and grinded out the kilometres. Just in time, a cold dip in the Vedder canal provided extreme relief from the rising heat. Travis was bubbling with stoke, and really kept me in good spirits despite my abdominal discomfort, which made Majuba Hill particularly challenging. We made it home at 11:15 am, a bit faster than the first lap. I took a shower to cool off, drank some water, then hopped in bed for a 15 minute power nap. Lying down helped dissipate the... bowel issues.
Loop 3 - Clockwise // The Heat of the Day
Apparently, my brother Eric hadn't gotten the memo that I was sleeping, and burst into my room looking for me. I harshly whispered that I was taking a power nap and I'd be downstairs in 10 minutes. My goal was to take about 30 minutes total to shower, nap, change out snacks and refill water. But, after biking for 12 hours already, I was pretty exhausted, and after Eric's interruption, I slept for a bit longer. It's amazing what a power nap will do for energy! I took a cold shower to wake up, chugged a caffeine-filled Yerba Mate, and saddled up for what I knew was going to be the hardest lap of the day. I doused my sun hoodie in water to stave off the heat.
I will note, I decided to use flat pedals for the entire day, since I would be able to wear regular runners, which provided more width for my feet. I'd experimented with clipless pedals and shoes in the past, but they were not for me. In addition to being more comfortable in wider running shoes, I liked the option of being able to walk around normally, and also not be attached to my bike in case of a crash. So, I was willing to sacrifice the negligible efficiency boost for more comfort.
Eric and I made it about 10 km before I pulled off to the side to ask some friends in Yarrow for a hose dousing to stay cool. Shout-out to Drew and Becca for the hose-down! We pedalled up Majuba and finally were able to sail down the hill to the flats of Sumas Prairie. We were still making good time, but it was a bit more effort.
Around this time, I spotted a figure pulled over on the side of the road. Dale, my girlfriend's step-dad, had used the live tracker to find where I was and brought some cans of bubbly water for refreshment and encouragement. Diverting into Arnold from Vye road, Eric and I were overheating again, so I pulled over to ask a family out on their porch if they would hose us down. After explaining that we were doing a charity ride around Chilliwack, they were very enthusiastic and happily cooled us off with the hose. Shortly after, Sharon (Jas' mom), also tracked us down using the live tracker to provide some encouragement! Eric and I stopped at the Vedder canal to dunk our shirts and cool off. Next up, the grind up Chilliwack Mountain. This loop, I kept thinking to myself "this is the last time I have to go this direction."
By the time we got back to home base, it had been just under 6 hours. Slower than the first two loops, but that was expected from the afternoon heat coupled with riding for nearly 18 hours already! At last, I could take a nap, refill food and water, take a shower, and set out on loop 4.
Loop 4 - Counter-Clockwise // The Last Hoorah
As I tried to nap, I couldn't help but hear the growing sound of voices outside the house. I wasn't sure what was going on, but when my 20 minute timer went off, I took another cold shower to wake up, put on my chammy butter, P3 cream, and headed downstairs. Much to my surprise and delight, many friends had come to send me off for the last lap. Jag, Jenna, Eli, Andrew, Sam, Eric, and my girlfriend Jas had all planned to accompany me for some or all of Loop 4, but I didn't know that Jas' and my friends the Campings and Woods would be there! I was really touched by everyone coming out to support me and the fundraiser.
It was 7pm, about an hour later than I'd hoped to depart, but we were on our way! The last loop was counterclockwise, so we headed East along the farm roads towards Agassiz Bridge. Along the way, my good friend Nate had set out to meet our group and stuck with us for a while! We basked in the setting sun as we rode along the Fraser River. Jesse met us outside his house for a refill of water, and Sharon and Dale came with blueberries! Shortly after, Sam, Nate, and Eric split off to get home. My brother Eric hit a personal record of riding 100 miles in the day!
Jag, Jenna, Eli, Andrew, Jas, and I continued up Chilliwack Mountain, grinding up the hill, and soaring down the other side. We were over halfway done the last loop! At No.3 road, I hit a bit of a wall, and took a quick "nap" to close my eyes and recoup before downing an ice coffee and continuing. I had just hit 400 km on my GPS watch, which was pretty exciting!
It was pitch dark as we rolled through Sumas Prairie. Mentally and physically, I was exhausted. Later on, the crew labelled my alter ego as "Grog."
Jas kept me company as I fell behind the group (I had made it a goal of mine not to draft behind anyone in the day, as I wanted to do this feat on my own power). I can't recall if I relinquished this goal to save effort, but I'd like to think that I stayed true to my goal. There was one last checkpoint before turning around to go home, and that was Whatcom Road Park.
I simply could not go any further. I had already almost fallen asleep biking, so I needed to take a break. I wanted to skip the extra miles going through Arnold and bike the more direct Vye road home.
Andrew counselled me that I should choose whatever I would be the most proud of, and that I should be proud of my effort no matter what. I lay down in the grass, and passed out for a 20 minute power nap. When I awoke, I felt a surge of rejuvenation.
I can do this. 30 more kilometres after riding 414 is nothing.
With that, I mounted my bike, and we set off towards Arnold for some midnight miles, quite literally, since it was 12:15 am. I had a moment of weakness and considered bypassing Majuba Hill, but quickly disregarded the notion - stick to the plan!
We arrived at my house at 1:29 am: 25 hours and 25 minutes after starting on this ridiculously long ride. Jag, Jenna, and Jas (and maybe Eli?) all hit a personal record of biking 111 km, which was exciting! I'd hit 444.4 km (I wanted to hit .44 but messed up my lap button...), and was ready to go to sleep. What. A. Day.
Epilogue
What started off solo, turned into a day filled with conversation, contemplation, and gratitude with and for friends and family. I could not have done this alone, and I feel so filled up writing about this spectacular experience. We raised nearly $5,000 for Ally Global... not quite the goal that would mean shaving my mustache... which was a relief!
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