The Vuelta Ride

Cycling Record! The Vuelta Ride (August/September 2018)

As the first woman in history, I cycled every kilometer of one of the toughest professional races in the world, the Vuelta a España, just hours ahead of the pros.

In total, it was 3,058 km, 129 hours of riding, and 49,337 meters of elevation gain across 21 stages. That’s a daily average of 145 km, 6 hours on the bike, and 2,349 meters of climbing.

I loved every single minute of it—the 4:30 AM wake-ups, the 7:40 AM sunrises, the conversations with new friends, crossing the finish line at 2:00 PM, the drive to the next hotel, the local cuisine, and every moment filled with rich, intense experiences.

What a success!

My goal with this project was to inspire people to take on their own challenges. With over 200 people riding parts of the journey with me and coverage from more than 50 media outlets worldwide, this project exceeded all expectations.