Aussie Lachlan Morton pulls off yet another monstrously epic ride: breaks 165-year-old record

The popular bike-packing route in America is travelled by a great many people every year, but what makes Morton’s achievement so special is that he set a record along the way. With his finishing time, the Australian was a full 19 hours and 45 minutes faster than the famous record set on horseback in 1861.

At that time, U.S. President Abraham Lincoln’s inaugural address was delivered to California in 7 days and 17 hours. The Pony Express was a historic American mail service operating from 1860 to 1861, in which mail was transported across the American West by horses and riders. The riders changed horses approximately every 16 kilometers and changed riders every 120 to 160 kilometers.

Morton covered the same route by bike. He set out on October 5 at 4:03 a.m. local time and reached the historic Pony Express Terminal in Sacramento on Sunday evening at 11:19 p.m. The former EF pro switched between modes of transportation, just as he used to. He rode some sections on his Cannondale Topstone and others on his Scalpel mountain bike. A support vehicle with a film crew accompanied him to provide supplies.

Morton, a former winner of Unbound and The Divide, planned to cycle 420 kilometres per day, planning to take 17 and a half hours.

In the first two days, he had already covered 1,100 kilometers, but starting in Wyoming, the terrain became increasingly extreme. He faced strong headwinds, freezing temperatures, deep stretches of sand, barely recognizable trails, and sections where he literally had to fight his way through thickets.

On day four, despite what he described as the toughest terrain he’d faced so far, he covered another 440 kilometers in 17 hours. The cold was so intense that he tucked bottles of hot water under his shirt to stay warm. In Nevada, trails sometimes disappeared entirely, and he had to navigate using his bike computer and a few scattered fence posts.

At other times, he walked with his bike in hand through what is known as “moon dust” or over steep, rocky climbs that were barely passable even for the support vehicle. No problem for Morton, who actually embraced the challenge because he wanted to know what it felt like to ride a horse 160 years ago. Morton therefore carried actual mail with him and spoke with local residents.

Along the way, Morton received support from hundreds of cyclists, who joined him for parts of the route. As a result, Morton said the ride became, above all, a tribute to his current home country and to the communities he encountered along the way. Morton ultimately saved the toughest day for last.

From Nevada, he rode across the Sierra Nevada toward Sacramento, while a tropical storm was approaching from the Pacific. Rain could have made the unpaved roads virtually impassable, so in addition to the historic record, a race against the weather suddenly began. Morton hopped back on his mountain bike for the roughest stretches.

Morton finally arrived in Sacramento, surrounded by family, friends, and followers. Surprisingly, he wasn’t even relieved that it was over: he said he had enjoyed the adventure much more than he had expected. After nearly seven days, eight U.S. states, and thousands of kilometers through deserts, prairies, and mountains, there was only one thing left for him to do: go home.