Seven days. 3,826.47 km.

In March 2026, Canyon x DT Swiss All-Terrain Racing rider Alex McCormack set a new Guiness world record for distance covered in seven days (upright bicycle, undrafted), riding 3,826.47 km along the Mosel River near Canyon’s HQ in Koblenz, Germany.

Averaging nearly 30 km/h over 18 hours in the saddle each day, Alex battled freezing rain, sleep deprivation and accumulating fatigue – before sealing the record with a decisive 727 km final day, by just 13 km.

Here is the story of that ride, in his own words.

The idea for the record came up at our February training camp with Canyon x DT Swiss All-Terrain Racing. The Canyon guys asked if I had any ‘extra-curricular’ plans alongside the race calendar. I’d been quietly thinking this one might be possible. They were keen, so we got the ball rolling. The timing wasn’t perfect, we risked bad weather, but it was the only time I could do something like this before my main goals for the season. 

From there it was only about a month of preparation, which I imagine is very little compared to normal tilts at records like this. I first rode the Speedmax CFR a week before the record attempt, and the longest ride I’d done on it was 2.5 hours. Not ideal, but the setup was getting there: aero everything, with Exposure lights, Tailfin R+D frame bag for food storage, and a team design Ryzon Myth skinsuit with Abus Gamechanger TT 1.1 aero helmet.

The day before, we recced the route, did a big food shop, and I shaved my head – inspired by Lael Wilcox. We spent over 600 euros in the supermarket, just grabbing whatever looked like it might work. It was good to stay busy rather than sit around thinking about what was coming. That said, by the evening it did hit me that I hadn’t really given the ride much mental space. Everything had been pretty rushed. I remember thinking: I’m going to have to dish out a serious effort here. I tend to do better when I’ve actually sat with that beforehand. This time I hadn’t.

The plan was to ride 600 km every 24 hours on a 150 km out-and-back along the Mosel. We based ourselves at a hotel near Canyon’s HQ in Koblenz. Small crew, so no van following me on the road. Each lap I’d come back, refuel, change, maybe sleep, then head back out. Planning 18–20 hours riding a day, with 4–5 hours stopped.

Day one went well. Windy enough that I had to come out of the TT position at times, but still fast. Legs were good, everything felt under control. A mix of snow, sleet, sun and rain, but it was actually one of the better days.

I slept through my alarm that first morning. New phone, volume basically off. I only woke up because the crew were already up. It was a bit of a wake-up call. You realise pretty quickly that every minute matters. It’s easy to think you’ve got time across a whole week, but it disappears fast. 

Day two was when things started to slip. My knee flared up, probably from the new setup. Bike, pedals, shoes, all new.

Fuelling became a big focus. I was burning somewhere between 10,000 and 13,000 calories a day, so you’re always behind. It’s just about getting as much in as you can. I tried to leave that to the team as much as possible. The further in you go, the less you feel like eating, so you need someone telling you to keep going. Because of the cold, I leaned heavily on hot food. Porridge, toasties, hot chocolate, tea.

From day two to five the weather was pretty relentless. Even the better days were still freezing at night. Those middle days had that zero-degree rain where you’re soaked straight away, and then the wind chill on top. The crew were stretched trying to keep up with wet kit changes. I needed hot food constantly just to stay functional. Trying to stay aero meant I couldn’t layer up properly, so I was cold most of the time. Showering between laps just to warm up became part of the routine. Not efficient, but necessary. A lot of shivering. Even on the bike.

I also had a couple of punctures. That was a bit of an oversight. I couldn’t plug them properly on the road, so the van had to come out. That meant standing around getting cold for half an hour or more each time. You could feel the time going. The second one, on day five, was a low point. It felt like the record might be slipping away.

As the ride went on, my neck muscles started to go. I knew that it was going to happen, but it still wasn’t ideal. I’ve got quite a long neck and the TT helmet was a bit heavier than normal, so any extra weight and being in that flat-back position put more strain on it. It got to the point where I was struggling to look up. We went to tape up my neck in place, but didn’t have any more tape and there was a bungee cord sitting right there in the van. I was like, ‘alright, let’s just hook that on’. It was the right length and did the job.

By day six it turned into a race against time. The numbers said the record was still there, but only if we stripped everything back. Minimal stops. Eating on the bike. Almost no sleep.

The morning of day seven was the lowest point. One hour of sleep, then straight back out. Everything hurt. Neck, knees, contact points. I was close to stopping. But after six days, that didn’t sit right. The first hour was rough, then the sun came up and things started to move again.

Going into the final night, I knew it was there if I held it together. My neck was completely gone by then.

In the end, we only got the record by a handful of kilometres or so. My final day’s ‘ride’ was 27 hours and 727km. I had to go deeper than I expected, and there’s a strange edge of disappointment with it. In my head, I wanted more. This was the minimum for success, not the picture I’d built beforehand. But given the conditions, I think that perspective will shift with time.

Massive thanks to everyone who supported it. Messages, people out on the route, and especially the crew who kept it moving day after day. It meant a lot.

I’m off to the races in the US now, starting with Unbound XL – it’ll be my first time stateside, and I’m looking forward to getting stuck in.

‘Race everything’ is the Canyon x DT Swiss All-Terrain Racing motto, and Alex is living it. For his record ride, he chose the Speedmax CFR: an aero race machine built to go further, faster. 

Here is Alex’s week, broken down by the numbers: 

• Day 1: 457.77 km 
• Day 2: 602.17 km 
• Day 3: 457.9 km 
• Day 4: 451.91 km 
• Day 5: 524.89 km 
• Day 6: 604.08 km 
• Day 7: 727.75 km 

Total Distance: 3,826.47 km 

Average daily distance: 546.64 km/day

Average riding speed: 29.53 km/h

Total riding time: 5 days 9 hours 34 minutes (18h 30m per day)

Total stopped time: 1 day 14 hours 26 minutes (5h 30 per day)

Effective speed across the week: 22.78 km/h

Time spent moving: 77% of the week

* Alex’s record attempt has been ratified by the World Ultra Cycling Association (WUCA), an official partner of Guiness World Records.