This site lists the Fastest Known Times (FKTs) for established routes that are over 150Km long (consistent with the definition of ‘long distance’ used elsewhere), with approx 20% (minimum) being over unpaved surfaces, and where there is a recognised fixed route¹. To see all of the routes mapped in one place please visit our RideWithGPS Collection – please follow the routes in our collection for all FKT attempts, as they may differ slightly from those published elsewhere. We will check the GPX files from all submitted attempts against these to ensure the entire route has been ridden correctly. With thanks to Epic Cycles for hosting the site.

SELF-SUPPORTED

The times listed here are for self-supported rides, using the widely accepted definition that any physical or informational support and resources accessed during the ride need to be available to the general public, or carried by the rider from the start. So no private re-supplies, gear stashes, shelter, navigational assistance, or mechanical support are allowed². Winter FKTs (completed Nov-Feb) are indicated by *.

They must also be solo rides. There may be faster times from riders who completed the route in a group or pair, but this is a list of Individual Time Trials.

ABOUT TIME

The Fastest Known Times below show the total elapsed time of the ride, and not just the riding or moving time. So if the rider paused during the ride the clock kept running.

GET IN TOUCH

The key word with these times is ‘known‘. So if you are aware of a faster time then please let us know by sending us a message via the Contact page, if possible with a link to the ride details (e.g. Strava, Komoot, RideWithGPS, social media post, results page etc). And if you think there’s a an established route that we should add then please drop us a message, with link to where the definitive route is published. With the growing popularity of ultra-distance cycling we’re expecting this list to expand.

Tip: best viewed in landscape

Fastest Known Times

W = Winter* FKT, S = Singlespeed FKT

Plastic Free Times

For the duration of 2023 we will be accepting a new kind of FKT here on the site! With the inception of the Ultra Distance Plastic Resistance pledge, the brainchild of ultra racer Taylor Doyle, there’s a new acronym on the scene: PFT.

This stands for ‘plastic free time’, and you can learn more about the ethos of, and rules behind, bagging yourself a PFT over at The Radavist (rules also summarised below⁶). TAKE THE PLEDGE HERE!

There are lots of different ways to adventure, and we hope this one opens up a conversation around sustainability in ultra cycling, and inspires riders to head out and go for an FKT with a difference this year!

Routes with No Known Self Supported ITT Times

NOTES

* Indicates a winter FKT – rides completed in the four months with the shortest days (Nov-Feb) are classified as winter rides. Where the winter FKT is the overall fastest known time only the winter time is shown. Where there is a faster non-winter time there will be two times shown.

¹ All routes pass through some wild terrain, which is subject to the forces of nature that can result in minor temporary route changes. There may also be temporary road closures or diversions in paved sections. Only where a route is permanently altered will a different Fastest Known Time be reported. Where an obstacle or blockage is encountered during a ride the rider may need to detour around it, re-joining the published route immediately after it.

Please follow the routes linked to in the list above for all FKT attempts, as they may differ slightly from those published elsewhere. We will check all submitted attempts against these GPX files to ensure the entire route has been ridden correctly.

Where a route is ‘circular’, i.e consists of a loop that starts and finishes at the same place, the rider may start/finish at any point in the loop, as long as the full route is completed.

² There’s some debate within the ultra riding community about whether ’emotional’ or psychological support should be part of the definition of self-supported; covering a huge range of things like cheers from dot watchers at the trail side, social media encouragement, film crews and photographers capturing the ride, positive vibes and chat with other riders encountered on the trail, the incentive of chasing or dropping other riders in a self-supported race, and even ‘well done’ texts from loved ones. We’re ducking the debate on this, as it gets highly subjective very quickly – so unless interactions with other people provide tangible physical or informational support (such as navigation, re-supply or mechanical repair advice) they are not something we’ll consider in relation to the definition of ‘self-supported’.

³ Times set during GBDuro 2020, which was run as a self-sufficient ITT. In other years GBDuro has operated as a stage race, with the clock paused between stages, and with private event facilities provided at checkpoints.

⁴ The White Horse Round has moved to a new ‘mk2’ route, due to a right of way issue – the ‘mk1’ times will still be shown here, and the ‘mk2’ shown alongside, once we have some FKTs…won’t be long we think, as it’s a popular route! For now the mk2 route is shown in the list of ‘no known times’.

⁵ This route in particular has been attempted regularly in a ‘supported’ mode, with private feed stops etc – the current supported FKT being 8h 32m 28s by Conor Swift in July 2021.

⁶ The current rules for the #plasticfreeultra pledge are here to provide structure and a communal opt-in to what this challenge entails. Broadly, they only apply to food and drink and are as follows:

• No single-use plastic food or drink products.
• No ‘Recyclable’ single-use plastic either (let’s be honest, most plastic just isn’t recyclable, regardless what the label says).
• Aluminum cans are allowed but must be properly recycled.
• Paper and other organic materials are allowed and can be disposed of at any time (no littering).
• Restaurant, cafe, hotel, and pub, etc., food stops are allowed. Any personally generated plastic waste (i.e.: ketchup packets, to-go containers, chip bags, plastic straws, plastic cutlery, etc.) are not allowed.
• Any and all intentional, accidental or otherwise unavoidable ‘verboten’ food or drink-related plastic waste must be carried to the finish and listed in the report form after completion with reason for acquisition.
• Don’t bring any single-use plastic to the start line (if you are re-using a plastic bread bag to carry your trail mix we think this is okay).
• All 2023 pledges must be completed within the year 2023 and submitted through the report form. Any pledges left unreported on after December 31st, 2023 will be considered and archived publicly as unfulfilled.
• Riders must abide by all other standard self-supported guidelines.