Secrest Tops 58-Year Feat in Bike Riding

PHOENIX — Michael Secrest of Scottsdale completed a 24-hour endurance ride early today, easily surpassing a 58-year-old world best for mileage on a bicycle paced by a motor vehicle.

Phoenix International Raceway spokesman Steve Des Georges said Secrest, 37, covered 1,216 miles on the 1-mile oval before the bell rang at 8:44 a.m. He averaged 50.6 m.p.h.

Secrest started Thursday morning, chasing a tractor-trailer rig fitted with suction-creating plastic shields. Two drivers alternated in three-hour turns driving the semi.

In the fourth hour of the run, the $10,000, specially geared bicycle developed a flat tire, Des Georges said, but Secrest spent only about 60 seconds in the pit area while the tire was changed.

Cycling enthusiasts considered an 860-mile ride in 24 hours the hallmark. The event has no record, because conditions vary. Hubert Opperman set the old standard in 1932 in Sydney, Australia.