Bike traveler Mark Beaumont, who at one time held the Guinness World Record for circumnavigating the globe by bicycle in the shortest time, has been honored as the country's “Top Scot.”
After that record-breaking self-supported bike tour in 2008, the 27-year-old become widely known throughout the British Isles this year on BBC for the “Cycling the Americas” website and documentary that chronicled his bike trip from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego.
The public voted on the “Top Scot” through The Scotsman newspaper; Glenfiddich Single Malt Whiskey sponsored the competition.
Heady company
The contest honors the Scot who has had the greatest impact in furthering Scotland's reputation at home and abroad in the past year. Previous winners include “Harry Potter” series author JK Rowling, singer Susan Boyle and the British Curling Team.
This is heady company for a guy who makes his living by riding his bicycle and telling about his experiences.
First record
Beaumont was 25 when he passed into the record books in 2008 as he completed an 18,000-mile around the world tour in 195 days. That's about 93 miles a day carrying 66 pounds of gear. It includes the collision with a car and a night inadvertantly spent in a Louisiana crack house.
He passed through 20 countries and crossed four continents: Europe, Asia, Australia and North America. He beat the previous record by 81 days.
A year after Beaumont hit the record books, his time was bested by James Bowthorpe who shaved another 19 days off the record in a bike tour than ended in September 2009.
The current Guiness World Record-holder is Vin Cox, who bicycled 18,226 miles around the world in 163 days and change. Like the others, the Englishman also carried all his own gear. He finished Aug. 1, 2010.
All raised money for various charities on their bike travels.
North and South America
Beaumont's bicycle tour from Anchorage to Usuaia finished in February 2010 (photo above) and covered 13,000 miles in 268 days. He essentially followed the mountain ranges down the spine of those continents, and along the way climbed Mount McKinley and Aconcagua, the highest peaks on those continents.
For that bicycle tour, he regularly posted to a blog entitled “Cycling the Americas” at BBC. A documentary of his bike trip also appeared on BBC.
Beaumont received the honor at an event last week. The Scotsman's editor, John McLennan, said:
“For guts, determination and imagination, few people in the world can match Mark Beaumont. Not only is he thoroughly deserving of every accolade he receives but he is a superb ambassador for Scotland and a role model for young people everywhere.”
Congratulations, Mark.
Recent Comments