Spilauder Finishes Race Across America in Record Time, Wins by More Than 6 Hours
Austrian cyclist Franz Spilauder used the experience he gained a year ago to win the Race Across America, a trip from San Francisco to the nation’s capital, in record time.
Spilauder completed the 3,863.9-mile race Tuesday in 9 days 7 hours 9 minutes, more than four hours better than the previous best. When he got off his bicycle at the Washington Monument at 9:09 p.m. EDT, his nearest competitor was more than six hours behind.
Seven days into last year’s race, Spilauder lost ground because of hallucinations, a side effect that often occurs in endurance cycling because competitors ride on two hours of sleep per night. He eventually recovered, but finished a distant third.
“I make not too much mistakes this time,” he said in his accented English. “In the first year it is not possible to know what is coming.”
He did make one mistake, but it hardly cost him. Spilauder received a 90-minute penalty for running stop lights and served the penalty time in Maryland.
He averaged a maximum of two hours of sleep a day and slept a total of 19 hours. He was in fifth place Saturday, but rallied to more than make up the difference.
Forty-three riders started the race last Sunday, and 17 are likely to finish.
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