Mike Hall was killed in a road traffic accident while competing in the Indian Pacific Wheel Race, a non-stop, unsupported bike race from Perth to Sydney on the 31st March. The ultra-distance community has lost one of its most influential member ever.
Mike was one of the greatest athletes you've probably never heard of. Winner of the first World Cycle Race, The Tour Divide twice and the first Trans Am bike Race and holds the unofficial (I think it wasn't ratified) record for circumnavigating the globe by bicycle.
Mike was also the founder of the Transcontinental Race, an unsupported, non-stop race across Europe where competitors must plot their own routes between check-points. Mike did more than just found a race, he built a community of racers, riders, supporters and friends who revel in the excitement these events create. Never has watching dots on a screen and scouring Twitter, Instagram and Facebook been so rewarding.
To many, including myself, this is the purest form of bicycle racing that exists. Gone are the race radios and team orders, no arguments can be had about people being dragged to the line only to fight it for a couple of hundred metres in a watt-tastic frenzy. There is no "wheel-sucking", there are no mountain trains, there are no spare wheels, bikes or hordes of mechanics, Soigneurs or DSs guiding and assisting. It's a rider, their bike and whatever they decide to take with them. These races echo the past, channel the spirit of those heroes who first conquered the mountain passes we now see record times over and wonder if it's all real and these races are open to all who have the nerve to enter and compete. They are inclusive and friendly with a community that will support, encourage and help as much as they can, to the point where one TCR entrant who set up a fundraising page will be able to compete due to the generosity of this group of like-minded individuals.
He inspired so many people, including myself, to push themselves past the limits they felt possible and achieve goals they believed were beyond them. His story will continue to do this for a very long time to come.
But more than all this, at least to me, Mike was a cyclist. A man who loved riding his bike and sharing that with others. This is what brings us all together. Cycling is an immensely diverse sport with a huge range of disciplines and events. Passions can get heated, supporters can argue and fight and riders can complain about riders to the point where we forget that the reason we are arguing is because we all share that same, simple love for the bicycle. Mike epitomises that for me, a fierce competitor who could put the worlds best to the sword and a man who dedicated himself to creating something that so many people enjoy and feel a part of.
R.I.P. Mike, my thoughts are with your family, friends and the global community who are shocked and saddened by this terrible news.
Mike was one of the greatest athletes you've probably never heard of. Winner of the first World Cycle Race, The Tour Divide twice and the first Trans Am bike Race and holds the unofficial (I think it wasn't ratified) record for circumnavigating the globe by bicycle.
Mike was also the founder of the Transcontinental Race, an unsupported, non-stop race across Europe where competitors must plot their own routes between check-points. Mike did more than just found a race, he built a community of racers, riders, supporters and friends who revel in the excitement these events create. Never has watching dots on a screen and scouring Twitter, Instagram and Facebook been so rewarding.
To many, including myself, this is the purest form of bicycle racing that exists. Gone are the race radios and team orders, no arguments can be had about people being dragged to the line only to fight it for a couple of hundred metres in a watt-tastic frenzy. There is no "wheel-sucking", there are no mountain trains, there are no spare wheels, bikes or hordes of mechanics, Soigneurs or DSs guiding and assisting. It's a rider, their bike and whatever they decide to take with them. These races echo the past, channel the spirit of those heroes who first conquered the mountain passes we now see record times over and wonder if it's all real and these races are open to all who have the nerve to enter and compete. They are inclusive and friendly with a community that will support, encourage and help as much as they can, to the point where one TCR entrant who set up a fundraising page will be able to compete due to the generosity of this group of like-minded individuals.
He inspired so many people, including myself, to push themselves past the limits they felt possible and achieve goals they believed were beyond them. His story will continue to do this for a very long time to come.
But more than all this, at least to me, Mike was a cyclist. A man who loved riding his bike and sharing that with others. This is what brings us all together. Cycling is an immensely diverse sport with a huge range of disciplines and events. Passions can get heated, supporters can argue and fight and riders can complain about riders to the point where we forget that the reason we are arguing is because we all share that same, simple love for the bicycle. Mike epitomises that for me, a fierce competitor who could put the worlds best to the sword and a man who dedicated himself to creating something that so many people enjoy and feel a part of.
R.I.P. Mike, my thoughts are with your family, friends and the global community who are shocked and saddened by this terrible news.