Lesa Ashford: Cycling 14,000km+ and Circumnavigating Australia in World Record Time
I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Lesa Ashford who recently set the female World Record as the fastest woman to circumnavigate Australia. Lesa set off on March 08 2023, from the Wheel in Brisbane, then connected 19 waypoints around mainland Australia with a total distance exceeding 14,000kms. 92 days, 6 hours and 33 mins later she arrived back in Brisbane, setting the official record as first female.
Lesa discusses her motivaions to set off on this challenge, and the obstacles which she had to overcome. Flooding and cyclones which damaged infrastructure and roads threatened to derail her attempt, but with a display of grit and determination, Lesa didn't give up.
It was evident that setting an official record not only takes a lot of training and dedication but also the assistance from an amazing support team and we talk about this in detail.
Check out the details of the official record Lesa set.
You can also read Lesa's account of her record breaking ride in more detail.
A special shout out to Lesa's Support Crew:
Officials: Wayne Smith, Noel Ashford, Desrae Cameron, Julie Waldron,
Michael Burns, Alexandra Beasley, Ian D'Arcy, Steven Felix, Ann Johnston,
Michelle Meredith-Herlaar, Jessie Heideman, Bruce Frazer, Jenny Frazer,
Marianne Sutherland, Cathryn McDonald, Eric McDonald, Keith Froggatt
Crew: Wayne Smith, Noel Ashford, Alexandra Beasley, Desrae Cameron,
Julie Waldron, Michael Burns, Peter Barnette, Bruce Frazer, Jenny Frazer,
Mark Pink, Cathryn McDonald, Eric McDonald, Ian D’Arcy, Steven Felix,
Ann Johnston, Michelle Meredith-Herlaar, Keith Froggatt, Dave Sutherland,
Marianne Sutherland, Jessie Heideman, Robert Heideman, Stephen
Dovey, Christopher Beasley, Samantha Parr
You can find Lesa on the following social channels:
Instagram - @NewHorizons4Lesa
Facebook Group - New Horizons 4 Lesa
Strava - Lesa Ashford
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