Kurt Searvogel, who lives and works in Sheridan, became the new record holder in January for the high mileage record, which included riding the most miles in a single year.
To put his achievement in perspective, this feat entailed riding around 200 miles a day, the equivalent of 25 times across the U.S.
The previous record (75,065 miles) was achieved in the late 1930s by British cyclist Tommy Godwin.
Searvogel, whose attempt at the accomplishment started in January 2015, rode 76,076 miles over the year, breaking the previous record by more than 1,000 miles. His wife, Alicia Searvogel, was along for the adventure as his support crew.
So how does the world record make him feel?
“I’m glad it’s over,” he laughs. “But I’m glad I did it.”
News of his attempt made the rounds with coverage in national publications such as Bicycling and Outside magazines.
“From the cycling community, there are a lot of people who would come and ride with us, try to help us out,” Searvogel said.
Searvogel, who is in his early 50s, has done many training rides in Arkansas over the years. He either rides alone or with people in the Little Rock area, which is near to where he lives.
He noted there is a vibrant cycling scene across the state in locations like Fayetteville — home to popular routes like the Razorback Regional Greenway and races like the Joe Martin Stage Race — and Jonesboro. He said he has a good system of rides mapped out and enjoys riding in south Arkansas.
Searvogel said he would sometimes make mini-vacations out of his excursions. He would ride his road bike to various destinations where he would camp out and get in some mountain biking time, too. Then he would ride back home on his road bike.
“I would sometimes ride from my house to different state parks and meet up with my family or friends,” he said. “They would have a mountain bike waiting for me there so I could ride trails too. Like to Star City. That was a good ride, for me to ride to Star City, because they had mountain bike trails there” at Cane Creek State Park.
He also s ridden a lot to the DeGray Lake area. He added it could benefit the Arkansas cycling scene if a designated riding loop to different state parks was created.
Searvogel has pieced together multiple riding routes from his home base. He said there are no names for these routes; they are just a system he has created that are the safest to ride solo.
He said various routes from the Ozark Mountains to the east and from Interstate 30 south where the roads are mostly flat have a lot of good shoulders, which make it safer to ride.
There are many popular cycling events across the state that offer riding opportunities. However, some of the routes used for these races are mostly targeted for groups. He said routes like the Jasper Disaster in the Ozarks are best ridden in a group because there is no shoulder on them.
Searvogel said if a cyclist was coming to Little Rock to ride, he would recommend the Arkansas River Trail system, and to go west from there as there are a lot of common routes where drivers are more aware of bicyclists.
“There is definitely a lot of room for improvement on some of the roads, but you’ve got to take what you got and find the safest way to go,” he said.
Biking in Arkansas
For more details, visit www.Arkansas.com/bicycling.