Two-time Dakar Rally winner Sam Sunderland is planning something big. Really big. He wants to ride around the world on a motorcycle — in just 19 days.
To do that, he’ll need to cross 15 countries, ride through 5 continents, and go across 13 time zones. He’ll start and finish in London, and ride nearly 1,000 miles every single day. That’s like riding across the UK, every day, for 19 days straight.
And no, he’s not doing this just for fun.
Why is Sam Doing This?
“This challenge will push me to the limit,” says Sam. “I’ll ride in the heat, cold, rain, wind — for 15 or 16 hours a day. I’ll be exhausted, but that’s the point. I want to set a new standard.”
Sam’s not just trying to break the current world record of 19 days, 8 hours, and 25 minutes — he wants to smash it. And he’ll do it all on one bike: the Triumph 1200 Rally Explorer.
What’s the Route?
His journey starts in the UK and continues like this:
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Through Europe, down to Turkey
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Across the Middle East, from Saudi Arabia to UAE
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On to Australia and New Zealand
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Then up through the USA and Canada
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Across to Morocco in Africa
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Back into Europe through Spain, and finally home to London
The Rules Are Serious
To count as a real world record, Sam must follow some strict rules:
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Start and finish in the same place
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Ride in one continuous direction
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Touch two points on Earth that are exactly opposite each other
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Ride at least 18,000 miles
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And most importantly — use the same motorcycle for the whole trip
Time spent crossing oceans doesn’t count, so the clock will pause during flights.
Support from the Past Record Holders
Back in 2002, Kevin and Julia Sanders set the current official world record. They’re now supporting Sam and have shared their knowledge to help him succeed. “Records are made to be broken,” Kevin said. “Sam will face new challenges that didn’t exist 20 years ago. We’re excited to see how he does.”
