Cyclist readies for nonstop trans-Cuba record ride

Austrian extreme cyclist Jacob Zurl is preparing to cycle nonstop the length of Cuba, starting on April 19.

He plans to complete the record-setting 870-mile (1,400-km) ride without stopping to rest or sleep.

This would sound crazy if Zurl hadn’t done crazier things. In 2014 he became the first person to cross the Himalayas by bicycle without stopping.

“The preparation is cycling and cycling of course,’ he said. “There’s also some preparation in the gym where you are making your stomach and your back fit because there is some sitting for a long time on the seat.”

Cuba is at sea level, so Zurl won’t have to deal with altitude. He will have to cope with heat and humidity—and mosquitoes.

He made this attempt in 2015, but had to retire because he contracted dengue fever.

“This time I also got more mosquito (repellant) to make it safer for me to cycle here,” he quipped.

Despite the dangers, Zurl is determined.

“Coming back is a thing of never give up, never give up, like the Cuban people never gave up in their past. I won’t give up to make this project onto cycling Cuba ‘coast to coast,’” he said.