For release July 21, 2010
Arvid Loewen posted a tremendous personal best over this race distance that saw him reach the perimeter of Winnipeg at 12:43 pm, a time that shaved 18 hours off of earlier rides. Loewen arrived downtown at the Legislature today at 1:45 pm, accompanied through town by a police escort and met by a large crowd of supporters and the other Hot Pursuit riders. Loewen raced solo in support of the Mully Children’s Family Charitable Foundation, riding at record pace from July 17, 7:00 a.m. through to July 21, 1:45 p.m., stopping only 4 hours per day for rest periods. For race statistics, visit www.hotpursuit2010.com/Hot_Pursuit/Home.html
Says crew member Paul Loewen: “Arvid biked 2330km in 99h 43m. Of that time, 14 hours was off bike. So his riding time was about 86 hours. That makes his on-bike average about 27km/h. His previous best was 118 hours, so he beat that time by 18 hours.”
Team CMU, racing in relay format with five riders cycling non-stop from July 18 to July 21, for a total of 65 hours, reached the Legislature at 2:43 am July 21, posting a race finish time of 2:01 am at the perimeter. Team CMU finished 19 hours ahead of their estimated racing time. Team CMU’s fundraising efforts will provide financial support for CMU’s international student financial assistance programs and practica. Riding for Team CMU were CMU faculty members Chris Huebner and John Brubacher, along with Kevin Kilbrei, and alumni Craig Penner and Jon Guenter.
The Gogos team of four women “grannies,’ including 80-year old Shirley Polson along with Elsie McKinnon, Evely Ko, and Jo Maetche, completed their race from Calgary to Winnipeg this morning, also riding in support of the Mully Children’s Family Charitable Foundation.
The Gogos riders were cycling today at a pace of 31.5 km per hour. Because Arvid was out in front of them, they decided to end their race 10 kilometeres past Portage la Prairie and drive the final stretch in their van, in order to arrive in Winnipeg on time to welcome Arvid at the finish.
“This is about the children of the Mully Children’s Family and support for them,” says crew member Maureen Kehler. “We really wanted to support the work that Arvid does, and we wanted to help welcome him at the end.” The team ended their race logging 45 hours and 52 minutes and estimated that had they continued at that pace, their arrival at Winnipeg’s perimeter would have been at 1:28 pm.
Team Winnipeg Police accompanied Arvid on the final leg of his journey as part of a police escort. Although circumstances caused Team WPS to withdraw part way through the race, the team continued their support for Hot Pursuit in raising funds for The Children’s Wish Foundation.