My epic journey: conquering the Paris-Brest-Paris Audax

The 8:15pm start wasn't ideal. I would've preferred starting earlier to avoid riding all night when visibility is limited. But leaving in waves with hundreds of riders was cool — we could draft off each other to maintain pace. Spectators cheering loudly as we departed Rambouillet pumped me up. The gentle roads initially spread out the pack. I rode in a group of 30–40 moving fast, drafting each other.

Sometimes slower groups passed then slowed, which was annoying. I wasted energy sprinting ahead at times instead of relaxing.

The first 120km: finding a rhythm

After 120km, finishing the first leg in 5 hours felt great. I was starving, but my only veggie option was an unappetising sandwich. After refilling water, I found the restaurant — relieved, I carb-loaded on pasta, yogurt, bananas and Orangina. The next 94km was pitch-black countryside. My bike light only illuminated the wheels ahead. A few hours later, some awesome folks at a bike museum gave out coffee. That caffeine injection energised me to pedal through the cold night.

Day two: heat, checkpoints, and keeping moving

The next day's heat was brutal. "Just keep pedalling" was my mantra when exhausted. Soup, carbs, yogurt and bananas at checkpoints fuelled me for hours between stops. On the road, I struggled to eat in the oppressive heat.

At 9pm on Monday I reached Loudeac at 435km. I was happy with the distance despite being a couple of hours behind my original plan, mainly due to queue delays at checkpoints. I was tired, so I decided to try and sleep a couple of hours. I ate then slept from 10pm to midnight. I didn't feel like I slept much but I must have — I had strange memories of loved ones telling me I'd trained hard and should stay positive. I seemed to be subconsciously anxious about reaching Brest on time. When I woke up, I had 170km to go — doable, but I needed to stay focused.

Through the night to Brest

I set off just after midnight with two planned stops. The constant rolling terrain made it hard to find a rhythm or pace. The impact was taking its toll on my knees.

I finally got to the halfway point in Brest with an hour to spare. I passed out under a tree before replenishing food. For the return to Paris, I hoped to enjoy the scenery more with extra time allotted. But the constant rolling hills wore me down. At another stop, a quick 40-minute nap revived me.

The return leg: grit and zombie checkpoints

Crawling back into Loudeac, sleep was essential. I rested 3.5 hours before starting the final leg. No food at the first stop — I went 25km further, starving. The last day delivered scorching heat again. My mantra pushing through endless hills: "Just keep pedalling." A broken spoke complicated things but got fixed quickly.

Returning to Villaines la Juhel at 10pm, massive crowds cheered loudly. Their infectious energy catapulted me forward. Hearty lentil chili sustained me for the remaining 200km through the night. Checkpoints now resembled zombie towns — riders utterly spent. A tree nap at dawn prepped me for the finish line.

The finish

Teenagers zoomed by in Paris-Brest-Paris jerseys, pulling me toward Rambouillet. Entering the final stretch lined with screaming fans overwhelmed me with pride.

I finished in 88 hours, just under the 90-hour time limit. My moving time was 63 hours — I spent 15 hours sleeping, eating and on general faff. Physically I felt good. My average speed was about 20km/h. I managed shoulder and knee issues okay. I developed painful saddle sores that I'll need to address in the future.

My training this year — building endurance, aerobic engine, managing effort by heart rate — had carried me further and faster than ever before.

What this experience taught me

• Zone 2 low-intensity training for the majority of the year really worked. The aerobic base I built over 18 months was the reason I could keep moving for 88 hours.
• Patience is a virtue. Don't get carried away and burn too much energy when you don't need to — especially in the first third of a very long event.
• Eating consistently is critical. In endurance events, the eating never stops. Missing a feed stop or under-eating for a few hours catches up with you quickly.
• Mental toughness and mantras push you forward. "Just keep pedalling" is simple, but it works. Find yours.
• Appreciate the support and community spirit. The crowds, the volunteers, the other riders — all of it matters more than you expect.
• Expect and adapt to the unexpected. Broken spokes, route errors, checkpoint queues — none of it is fatal if you stay calm and keep moving.
• Sometimes it's better to rest and recharge than push on. The 3.5-hour sleep at Loudeac on the return leg was one of my best decisions of the whole event.
• Enjoy the journey itself. The roads through rural France at 3am, coffee from strangers at a bike museum, the solidarity of riders in zombie checkpoints — these are the things you remember.