A cyclist looking to break a Guinness World Record rode through Oklahoma over the weekend. Alaskan Lael Wilcox is taking an atypical journey down Route 66.
Wilcox is a pioneer in endurance cycling. She's the first ever female winner of the Trans-Am, a roughly 4,000-mile race from Oregon to Virginia. She completed the race in just over 18 days.
Now, she’s trying to bike around the world in less than 124 days. Wilcox is on pace to break the record by the end of the week. She also wants to inspire more women to get into cycling.
She once gave a TED talk about it.
“Imagine if we encouraged more women not only to get to the start line, but to believe that they’re capable of riding long distances, of taking on challenges, of going on adventures,” Wilcox said.
She zoomed through Tulsa on Sunday. Wilcox even got to experience the 918 while cycling. She talked about it on her podcast “Lael Rides Around the World.”
“We went through downtown Tulsa. They’re kind of reviving these old buildings and it's got this really strong Route 66 theme, restaurants and shops,” Wilcox said. “All really good riding.”
Some Tulsan cyclists caught up to Wilcox. They handed her a Coke, her favorite drink. The Coke helped fuel Wilcox with some much-needed sugar as she scooted into the distance outside of Oklahoma, through Kansas and beyond.
Her destination is Chicago, the beginning of Route 66 and the end of the world for Wilcox.
