What's in a record? Revisiting the 2011 'Lap of Australia' record Lachlan Morton is trying to beat

The map of Lachlan Morton's planned around Australia record attempt
The map of Lachlan Morton's planned around Australia record attempt (Image credit: EF Education-EasyPost)

When Dave Alley first contemplated lining up to chase the record for the fastest ride around Australia he admits he wasn't much of a cyclist, yet he had what it took to conquer the brutal two-wheeled challenge and set a new record by a solid margin.

The Queenslander forged on through brutal heat in the north and speed sapping headwinds across the Nullarbor in the south to shave more than three days off the previous mark set by Canadian Perry Stone, when he dropped the fastest time down to 37 days, 20 hours and 45 minutes in 2011.

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Simone Giuliani
Australia Editor

Simone is a degree-qualified journalist that has accumulated decades of wide-ranging experience while working across a variety of leading media organisations. She joined Cyclingnews as a Production Editor at the start of the 2021 season and has now moved into the role of Australia Editor. Previously she worked as a freelance writer, Australian Editor at Ella CyclingTips and as a correspondent for Reuters and Bloomberg. Cycling was initially purely a leisure pursuit for Simone, who started out as a business journalist, but in 2015 her career focus also shifted to the sport.