Start-finish in Moravske Toplice

On September 19, 2004 Juré Robic (Slovenia) set a new world 24-hour road record of 521.975 miles at an average speed of 21.75 mph. Robic, the winner of the 2004 Race Across AMerica, broke the record set just a month earlier by Andreas Clavadetscher (Liechtenstein).

Robic started training for the record attempt immediately after returning from USA. After 14 days of training he entered the Granfondo Pinarello marathon, the biggest mass marathon in Treviso, Italy. Five thousand riders started, including Miguel Indurain. The course is 205 km with three major passes. "I finished ninth (seven riders in front, I was second in the sprint for the eighth place)." Two weeks after RAAM!

After the Pinarello, he trained solely for the record attempt. He did lots of motorpaced training, riding behind a motorcycle for up to six hours. He also did "normal ultra cycling training rides, some of them took around 10 to 12 hours." Starting two weeks before the record attempt he just did speed training.

Juré's record attempt started at 10:00 a.m. on September 18 in the town of Moravske Toplice. The 17.574 km (10.92 mi) course proceeded east through Tesanovci to Bogojina, then south to Ivanci, west to Norsinci, northwest to Martjanci, then east back into Moravske Toplice.

At the start he had good conditions, racing under a blue sky with almost no wind. However, by 7 p.m. it started to get cold and the temperature fell to 5° Celsius. "The fog rose around 4 a.m. and conditions during the night were therefore very difficult. I had a lot of problems with getting cold throughout my body."

Juré was cheered on by "fans, some that I had never seen before, who supported me even during the night."

Getting ready for the cold night.

Juré said "I wasn't thinking about the record during the ride. I was concentrating only on the ride. My team said that they knew that the record will be broken after 12 hours. They told me that three hours before the end. "

Juré completed 47 laps followed by a partial lap (8.735 mi) finishing in the town of Norsinci at 10:00 a.m. on September 19.

The course lies in the heart of the Pomurje Region of northeastern Slovenia. Moravske Toplice is known for its hot springs and is an important cycling center. Sergej Kaucevic, ultracyclist, bike tour promoter and director of the Bike Center, a bike shop located in Moravske Toplice, officiated.

Juré said "I'm definetly going to RAAM 2005 with goal to break Pete's speed record (avg. 15,4 mph) and win again! My winter preparation is the same as usual: lots of xcountry skiing, uphill walking and running, fitness and of course cycling on the road and indoor (ergometer)."

A cold, tired, satisfied Robic.

We are pleased that the top ultra racers are attempting and setting new records. Clavadetscher attempted both 24-hour track and 24-hour road records in August. Although his track attempt came up short, on August 7, just one week later, he rode 505.37 miles at an average speed of 21.06 mph on the on the Schoetz-Aberswil-Gettnau road circuit in Switzerland.