Ian To sets off on fresh Land's End to John O'Groats record attempt

Ian To has this morning embarked on a fresh attempt on the Land’s End to John O’Groats record.

The ultracyclist from Swindon set off from the tip of Cornwall at 5.15am and aims to break the existing time recognised by the Road Records Association of 43 hours 25 minutes and 13 seconds set in June this year by Michael Broadwith.

That beat the record of 44 hours 4 minutes and 20 seconds that had stood for 17 years after being set by Gethin Butler in 2001.

Shortly before noon today, 38-year-old To’s support crew tweeted to say that he had passed the 700 miles to go mark and was running around 20 minutes behind schedule but added that he was “smiling and pushing on very strong.”

In May, To was forced to abandon an attempt on the record after covering 450 miles due to a combination of heatstroke, an upset stomach and the after-effects of a crash early on.

> Ian To abandons Land's End to John O'Groats record attempt

Speaking ahead of his latest attempt, he said: "I am deeply grateful of the generosity and support from my sponsors, partners, family and all of the event support team, without whom we would not have even got to the start line" he went on to add

"The weather window is looking favourable and I am feeling extremely positive and motivated for this attempt.

“The record has stood for a long time now, and whilst our team admire the guts and determination of all of those that went before us on this journey, the time is right to push the limits of endurance cycling."

At 1pm on Sunday lunchtime, To had just ridden through Bridgewater in Somerset and you can follow his progress through live tracking here.