When 54-year-old Allan Jefferson signed up for the Race Across America — billed as the "world's toughest bicycle race" – he never expected to win.
The rescue helicopter crewman from North Queensland rode almost non-stop for 5,000 kilometres to cross the finish line after 10 days and 15 minutes.
"There's nothing in the book that tells you about how much it hurts afterwards," he laughed.
Jefferson arrived home in Townsville on Thursday, receiving a hero's welcome from a legion of supporters who followed his race online.
"I'm absolutely blown away by how much the people of Townsville got behind it," he said.
The gruelling annual endurance race runs from California on the west coast to Maryland in the east.
Jefferson is the second Australian man in the race's history to win the overall solo category.
"If I asked them to push, they would push."
Self-doubt and saddle sores
Jefferson was followed round-the-clock by a support crew, led by his boss Greg Huppatz.
"He was on the bike for those first couple of days for 22 hours a day and that put us into a great position for later in the race," Huppatz said.
"He was having one 90-minute sleep break a day in the first stages."
Progress slowed at times, as the experienced cyclist battled physical and psychological challenges.
"His derriere took a bit of a beating from sitting on the bike for that extended period, so we were taking him off every couple of hours to dress some wounds," Huppatz said.
"[Mentally], Al went to some places that he's probably never been.
A 'remarkable' comeback
Jefferson was determined to make it to the finish line after he was forced to withdraw from the race in 2019 due to health issues.
But it wasn't until day seven that the crew realised the 54-year-old was in with a shot of a podium finish.
"So he turned the power on and the next three days on the bike were just amazing," Huppatz said.
The Race Across America attracts cyclists from around the world, who compete as individuals or in relay teams.
This year, 33 solo racers took part – but 19 of those did not finish.
Race Across America executive director Rick Boething said it had been a close contest, with the top three cyclists all within one sleep break of each other.
"I think we were all kind of stunned at how well [Jefferson] rode," Mr Boething said.
"Generally, any racer that comes back a second time will do better, but to what Al did and go from dropping out to winning? That's a pretty remarkable jump."
Now home in North Queensland, Jefferson said he was looking forward to some much-needed rest before embarking on his next foray into adventure racing.
The cyclist's efforts have raised thousands of dollars for Townsville mental health charity, Selectability.
