He's conquered the Coast to Coast and clocked the Tour of Southland, now Brendon Vercoe's about to embark on his toughest challenge yet.
The Christchurch physiotherapist's setting out to cycle from Cape Reinga to Bluff and beat the current record of four days, nine hours and 45 minutes.
"It's a little surreal," he said.
"There's a whole mix of emotions. Some excitement, a lot of eager anticipation and whole lots of nerves."
The distance is roughly 1200km, which means Vercoe will aim to ride 500km's a day, spending 20-plus hours in the saddle.
There are plenty of variables along the way, the most threatening right now is Cyclone Gabrielle, which is forecast to be through before he reaches the cape.
"Let's hope there's no tail of destruction but if it does leave some road closures in its wake, that'll change things.
"You can take whatever route you want, but there's a fastest route and it's down a state highway," he joked.
Vercoe's grateful for the support of his family, support crew and current record holder Craig Harper — who believes achieving a sub four record is possible. When he set the record in 2017, large chunks of South Island's main state highway were impacted and he believes there's four to five hours to be easily made up for.
"Out of all the people who have attempted so far, he (Brendon) definitely is the most prepared and most capable of riders," Harper said.
But this is a man riding with purpose — for the New Zealand Spinal Trust. Having spent 10 years working in Burwood's Spinal Unit Vercoe's been inspired by those who have sustained spinal cord impairments and never given up in their recovery.
He said the resilience these people have shown in the face of adversity has given him a real sense of perspective.
"It's something close to my heart. I draw a lot of inspiration from the people I worked with there."
The New Zealand Spinal Trust is humbled by Vercoe's way of giving back.
"This is an extraordinary effort Brendon's going to (to give back), we actually can't quite believe the effort he's gone to," chief executive Hans Wouters said.
And while fit and healthy, Vercoe hasn't been without his own injury struggles. The most significant was a nasty road bike accident in 2010 which he was preparing for the 2011 Coast to Coast. He broke his jaw in two places and suffered a mild traumatic brain injury, which required support from ACC.
"I had several months off work recovering and rehabilitating, which ACC supported me with throughout and it was great to have that support," he said.
The biggest support right now is his family, who plan to be in Invercargill when he finishes the attempt, and hopefully sets a new record.
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