Meaghan Hackinen's 2026 Tour Divide Record
episode
Detours: Bikepacking, Ultra-Cycling and Adventures by Bike
1h 12m
2 speakers
7 chapters
transcribed 1 month ago
Transcript
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Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
What motivated Meaghan Hackinen to attempt a new Tour Divide record after her 2024 rookie run?
I'd never expected to be riding next to my call's dot and it wasn't like a sub-14 day goal. When I came out of the CDT single track on the highway with 50k to go, that's when I like kinda let myself believe it. Because with fifty kilometers I could run it if I had to. It would be cool to see it stand for some time. On the other hand, I'm not racing just for myself. I'm racing as part of the community. And I want to play a role in the progression of women's bike packing and pushing the record forward. I have like mission accomplished, I've done that.
Megan Hakkinen just rode the Tour Divide faster than any woman ever has. In 14 days, 10 hours, 2 minutes, taking more than a full day off her own previous time across nearly 4,400 kilometers from Banff to the Mexican border, and besting Austin Killip's previous record of 14 days, 23 hours. In this episode, Megan shares the ins and outs of her record-breaking run, what she learned from her rookie attempt in 2024, the marginal gains that added up, the collective she built for women and underrepresented riders to build community around the divide, how she managed to find time for a skinny dip en route, yes, you heard that right, and so much more.
My name is Mel Webb and this is Detours, a show about bikepacking, ultra endurance, and the many different ways people find freedom on two wheels. We share the highs, the lows, and of course, the detours along the way. This show is made possible by Albion Cycling, clothing and accessories designed to help you stay outside for longer. You can get 15% off your next order with Albion with our code DTORS15. Alright, on to today's episode with Megan. You're home from a record-breaking tour divide. You took off over a day from your previous time. I know you had clear goals going into it, but I don't know if time was ever part of it. Did you have a number that you were aiming for or was it simply just to break the record time?
I guess my ideal number was coming in about fourteen and a half days. I felt like that was like That was something that maybe was possible, right? And it would give me a safe buffer against Austin's time. Um, at the same time, like I didn't have a lot of confidence in that. People were asking me in the weeks leading up, you know, are you gonna break the record? Is that what you're gonna do? And I'd be like, Oh, like maybe that's kind of like something I'm trying to do. And just I, yeah, I I I couldn't. And I think, as you know, anything can happen in these races. The weather makes such a huge difference. And I really didn't want to set myself up in a position where people would be like, well, Megan said she would do this, but she failed completely.
And I know that the community isn't like that. The community around bikepacking wants to see people challenge themselves. And if they succeed, that's great. And if they if they like fail, then um, you know, they're still rooting. For them. Like we still love a sports story. We still love an underdog. And like, I'm not saying I'm an underdog, but we we still love when people have audacious goals and tries. Knowing that I I am still hesitant to put those goals out there. And that's uh that's something I'm working on. So yeah, my goal was about fourteen and a half days and I came in around that, which uh seems incredible.
It is incredible. And I'm so glad that like you feel that too in your effort. And you raced in 2024. And do you remember what your goals were when you raced back then? And did you have like the same level of ambition? Maybe that's not the right way to put it, but I am curious like how this kind of compared to that.
My goal was tiered that year and this year, and like the top tier was to challenge Lil's record. I think Yeah, yeah, just to challenge Lil's record and to um see because that was the record at the time and and see how close I could come to that. And That also like it seemed like something it seemed similar to this year. Like it might be possible, right? It might be you know, within reason depending on weather and stuff, but you you can never really know.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What motivated Meaghan Hackinen to attempt a new Tour Divide record after her 2024 rookie run?
0:04–11:50
2
How did Meaghan set specific time goals and measure progress toward breaking the women's record?
11:50–22:35
3
What training adjustments and marginal gains did she implement between 2024 and 2026?
22:35–31:53
4
How did equipment choices—like the custom seatpost mat and musette bag—impact her performance?
31:53–42:19
5
What role did sleep strategy and bivvy planning play in maintaining her speed?
42:19–54:10
6
How did weather conditions and route changes affect her pacing and overall time?
54:10–1:04:34
7
What community initiatives did Meaghan help build for women and under‑represented riders?
1:04:34–1:12:44
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from Detours: Bikepacking, Ultra-Cycling and Adventures by Bike
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Maddy Nutt's Record Breaking Ride at Traka 560
Women of Tour Divide & Hannah's Great Plain Ride