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Taiwan pedal.360 2026. Beyond the finish line.

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On Friday 20th March, the day after completing Taiwan pedal.360 2026, we had the privilege of visiting the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families (TFCF) at their Taipei office. We were welcomed by Lee Wei Bo, Director of Public Relations Division and Lin Mon Ping, Head of Social Resources Department and their teams, who shared the breadth of their work, supporting vulnerable children and families both here in Taiwan and across their overseas projects. Hearing about their programmes in person, after riding 1,004km in their name, made everything about this journey feel complete. We shared some of our stories from the road. They listened with warmth and generosity, and extended an open invitation to visit their projects in Taiwan or overseas. It was a truly humbling experience. To everyone who has donated to support TFCF’s Art Therapy for Early Intervention Children project — a huge thank you. Your generosity is what makes this meaningful. Every contribution, large or small, goes directly ...
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Taiwan pedal.360 2026. The numbers.

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1,004km. 7,124m of climbing over 10 stages in 12 days. One full circumnavigation, earned entirely on fully loaded 25kg bikes. No trains, no cars, no assistance. All stats powered by determination, fuelled by onigiri and Snickers, navigated and tracked by the Garmin Edge 1050.  A few stand out stats: • 12.4 km/h — avg speed on Stage 6 into relentless headwinds. The hardest day. • 91% — moving efficiency on Stage 7. The reply. • 58.9 km/h — max speed, descent into Yilan on Stage 9. Trip record. • 62h 34m — total time on the bike. Nearly three full days of riding. • 124km in 7h49m — the longest day by distance and time during  Stage 4, Chiayi to Kaohsiung. • 20+ 7-Eleven stops. • 40+ Tea eggs consumed. Alex & Adam  Rusty Rhinos
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Taiwan pedal.360 2026 — Stage 10. Every Kilometre Earned.

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Stage 10 complete. Luodong Township, Yilan → Taipei. 113km. 894m of climbing. Nine stages of preparation, 891km in the legs, and a finish line waiting in Taipei, sheer determination carried the rest. We respected everything the route could throw at us and it threw plenty. Taiwan kept one final card up its sleeve, headwinds, rain and cold, all three, on the last day, on the final stage home. When the headwinds arrived, Stage 6 trauma came briefly to mind, we laughed and then rode harder. The climbs came and went, every single one completed without stopping, as they have been across all ten stages. No trains, no cars or assistance of any kind throughout the 10 stages. Every kilometre of Taiwan pedal.360 2026 was earned on the bike. On bikes weighing 25kg fully loaded, 12kg bicycle, 11kg of panniers, bottles and gadgets, ridden across 1,004km and 7,124m of climbing. After the first couple of days the weight stopped being something to think about. The bikes became part of us, and not o...
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Stage 9 - The infamous Suhua Highway. We owned it.

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Stage 9 complete. Xincheng, Hualien → Luodong Township, Yilan. 108km. 1,442m of climbing. Its reputation precedes it and we respect that, the tunnels are occasionally terrifying, the trucks are loud and the noise they create inside those echoing narrow mountain passages is something between a howl and a roar. With a prepared mindset, defensive riding and a genuine sense of adventure, the Suhua doesn’t intimidate, it exhilarates.  We wouldn’t have ridden it any other way, the scenery alone with towering cliff faces to our left, the Pacific in every imaginable shade of blue far below to our right is among the finest of the entire route. Anyone considering skipping it should think again. Taiwan also handed us a gift, a truly impressive tunnel network, completed in recent years, effectively gave us a 30% discount on the planned climbing. We accepted graciously and without hesitation. The climbing itself was serious, a Category 1 climb of 5km early on, followed shortly by a Category 2 o...
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Mountains await after completion of stage 8

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Stage 8 complete. Ruisui → Xincheng, Hualien. 87km. 393m of climbing. For the first time on this trip, the rain arrived. Not a passing drizzle, enough to require a stop, rain gear on, pannier covers fitted, then back on the road. A brief reminder that Taiwan doesn’t owe us perfect weather, even if it has largely provided it. Shortly after rain proofing, in typical fashion, the rain stopped, however the mountains did not. All day, the peaks have been closing in. The scenery through Hualien county kept building, lush, dramatic, the mountains shifting from backdrop to something altogether more present. They aren’t quite overhead yet but tomorrow they will be. One 7-Eleven stop at 9:30am, on schedule and non-negotiable as always. Otherwise a clean, efficient ride, 17.2km/h overall average, 21.6km/h moving, 80% moving time across 87km. Total time: 5.03 and finished before noon. This left time for Xincheng Old Street. A gentle stroll, some local food, and a peanut wheel cake that did not...
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Stage 7 - The Strong Comeback

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Stage 7 complete. Taimali, Taitung → Ruisui, Hualien. 117km. 972m of climbing. After Stage 6, we had a point to prove. Stage 7 was the answer. A 6:25am start into light headwinds that gradually eased as the day progressed, almost as if Taiwan was offering a quiet apology for Friday.  What followed was a rock solid ride from start to finish. Strength maintained, speed maintained, no drama. The landscape gave us everything the east coast promised. Lush green mountains, rice fields, long valley stretches with the kind of scenery that makes you forget your legs have already covered several hundred kilometres this week. The encouragement from locals was relentless, more 'Jiayou' shouts than we could count, from cars, scooters, roadside strangers. This island really does get behind its cyclists. Nutrition was handled differently today. A high protein light breakfast before the off, a proper carb and protein stop at 9:30am, and a Snickers at the right moment later in the day tha...
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Brutally windy stage 6 completes

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Stage 6 complete. Fangshan Township → Taimali Township, Taitung. 90km. 1,299m of climbing. Stages 1 through 5 introduced us to Taiwan. Stage 6 introduced us to what Taiwan is actually capable of throwing at two cyclists on a Friday morning.  Within the first ten minutes, gusts so strong we could barely move forwards and nearly came off the bikes entirely. A sign, as it turned out, of what the next seven hours had in store. The climbing began to make itself known around 10km, but it was at 18km that it really started to bite, a sustained 5km mountain ascent that carried us from the west coast to the east.  What followed was a long, sweeping descent that made every upward metre feel worthwhile. The Pacific opened up below us, the views were stunning. The wind never relented, for 90% of the ride, headwinds, gusts, constant resistance. The kind that doesn’t show up in the climbing numbers but shows up everywhere else. Overall average speed of 12.4km/h tells that story better than ...
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