VV Wrapped season has unearthed some phenomenal stories of rider achievements. One which we were keen to do a deep dive on was Robert Williams who chased 100 imperial centuries and hit 107 in 2025. This amazing achievement gives him an Eddington score of 100+ which is spectacular. Not only this, the icing on the cake for Robert is hitting 524,076 metres elevation for the year.
For VV fanatics who are familiar with the Eddington number you will know how impressive this is, for those who are not familiar with the term let’s give a quick recap before we share Robert’s story (for the full Eddington break down click here):
- Your cycling Eddington number is calculated on the distance covered per day
- Your Eddington Score is the largest distance where you have completed on that many days
- As an example, if you have completed 50 miles on 50 days your Eddington is 50
- Named after British astrophysicist Sir Arthur Eddington, a cyclist himself in the early 1900’s, this is now used by cyclists to create tough cycling challenges and set personal goals
Back to Robert. With this in mind he set himself a daily riding target of 160km a day, and at least 3000 metres of climbing – we chatted to him about his riding year and how he achieves such demanding days in the saddle:
VV: How long have you had a passion for cycling/where do you mostly ride?
Robert: I turn 60 in March, and I’ve been riding in one form or the other for most of my life, I can’t remember never owning a bike. I started taking it seriously when I was introduced to mountain biking by a friend 40 years ago and haven’t looked back. I would basically describe myself as a serious (obsessed) enthusiast. Following a three-year contract working in Australia my wife and I decided to move to Spain rather than move back to the UK. We basically wanted to escape the rat race and find somewhere where we could enjoy raising our kids. We’ve now lived in Cantabria on the North coast of Spain for nearly 20 years. We spent the first two years renovating a derelict farmhouse which we call home. The property also includes two apartments we offer to holidaymakers all year round.
The North coast of Spain is an amazing place to ride. Due to a cooler climate and a wetter winter, it isn’t overrun by tourists so the roads are much quieter and safer than in the South. I would describe Cantabria as similar to North Wales but with bigger hills and higher mountains.
VV: How did you discover VeloViewer?
Robert: I discovered VeloViewer after viewing someone else’s infographic on Strava. I thought it was a great way to present your achievements for the past year. I’m still discovering other advantages of using it. It definitely provides a deeper level of data analysis over Strava.
VV: What was your focus for cycling in 2025?
Robert: After leaving Australia my focus has moved from mountain biking to road riding. I still take part in a couple of local mountain biking events every year, but I now just enjoy getting out on the road. Over the past 4-5 years my hours on the bike have steadily increased due to my enjoyment of local cycling sportive’s. These events are usually well over 160km and incorporate a very healthy amount of climbing. For the past 3 years I’ve also taken part in the Mallorca 312 which requires a lot of preparation.
This steady increase of hours on the bike led me to set a personal target of 500,000m of climbing in 2024. After reaching this target, I just kept going for 2025. In addition to climbing another 500,000m, I added a target of 100 imperial centuries.
VV: Was chasing a high Eddington and achieving such huge climbing stats part of your plan?
Robert: I don’t have a set training plan and chasing a high Eddington has never occurred to me, I just love riding my bike. I try to ride every other day, and I aim for over 160km and 3,000m of climbing every time. It definitely helps living where I live, the scenery here is spectacular and you learn to love the hills!
VV: What were the highlights of your riding year that helped to achieve these amazing metrics?
Robert: Two highlights last year was achieving PB’s in both the local Los 10.000 del Soploa mountain bike race and the Mallorca 312 road Sportive. Both are very hard events. I’m sure most cyclists know what’s involved in completing the 312 but for me the Los 10.000 del Soploa is the harder of the two. It involves just under 160km on a mountain bike and close to 5,000m of hard climbing! It’s also in early April so the weather is usually atrocious. A real test of mental strength and fortitude!
VV: What is your focus for cycling in 2026?
Robert: My goals in 2026? Just more of the same.
If you have a story of your riding year from 2025, or plans for 2026, please get in touch with Team VV at veloviewer@gmail.com and you could win a VeloViewer casquette.