Chinese train enthusiast rides rails for over 5,000 km in 24 hours to break record

At 7:53 a.m. on 15 February, the train station in Yibin, Sichuan, welcomed its most extraordinary arrival of the day - Wang Dong. This die-hard train enthusiast from Deyang, Sichuan, had just shattered the Guinness World Records title for the greatest distance travelled by train in 24 hours, clocking an astonishing 5,887.76 km (3,658.48 miles). Quite the ride, right?

This was a nearly coast-to-coast sprint across China, kicking off in Shenzhen North, zipping through Zhengzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, and Guiyang, before pulling into Yibin. 

Sharing a meticulously crafted guide to navigating China’s Spring Festival travel chaos on Weibo back in 2013 made Wang Dong famous on the internet.

Netizens dubbed him the “Transfer Emperor”, and it’s not hard to see why. “I grew up in Deyang, right by the tracks,” he said. “Trains were basically the spark for every dream I had about the world beyond.”

Back then, he was a PhD student in Shanghai, plotting tech-savvy routes home via rail, forging a bond with the tracks that’s still going strong.

Over the next 10 years, he crisscrossed every province in China (except Xinjiang) by train, with a soft spot for the Baocheng Railway and the T8 train that carried him to Beijing in high school. On the “Haizi Railway Network” forum, he still goes by the handle “T8”.

The record for the greatest distance travelled by train in 24 hours was first broken in 1992 with a distance of 2,842.5 km. Since then, it’s been topped eight times - in 2008, 2009, 2012, 2013 (twice), 2017, 2019, and 2021.

Notably, since 2019, every record has been set on China’s rail system. That year, Hong Kong brothers Huang Weiji and Huang Weijie travelled 4,967.8 km from Changsha to Hezhou in 24 hours. Their story caught Wang Dong’s eye. “I thought, ‘I could do that. Maybe even better’,” he said with a grin.

But when he started planning, the bar had been raised again. In 2021, Yang Yongdan pushed the record to 5,412.76 km. Wang Dong knew breaking it would be a stretch, so he got methodical. His first attempt, during the 2024 Spring Festival, was derailed by a blizzard that delayed trains and left him with just 3,700 kilometers. “I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t bummed,” he admitted. “But I knew I’d get another shot.”

For the next year, he juggled work with planning his next attempt. He fine-tuned routes, tested GPS gear, streamlined his pack, and even hit the pool to shed over 10 kg for peak stamina. On 14 February, at 7:54 a.m., he boarded a train at Shenzhen North, launching a race against the clock. His route hit four transfer cities, with every connection timed to the minute.

The tightest moment came in Beijing. He had to disembark at Beijing West, hop the subway to Beijing South, and catch his next train - all in a 31-minute window. When his incoming train ran three minutes late, he sprinted through the subway like a man possessed. “My heart was pounding,” he said. “Miss that train, and it’s game over.”

The real nail-biter, though, hit near the end, thanks to a butterfly effect from an early departure. “My first leg, G82 from Shenzhen North to Beijing West, left one minute early,” Wang Dong explained. “That shifted my entire 24-hour countdown by a minute.”

His final leg, D5122 from Guiyang to Yibin, had just a four-minute buffer to begin with.

Any delay over three minutes would’ve sunk the whole challenge. Sure enough, D5122 hit a delay. Wang Dong was on edge, eyes glued to the train’s timer. When it rolled into Yibin, it was late by about two minutes. As he stepped on to the platform, his watch showed 40 seconds left in the 24-hour window. Talk about cutting it close.

Those 24 hours were relentless. No real rest, just hustling between trains, filling out witness logs, and livestreaming to keep it legit. Still, Wang Dong’s videos show him smiling through the grind. “I love documenting every trip,” he said. “It’s not just for keepsakes - it’s proof this was worth it.”

For him, this challenge was more than a record; it was a tribute. “I’m just a regular train nerd,” he said, “but I got to be part of this era’s speed story in my own way.”

Wang Dong isn’t itching to chase another goal just yet. “I want to ride those slow trains again, soak in the views I rushed past,” he said. “Records come and go, but the love for this? That’s forever.”