ENDURANCE cyclist Mark Beaumont has admitted he is sometimes "scared to death" as the he prepares to cycle around the world in 80 days.

The Scot is one month away from the first leg of the epic attempt to smash the world record, where he will try to sustain a punishing 240 miles a day pace for two months.

The attempt will mean completing the four-leg journey in less than half the time the cyclist took when he first broke the record nine years ago, when he travelled around the world solo.

This time he will have a support team of up to six people at a time travelling in two vehicles, and a performance director to ensure the schedule stays on track.

To warm up, Beaumont cycled around the coastline of Britain, completing the 3,500-mile ride will at "80 days" in two weeks.

He said: "I feel in the shape of my life and I have an unbelievably good team behind me, so I'm ready for this.

"The ride around the coastline proved that we can do this and that I can maintain the pace, although it was a punishing, punishing ride.

"This is a huge undertaking and on the next level to anything I have ever done before."

Beaumont will ride for 16 hours a day and sleep for just five hours a night during the record breaking attempt.

The world tour route starts in Paris and goes through Europe, Russia and Mongolia to Beijing in China.

It crosses Australia, up New Zealand, across North America from Anchorage and then the final "sprint finish" is Lisbon, through Madrid and back to Paris.

The rules state a rider has to go more than 18,000 miles and has to go through two points on the opposite side of the planet.

Beaumont, who rode across Scotland aged 12-years-old, has also crossed Africa from north to south and took part in an attempt to row across the Atlantic which ended when the boat capsized.

The farther-of-two, said: "The last time I rode round the world I was on my own, having to think about where I would sleep and where I would eat.

"But now it's totally different - I'm just a monkey on a bike and I ride all day then hand the bike over to the team, sleep five hours, and it's back in the saddle to do it all over again."

He added that even if the trip takes longer than the "gold standard" of 80 days, it will still be a success, given that the current record is 123 days, set by New Zealand's Andrew Nicholson.

Mr Beaumont said: "I'm judging the success of the trip on two things. One is that we all come home safe and unhurt, and the other that we leave everything out there on the road.

"I believe the 80 days is possible, and the ride around Britain proved that it is. But even if we do it in 90 days or 100 we have still obliterated the current world record."

The adventurer is raising funds for Orkidstudio, which works to benefit communities worldwide through innovative architecture and construction.