(CNN) Some 20,000 kilometers of roads separate Twickenham Stadium, the site of the 2015 Rugby World Cup final, and Tokyo Stadium, which will host the opening game of this year's competition. For two fans, the tournaments are just a bike ride apart.

The kickoff between Japan and Russia in six months' time will bring to an end a journey that will take 231 days, spanning two continents and 27 countries. By that time, Ron Rutland and James Owens will be grateful to put their bikes to one side and watch some rugby.

"We're gluttons for punishment," Rutland tells CNN Sport from Bulgaria, just under four weeks into the journey.

"It's pretty relentless going to be honest. We're in our saddles probably about seven hours a day."

South African Rutland is no stranger to long-distance adventures. Before the 2015 World Cup he embarked on a two-year, 42,000km cycle through Africa and Europe, arriving in England for the Springboks' first game against Japan -- which, famously, they lost

Then last year he entered the Guinness Book of Records for completing the longest ever hole of golf where he caddied for scratch golfer Adam Rolston across the length of Mongolia.

"To be honest at the end of that I was pretty broken physically," says Rutland. "I had a hip replacement in the past year and I thought I was over it all -- I had had these two big adventures and maybe thought it was time to settle down and get a real job.

"I was doing just that. I was working in Hong Kong for the Hong Kong Rugby Union and thoroughly enjoying it, but there was so much excitement for the World Cup in Asia and I kind of got caught up in it."

And so the Race to Rugby World Cup 2019 was born. Rutland and Owens, a Briton born and raised in Hong Kong, are undertaking the seven-and-a-half month journey to raise money for ChildFund Pass It Back , a sports development program and the official charity of the World Cup.

Rutland and Owens will spend seven-and-a-half months in the saddle ahead of the Rugby World Cup.

Aside from sub-zero temperatures and frozen roads, the riders passed through Europe relatively unscathed. Temperatures will rise as they approach Japan via Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, China, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, and Hong Kong.

There's a map online that tracks Rutland and Owens' progress, complete with a ghost rider they're competing against.

"He doesn't sleep so he has the advantage," quips Rutland. "We wake up and he's already half a day ahead of us.

"That's the race element, trying to race him. World Rugby very kindly presented us with the match whistle for the opening game so we're carrying that. The World Cup won't wait for us."

Photos: RWC 2019 venues New Zealand beat Australia 34-17 to win its second straight Rugby World Cup at Twickenham Stadium, London in October 2015. Four years on, the focus will shift to Japan, where 12 stadiums throughout the country will host the tournament from September 20 to November 2. Hide Caption 1 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: International Stadium Yokohama

Capacity: 72,327

Where: Yokohama City, Kanagawa Prefecture

Matches: New Zealand vs South Africa; Ireland vs Scotland; England vs France; Japan vs Scotland; Semifinals 1 & 2; Final

Hide Caption 2 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Tokyo Stadium

Capacity: 49,970

Where: Tokyo Metropolitan

Matches: Japan vs Romania; France vs Argentina; Australia vs Wales; England v Argentina; New Zealand vs Namibia; Quarterfinals 2 & 4; Bronze final Hide Caption 3 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: City of Toyota Stadium

Capacity: 45,000

Where: Toyota, Aichi Prefecture

Matches: Wales vs Georgia; South Africa vs Namibia; Japan vs Samoa; New Zealand vs Italy

Hide Caption 4 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Shizuoka Stadium Ecopa

Capacity: 50,889

Where: Shizuoka Prefecture

Matches: Japan vs Ireland; South Africa vs Italy; Scotland vs Romania; Australia vs Georgia Hide Caption 5 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Hanazono Rugby Stadium

Capacity: 32,228

Where: Higashiosaka City, Osaka Prefecture

Matches: Italy vs Namibia; Argentina vs Tonga; Georgia vs Fiji; USA vs Tonga Hide Caption 6 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Kumamoto Stadium

Capacity: 32,228

Where: Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture

Matches: France vs Tonga; Wales vs Uruguay Hide Caption 7 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Oita Stadium

Capacity: 40,000

Where: Oita Prefecture

Matches: New Zealand vs Canada; Australia vs Uruguay; Wales vs Fiji; Quarterfinals 1 & 3 Hide Caption 8 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Kumagaya Rugby Stadium

Capacity: 25,600

Where: Kumagaya City, Saitama Prefecture

Matches: Russia vs Samoa; Georgia vs Uruguay; Argentina vs USA Hide Caption 9 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Kamaishi Recovery Memorial Stadium

Capacity: 16,334

Where: Kamaishi City, Iwate Prefecture

Matches: Fiji vs Uruguay; Namibia vs Canada Hide Caption 10 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Sapporo Dome

Capacity: 41,410

Where: Sapporo City

Matches: Australia vs Fiji; England vs Tonga Hide Caption 11 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Kobe Misaki Stadium

Capacity: 30,132

Where: Kobe City

Matches: England vs USA; Scotland vs Samoa; Ireland vs Russia; South Africa vs Canada Hide Caption 12 of 13 Photos: RWC 2019 venues What: Fukuoka Hakatanomori Stadium

Capacity: 21,562

Where: Fukuoka City, Fukuoka Prefecture

Matches: Italy vs Canada; France vs USA; Ireland vs Samoa Hide Caption 13 of 13

The pair are endeavoring to stick to their pre-planned route, but acknowledge that circumstances may force them to make diversions. Rutland is aware, for example, of the conflict in northern India close to where the current route takes them.

"Other than the English Channel and the sea between Shanghai and Osaka, we are determined to cycle every inch -- but not at the expense of doing anything reckless and stupid," he says.

The south-Asian stretch will also throw up some of the most eye-catching parts of the journey. The Pamir Highway will take the riders through Tajikistan and into the Himalayas, a route that's long been on Rutland's bucket list. Then there's the Karakoram Highway, the iconic road that meanders from China down into Pakistan.

Rutland and Owens meet the locals during their cycle through Bulgaria

The two riders have plenty to negotiate before they can even start contemplating rugby and the World Cup, but Rutland says that he has earmarked a few games he hopes to watch -- and is optimistic about the chances of his native South Africa.

"My heart tells me we can go all the way and I genuinely believe we could," he says. "I think we're not one of the top two or three favorites but I quietly think we've got an outside chance. The optimist that I am will be cheering them on."

Fingers crossed the Springboks deliver a happier ending than in 2015.