Australia / New Zealand Section updated (added 27 July 2010) I added some things to the Australia / New Zealand section. Many thanks to Sean Greenhill for providing the information!
Jonathan Basham breaks Long Trail record! (updated 12 September 2009) JB, who previously held the fastest supported time on the Colorado Trail, has broken Cave Dog Ted Keizer's record on the Long Trail in Vermont by 29 minutes, completing the trail in 4d12h46m. JB's trip plan is detailed on the Team Inov-8 blog. He finished on Sept. 11. Stay tuned for more details.
Kilian Jornet smashes Tahoe Rim Trail record! (updated 30 September 2009) Spanish ultra/mountain running phenom Kilian Jornet has smashed the speed record on the Tahoe Rim Trail. Jornet ran the 165-mile loop in 38h32m, taking over 6 hours off Tim Twietmeyer's already outstanding time of 45h58m, set in 2005. Jornet had previously indicated that he would go after the John Muir Trail record, but had problems with getting permits for that route. Jornet, who is sponsored by Salomon, exploded onto the European mountain running scene in 2007, at age 19, winning every race he entered and the World Series. In 2008 he again won every race he ran, including the 165 km Ultra-Trail du Mont Blanc (UTMB) in course record time (he repeated the UTMB win in 2009).
Ryan Welts sets Presidential Traverse record! (updated 8 September 2009) Welts, who recently set the FKT for the Pemigewasset Loop, has also crushed the FKT on the Presidential Traverse, previously held by Ian Torrence & Steve Smith, set way back in 1998. Welts run was on September 5, 2009.
JMT Mania! (updated 7 September 2009) The summer of 2009 saw a crazy amount of speed record activity on California's John Muir Trail. The bottom line is that Brett Maune has destroyed both the unsupported and overall records for this classic trail. Maune travelled unsupported from Whitney Portal to Yosemite in 3d14h13m (3d9h58m from Whitney Summit), beating the Sue Johnston's overall (supported) record by 5h47m, and beating Michael Popov's unsupported record by over 19 hours! It was Maune's second attempt at the JMT this year. His first attempt was a month earlier (the previous full moon), but he made some rookie mistakes and bonked hard on the first day. Prior to Maune's successful trip, there were several other unsuccessful supported and unsupported record attempts on the JMT this year: Michael Popov tried for the supported record in early Aug. 2009, but was unable to complete the trail due to lack of sleep. He stopped at Tuolumne Meadows, a site of many horror stories for JMT speed record aspirants. "Reds [Meadow] to Tuo[lumne Meadows] was the worst night of my life when I really did not care whether I'd live or die. I was not moving b/c of fatigue, and it was impossible to sleep b/c of freezing temps. Throat was extremely parched from the air of Evolution Valley and even gels were getting stuck midway through. I was falling backwards while trying to go, and have seen amazing things including "the tunnel" itself.... The whole night was the blur," said Popov. In August, Mark Davis made a failed attempt on the unsupported JMT record. Jeff Kozak also made an attempt at the supported JMT record, starting at Happy Isles (Yosemite) at 3:10 a.m. on August 26, but had to bail out over Kearsarge Pass, after 180 miles, apparently due primarily to sleep deprivation. Starting 1 hour behind Brett Maune, Ian Alloway successfully completed the JMT unsupported in 4d5h5m, 20 minutes under Popov's old unsupported record, but unfortunately for Alloway, Maune had crushed this time the previous day. These attempts are discussed at www.backpa ckinglight.com, including detailed reports from Maune, Popov & Alloway, with many photos.
Wonderland Trail attempts! (updated 7 September 2009) The Wonderland Trail around Mt. Rainier also attracted some late summer attention. Stuart Stopoulos has announced his intention to go after Kyle Skagg's overall record of 20h53m, set in 2006. Stopoulos' attempt was unsupported, beginning at Mowich Lake early on August 22. But, he was unable to complete the route, and stopped after 70 miles at White River CG. Jeff List followed this up with his own unsupported attempt, completing the Wonderland in 33h45m on Sept. 5-6, 2009 (counterclockwise from Mowich Lake). As far as I know, this is the fastest unsupported time on the Wonderland.
Scott Williamson & Adam Bradley set Pacific Crest Trail record, 65d9h58m! (added 18 August 2009) Williamson and Bradley hiked in typical self-supported thru-hiker style, with the added difficulty of not riding in a vehicle at any time during the hike (i.e., no rides to town to resupply). They beat David Horton's previous record, which was done fully supported in ultrarunner style, by less than 22 hours. Williamson is now the undisputed king of the Pacific Crest Trail, having completed the 2650-mile trail a whopping 12 times. He held the previous thru-hiker style speed record for the trail at 71d2h41m, set in 2008 with Joe Kisner, and holds the record for the PCT yo-yo (Mexico to Canada and back), 191d1h20m in 2006. Williamson & Bradley started in Southern California at 12PM on 8 June, and finished at the Canadian border at 9:58PM on 12 August, 2009. They hiked 51 miles on the last day to finish the hike. Williamson attributed their faster time relative to Horton to the relative lack of snow in 2009 vs. 2006. "This was NOT and easy hike, we had to stay focused and hiking nearly every minute of all 65 days", said Williamson in an email to Horton. Stay tuned for more! A YouTube video of Williamson and Bradley taken on 6/19/09 is posted here.
David Horton fails to nab the Colorado Trail record! (added July 12, 2009) Starting July 4, 2009, David Horton attempted to break Paul Pomeroy's supported record for the Colorado Trail of 8d12h14m, set in July 2008. Pomeroy ran west-to-east, while Horton started at the east end of the trail. Horton was supported by former CT record holder, Jonathan Basham. As indicated on this website, Horton had metabolic problems and had to stop after completing 330 miles in 6 days.
Matt Kirk sets FKT on Benton MacKaye Trail! (updated June 5, 2009) At 8:00 a.m. on May 22, 2009, 5 hiker/runners set off on independent speed thru-hikes of the Benton MacKay Trail, which runs 288 miles through GA, TN and NC. The participants agreed to travel self-supported, meaning without crew or caches, but resupply in stores or use publicly available resupply specified by the Benton MacKaye Trail Association was allowed. Only Matt Kirk completed the hike, thereby setting the FKT at 5d23h16m. More info on the Benton MacKay Trail page, and at this website.
Superior Hiking Trail action! (updated June 5, 2009) Travis Wildeboer, of Winter Park Colorado, established a new, unsupported record on Minnesota's Superior Hiking Trail. Wildeboer's time was 4d15h20m, May 9-13, 2009. A few days later (May 23-27, 2009), Alicia Hudelson set the female FKT for the SHT, 4d17h26m. Full reports from these trips are on the Superior Hiking Trail page.
Trans-Zion run FKT broken! (added May 16, 2009) Andy Skurka has established a new mark for the Trans-Zion (run across Zion National Park in Utah). Skurka ran the 48-mile route from east-to-west in 9h27m on May 2, 2009. Previously, Jared Campbell and Karl Meltzer did it in the opposite direction in 10h24m. Click here for details.
Paul Pomeroy fails to achieve Long Trail record! (updated August 3, 2009) Paul Pomeroy announced his intention to attack the FKT for the Long Trail in Vermont. His plan to do the trip unsupported, but with the goal of breaking the overall LT record of 4d13h15m, set by "Cave Dog" Ted Keizer in 2004. Here's Pomeroy's announcement: "The idea is to challenge Ted Keizer's overall speed record, but attempt this in the strictest possible style. Specifically this means using nothing other than water that is not carried from the start by me. No foraging, no begging from passersby, no resupply of any kind. Solo from start (Canadian border) to finish (Mass. border). I will not be observing a vow of silence as I did on the Colorado-Trail-no-resupply effort, mostly because this felt rude at times with regard to my fellow trail users, and also because it seemed pointless. My time goal is 4d12h or less based on my understanding that the current record is 4d13h15m. If anyone is aware of a faster time I would greatly appreciate the information prior to my departure on July 19. I have a great respect for the record and the history of attempts on this trail - I do not undertake this lightly and recognize that the likelihood of success may be slim. I firmly believe, however, that I am capable of pulling it off under the right circumstances and I trust that those who may be familiar with my background will agree. It is my intention to finish the trail regardless of my time if at all possible. This will be my second attempt on the Long Trail, I backpacked the length of the trail with two friends 34 years ago at the tender age of fourteen." -- Paul Pomeroy. However, Pomeroy misjudged (mis-remembered) the difficulty of the trail, and was unable to achieve his goal. His post-mortem is on adventurerun.wordpress.com.
Mason-Dixon Trail speed record! (added October 20, 2008) Paul Melzer has established a new speed record of 3d12h40m on the 193-mile Mason-Dixon Trail in PA, MD and DE. Click here for details.
Mount Rainier record frenzy! (added October 20, 2008) The speed record on Washington's Mount Rainier was cracked 3 times this summer, and is now held by mountain guide Willie Benegas, 4h40m59s round-trip from the Paradise parking lot. See this page.
Basham goes for unsupported Long Trail record! (updated October 20, 2008) Former Colorado Trail record holder Jonathan Basham failed to break the unsupported Long Trail speed record, held by Demetri Coupounas (12d19h53m). Basham started on September 21, 2008, at the northern terminus, but had to stop after 3 days due to an ankle injury. We tend to fail more than we succeed. That approach seems to make the best records. -- Andrew Thompson
Allegheny Agony! Bradley Mongold, from West Virginia, broke Rebecca Trittipoe's speed record on the Allegheny Trail over Labor Day weekend (August 28-September 1). Mongold's time was 4d13h33m. Adam Casseday started with Mongold, but had to stop on the morning of the third day due to injury. Their blog reports on the trip. Rebekah Trittipoe set the former fastest time last year, 7d6h.
New Tetons Circumnavigation! (updated Sept. 14, 2008) Matt Hart established a new route circumnavigating the Teton Range of Wyoming, that looks to be an instant classic. It is 33.7 miles with 8,165 feet of gain (according to the topo). Matt did a scouting run with friends, and then two days later (July 29, 2008) ran it for speed in 6h29m. Map and link to Matt's reports is here. Less than 2 months later, Luke Nelson and Evan Honeyfield beat Hart's time, running the loop in 6h10m11s on September 13, 2008. Their report is here.
Tahoe Rim Trail heats up! Peter Lubbers announced his intention to go after Tim Twietmeyer's record on August 15-17, 2008. Lubbers completed the route in 57h54m, significantly slower than Twietmeyer's 45h58m, but still the 2nd fastest time so far.
Colorado Trail mania! Paul Pomeroy, who holds the unsupported speed record on the Colorado Trail (14d9h30m), recently also broke the supported record, running 8d12h14m, 1h14m faster than Jonathan Basham ran in 2006. Paul started in Durango and was supported by his wife, Suzanne, and son, Ethan. He finished late on July 27, 2008. In a rare twist, Paul actually crossed paths with another CT record aspirant, Sam Thompson. Sam began his attempt on July 25 at Waterton Canyon, with the very amitious goal of going under 8 days. Sam's attempt ended on the 8th day, with 70 miles to go, due to crewing issues and fatigue, as described on his blog.
New women's record on the AT!Jennifer Pharr-Davis recently smashed the women's speed record on the AT. Jennifer completed the route in 57d8h38m, supported by her husband Brew Davis. The previous women's record was 87 days, set by Jenny Jardine in thru-hiker style with her husband Ray. Also on the AT: Karl Meltzer failed in his attempt to break Andrew Thompson's AT record of 47d13h31m, set in 2005. Karl began running north to south on August 5, 2008, but had to stop after 14 days due to an injury. The La Sportiva mountain running blog has more information and interviews with Karl, David Horton, Andrew Thompson and Brian Robinson.
Popov on the JMT! (updated Sept. 14, 2008) Unsupported JMT record holder, Michael Popov, made an attempt on the supported record, set by Sue Johnston in 2007, 3d20h0m. Popov started from Whitney Portal around 6:00 a.m. on August 30, 2008, but had to abandon the attempt at Tuolumne Meadows (206 miles, 86 hours) due to blisters.
Peter Bakwin on the Hardrock Hundred course, photo by Buzz Burrell
« Last Edit: Sept 25, 2012, 11:43am by Peter Bakwin »
Peter - Matt Hart is currently on record pace for the CT. He is 10 miles ahead of Basham's splits. Do you know if anyone else is currently attempting speed record?
Wow! I've hiked the DP dozens of times over the years (I grew up a few miles from the eastern trailhead) and only once managed to complete the entire trail in a day.
Ben's accomplishment here cannot be understated - an amazing feat that will stand as a challenge to others for years to come.
Re: FKT News! « Reply #3 on Feb 14, 2012, 10:03pm »
Hi,
I will make an unsupported attempt at the Franconia loop tomorrow. My goal is to be under 2hours for the whole loop. I bring a GPS watch as proof of the timing.
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