Mt Shasta (CA)

[Peter Bakwin]

Ryan Ghelfi has the ascent FKT in 1h37m05s, July 6, 2016. The previous record was Rickey Gates, ascent in 1h38m10s on July 3, 2012. Prior to Gates the record was 1h39m, set by Robert Webb in 1985. Mt. Shasta (14,162') is this northern-most 14er in California. The standard route climbs from Bunny Flats at 6,880' to the Sierra Club cabin at Horse Camp (7,900'), and from there up Avalanche Gulch to the summit. The current and previous FKTs were timed from Horse Camp. Ryan Ghelfi reports below taking 65 seconds off Rickey Gates' 2012 ascent record, for the current FKT of 1h37m05s, set on July 6, 2016. A nice article about Ghelfi's record is by the Mt Shasta Herald.

*** Belt Buckle Route! *** Rickey Gates and partner Elizabeth Thorp have created a series of custom belt buckles commemorating some of the most iconic and hotly contested FKT routes! Shasta is classic! Each buckle is awarded to the FKT holder, and passed on when that FKT is superseded. Currently this buckle is held by Ryan Ghelfi. We are not aware of a women's FKT.

Concerning his earlier FKT, Rickey Gates posted the following to his facebook page: "with the help of ryan ghelfi, jenn shelton and friends, i managed to break the 26-year-old fkt ascent of mt. shasta today. 1:38:10. Robert Webb had the 1985 time of 1:39."

Ryan Sorenson and Ryan Ghelfi went after the ascent record for Shasta on May 29, 2015. Ghelfi turned back and Sorenson appears to come close to the FKT, around 1h39m, but had trouble with his timer (as mentioned below).

Webb's previous record was reported in the L.A. Times on November 10, 1985. At the time, Webb was working as caretaker of the Sierra Club cabin at Horse Camp. The article indicates that, prior to Webb, the ascent record was 2h25m, set in 1925 by David Lawyer of Pasadena.

In 1998, Webb climbed from Horse Camp to the summit, and skied back down, 6 times in 23h22m, for a totaly vertical ascent of 37,572 feet. Apparently, he had 6 pairs of skis stashed at the summit. This may have been a record for the most vertical feet ever climbed on a mountain in 24 hours (since broken). A report is here.

"If you don't take risks, you don't get the adventures." -- Robert Webb

Here's a list of past fast times on Shasta reported at www.siskiyous.edu/shasta/out/cli/rec1.htm, which was kindly brought to our attention by Sean O'Rourke (see below). Not all of these are considered FKTs, as there has been an ethic of "verification" for Shasta ascents and "certification" by the Sierra Club, as described in the article (which is really worth reading, as it outlines an incredible history of speed ascents going back well over a century!) All of these times are for Horse Camp to the summit.
John Muir, 4h10m, 1874 (really!)
Harry Babcock, 3h40m, August 1883
Norman Clyde, 3h17m, July 3, 1923
Norman Clyde, 2h43m, July 5, 1923
Barney McCoy, 2h17m, August 12, 1923 (not "approved" by the Sierra Club)
Barney McCoy, 2h30m, August 28, 1924 (not officially recognized)
David Lawyer, 2h24m, July 5, 1925 (in an official race, considered the "official" FKT until 1985!)
Barney McCoy, 2h36m, July 5, 1925 (second place in the race)
Robert Webb, 1h47m, June 22, 1985
Robert Webb, 1h39m, July 5, 1985


Ryan Ghelfi after breaking the FKT for ascent from Horse Camp to the summit of Mt. Shasta on July 6, 2016.
Photo from Mt Shasta Herald.

[Ryan Ghelfi]

Planning on an attempt at the Shasta Ascent record May 26 2014. Planned start time of 8am from the Horse Camp Cabin. Planned route is Avalanche gulch with the left of heart variation.

[Brett Maune]

Ryan, How did it go? If possible I would like to see some splits for this route. Did you acclimate beforehand?

Thanks,
Brett

[Ryan Ghelfi]

I am going to be making my 4th attempt on the Mount Shasta ascent record this Friday May 29 2015. I have completed my other 3 attempts in 1 hour 44 minutes and change each time. The route seems to be in relatively good condition. I climbed nearly to the summit this past Monday. My previous splits in 2014 were;

Hellen :39
Top of Short Hill 1:26
Summit 1:44:57

I plan to start at 7:30am this Friday from Horse Camp.

Ghelfi

[brettmaune]

Ryan, mind if I join you? I don't expect to be competitive but the added adrenaline of a quasi-race might help to shave off a crucial minute or two. I'm not sure if I could make it but could try. I'd have to drive through the night to get there in time.

[Brandon Hoffman]

I just heard you got the FKT! Congratulations Ryan. That is a serious feat of athleticism! Thank you for the inspiration.

[Ryan Sorenson]

Jul 23, 2012 13:35:39 GMT -5 Peter Bakwin said:

Thank you everyone for the encouragement and congratulations over the last few days. I am honored to have your support. However, unfortunately I did not break the Mount Shasta Ascent Record. My watch stopped recording a few times during the last attempt. I think my time to be somewhere around 1:39, 1:39:54 was what the gps said when I plugged it into the computer. GPS can be seen on www.strava.com/activities/316174186 and www.movescount.com/moves/move64096830.  I will be making a second attempt with more reliable timing in the next few weeks, weather dependent.

[Brett Maune]

Oh the humanity! I was so excited at the time to think I witnessed the record being broken. I wish you and Ghelfi the best the next time around and hope to be there for that attempt as well. Even though a record may not have been broken it was still an awesome experience. I thought I was being adventurous with running shoes and microspikes but then Ryan^2 go up in XC spikes! It was an amazing and inspiring sight. Unforgettable.

[ShastaSummiter]

In June of 2015 a summit was completed in 90 minutes.

[Booster]

Anyone know the fkt (car to car) on hotlum wintun?

[seano]

More Shasta record history, including that Sierra legend Norman Clyde had a record of 2h43 in 1923, can be found here: www.siskiyous.edu/shasta/out/cli/rec1.htm

[ryanghelfi]

Hi All,

I am writing to put out the intention of an FKT attempt on Shasta from Horse Camp to summit for July 6 (tomorrow) 2016. It looks like it will be me and Cole Watson, and perhaps one other. We plan on starting from Horse camp between 7:30am and 8am. Jogging up from Bunny flat around 7:00am. We'll vet our times more effectively this year .

[ryanghelfi]

Today (July 6 2016) I was able to set a new FKT on Mount Shasta from Horse Camp to the Summit. I completed the climb in 1:37:05 Strava data here (https://www.strava.com/activities/632531220) For gear I used middle distance track spikes with long spikes and trekking poles, no ice ax.

I have made 5 different attempts on this record over the last 5 summers. This one had all the right ingredients. Great weather, firm snow conditions (though no snow at Horse Camp so we had to change from running shoes into track spikes after the first 8 minutes or so. Ricky had to do the same thing when he set the record. Not much wind and mild temps made the whole climb pretty manageable. There were only about a dozen or so other climbers on the route so that helped as well to not have to pass many people at all.

I had to go pretty much all out to get this one. The record was in doubt for me util the last couple hundred feet when I could tell I had the time. This is definitely a beatable record and one that I hope others will continue to pursue.

Ryan Ghelfi

[Scott Talbert]

Awesome job Ryan! I was pleased to climb that route last week in 3:25, but your accomplishment is on an entirely different level..well done.

[shasta guy]

Lorie Bagley has the woman record