I think he should have gone north to south,
I really haven't been following this too closely the past couple of days, but this morning I was thinking about a better way to do it. I would start in the north around the 1st of September and go south. That way the trails up there would be cleaned up, you would get the most rugged out of the way while on fresh legs and should be starting to cool off in the south. So there I just laid out the blueprint for Karl to use next year.
Tim
He's about 144 miles to go as of noon today. Looks like he won't be crushing the record, but should still break it. Really makes you appreciate the effort Jenn Pfarr Davis put in if Jurek can only slightly surpass her.
“Paralysis-to-50k” training plan is underway!
That is exactly what I was thinking. The pictures along the way really serve as a great illustration of just how hard this thing is to do. I also agree with Daydreamer, a Sept. start up north would really be an opportunity to go faster with the most technical stuff behind you and things cooling off down south as you went.
LB2
Le professeur de trail
JPD went SOBO on her record breaking trek in 2011. Meltzer tried twice and went SOBO both times. I think that is the wise choice. Having said that, Jurek is getting good weather since he left Vermont and it is clear through Sunday. He really lucked out in that sense. Bad weather could have easily been the deal breaker for him where he is now.
Baxter State Park (where Katahdin is) won't allow hikers to start their ascents past 12noon. They might make an exception but no guarantees on that. So having said that, if he does not make that ranger station by noon on Sat, will have to wait until Sunday to make the ascent.
My favorite day of the week is RUNday
He did it, 46d 8h 7m. It was fun to follow along. Can't wait for his side of the story.
Certainly hope he writes a book or at least a nice long article about it. Glad he accomplished what he set out to do, but also glad that he didn't break the record by too much. That way we can have fun following Karl next year when he makes his attempt .
It really makes what JPD did pretty amazing considering he only beat it by 3+ hours. They both had issues along their journeys. Someone could have the perfect run at it (i.e. no injuries or sickness, good weather) and beat this time but it sure is impressive.
Apparently it was quite a show on Katahdin - a couple in a tux and wedding dress getting wedding photos (unsure if they actually got married up there or just photos) and a bunch of birthdays (one of which was Jenny Jurek).
It really makes what JPD did pretty amazing considering he only beat it by 3+ hours.
That's what I was thinking, esp. considering he ran at least some of it while I think she hiked all of it.
I think Karl meltzer (in a podcast?) made a comment about how efficient she was in her effort. I think she would be up and moving in about 20 min, while Karl might take 1 hour and 20 min cuz of foot issues.
That's what I was thinking, esp. considering he ran at least some of it while I think she hiked all of it. I think Karl meltzer (in a podcast?) made a comment about how efficient she was in her effort. I think she would be up and moving in about 20 min, while Karl might take 1 hour and 20 min cuz of foot issues.
Efficient is definitely the case. She had some bad luck with weather in the beginning (she went SOBO) so she could have done even better in a better weather scenario. Her advantage though (which IMO should not be understated) is that she knew the trail - had two previous thru-hikes and lives in NC and has hiked the southern sections many times.
Karl knows the trail from his previous two attempts and reported he and his dad did a bunch of reconnaissance before his last attempt. With the right conditions, he might be able to break it next year.
Great response from JFD. She really must be a special person.
Hold The Record Lightly
Cool impromptu interview with Scott at Katahdin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vog3AjgzQLY
"I had given up 5 days ago..."
And a good article from a local in the Whites who paced him for a while... http://levelrenner.com/2015/07/14/jureks-final-at-record-push/