"...and believe it or not I only lost 5 lbs. "
Now I want to know his resupply schedule even more!
Jurek looked like death and that was with a mobile cafeteria.
Too many Clif bars. Sawdust, glue, and rat droppings.Originally Posted by ScottS
Teej
"[ATers] represent three percent of our use and about twenty percent of our effort," retired Baxter Park Director Jensen Bissell.
Hard to believe this guy (on day 29) only lost 5lbs. https://www.instagram.com/p/BX-fjWOF...thestring.bean
Don't recall offhand the total lost but Matt (similar body type) lost quite a bit of weight he didn't have to lose.
Don't forget, every bar has a little Cliff in it too.
Best description of clif bars yet.
In Jureks own words, he looked like a POW.
Re supply was well executed apparently
Chair-man, by going back and reading announcements of FKT attempts, you can find the answer to your question. You’ll see the “only random acts of kindness” phrase first appear in Anish’s 2015 announcement (page 3 of AT page on Peter’s FKT site).
She didn’t copy/paste my seven guidelines from 2013 (adopted from Williamson), which doesn’t go into such specificity. Most follow in Anish’s footsteps, including Joe, who chose to copy/paste her post. So, Anish should be credited for that phrase.
RE your deference to Peter: I too have a lot of respect for Peter and his work on the FKT site. But I don’t think he wants to be the authority here. The Outside article on Knotts even has him quoted: “I shouldn’t be in the position of adjudicating claims.”
Unfortunately, Peter is still caught in this position. More recently (on his FKT site), he writes that Joe brought “verification of a self-supported trip to a new level.” To the best of my knowledge, no verification has been made public... I might be wrong.
Chairman- or anyone- if you're looking for a more complete explanation.
Post 25 outlines the differences between the 'general rules' vs 'thru-hiker style' vs Williamson/Kirk/Anderson.
https://whiteblaze.net/forum/showthr...=1#post2166771
Here's the thing to understand- There are 700+ threads on Peter's site- which means XXX number of individual FKT's claimed. 14 or more FKT's that have to do with the AT specifically.
There are ultrarunners, backpackers, peakbaggers, and total yahoo's who all do these things. There is no single standard that applies to every possible FKT ever.
That's the crux of the ambiguity and confusion. Peter would like those who are involved in each specific FKT (and the community who follows them) to sort out the details that pertain to them.
Peter is a recorder of events, a guide whenever possible, a historian of sorts- not the judge. He's a member of the community with his own opinions, but the goal is not to somehow develop a review board or governing body.
The only hard fast rule from Peter and Buzz is to honestly and completely document what you claim to have done and share it with the public.
From there- the public can sort it out.
In this specific FKT; there is a large community and several members of it who have set FKT's in the same general style and the same general rule set.
Ideally the guidelines will be laid out this offseason for future attempts on this very specific FKT (Self-Supported Appalachian Trail) to reduce or eliminate the questions.
Thanks Matt & JB
Yeah, one set of rules, easy to find, would be good. And making the documentation public after completion of a FKT should be one of those rules. Also, I'd like to see that all resupply points be documented.
On another point, with the self-supported bar now set at 45 days & change I think anyone attempting to break the record would have to be a runner. The days of someone being able to just hike long days and expect to break the record are gone IMO.
I thought that already, but given that the record was just set by somebody who (as far as I know) didn't actually run much/any along the way, who knows.
You can call it running if you like, trail runners often do
But under 5 mph....isnt running. Its a slow jog at best. Under 4 is definitely walking.
Trail dont lend itself to running in most places. A hurried walk is what most time is spent doing. thats why 18 hr 50 mile days is less than 3 mph.avg.
If you walked even 4 mph for 14 hrs per day youd average 56 mpd. That allows 4 hrs for breaks in day, while still getting 6 hr sleep.
Its obvious very little can be attributed to real running. Which starts about 5-6 mph. Doing so when able makes the difference though.
I bet he ran 50% of the time or at least every chance he got. I believe Jen said when she set the supported record she ran very little, maybe 5% of the time.
By running I meant not walking. Good points
Interview at IRF.
http://www.irunfar.com/2017/09/joe-m...interview.html
Pieces that stood out to me:
The pack was anywhere from 25 to 28 pounds.
The alarm would go off at 4:45 a.m....I would get on the trail within about an hour.
Is there a chance his estimation of that weight is off? It seems high even walking out of a 4-day resupply with a liter of water.
Interesting to see how he would start his days slow.
Interesting to learn how he could carry 28 pounds on a "self-supported" FKT and better the time of a world-class ultramarathon legend like SpeedGoat who was fully supported and sure as heck didn't carry 1/2 that load. And, not just better the time...but beat it by a half day. Beat it by more than 1 percent. Even more curious is how he bettered Anish's time by..not 1 day. Not 2 days. Not a freaking week. 9 days. He bested the prior "self-supported" record by 20 percent. That is the equivalent of a runner tearing off a sub-3 minute mile. That's like running a marathon in under 1:40:00. For mountain climbers, that's summiting the Eiger in sub 2 hours. It's like a 7.6 second 100 yard dash. Whenever you can better the current athletic record by 20 percent...well...it's never been done in any athletic attempt in history. Until now.
So, one of two things. Either String Bean has done the impossible. Or he wasn't really self-supported. I've tried to come up with other alternative explanations....but can't. It would seem like I am only pointing out the obvious....
My guess is that weight is high. I think you would be hard pressed to fit nearly 30lbs of gear, food and water in a 28L pack. However, Brett Maune set the JMT supported/self supported FKT with a similar weight.
You're assuming that the FKT for the AT was already near the pinnacle of human ability, like the 2hr marathon or the 3:43 mile. It was and is not there yet. These are records that have been chipped away at for decades by the worlds greatest runners. To be blunt, the worlds greatest mountain runners are not tackling the AT yet.
9 days. Do you honestly believe that there was 9 days to be shaved off the record?
Do you believe there were 6 days to be shaved off Ward's 60 day mark? Why or why not? It's all relative. I've not seen Joe's proof, but I think it's absolutely possible for someone to drop Anish's time by 9 days.
And then go on to best the supported recorded in the same attempt? I suppose SB is the greatest Yogi in AT history...but he still claims to have carried the max load in his frameless pack. Self-supported seems....unbelievable. 9 days better than the record AND better than the supported record? I mean, isn't that why there were 10 days between Anish and Speedgoat? The support? Or were they both such horrible athletes that SB can just lope on past them, carrying a self-supported load the entire way? And not lose 5 pounds in the whole process.
It's the "self-supported" thing and 9 whole days better and then besting the supported time that leaves me incredulous as to it being a real "self-supported" attempt. He may have done it. But I just can't see how.
He's 6'4'', lean, and strong. He's 10-15 years younger than Annish and Speedgoat. From what I can tell, he's the youngest/fittest/strongest guy to attempt this thing. He hiked 3-4 mph for 16-20 hrs a day for 45 days. He did it. I watched very closely, even saw him with my own two eyes (very coincidentally) and I 100% believe this is a legit record.
Once again this thread provides robust discussion and for that, THANKS!
I agree with VGs points. Walking the AT does not require athletic ability. None of the ultra runners were near their prime when they set the record. There is such a thing as stupid light. Did you see the before and after pictures of Jurek? Averaging 4 mph including running gives you a 56 mile day with eight hours of sleep and an hour at the beginning and end of the day. It's amazing to think with no injuries and a lot of luck a sub40(by hours not days) could be possible. 55*40=2200. I don't expect to see that soon but I guess what I think would be the limits of human capabilities on the AT differ from others.
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