Maine runner obliterates Vermont Long Trail FKT (unsupported)
Will Peterson blew past the previous fastest known time by more than a day and a half
Photo by:
Patrick Bald/Unsplash
Will Peterson has demolished the Vermont Long Trail unsupported FKT by more than a day and a half, completing the 440-kilometre route along the state’s Green Mountains in four days, 11 hours and 34 minutes.
The ultrarunner and long-distance hiker, who hails from Bethel, Maine, began his astoundingly speedy trek from the Vermont-Quebec border on July 23 and completed his run south to the Massachusetts state line last Thursday.
“On Sunday morning at exactly 7:00 am, I started walking south from the Canadian border with myself, the (clothes) I was wearing, and a 33-lb backpack. Around 4.5 days later, I reached the Massachusetts border at 6:34 pm on Thursday,” Peterson wrote on fastestknowntime.com. “Between its history and natural beauty, it’s easy to see why the Long Trail captures the imagination of so many. I’m humbled to be a small part of the history of this great footpath in the wilderness. There is so much more that I want to share about this effort, and I look forward to releasing a detailed trip report in the next couple of weeks.”
To fuel his effort, Peterson said he consumed about 30,500 calories in nutrition powder, 1,700 in assorted gels, and two nutrition bars that were “supposed to be my treat later on in the effort—they didn’t make it past the first day.”
Peterson claimed the Long Trail unsupported FKT—formerly held by Jeff Garmire of Bozeman, Mont., who completed the route in 5:23:48:00 in 2019—less than a month after two-time Barkley Marathons finisher John Kelly smashed the Long Trail supported FKT in 4:4:25:50. Peterson’s effort brings the unsupported and supported FKTs within just slightly more than seven hours of each other.
In a July 11 Instagram post announcing his attempt, Peterson wrote that he had spent “12 wet, humid, smokey, beautiful days thru-hiking the Long Trail, preparing mentally and physically” for his shot at claiming the FKT.
His latest accomplishment adds to a string of FKTs Peterson has recorded over the past few years. In June of last year he briefly held the supported FKT for the New Hampshire 4,000 Footers, which involves climbing all 48 of the state’s peaks that stand over 4,000 feet (just over 1,200 metres). His 3:12:35:00 was bested the next day, however, by Bill Tidd, who shaved nearly four hours off Peterson’s time.
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