FKT Podcast

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FKT of the Year with Karel Sabbe and Jenny Hoffman -#218 Jan 05, 2024

Show notes

This week we’re thrilled to be joined by our two FKT athletes of 2023: Jenny Hoffman and Karel Sabbe. From not one but three Pacific Crest Trail records, to new FKTs on classics like Nolan’s 14 and the Paddy Buckley Round, to new mountaineering benchmarks on Mount Denali and Mount Blanc, 2023 was one for the history books. (Or more specifically, the record boards at fastestknowntime.com.)

Our has jury voted, and this year Karel and Jenny were named FKT athletes of the year for their astonishing records on the Pacific Crest Trail and the Trans America run, respectively.

A physics professor at Harvard University, Jenny ran the 3,000 miles from San Fransico to New York City in 47 days, 12 hours, and 35 minutes–shattering Sanda Villines’s previous record by eight days. Equally busy as a dentist in Belgium, Karel returned to the PCT after setting the supported record there in 2016 to reclaim his FKT. And he succeeded, smashing Tim Olson’s record set in 2021 by over five days.

Several months out from their record-breaking performances, Jenny and Karel join host (and fellow FKT of the Year nominee Heather Anderson) on the FKT Podcast to discuss their records, how recovery has been going, and of course—what’s next.

They discuss the similarities and differences on multi-week trail versus road efforts. All three lend insight into the importance of listening to the body after incredibly strenuous efforts. And they talk about the lessons they learned along the way. This episode is not to be missed!

You can follow along with Jenny and Karel’s adventures on Instagram, check out their indepth interviews from these records on episodes 215 and 213, and read more about their FKTs on fastestknowntime.com.

Congratulations to Jenny, Karel, all of our FKT of the Year nominees, and to everyone in the FKT community for another year of getting after it. Cheers to new adventures in 2024!

And last but not least, big thanks to Janji for supporting the podcast as we head into a new year. We’re proud to partner with this trail running apparel powerhouse, whose super durable apparel comes with a five-year run everywhere guarantee. (Not to mention, two percent of sales are donated to clean water programs in the places we run.) Head to janji.com and take 10 percent off with the code FKT.

The Good and Bad Times of Christof Teuscher’s Iceland Traverse FKT -#217 Dec 15, 2023

Show notes

Ah Iceland, that magical polar island covered in glaciers, hot springs, lava fields, and…mosquitos. Christof Teuscher learned that the hard way this August when he traversed the island north to south on foot, without any aid, covering the 375-mile route in eight days, 11 hours, and four minutes. That was good enough for a new unsupported fastest known time, as Teuscher shaved an astonishing four and a half days off the benchmark set by Eli Burakian the year before.

Born in the alps of Switzerland and posted up in Oregon for the past 20 years as a professor of electrical and computer engineering at Portland State University, Teuscher possesses both a quick and strong mind. He’s no stranger to epic endurance feats—last year, he completed the 1,000-mile Iditarod on foot—but the North-South Iceland Traverse tested him in unprecedented ways.

While immersed in the ethereal beauty of the country, Teuscher contended with periods of 80-degree temps and stagnant air that brought out the fiercest bloodsuckers he’d ever encountered. Those stretches were followed by bone-chilling wet and cold that sent him into hypothermia.

On top of that, by choosing to go unsupported, Teuscher had to carry all his supplies from start to finish on his back—including a wide array of layers for the ever-changing climate. The heavy pack wreaked havoc on his body in ways you may not have guessed.

Go inside Teuscher’s epic feat this week on the FKT Podcast. Teuscher breaks down how meticulous planning allowed him to move as lightly and efficiently as possible. He covers the highest highs—yes, including covering Iceland’s remote interior highlands—and the lowest lows which extend far beyond the mosquitoes. (Hint: the lows involve roads.)

Read more about Teuscher’s journey on fastestknowntime.com and on his website. And follow his adventures on Instagram.

From the Military to a PCT FKT with Jessica Pekari -#216 Dec 01, 2023

Show notes

The Pacific Crest Trail was on fire this year, and not in the usual way. Records fell left and right on this iconic 2,592.6-mile long trail. And etching her name on the illustrious FKT holder list is Jessica Pekari, who set the women’s south-bound supported record in 63 days, seven hours, and 31 minutes.

This record was a long-time coming for the veteran mother of three with Blackfeet and Mexican heritage. After completing the Triple Crown of 200-mile ultras in 2018, the former U.S. military medic turned her eyes to the west coast’s most iconic trail. She set out on an FKT attempt in 2020, but Mother Nature thwarted her plans.

Finally, on September 19, 2023, she touched the sign at the U.S.-Mexico border and her dream became a reality. Jessica joins fellow self-supported PCT FKT record holder and FKT Podcast host Heather Anderson on the podcast today to delve into her experience. The two provide unprecedented detail into what it takes to move light and fast on this long trail, and also what it’s like to write about their experiences. Jessica discloses how she problem solved on the fly, and how she copes with PTSD on the trail.

Check out Jessica’s FKT on fastestknowntime.com. Read all about her 2020 FKT attempt in her book, Bombs to Trails: Interweaving Heritage, Life, and PTSD on the Pacific Crest Trail, and follow her adventures on Instagram.

The Physics Professor Who Set an FKT Running Across the U.S. -#215 Nov 17, 2023

Show notes

Jenny Hoffman has dreamed about running across the United States since she was a child. Spacing out in the car, she’d stare at the open road and think about how she could be running down it instead. The goal loomed over her life as she earned a bachelor’s degree in Physics from Harvard University in 1991, a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of California, Berkeley in 2003, and back in Boston as a professor of Physics and Applied Physics at Harvard, where the mom of three and three-time 24-hour national champion still works.

Jenny finally acted on that dream in 2019, when she set off from San Francisco with aspirations of running all the way to New York City. At mile 2,560, 42 days into her journey and six days under record pace, a debilitating knee injury devastatingly cut her trip short in Cleveland, Ohio. Despite surgery, rehab, a global pandemic, and the pandemonium of work and family life, Jenny dreamed of finishing what she had started every single day.

That day finally came on November 2, 2023, when Jenny reached the Atlantic Ocean lapping against Manhattan. She completed the 3,000-mile trek in just 47 days, 12 hours, and 35 minutes—besting Sandra Villines record of 54:16:24 by over a week.

Go behind the scenes with Jenny on her astonishing run this week on the FKT Podcast. Discover why she ended up retracing her footsteps from 2019 instead of taking a different trans-continental route as she originally intended. Learn about life in a day while running 60-plus miles a day across the U.S. during corn harvest season. Jenny talks about the food that fueled her record, how she managed to journal every night, the critical roles her crew played, as well as the logistics of running point-to-point across mostly very rural stretches of the country. And discover Jenny’s takeaways about America after experiencing all facets of life across the vast, diverse country on the open road.

Get all the data and daily write-ups from Jenny’s FKT on fastestknowntime.com. And follow her adventures (and academic work!) on her blog and on Instagram.

Hillary Gerardi Breaks Down Her Mont Blanc FKT -#214 Nov 03, 2023

Show notes

For some FKTs, the beauty lies in the solitary nature of human and landscape. Other FKTs derive meaning from the collective effort needed for safe and successful passage. Hillary Geradi married the two on June 6, 2023, when she set the FKT on Mont Blanc, the 4,805-meter (15,766-foot) glaciated massif that looms above Western Europe.

Gerardi, an American living just downvalley from Chamonix, France, and the fabled peak, dreamed of going fast on this mountain for years. The snowpack and weather finally aligned in early June, and Gerardi, supported by her hyper-coordinated team, traversed the 20-mile route with nearly 13,000 feet of climbing in 7:27:39, shaving 26 minutes off of Emelie Forsberg’s time from 2018.

Today, Gerardi joins the FKT Podcast to break down this epic effort, including how safety considerations led her to take the alternative “Killian” route on the way up; the instrumental roles gear and a coordinated team played; and how she overcame a fundamental error in this record-breaking event.

Get more insight into Gerardi’s FKT on fastestknowntime.com, and follow her adventures on Instagram.

Thank you so much, Merrell, for supporting the show and fastestknowntime.com! If you’re looking for a new shoe in which to test yourself on the trails, check out the MTL Skyfire 2, the ultra-lightweight, award-winning trail shoe from our friends at Merrell Test Lab. See what all the buzz is about at www.merrell.com.

Karel Sabbe Breaks Down New PCT FKT -#213 Oct 20, 2023

Show notes

On August 26, Karel Sabbe reached the U.S.-Canadian border, officially smashing the supported record on the Pacific Crest Trail. The 33-year-old dentist from Belgium covered the 2,600-mile-plus trail in just 46 days, 12 hours, and 50 minutes—which was five days and four hours ahead of Timothy Olson’s mark of 51 days, 16 hours, and 55 minutes.

His secret to success?

Not thinking about the old record.

“If you go into an FKT attempt with the current FKT in mind, you’re limiting yourself,” Sabbe said. “My goal was to get the best out of myself every day.”

By shifting his mindset from what had been done before to what he believed he could do, Sabbe managed to average 58.1 miles and 9,000 feet of climbing a day, for 47 days straight—despite a record-breaking snowpack and cumbersome wildfire detour.

Today, Sabbe joins the FKT Podcast to break down his FKT with previous self-supported record holder and podcast host Heather Anderson. Get the inside scoop on why he returned to the trail after setting an FKT here in 2016, the strategy with his minimal four-person crew, how he contended with the elements, and what fueled him on the trail.

Plus, learn about his unconventional training style of running on average just eight hours a week in the lead-up to this massive effort, which entailed running many hours more than that each day.

Read up on Sabbe’s seven FKTs on fastestknowntime.com, and follow his adventures on Instagram.

Nick Fowler on Setting Self-Supported PCT FKT as “New” Endurance Athlete -#212 Sep 29, 2023

Show notes

In 2019, Nick Fowler started touring national parks. He tricked himself into going on a 32-mile hike—his longest by far—when he wanted to touch a glacier with his hand in Glacier National Park.

“The next day I couldn’t walk I was so sore,” Fowler says. “The day after that I thought, ‘That was awesome!”

Just four years later Fowler set the self-supported record on the Pacific Crest Trail.

Fowler joins FKT Podcast host Heather Anderson to connect the dots and explore what it took for Fowler to break none other than the record Anderson held for nine years.

After learning about fastest known times in January of 2021, Fowler went all in. Perhaps too all-in. After discovering that supported PCT record holder Karel Sabbe runs for training, Fowler figured he’d run, too, and he’d run more. So Fowler started running, jacked up his mileage, and broke his foot. Things turned up after Fowler hired FKT legend Joe McConaughy to coach him, and he set the self-supported FKT Pacific Northwest Trail that fall.

Anderson’s self-supported PCT record astonishingly stood for nearly a decade. Some of the best thru-hikers and endurance athletes tried to crack it and failed, until last summer Josh Perry set a new self-supported PCT FKT by five days. Just one year later–and just three years after his foray into endurance sports began–Fowler once again lowered the mark. Unlike Anderson and Perry, Fowler started at the U.S.-Canada border and traveled south until he hit Mexico, covering the 2,592 miles in 52 days, nine hours, and 18 minutes to break Perry’s record by over three days.

Get the full low down on the FKT Podcast—including the surprising (if also not entirely helpful) superpower Fowler brings with him on FKT attempts, his five whys, and why you have to love type II fun if you want to go after FKTs.

Check out Fowler’s FKTs on fastestknowntime.com. And follow along with his adventures on Instagram.

Going Deep on the Long Trail with John Kelly and Will Peterson -#211 Aug 25, 2023

Show notes

America’s oldest long trail has been a hotbed for FKT action this summer, and record setters John Kelly and Will Peterson are here to dish all about it. On July 3, 2032, John Kelly established a new supported mark on the trail that traces the 249-mile length of Vermont. Just 24 days later, Will “Sisyphus” Peterson smashed the unsupported FKT. His time of four days, 11 hours and 34 minutes was only seven hours shy of Kelly’s incredibly stout supported mark.

Today they join host and thru-hiking legend Heather Anderson to give their best beta on the trail, talk through the logistical challenges of pushing themselves on this notoriously rocky, rooty, and remote trail that nearly always gets barraged with storms during summer.

The summer of 2023 was no exception. John started his attempt shortly after catastrophic flooding decimated much of northern Vermont. In fact, it had rained 24 days that month already. The weather during this effort was better—but not by much. Ever optimistic and resilient, John managed to turn that challenge into an opportunity.

Will completed his first year of Dartmouth Medical school in the spring, and what better way to celebrate than to go all-out by yourself on the trail?! While John had a crew with him the entire time, Will went solo, carrying a pack that weighed 33 pounds at the start.

Tune in to learn about Will and John’s sleeping strategies on the trail, why they chose their respective FKT styles, and what they agreed to be the most surprisingly hardest part.

Follow their adventures on Instagram over at @randomforestrunner and @_will.peterson. And get their full trip reports on fastestknowntime.com.

Chris Fisher on Setting the Winter Colorado 14ers FKT -#210 Aug 11, 2023

Show notes

Escape the summer swelter for half an hour with Chris Fisher, who set the fastest known time on the Colorado Fourterneers—winter edition.

Completing Colorado’s 58 14,000-foot peaks in one push is a massive feat in itself. Taking on this challenge in winter adds a whole new level of daunting difficulty and complexity. Weather, avalanche risk, frostbite—the list of hurdles is endless. That’s probably why no one had even completed the feat in one winter until 2018, when Andrew Hamilton established a benchmark of 84 and a half days.

Last winter, Fisher shaved 12 days off of Andrew Hamilton’s FKT, summiting all 58 peaks in 72 days, 12 hours, and 10 minutes. In doing so he become just the second person to complete this linkup during winter.

Fisher joins host Heather Anderson on the FKT Podcast to disclose the logistical, physical, and psychological challenges associated with this effort, as well as how he overcame them. After you tune in, check out Fisher’s 17 FKTs on fastestknowntime.com, and follow along with his adventures on Instagram.

David Hedges on Achieving Life-Long Goal of Nolan’s 14 FKT, At Age 25 -#209 Jul 28, 2023

Show notes

While the trail running world fixated on the Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run in southwestern Colorado, David Hedges put down a performance for the ages a few hundred miles to the northwest in Colorado’s Sawatch Range.

At only age 25, David completed the largely off-trail open route across the 14 14,000-foot peaks in 39 hours, six minutes, and 40 seconds. It’s the fastest time ever recorded on this strenuous 100-ish mile route with about 40,000 feet of climbing.

David joins host Heather Anderson on the FKT Podcast to break down his prodigious effort. Discover how a kid growing up in Chicago grew fixated on mountain running and the Nolan’s 14 line specifically. Learn about his unconveniontal training regimine, how he assembled a crew at the last minute, and the pivotal experience on the route in 2018 that put Nolan’s on his horizon.

David chose to do Nolan’s in a supported style largely because Joey Campanelli’s unsupported FKT of 41 hours and 33 seconds is mindblowingly impressive and daunting. While Joey’s time stands as the unsupported FKT, David officially bested Alex Nichols’ 2018 supported FKT of 46:41:00.

Check out David’s full Nolan’s recap on fastestknowntime.com. And follow along with his adventures on Instagram.

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