Speed Records

I can appreciate and respect those that treat hiking as a competitive sport, but man, that mindset just ain't for me. I played competitive sports the first 25 years of my life (wrestling, ice hockey, lacrosse, and boxing) and I'm done with competing. Hiking is "me" time... to connect with nature, clear my mind, and on occasion connect with others.

One of my favorite book quotes:
"Miles, days, hours, and minutes, are for those who choose to keep the score card in life. One day you'll come to learn, it ain't about the miles. It's all about the smiles" ~ Winton Porter in "Just Passin' Thru"

That being said, congrats to this young woman. Quite an accomplishment.
 
she is a very special lady who does it to push her limits,who believes she has no limits. shes got a great attitude.
although i dont really see the appeal, i understand what motivates these people, the desire to push themselves to the max, to keep pushing their personal limits. the records are just a byproduct of that drive.
and yes, she smells the flowers along the way, just a lot more flowers every day.

this entry from her facebook page yesterday:
"As I crossed yet another bald in North Carolina mere days ago, I met a bird research team that was capturing, measuring, and banding birds. I stopped and asked about their research and they showed me how they check for body fat and measure wingspan. Then they asked if I would like to release one of the birds.
They showed me the way to hold them and I carefully took a tiny song bird into my hand. I turned to face south along the AT and slowly loosened my grasp.
I felt the power of flight ignite in my palm as she shot down the trail and disappeared.
It was by far one of the most beautiful moments of any of my 5 thru-hikes"
 
One thing to consider is that the people who break these records often aren't doing the trails for the first time. Scott Williamson, Jenn Pharr-Davis, etc have all done the trails before - long before they were going for the speed records.

I met the previous record holder (Matt Kirk) on Moose Mountain in New Hampshire. He had just finished crushing the Whites in three days and looked pretty beat. He didn't tell me at the time that he was going for the record. He told me that his personal goal was doing a hike in fewer than sixty days (which I later found out was the record). He chilled for a few minutes with me and we shot the breeze. He was on his third AT thru-hike. His first one was a traditional thru. He was pretty physically gifted and did it in a little under four months. Sub-4-months is faster than normal, but doable for an experienced hiker. His second hike was a honeymoon thru-hike (how's that for a concept!?) that he and his wife did at a normal thru-hiker pace. He wanted to do another hike, but wanted a new and different challenge. He told me that he had seen everything twice already, and it was about seeing just how far he could push his body.

He was a fantastic guy, and took some time to chat with me while we both snacked. Although I'm about the least physically gifted hiker you'll ever meet, and have no desire to push my body that much or go for a record on the trail, I do have to respect those who are willing to hike a long trail twice - and make that second hike the most grueling 2 months a human being can go through.
 
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