I'm not absolutely sure. Just trying to piece together from comments.
I'm not absolutely sure. Just trying to piece together from comments.
Post 135 quoted above- or if you click back to the trail running and speedhike forum page- you can click the paperclip for all the attachments on this thread.
Or I could e-mail the excel sheet to you(or already did?)... I think I got your e-mail somewhere still.
I think against Jen is the better benchmark overall- but I know you got the spreadsheet savvy to plug em all in and show them both
From what I gathered that was the general plan too- try to pick up that day up north on her pace and not be forced into hitting 60's to maintain it.
If the 55 mile day is accurate (and he didn't pay for it the next day) he's got that day he was looking for.
That will let him hold closer to 45-47 per day (versus her 49+ average) without any of the superhuman days She posted up. His lead may diminish against those days but if all goes well that's his most realistic shot.
You never know... but I doubt we'll see a full day shaved. I'm guessing 12 hours or less.
Thanks. Used your previous post. Finding it my e-mail is probably harder than doing an AT FKT.
They just posted updates through day 20. He had a bad day on day 20, only covering 35.2 miles, getting to the PA/NJ border. Having shin and knee problems. Not sure where he stopped on day 19. Here is the updated graph and link to the spreadsheet that now includes comparison to JPD and SJ. I scaled the JPD data from JB so the total miles add up to the current total. I know that's arbitrary but it makes the formulas work. It only changes numbers by a couple of tenths.
Capture.PNG
https://www.dropbox.com/s/yyivqnewtw...zer2.xlsx?dl=0
The Red Bull site listed 949 miles covered. That would still have him around a day ahead of JPD.
Teej
"[ATers] represent three percent of our use and about twenty percent of our effort," retired Baxter Park Director Jensen Bissell.
Hey everyone,
It's been pretty quiet on the Red Bull site for a few days now. Does anyone have a Karl sighting to report?
was just thinking the same...
Looks like back to back days in the 30's? Can't quite tell what's going on either.
Hopefully just some reception or low bodycount on the crew slowing down the updates.
I'll share some information on events prior to the what the Red Bull site has been reporting as distance covered since sometime Wed. morning. Saturday night he was at one of the Arden Valley road crossings. Sunday night his goal was mile 850.4, and I would assume he made it because he still had several hours of daylight and around 6 miles to go when I headed back home. Monday night he was at mile 885.3 Camp Rd. which is 10.5 miles north of PA. Late Tuesday evening I saw him briefly as he crossed a road and grabbed a sandwich and a drink from Mike and continued south to his destination for the night. Things seemed to be going better for him on Tuesday which was his 3rd week on the trail.
Thanks for the Spreadsheet work Odd Man Out (and others)
Here are Week Three details (Days 15 - 21)
Day 15 - Pittsfield, MA
Day 15 Highs: It was a long but productive day for Karl. Karl left early this morning on his route through Massachusetts. His first crew stop was in a busy and booming town near Pittsfield, MA. Karl made excellent timing all day and continues to keep record pace. Since Karl has exited the White Mountains and the terrain has become less harsh, Karl can make up mileage. As of the past week, Karl has consistently stayed in the 40 miles per day range. Attitudes are good with both Karl and our crew despite pushing him to go the extra mile every night.
Day 15 Lows: Tonight, as our crew set up for their last spot on Beartown Mountain Road, trouble hit. Karl’s spot tracker signaled SOS outside a residential building, however, our crew (Cheryl, Karl Sr. and Eric) could not receive that information due to the lack of cell reception in the area. The production crew had reception in the area they were in so they decided to trace the address of the GPS ping to try and find Karl. It was around 9:30 PM, so by that time it’s pitch black in the area and the cold weather sets in for the night. As the production crew drove by, they saw the lights on at a house but continued to drive past it to continue their eventually futile search. The production crew turned around and decided to navigate to Old Beartown Mountain Road which happened to be where our crew was. The production crew said that on their trip down, they saw our caravan speed past them and knew immediately that something was wrong. The production crew eventually drove back to where they were originally looking for Karl and miraculously, Karl appeared! So, how did this all happen? Our crew mistook Beartown Mountain Road and Old Beartown Mountain Road as one in the same so we waited for Karl at the wrong stop.
Karl ended up going to someone’s house where they offered him a jacket, a blanket and a floor to sleep on. Luckily, there were no injuries and everyone is safe. It’s important to remember the trail is off the beaten path, even on surrounding roads. From here on out, the crew is optimistic about tracking and pinpointing every crew location on the rest of the trail. It’s going to be a short night of rest for Karl but hopefully he can charge on tomorrow with the same energy and excitement he had at the start of Day 15. Even with the best technology, an experienced crew and a world class athlete, a journey on the A.T. is full of surprises and mishaps.
Terrain Update: This area of the A.T. starts to run through a lot of small towns. Classic Americana surrounds you as the trail runs through many old fields and sidewalks before you’re surrounded once again by lush green shrubbery and trees. Though we’ve traded mountains for hills, these hills are no joke.
Day 16 - Connecticut
After a long night, Karl was up and at it again this morning to make his way through Connecticut and on to New York. Initially, Karl was tired upon beginning his run but after about 10 minutes, he started to feel a burst of energy and excitement again towards running. Karl logged an impressive number of miles on Day 16 (over 48 miles today!), even after the mishaps of Day 15. Karl is starting to increase his numbers and still has a positive attitude about things. Overall, it was a routine, smooth day and Karl was in bed early again.
Day 17 - Depot Hill Road, NY
Karl began Day 17 at sunrise as expected. As our crew heads further south, the change in climate is impossible to ignore. It's beginning to get very hot and humid...which you can imagine makes Karl’s run a bit more difficult. Sadly, Cheryl (Karl’s wife) had to leave around 4:30 PM today. She waited roadside for Karl to wish him farewell as he kept his pace throughout New York.
Karl passed by Dover Oak today which is the oldest tree on the Appalachian Trail. Karl said it best as he exclaimed, “That's a big a** tree!” upon passing. As beautiful (and big) as it is, it is next to a very noisy street. Karl logged over 50 miles today and took over 100,000 steps! That is the equivalent of over 1,250 flights of stairs! That being said, it is no wonder that as Karl stopped for his final crew and sleep, he noticed a sizable blister starting to form on the tender and middle portion of his foot. As the weather gets more intense, keeping Karl's feet dry and blister-free will prove to be merely impossible. Thus far, Karl has done an incredible job managing the pain. He is a beast. Karl was in the van and in bed early again tonight, partly due to the mosquitos which were very bad at the campsite. At about 10:30 PM Karl's new crew member Mike arrived. Mike will not only assist him and the crew but he will also run the trail with him for roughly 10 days as he is also an ultra runner.
Day 18 - Bear Mountain State Park, NY
Karl logged one of the highest mileages so far on Day 18 - nearly 55 miles - that’s more than two marathons in one day! Karl ran through Bear Mountain State Park which is on the west side of the Hudson River in NY. It’s warm here and it is only going to get warmer as we continue to move south.
Sadly Karl Sr. (Karl’s dad) also had to leave the crew to go back home today so the core crew currently stands as Eric (Crew Chief) and Mike (Karl’s friend and fellow ultra runner). Thankfully Karl’s friend Lou plans on joining up with the crew on Day 19 to help and run alongside him.
Day 19 - New York + New Jersey
Today was an exciting day as Karl's other friend Lou joined the journey. Karl's crew now consists of three people - Eric, Mike and Lou. Mid-day Lou laced up and ran with Karl on the trail. Having Lou along for the trek gives Karl a nice change of pace and some company for time otherwise spent in solitude.
The weather over the past couple of days has been hot and the afternoons have consisted of heavy rainfall. Though the rain helps cool Karl down, the moisture can do more harm than good. It's vital to keep Karl's feet dry to avoid trench foot and daily rainfall makes that near impossible.
Terrain Update: This area has lots of small mountains and is full of expansive farmland. In this area, the trail changes from boardwalks to flat land to paths through farming fields and ultimately to the famous root filled green tunnel. This area also borders many towns which means more pedestrian foot traffic on the trail. Karl spent Day 19 in both New York and New Jersey and was close to Pennsylvania at times.
Day 20 - New Jersey/Pennsylvania Border
Today was an all-around rough day for Karl. Lou had to leave yesterday after his run with Karl, meaning the crew is down to only Eric and Mike. Karl started having pains in his shins early in the day which made it difficult to navigate and run. The pain also took a mental toll on Karl so Mike decided to join in on the trail for about eight miles. Mike mentioned that Karl’s knee kept buckling during their run - one can only imagine the pain that Karl must be in. Even though he was in pain, Speedgoat pressed on.
The crew iced his legs a bit longer than usual and tended to both his shins and knee. For tomorrow, Karl will have a wrap around his ankle to hopefully help make his run smoother. Though the plan was to complete 50 miles on Day 20, Karl only completed 35.2 of those miles due to the challenges. On a physical and mental journey of this magnitude, the gravity of knowing when to push yourself and when to hold back is immense. Making one wrong decision can cost you everything. Karl will be up and at it again early in the morning as he heads further South into Pennsylvania.
Terrain Update: The terrain today varied though it’s no wonder that many call Pennsylvania “Rocksylvania” - there are rocks everywhere! All shapes and sizes of rocks make up the terrain in this portion of the trail. From large rocks that challenge hikers to find clear paths to get through, to medium rocks that are seen on normal portions of the trail, to gravel that forms nearly perfect path conditions.
Day 21 - Pennsylvania
Karl started early this morning as he continued south through Pennsylvania. He felt exceptional despite his shin still being swollen. Today was one of those days that just clicked, and he was able to knock the miles out smoothly. The terrain on the trail today was a mixture of large and small rocks mixed with tree roots. Many of the larger rocks require a bit of climbing, as if bouldering. When Karl reached our planned stopping point for the day, he felt so good that he insisted on going further. Karl continued into the night into what what we would later learn was one of the “roughest sections” of the trail in Pennsylvania as described by the local section keeper. However, Karl logged his miles and ended up going further than he thought was possible which was a big boost for his morale. After 17 hours, Karl called it a day.
Add here's Day 22 (which I think was this past Wednesday August 24) as well:
Day 22 Pennsylvania
Karl’s shin continued to swell today, but his spirits are still high while he's hiking. Today was a slower and shorter day than normal, but he's still maintaining a solid pace considering his shin being as swollen as it is. Distance traveled was about 16.4 mi during seven hours. The trail terrain in this section of Pennsylvania is relatively consistent with lots of lush green forests with brown gravel and brown and grey rocks scattered throughout the trail. Karl is still scarfing down large amounts of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and his go-to sugar booster the past couple of days has been chilled, canned mandarin oranges. Though he came off the trail earlier than normal today, Karl will get the rest he needs tonight, if not more and wake up and do it all again tomorrow. The crew’s spirits are high and everyone is pushing forward with a smile on their faces.
Seems someone usually trashes people that dont ask for his advice.
But injury with swelling is cause for concern.
I actually feel bad for the guy; he has invested a huge amount of himself in the ongoing effort to achieve this goal. I'm not completely ruling out success for this attempt, but it's doubtful at this point. It shows how high the bar has been set by the likes of JPD and Jurek...everything has to go right, there's no room for even a few mediocre days.
“He is richest who is content with the least, for content is the wealth of nature.” –Socrates
Everyyhing he has done is unreal to someone like me. No way an I counting him out, Sure it is not the first shin swelling he has overcome.