Some people here might remember back in the 1991, Ward Leonard setting the fast supported and unsupported speed record for the Appalachian Trail. For 23 years that same unsupported record stood before Heather “Anish” Anderson broke it by more than 6 days. Ward’s record has sense been broken several more times which leads to my question. Yes I am aware of Matt Kirk who paid hikers on the trail for food. Sense the hikers he paid carry food instead of Matt Kirk himself, I call that support but that is a topic for another thread. The record on the PCT has also been broke down to two months. I never met Anish or any of the other modern day speed hikers/runners. My question is what has change that allows modern day hikers to travel faster than hikers of the past?
Modern day hikers are not traveling any lighter than the past light and UL backpackers from the 1990 despite what some people would like to believe. Ward was carrying a light pack with a base weight of 8 pounds. He wasn't the lightest backpacker but he was still travel light weight. The two things that I can guest are the foot wear and diet. Foot wear has gotten lighter over the years. Diet can pay a huge role in providing someone the endurance piece needed for such a hike. I am curious on what others thoughts are on the subject.
Wolf