Finn Melanson | 100 Mile Wilderness Unsupported FKT - Trip Report
08/16/23 • 91 min
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On August 4th, 2023 I set an unsupported fastest known time on the 100 mile wilderness section of Maine's Appalachian Trail.
In an effort to pay it forward to anyone interested in testing their limits on this route in the future, I recorded this trip report with Xander Keiter, who is a fellow HMW enthusiast and owner of the fastest known supported and overall time on the route.
Xander and I discuss the history of the route, what makes it special and intriguing, where it fits in the broader context of the New England trail running scene, how I prepared for the run, what went well, what went poorly, and what might be next.
Sponsors:
- Rabbit - use code Singletrack20 at checkout on their website (https://www.runinrabbit.com/discount/SINGLETRACK20) to get 20% off your next order
- Kodiak Cakes - use code Singletrack15 at checkout on their website (https://kodiakcakes.com/singletrackpodcast) to get 15% off your next order.
- HVMN - use this link (https://hvmn.com/SINGLETRACK20) to get 30% off your first subscription to their Ketone IQ product.
- Feetures - use code Singletrack20 at checkout on their website (https://feetures.com/) to get 20% off your next order.
Timestamps:
- (3:29) - what makes the 100 Mile Wilderness so intriguing, what draws trail runners to the route
- (22:52) - how I prepared for the 100 Mile Wilderness
- (30:17) - how I fared on each section, what execution looked like
- (67:58) - post-run reflections, contextualizing the 100 Mile Wilderness, future plans
Sample Gear Used:
- Speedland GS:Tam
- Kogalla RA Adventure Light
- Maurten Gel 100
- Salomon Adv Skin 12L Pack
- Leki Ultra Trail FX One Poles
Links:
- Xander Keiter on From The Backcountry Podcast
- 100 Mile Wilderness Fastest Known Time Page
- Follow Finn on Instagram, Strava, Twitter, Youtube, and Patreon
Text us your thoughts about this episode or ideas for future episodes!
On August 4th, 2023 I set an unsupported fastest known time on the 100 mile wilderness section of Maine's Appalachian Trail.
In an effort to pay it forward to anyone interested in testing their limits on this route in the future, I recorded this trip report with Xander Keiter, who is a fellow HMW enthusiast and owner of the fastest known supported and overall time on the route.
Xander and I discuss the history of the route, what makes it special and intriguing, where it fits in the broader context of the New England trail running scene, how I prepared for the run, what went well, what went poorly, and what might be next.
Sponsors:
- Rabbit - use code Singletrack20 at checkout on their website (https://www.runinrabbit.com/discount/SINGLETRACK20) to get 20% off your next order
- Kodiak Cakes - use code Singletrack15 at checkout on their website (https://kodiakcakes.com/singletrackpodcast) to get 15% off your next order.
- HVMN - use this link (https://hvmn.com/SINGLETRACK20) to get 30% off your first subscription to their Ketone IQ product.
- Feetures - use code Singletrack20 at checkout on their website (https://feetures.com/) to get 20% off your next order.
Timestamps:
- (3:29) - what makes the 100 Mile Wilderness so intriguing, what draws trail runners to the route
- (22:52) - how I prepared for the 100 Mile Wilderness
- (30:17) - how I fared on each section, what execution looked like
- (67:58) - post-run reflections, contextualizing the 100 Mile Wilderness, future plans
Sample Gear Used:
- Speedland GS:Tam
- Kogalla RA Adventure Light
- Maurten Gel 100
- Salomon Adv Skin 12L Pack
- Leki Ultra Trail FX One Poles
Links:
- Xander Keiter on From The Backcountry Podcast
- 100 Mile Wilderness Fastest Known Time Page
- Follow Finn on Instagram, Strava, Twitter, Youtube, and Patreon
Previous Episode
Bernd Heinrich | Why We Run, Endurance History, Racing The Biological Clock
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Bernd Heinrich is a Professor Emeritus of Biology at the University of Vermont where he made major contributions in the study of the physiological, ecological, and behavioral adaptations of animals and plants to their physical environments.
He’s also regarded as one of the best American ultramarathoners of all time. In the early to mid 1980s, for example, he set records in the road 100K, road 100 mile, and 24 hour track events.
Later in life, he published two books that have received widespread acclaim in our community - Why We Run and Racing The Clock. These two books, as well as Bernd’s notable running career and iconoclastic lifestyle serve as the basis of our conversation.
Sponsors:
- Rabbit - use code Singletrack20 at checkout on their website (https://www.runinrabbit.com/discount/SINGLETRACK20) to get 20% off your next order
- Kodiak Cakes - use code Singletrack15 at checkout on their website (https://kodiakcakes.com/singletrackpodcast) to get 15% off your next order.
- HVMN - use this link (https://hvmn.com/SINGLETRACK20) to get 30% off your first subscription to their Ketone IQ product.
- Feetures - use code Singletrack20 at checkout on their website (https://feetures.com/) to get 20% off your next order.
Timestamps:
- (1:06) - introduction, Ocean Spray sponsorship, 200 mile weeks, 80s ultrarunning culture, nutritional experiments
- (7:40) - honoring evolutionary history through ultrarunning, cultural versus biological factors that lead to excellence, when records can longer can broken
- (15:11) - whether its productive to be curious about aging, declining athleticism
- (18:26) - curiosity, dreaming, and long-term goals in running, logic and emotion in running, hope and realism in running
- (25:45) - explaining the Church of Nature
- (32:59) - what day to day life looks like right now, tradeoffs of individualism, future work, final thoughts and advice to listeners
Links:
- Salomon TV Throwback featuring Bernd
- Email Bernd ([email protected])
- Follow Finn on Instagram, Strava, Twitter, Youtube, and Patreon
Next Episode
Tom Evans | 2023 UTMB Pre-Race Interview
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Tom Evans is a professional trail runner for Adidas Terrex preparing for the 2023 UTMB race in Chamonix, France.
Sponsors:
- Brooks Running - check out their High Point clothing collection and new and improved Cascadia 17 shoe at this link (https://www.brooksrunning.com/singletrack)
- Maurten - head over to their website (https://www.maurten.com/) and shop for gels, bars, and drink mixes.
- Kodiak Cakes - use code Singletrack15 at checkout on their website (https://kodiakcakes.com/singletrackpodcast) to get 15% off your next order.
- Feetures - use code Singletrack20 at checkout on their website (https://feetures.com/) to get 20% off your next order.
- Oladance - use code ST at this link (https://oladance.com/ST) to get $30 off the Oladance OWS2 headphones.
- Pillar Performance - use code SINGLETRACK at checkout on their website for 15% off your next order. American listeners - use (https://thefeed.com/pillar). International listeners - use (https://pillarperformance.shop/).
Links:
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