From The Backcountry

Nick Fowler is a multi-day athlete who is quickly solidifying himself as one of the best in the FKT scene. He has set FKTs on the Pacific Crest Trail, Pacific Northwest Trail, Oregon Coast Trail, and the Ozark Trail. Most recently, Nick set the overall FKT on the Arizona Trail while doing it self-supported. He covered the 800 miles in 12 days, 17 hours, 33 minutes. Xander and I talk to Nick about his monumental effort and so much more. Find Nick on Instagram @nick.fowler.says.hi

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

Welcome back to the FKT roundup! I don't know if you heard, but some crazy stuff has gone down on the Arizona Trail! New FKT Round-up co-host and FKT dictator Allison Mercer is here to talk about all things FKT. Hope you enjoy!

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

Josie Fisher and David Sinclair are mountain athletes based out of New Hampshire and Vermont. They are each incredibly accomplished in both the mountain running and skimo worlds, and they threw down great times during the Run the Whites TRT throw-down challenge, minting new fastest known male and female ascents of Mount Washington. Find them on Instagram @josephinefisher and @david.a.sinclair.92

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

Welcome to the FKT Roundup, a new segment where Xander and Will (or just Xander, in this case) bring you the latest news from the FKT scene. We plan to bring you these episodes in addition to the bi-weekly athlete interviews that you know and love. This week Xander talks about all of the ongoing efforts on the Arizona Trail, as well as other recent FKTs!

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

David Hedges is a mountain runner who has made a name for himself with top performances in races and FKTs alike. You likely know him from his incredible FKT on Nolan's 14 last year. Most recently, David set the FKT on the WURL, an incredibly gnarly FKT route outside Salt Lake City which boasts 36 extremely technical miles and over 20,000 feet of vertical. Blake Bekken and SOAR Running put out a great short video recording the effort, which you should definitely watch before listening to this conversation. Link to that video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrMWx-M04WM&t=226s

Find David on Instagram @dhedges_

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

There are hundreds if not thousands of FKT routes out there. Outside of the very limited premier routes list on the FKT website, how are you supposed to tell which routes are the most competitive and important? That is a question that Will and Xander hope to begin to tackle with their Northeast Premier Routes project. They polled dozens of Northeast FKT athletes to figure out which routes are most important to people, and in this episode they break down the results and bring a spotlight to the routes that matter most to athletes in the Northeast region.

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

Tara Dower is a professional ultra runner and thru-hiker who is making her third appearance on the podcast (see episodes #50 and #71). In September, Tara and her crew set the overall Fastest Known Time on the Appalachian Trail, taking six days off the women's record, five days off the southbound record, and over 13 hours off of the overall record set in 2018 by Karel Sabbe. We talk all about her record, answer listener questions, and more. Find Tara on Instagram @tara.dower

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

Scott Benerofe is a backpacker and ultra-runner based out of Vermont. Scott has some pretty insane efforts to his name, including a winter Appalachian Trail thru-hike (see episode #20). In late July, Scott went out and established a route that he calls the White Mountains Triple, which is a 100-mile linkup of the Pemi Loop, Presidential Traverse, and Mahoosuc Traverse, all on foot. The route boasts 35,000 feet of elevation gain and some of the gnarliest terrain that New England has to offer. We talk all about his effort in this episode. We also talk about the recent controversy on the Grand Teton FKT, Tara Dower's historic FKT on the Appalachian Trail, and more. Find Scott on Strava and Instagram @scottbenerofe

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

At 10am on August 28th, I set out with a group of over 30 northeast locals to attempt a supported FKT on the Vermont Long Trail. We would finish the trail 3 days, 21 hours, and 9 minutes later, taking over 7 hours of the FKT and being the first run of the Long Trail to be under 4 days. I covered a lot of my individual perspective of the run over on the Singletrack podcast, and I will cover the nuts and bolts in a detailed trip report (to be released very soon). This podcast is a little different. In this podcast, I brought together the 6 crew/pacers who were out there with me for the entirety of the effort and hear stories from many different perspectives of this effort. It was a pleasure to get this group together one more time to hear the stories that I wasn't privy to as the runner. I hope you all enjoy our conversation!

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/

Kristian Morgan is a multi-day endurance athlete who holds the second and third fastest times on the Appalachian Trail (and the southbound FKT). This year, Kristian again returned to the AT to attempt the Northbound and overall FKT. He made it to Maine ahead of record pace but was ultimately derailed by injury. We chat with Kristian about his effort and his plans to return to the AT for a 6th attempt in 2025. You can find Kristian on social media @kristianultra. You can also find his website at https://www.kristianultra.com/

Check out the Craft Pure Trail running shoe: https://www.craftsports.us/products/mens-pure-trail-running-shoe

Use code fromthebackcountry at infinitnutrition.us and hyperlitemountaingear.com for 15% off your entire order

podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fromthebackcountry/