Alex Bond and I are taking a look at the best mountain running performances in Washington State submitted to Fastest Known Time for the year 2021. And wow, there are some inspirational efforts put up by incredible runners. From Alex Borsuk's blistering run up Glacier Peak to Alex King's dethroning of Uli Steidl's long-held FKT at Mt. Rainier. And yes, we found some cool runs in the Olympics as well. What's up with all the Alexes in this episode?

• Alex Borsuk & Jenny Abegg - Sawtooth Ridge Slam
• Alex Borsuk - Glacier Peak
• Sunny Stroeer - Mt. Stone
• Kristina Randrup - Mailbox Peak
• Robyn Reeder - Mt. Adams
• Jason Hardrath - Washington's Bulgers
• Timothy Olsen - Pacific Crest Trail
• Nick Folwer - Pacific Northwest Trail
• Alex King - Mt. Rainier
• Kyle McCrohan, Nick Danielson, Tara Fraga, Jenny Abegg - Alpine Lakes Crest Traverse
• Anna Maxwell, Charlie Levy - Buckhorn Wilderness Loop
• Alex Bond on Strava and Instagram
• Seattle Running Club

The challenges of the last 1/4 at Squamish 50, the joys of the flat interurban trail at Chuckanut, the relentless heat at R2R2R and the brutal beauty of Teanaway Country 100. This and more with PNW running legend and coach Keith Laverty, who finally made it on the show.

Links:

• Coach Keith with Team Run Run
• Keith's Instagram
• Keith sponsor: rabbit

Aspire Adventure Running's Abram Dickerson joins the show to share a glimpse into his jam-packed summer. Gathering trail runners in stunning scenery, feeding them delicious food and showing them unique places all over the West Coast is what Aspire does best and Abram is the mastermind behind it all.

• Aspire Adventure Running
• Aspire Adventure Running Instagram
• Tailwind Nutrition
• Tailwind Nutrition Instagram

Check out the new website at singletrack.fm

Mountain Goat and otherworldly human being Jason Hardrath joins the show to share his little summer project. No stranger to crazy mountain adventures, for his 100th FKT attempt Jason picked the insane idea of climbing all 100 peaks of the Washington Bulgers list. We bushwhack, asleep on trails and traverse crevasse-filled glaciers. Let's go climb some mountains. Bring your ice axe and a snickers bar.

Links:

• Jason's website
• Jason's Instagram
• Fastest Known Time – Washington's Bulgers FKT
• Country Highpoints – Route Overview
• Jason on Singletrack

After an incredible year of running Michael Linscott joins a very special episode of Singletrack to talk about his fabulous fifth finish at Cascade Crest. We also of course dissect my UTMR 100K DNF and talk about what makes racing in the Alps so special.

• Michael Linscott on Instagram
• Seattle Mountain Running Group on Facebook
• Ultra Tour Monte Rosa
• Orange Mud Transition Wrap

In this brief summer intermission show Mathias shares his travel stress and gear choices for his upcoming trip to the Alps and his 100K race at Ultra Tour Monte Rosa around the mountains of Grächen, Switzerland. Hello Alps, baby!

Links to all the gear at outdoor-society.com

Friend of the show Tabatha Collins is back and she brought her trail running partner and fellow mountain slayer Mary Flinders with her. They were the first folks who attempted my epic Cushman Six route in the Staircase region of Olympic National Forest/Park. And yes, I said attempted. When Tabatha contacted me a few days prior I felt comfortable sending them out into these mountains. These ladies are strong, experienced and know what they were doing. But these mountains aren't easy, and there's a lot of backcountry off trail travel.

Links:

• Cushman Six
• FKT Cushman Six

Fresh off his 5th Hardrock100 finish Mike Ehredt is back on the show to share his latest adventures in the San Juans. The veteran Hardrocker reflects on this beautiful route and what it takes to successfully complete this extreme race as a back of the pack runner. We dive into what makes this community special and what the future holds for him in Silverton. Mike's also a race director, and so of course we talk about the challenges and joys of organizing a trail race.

Links:

• Mike Runs Idaho
• Mike on Instagram
• Hardrock 100 Endurance Run
• Little Backyard Adventure
• Swantown Inn & Spa
• OlyFed
• Tailwind Nutrition
• Kevin Hayward Statefarm
• Eastside Big Tom
• HomeLight
• Club Oly Road Running
• Squirrel's Nut Butter
• Heritage Bank

Mountain goat Steph Decker joins the show to talk about the latest adventure project she's been working on. Inspired by ultra uber runner Christof Teuscher she's working on a variation of his "Olympic Loops" in Olympic National Park. The project is a beast and while rendering somewhat speechless is inspiring me hugely to dream of new adventures. And of course, no conversation about massive adventures would be complete without a good conversation around shoes and gear.

Links:

• Christof Teuscher - The Olympic Loops
• Steph's slightly altered route
• Steph's Instagram
• Topo's Instagram
• Steph's Strava
• Gear

Alex Bond returns to the show to share his experience with orienteering races, how it helps him on big mountain adventures and why he won't run the Barkley Marathons. We talk about the romance and despair of circumnavigating volcanoes in the Cascades and what's on the adventure docket for the remainder of the summer before the smoke rolls in, or are we already too late for that?

Links:

• Alex on Strava
• Alex on Instagram
• Cascada Orienteering Club
• Seattle Running Club
• Fastest Known Time
• Athletic Brewing Use discount code: ABOND20
• La Sportiva Karacal
• La Sportiva Cyklon