Day 5: New Unsupported Speed Record on the Ozark Trail!

Total time: 4 days, 9 hours, 24 minutes
Previous record: 4 days, 11 hours, 28.5 minutes
Average mileage: 53.36 miles per day
Sleep the previous night: 1 hour

I set the Unsupported Fastest Known Time on the Ozark Trail!

After 1 hour of napping in the rain, I started walking at 3:45 am this morning. In my sleep-deprived state I miscalculated and thought I had just 10 hours left to walk the 27.5 miles remaining between me and the finish, requiring an average speed of 2.75 miles per hour. I decided the hour of sleep was foolish because I haven’t been able to average that since day 2. I was sure I’d miss the record. As I got going as fast as possible, I realized I miscalculated — I actually had 14 hours to go! I was relieved but also invigorated — I was moving fast!

On the flat sections of trail trail I actually did quite a bit of “running” today. My running speed was 2.5-3.5 miles per hour, so it was hardly a run, but the movement definitely mimicked a run, and the changed motion felt better to my busted feet. I was an emotional mess — My mood swung from joyous to depressed to suffering and back to joyous. It’s amazing what sleep deprivation does to the mind. I did some singing, I played alphabet games (e.g. come up with a male and female name starting with every letter of the alphabet), and I generally just counted miles as I moved toward the finish.

As I approached Courtois creek, the potentially-flooded river that can be impassable, it started raining. I hoped it would be a quick drizzle, but instead it picked up for 2 full hours as I got closer and closer to the water. Somehow I actually ran as the rain picked up, hoping I’d beat any impending flood. I arrived at the “creek” and it definitely looked more like a river. But it didn’t look like a dangerous river! It was more the kind of river I’d gladly canoe or float in a tube. I didn’t know how deep it would be, but it seemed like the worst-case scenario would be to get swept farther downstream while swimming than desired — this wasn’t going to be deadly. I put all of my gear inside my backpack, satellite-texted Renee to let her know she should call for rescue if she didn’t hear from me in the next 30 minutes, and I went for it.

I actually didn’t have to swim! The water came up to my armpits and came close to knocking me off my feet, but I kept my feet and hiking poles planted and walked across. I emerged on the opposing beach cold and shivering, but I was alive and just FIVE MILES from the end. I had five hours to go. I knew I’d get the record!

I took off my wet shirt and put on my raincoat, put on the driest pair of socks I had (which were still soaking wet), and started the march to the end. The rain stopped and the sun came out, but this was the most painful part of the whole walk. I was no longer counting up the miles, I was counting down. That plays a mental trick on the mind and makes walking hard. But on the positive side, I could crawl 1 mph if I had to. I was going to make it.

I counted down and after a long five miles, the end came into sight. Renee came Running to congratulate me. I kissed Renee, I kissed the marker at the finish, and I hobbled over to a grassy area to rest. I feasted on skittles, chips, and root beer that Renee brought me. I took off my shoes and horrified Renee when I showed her my feet. Renee did a tick-check and found a few ticks attached to me in places that were hard for me to check — I’ll definitely have to pay attention to my body and see if I get any tick-borne disease symptoms. I fell into a deep sleep not long after finishing. This was much harder than I thought it would be, but I did it!

Thank you all for being here, thank you to the US Forest Service, the Ozark Trail Association, the Missouri Department of Conservation, and the many volunteers who built and maintained the beautiful trail. Thank you Renee for being my number one cheerleader and giving me motivation to go for this.

The record is verified on the Fastest Known Time website.

Here is an article in the Kansas City Star describing the hike.