This was the most rewarding route I've ever completed and I couldn't have done it without some amazing friends. I pulled together crew and pacers pretty last minute as I scrambled to take advantage of a mid week weather window to beat the forecasted rain. I started the day traversing the Carter Moriah Wildcat ridge with Chris Dailey, and made quick work of the range. He filled my bottles at Carter Hut which was extremely helpful in saving time and mileage. I realized at the start that my Garmin tracker was not charged, so JP took it home for emergency charging and we started tracking at Pinkham, which lasted the rest of the route. Thunder and lightning hit at the bottom of the Wildcats and was directly over our heads! A bit ominous knowing the Presis were up ahead. After a quick stop at Pinkham for resupply, I started up Madison with JP, who paced the entire Presi section to 302. It rained on Osgood, but in the alpine it was a perfect day- low wind, sunny and dry rocks. The light in the Presis was incredible. JP refilled my water at Madison Hut and Lakes. We kept a consistent pace and were treated to a beautiful sunset on Webster Cliff. Squall met me at 302 and wished me well going into the night as I scarfed down some ramen. Joffrey jumped in for the entire pemi section, muling and keeping me awake and calm. I was most nervous about the nighttime, but it passed quickly and the climbs didn't seem to last as long as they did in training. Joffrey lent me his Kogalla waistbelt, which was super helpful and kept me from falling even once. We saw so many toads! Joffrey helped me refill at Zealand and Galehead, saving me time. Some red hues crept into the horizon coming over Lafayette and Lincoln, and we dipped down Liberty Springs as the sun rose. Alyssa Godesky kept our resupply quick and efficient at the 93 crossing, where I picked up Amber Constant and Chase Hall. They kept the energy levels high as we traversed the Kinsmans and the heat rose. The 11 miles between South Kinsman and 112 were the hardest and that's where time started to slow down, but the pull of Moosilauke kept us going. Once I hit Beaver Brook I couldn't have been more excited. I love Moosilauke and I know every inch of it. John Molinski paced me for the last section, and we cruised down Glencliff, where Chris Dailey and Sarge intercepted us. Emily Angelillo and Drew Prescott jumped in from Glencliff to 25. The last mile was the fastest one, and my knees and feet told me so. Amber, Chase, Matt Zanchi, Leah Lin, and Annie Farrell joined at 25 and made the finish line extra special. I'm so grateful.
Fueled mostly with Precision drink mix and 90g gels, along with LMNT, pierogies, ramen and your usual snacks. I had 400mg of caffeine plus a soda over a few hours to keep me awake.