Well, that ended up being harder than I thought. I made the drive out and got started at 11:55am. Conditions were ok with a possible shower in the forecast. Things were a little wet, but not too bad. The first loop of this route is in much better shape than the 2nd. I enjoyed the trail and stayed switched on. It's really easy to make navigational errors, which I did many times. I got to the connector trail and that's where things become less maintained. At one point I looked down and saw all the cuts and blood on my shins. I should have worn compression sleeves or something. I made it to the 2nd loop and kept trying to move well. It's really hard to keep any momentum with constant slow downs. Whether it's a short, punchy climb or a down tree or trees, my speed constantly varied. I thought I brought more than enough nutrition, but I thought wrong. I had maple syrup, energy drink, electrolyte powder and water. I think if I packed a bar in my pack that would have helped. Nonetheless, I didn't have too much left to go so it was time to suck it up. I made it to the final loop and tried to keep the speed up. When I made it to the Black River, I knew I was nice and close. I stopped my watch at the gate and was pretty happy to break 4 and a half hours. I definitely got beat up out there a bit. I didn't see a single soul on the trail all day. I only saw hunters near Victoria Falls before I started. I love FKT days:)
Total watch miles-22.46
Elevation gain-1581 feet
Average per mile-11:50