Last year, I set the women's unsupported FKT for Delaware's Lowest to Highest Point as a fundraiser for my friend Kathy's non-profit, WeRunWithYou. Kathy is a brain aneurysm survivor, and her non-profit provides grants for stroke research, including for my colleagues at the University of Delaware Physical Therapy department.
I had such an enjoyable time that I spent this past year scheming on how to bring my FKT time lower! Last year I did it in 1:10:28 on a Friday mid-morning, and Strava showed that 100 seconds of that was stopped time due to traffic and intersections. This year, I did more course recon, took in caffeinated gels, and the game changer--I decided to go on a weekend morning right around sunrise. This way I could avoid traffic and blaze through the intersections. It didn't hurt that I also have a bit more fitness this year. I figured I could take 5 full minutes off and try to beat the men's second fastest time (1:04:59).
The gates were closed to cars at Fox Point State Park before 8am, but there was an obvious pedestrian-sized opening for me to go in. I had parked a mile away, which gave me a solid warm-up jog. I took 3 caffeinated gels: once before my warm-up, then at miles 2 and 5. I also carried 20oz of Skratch hydration mix. I wrote out turn-by-turn directions and had also driven the course 2 days before, so I was very familiar with every turn and how to cut through parking lots, gas stations and intersections (the fun of an urban FKT!). It was a beautiful day with a gorgeous sunrise at the Low Point, and in the high 40's with very little wind. A perfect day to set a new FKT!
Heading into the final neighborhood, my watch was only at 57 minutes, and I thought "I'm doing it!!!" Kathy had parked by the finish area at the High Point, Ebright Azimuth, not expecting me to come around the corner already, and managed to snag a video of me hauling to the finish. I was floored and shocked to see that my finish time was 1:02:15, meaning I took over eight minutes off my previous time! And only 6 seconds were stopping time at intersections.
This was an enjoyable challenge that I plan to repeat every year, with the goal of getting under an hour the next year, and potentially having a crack at the overall FKT (men's time) eventually!