FKT: Karl Augsten - The Black Tusk (BC, Canada) - 2021-07-29

On Thursday July 29th, 2021 I took the day off work to attempt Black Tusk, in order to increase the chances of not running into anyone on the scramble section and beat the crowds in Garibaldi! It was a hot day so I started early at the rubble creek trailhead around 7:20 am. I was carrying 500ml of Maurten 160, 2 GU gels, and a garmin inreach (Just in case the worst happened) in my naked belt. Lucky for me after the main turn off to the black tusk trail there were only a few groups on their way to the summit, including a deer and fawn. My timing on the summit scramble couldn't have been more perfect since there was a group of 3 fast looking trail runners heading up the scree slope just as I passed them. After a few wrong turns up the wrong chimney I was able to find the correct one and made it up to the top in 1:26:01. I had the entire summit to myself! I was surprised my body was able to sustain a hard pace going uphill, and I didn't leave anything for the downhill so it was going to be a fun decent! As I descended the summit chimney I was calling out below me to ensure the group of three didn't start up at the same time. I got down safely and luckily the group of 3 had just crested the scree slope as I was coming down. Perfect timing! You do not want to attempt the scramble fast with other groups above or below you. I was able to keep the legs moving on the downhill just barely, while calling out to hikers ascending the rubble creek trail (Thanks for moving out of the way for me!). With about 1 minute to the finish I caught sight of my girlfriend who managed to take a quick video of me finishing in a time of 2:15:40 that I am proud of!