On October 6 I ran the Catskills Fire Tower Challenge. I’ve admired Lauren’s record for years but I didn’t really think I could beat it until this year. I knew it would be close, but I thought I could shave off some time on the transitions (while still driving safely and legally). I wrote out the times I needed to hit and taped the paper to my dashboard.
I went in the same order as Lauren, trying to get Overlook done before the parking lot filled up. The Overlook parking lot was already half full just after sunrise. Lauren was several minutes ahead of me on Overlook.
Tremper and Hunter are very rocky. Hunter was probably the most fun, with several people yelling “nice job” and “wow” on the way down. I was 10 minutes ahead at this point but on the long drive over to Balsam Lake I came across an unexpected road race. I lost a few minutes slowing down for this and I got the last parking spot at the trailhead. The people picnicking at the top of Balsam got a good laugh when I touched the tower and quickly turned around.
I was still a several minutes ahead as I left for Red Hill, but I ran into some road construction where there was a temporary traffic light (picture). My form had been deteriorating and I had been cramping a little since the end of Hunter. I opened a salt pill and put the salt directly in my mouth, hoping that would hold the cramping off for a while. I just needed a steady run on Red Hill and I’d make the time. I did, by about five minutes. I don’t think I could go much faster without getting fitter, though it would be nice to try for a sub 7-hour time. The weather was pretty much perfect. I didn’t bring a phone (hence no pictures) or much gear at all to save weight (though I did have an InReach as a backup).