FKT: Nick Tusa - Lone Eagle Peak (CO) - 2022-08-19

Wow what a day. Started later than I intended but was okay with it because the weather forecast looked great for today! Had the plan of starting out strong and making it to Mirror Lake in under 1:20 to give myself some extra time in case route finding doesn’t go my way near the summit. Made it in 1:17 feeling great. Ran into some hikers about a mile from the summit asking about the route since it was their first time. I was honest with them, it’s not an easy route to follow. Then I took off with some pep in my step as we always do when we pass people in the mountains. Route finding was going to plan until it wasn’t… I headed down the gully to end up finding myself too high on the ridge. My quads were cramping and I didn’t know where to go from here. I took a deep breath, along with a salt tablet and decided I need to head down. Realizing I only had 10 mins to reach the summit, there was a sense of urgency. Moving urgently through class 4 terrain isn’t advised. Then I found myself yet again on class 5 terrain but with the summit in sight. The class 5 move to get over to the line to the summit was moderate but my foot slipped. I remained calm and got back on my line. A couple minute scramble to the peak and the FKT was mine. My mind was flooded with all the work I have put in scrambling this year and how far I’ve come in such a short amount of time. My heart was truly in it. I did it, I made it to the summit a minute shy of the old record. I preceded to let out a primal scream and then quickly headed down. I ran into the hikers again right when I was out of the gully. They politely asked me about some beta on the line to the summit. Part of me wanted to ignore them because I was focused on getting the round trip. But that’s not who I am, I love to help people when I can. I spent 30 seconds pointing out the line and I was back on my way. I then unintentionally took a small detour on the way down, but was back on the “trail” soon after. I filled up my BeFree from a small waterfall knowing I would need it on the descent. As I approached Mirror Lake again, I was presented with storm clouds. All I thought to myself was this wasn’t something I planned for. Rain drops began falling fast and the trail quickly turned into a steady flowing stream. Shortly after temps dropped fast and the thought of hypothermia crossed my mind. I remained strong and continued to put one drenched foot in front of the other at a pace that was much slower than I planned for. The trail felt like it was going to go on forever, then I saw the starting gate. I looked down at my watch and saw the time, 4:40… I did it. I got my first two FKT’s. This is an effort I am proud of. Not just because of the times but because I never gave up.